The original Bee Simulator has some good buzz among bee enthusiasts, I'm told. Thus, it's no surprise that Untold Tales and VARSAV Game Studios have a follow-up in the works called Bee Simulator: The Hive. This one will combine the content of the original game with an all-new expansion called "The Hive." It will still support 2-player split-screen co-op, so we're ready to bee thrilled by it.

We've been intrigued by 33 Immortals ever since it was announced at the Xbox Games Showcase in 2023. It promises to be the first 33-player online co-op game, a very unique number. Players will become damned souls and then team up with others to participate in large-scale raids against huge hordes of enemies and massive bosses. All that, plus Ro...

One of 2023's best Castlevania-style platformers was Gal Guardians: Demon Purge from PQUBE. As such, there's a good chance that the sequel, Gal Guardians: Servants of the Dark, will end up knocking our socks off this year too. We'll find out when the digital version comes along at the end of March. Physical collectors won't be left in the cold, however, because the physical PlayStation and Switch editions now have a firm June 12 release date.

Remember how fun Advance Wars: Portrait of Ruin was in co-op? It's not often that you find a turn-based strategy game that's so easy to play AND also supports the co-op. That's why we're pumped for Warside, the upcoming strategy game for Steam from Lavabird and First Break Labs (makers of Cthulhu's Reach). It plays a lot like Advance Wars, and we're dying to play it with friends.

While there won't be a Double Dragon game in Arc System Works' upcoming Super Technos World: River City & Technos Arcade Classics, the Japanese publisher does have something special in store for Double Dragon fans this year... Double Dragon Revive, the slick 3D reboot of the classic co-op beat 'em up, is due out in October. Preorders have opened up and include a free bonus game. To further hype up aficionados, Arc System Works is releasing a series of developer diaries with lots of behind-the-scenes details and images.

Long ago, Technos was one of the big Japanese developers, gifting the Double Dragon series and many other fine games to the world. Sadly, the studio closed its doors in 1996. Happily, however, Arc System Works bought the Technos name and library in 2015 and has produced several quality games since then. 2020's Double Dragon & Kunio-kun Retro Brawler Bundle compiled an impressive selection of Technos' NES games. This year, Arc System Works will follow up with Super Technos World: River City & Technos Arcade Classics.

Even though we haven't covered Killing Floor 3 all that much, please don't mistake that for a lack of enthusiasm. Killing Floor 2 is one of my all-time favorite co-op shooters, and I thought the Killing Floor 3 closed beta was pretty terrific. Some other players must've had a different impression, however, providing lots of constructive criticism to Tripwire, the series developer. Hence, Killing Floor 3 has been delayed from its original March 25 release date to a nebulous "later in 2025" release window. Darn it!

Remember when Variable State, the developer of Virginia (the game, not the state), announced a PC shooter called Polaris would be coming in 2024? Well, it actually came out in early 2025, but that's pretty common in game development. The important part is that Polaris is here, baby, and it sells for only ten bucks.

What's a surefire way for a Steam game to reach more Steam users? Steam Deck support! That's just the tack adopted by Cthulhu's Reach from The Fine Arc and First Break Labs. This Steam Early Access title is a horror-themed bullet heaven shooter that features 4-player online co-op. Now that it's safely playable on Steam Deck, players can battle the terrors of the deep on the go.

The original Gal Guardians: Demon Purge is a fantastic Castlevania-style co-op platformer, so it's great news that it'll soon have a sequel.  Gal Guardians: Servants of the Dark will arrive on consoles and PC in March - not too far from now! What's more, PQUBE has released a free demo on Steam that allows players to experience the opening of the game and its 2-player local co-op support.

As a part of the Steam Next Fest event, Forever Entertainment has released a free demo of THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: Remake on Steam. The demo allows 1-2 local players to try the first level of the remake. Join James Taylor and Gary Stewart as they fight stop an army of undead zombies and monsters from taking over the world.

It's a rare treat to see a game that was previously non-cooperative gain co-op support. That's just what happened to Tetris Forever this week. The third game in Digital Eclipse's Gold Master Series (which also contains the delightfully quirky Llamasoft: The Jeff Minter Story) is a collection of new and classic Tetris games from throughout the franchise's history, plus documentary content. The arrival of Super Tetris, which supports 2-player local co-op, pushes the game count up to 21. That's a lotta Tetris!