The 2024 Co-Op Game of the Year Awards

The Co-Optimus staff name their favorite co-op and beyond co-op games of 2024.

It has been a while since we named our Co-op Games of the Year, but it’s time to bring it back, baby. This year, your fearless Surviving Editor (I’m not quite dead yet!) and other members of the Co-op Crew each selected a personal co-op game of the year. On top of that, we all picked a "Beyond Co-op" game of the year as well. That’s twice the GOTY picks for the same low price (free)! Only 2024 releases and games that received expansions in 2024 were considered.

Nominated by Paul Acevedo:

The EDF series is known for its B-movie sci-fi atmosphere and quirkiness, destructible environments, and addictive split-screen and online co-op. Earth Defense Force 6 has all that and more, making it the best game in the series (so far). Players select from four distinctive classes and embark on a mission to save the planet from the alien Primers. These fearsome foes have not only survived their defeat at the end of EDF5, but they’ve also used time travel to bolster their forces and undo their losses to the EDF.

The fight to save Mother Earth spans an incredible 146 missions (not counting two DLC mission packs) and five difficulty levels. In a huge improvement over past games, players’ completion progress is now shared between offline and online play. It will still take dozens of hours to finish EDF6 for the first time and hundreds of hours to fully complete it, but now players can hop between offline and online modes without hindering their progress. If you like grindy games and blowing up buildings and bad guys, EDF6 is as good as it gets. See our co-op review and developer interview for lots more details.

Earth Defense Force 6 costs $59.99 on PlayStation and Steam. On PlayStation, a deluxe edition is also available for $89.99 that bundles the game with DLC.

Paul’s honorable mention: River City Girls 2 “Double Dragon” DLC

Nominated by Mike Katsufrakis:

At its core, Granblue Fantasy: Relink is a well put-together action JRPG with a colorful cast of characters, beautiful setting, and a nice breezy campaign to play through. Where it shines, however, is the cooperative mode that takes its cues from MMO-style raid encounters and Monster Hunter. Chasing loot and building the perfect team composition while steadily fighting more and more difficult bosses with friends was extremely satisfying.

Granblue Fantasy: Relink sells for $59.99 on PlayStation and Steam.

Honorable Mentions: Helldivers 2, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, and Wayfinder

Nominated by Nick Puleo and Locke Vincent, who writes:

Helldivers 2 is hands-down my favorite co-op game this year, delivering an experience that masterfully combines tactical depth with pure, unadulterated fun. The game's genius lies in its self-contained missions that perfectly balance challenge and accessibility, while offering a constant stream of meaningful rewards that keep you coming back for more.

The loadout system is particularly impressive, offering deep customization that encourages experimentation. Whether you're wielding heavy weapons against massive bug swarms or coordinating precise strikes against robotic forces, each weapon and strategy feels distinct and satisfying. The way different players can specialize in specific roles—from crowd control to heavy weapons specialist—creates dynamic team compositions that make every mission feel fresh.

What truly sets Helldivers 2 apart is its perfect blend of serious tactical gameplay and laugh-out-loud moments. Whether it's accidentally calling in an orbital strike on your team or heroically saving a mission at the last second, the game consistently creates memorable stories. The diverse biomes, from frozen wastelands to scorching deserts, each present unique challenges and tactical considerations, while the flexible difficulty system lets you fine-tune the experience to your group's skill level.

Having played the original Helldivers, I can confidently say this sequel represents a quantum leap forward in every aspect. The improved graphics, refined mechanics, and enhanced cooperative elements come together to create some of the most exhilarating gaming moments I've experienced with friends. While it might sound hyperbolic, I genuinely believe this could be the best co-op shooter ever made—it's that special.

Helldivers 2 costs $39.99 on PlayStation 5 and Steam.

Nominated by Locke Vincent:

Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree (the expansion that came out in 2024) is a co-op game, but I played it solo. I loved having another excuse to dip into that world, where I spent countless hours exploring, feeling excited, getting scared, experiencing frustration, and finally reaching elation. We all know this emotional cycle and gameplay loop from From Software games—and “Shadow of the Erdtree” matches the original in both scope and size.

It was a truly amazing experience that I cherished. I took my time and didn't rush, spending a couple months to fully explore and complete this expansion. While I played many games this year, this one stood out simply due to the sheer number of hours I invested in it. Without a doubt, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree is my solo experience of the year.

Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree Edition costs $79.99 on Xbox and Steam. The “Shadow of the Erdtree” expansion by itself costs $39.99 on PlayStation and other platforms.

