The stories for this week:

This week's Co-Op Classics features a couple of games that are near and dear to my heart.  I've been looking forward to writing about them for quite a while!  In my opinion, you will find no better examples of the four player co-operative beat 'em up than this series, especially the second title.  Grab some quarters, set down your soda, and pull up a chair, it just might be a long evening of crawling through the Dungeons and Dragons arcade game series!

You may have noticed that our games pages are now sporting spiffy links to something called Goozex.  To help celebrate our new partnership, we're excited to announce a brand new promotion that we are running with video game trading site Goozex.com.  Starting today and ending on January 9th, anyone that registers for Goozex using the coupon code co-optimus will be automatically entered to win a Rock Band 2 Xbox 360 Special Edition Bundle (MSRP $189.99) for free!  One lucky winner will be drawn on January 9th, so act fast!

It's a snowy weekend here in the Northeast, which makes it perfect for playing games.  Here's what the staff around Co-Optimus HQ will be playing.

Along with some fun Christmas content, the harmless-yet-controversial Playstation 3 title LittleBigPlanet is receiving more cross-franchise downloads, this time courtesy of Kojima Productions!

We sparked some rumors a few weeks ago in regards Crackdown 2, and now Gamasutra has thrown some fuel on the fire.  Key members from the original Crackdown team have formed a new studio in Scotland called Ruffian Studios.   In fact, Crackdown lead designer Billy Thompson, is part of the trio of founders and the unconfirmed rumors state a sequel is already in development.

The following post contains a ton of information about the upcoming co-op survival horror game, Resident Evil 5.  Reading any further may induce drooling and extreme jealousy.  You've been warned.

It may have been lost in all the fall release shuffle, but you'll recall a nice little game called Viva Pinata: Trouble In Paradise.  As we stated in our review, it's the perfect sequel to a fantastic game, and greatly benefits from the addition of co-op, both online and even local.  One of the new features in VP2 was the availability of snow for your garden.  Why not use that to make your garden the perfect Winter Wonderland?  Here are some tips, straight from Rare.

What's better than getting a brand new screenshot from the game that's been in development since 486DX processors were cool?  Getting a brand new screenshot from Duke Nukem Forever AND getting a picture of two scantily clad girls in front of a Christmas tree in pleather outfits.  I have no idea what they have to do with the game, but I imagine George Broussard said "shake it baby" before snapping the photo.

  Earlier this morning, we brought word that TimeSplitters and Haze developer Free Radical Design had shut and locked the doors, then held what seemed to be a doomsday meeting for the staff at a nearby hotel. As the day has progressed, we've learned from Rob Yescombe - a screenwriter in the employ of Free Radical - that the company is not ...

Looking for some last minute gift ideas?  Perhaps some official Co-Optimus swag from Internet Retailer Zazzle.com.  Not only can you get the Co-Optimus shirt printed on any shirt you want in any way you want, you can get keychains, buttons, ties and stickers.  Look for more Zazzle products from us next year!

Haze developer Free Radical Design has apparently closed its doors this morning, according to unnamed "inside" sources for Gamesindustry.biz.