Paul’s honorable mention: Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night: Classic II: Dominique’s Curse

Nominated by Jason Love:

There have been a lot of co-op games this year … and picking one that is "best" or my "favorite" feels like an impossible task. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 scratches my need for more Warhammer 40K games that let me smash and tear through the heretics and xenos; Helldivers 2 let me "accidentally" rain hellfire down upon my compatriots in the name of democracy; and Content Warning certainly had some of our more memorable dumb fun streaming moments from this year.

However, the game that I think about most and is my GOTY is Airship Syndicate's Wayfinder. This third-person action-RPG shouldn't exist. Originally planned as an MMO, all of that came screeching to a halt when Digital Extremes laid off 30 of their staff and shut down its publishing division, which was working with Airship to get Wayfinder out. In today's gaming market that should have been the end of things right then, but Airship held on. They did everything they could to ensure that Wayfinder would still be released, and the end result is something magical, fun, and gorgeous.

There are a number of co-op titles on the horizon for 2025 that promise to consume my gaming time, but I would drop them in a heartbeat for the chance to play more/new content for Wayfinder. While that seems unlikely, I’m glad that the devs at Airship Syndicate pulled through and released this gem instead of dooming it forever into the pit of unreleased video games.

Wayfinder sells for $24.99 on PlayStation and Steam.

Jason’s Honorable Mentions: Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, Helldivers 2, and Content Warning

Nominated by Paul Acevedo:

Dragon Quest (or the Americanized Dragon Warrior) was many gamers’ introduction to the Japanese RPG genre. Since the NES days, the series has continued to proliferate, with 11 numbered entries and countless spinoffs. As time moves us farther and farther from the arrival of the early games, it helps to keep the older titles around so that new generations can experience them. Square-Enix has chosen to go a step further with Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, fully remaking the 1988 NES game with 3D environments, fresh 2D sprites, and orchestral music.

Upon starting a game, players will name their hero, choose a gender (a new option for the remake), and select from a few customization options. Then follows a unique prologue segment in which players answer a series of personality questions and then complete one of several cryptic scenarios. This process determines the hero’s personality and stats. Players can also recruit or create a party of three additional characters, choosing from an array of classes that each have different abilities and strengths. Later in the game, party members can change class, retaining their previous abilities and a portion of their stats. Raising characters up through the levels and switching classes multiple times provides plenty of freedom and replay value.

The game spans two overworlds and features a day/night cycle that affects the lives of townspeople, the appearance of overworld monsters, and the availability of friendly monsters. Recruiting these friendly monsters is new to the remake, as is the new Monster Wrangler class that excels at recruitment and gains abilities by collecting monsters. Friendly monsters can also be out the test in the new monster arenas for rewards. The GameBoy Color version’s “Traps and Trapdoors” minigame didn’t make the cut in this remake, but the Monster Wrangler and monster arenas more than make up for it.

While DQIII is a little light on story compared to newer RPGs, the addition of voice acting in key scenes and new cinematics focused on the hero’s father, Ortega, help flesh out the narrative. Building new parties, exploring the world at your own pace, engaging in lots of turn-based battles, collecting monsters and mini-medals, and tackling the new post-game content are where the fun lies here. The original game has long been my favorite JRPG, and HD-2D Remake is the best way to play it.

Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake costs $59.99 on Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, and Steam.

Nominated by Nick Puleo and Mike Katsufrakis, who writes:

What more can be said about Balatro? It's been quite some time since any game triggered a "just one more run" reflex in me, but once Balatro took ahold of me, it was all I could think about. Decorating a combo-driven deck builder in the familiar language of playing cards and poker was a masterful way to ease people in. There was nothing more satisfying for me this year than seeing my points total hit scientific notation.

Balatro sells for $14.99 on Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, and Steam. It's also available on mobile.

Mike’s Honorable Mentions: Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Metaphor: ReFantazio, and Rise of the Golden Idol

Nominated by Jason Love:

At the start of summer, I decided that I'd finally sit down and watch all of Twin Peaks. I had attempted it once before but just wasn't in the right mindset to enjoy it. I'm glad I waited because I definitely wouldn't have been able to appreciate Fire Walk with Me, a movie I now think about on a weekly if not daily basis.

It is perhaps this same mindset that led me to Mouthwashing, a video game that I now think about just as often. It’s difficult to get into the heart of Mouthwashing without giving away what makes it so impactful, but if you've heard buzz about this game and are interested, give it a shot. It's not a long title, yet within that time, it will leave its mark. Much like Fire Walk with Me, there are some scares, goofy moments, and bizarre occurrences, but the real horror lies in the actual events and what those scares represent.

Mouthwashing costs $12.99 on Steam.

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Thanks for reading our 2024 Games of the Year Awards! Now, let's see what 2025 has in store for us...