As a long time fan of the top down vertical shooters like Raiden II, Capcom's remake of their classic 1942 title for the Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network really caught my eye.  Titled 1942: Joint Strike, the game has a renewed focus on co-op play as well as adding some new enemies.  Of course the most obvious overhaul is a totally new 3D graphics engine while still maintaining a 2D shooter feel.   Finally, if you are a music lover, the game features a brand new score by Norihiko Hibino, an international composer well-known for his work creating music for the Metal Gear series.

As we get ever closer to Rock Band 2's release, more and more information is revealed.  This time, it's really official, straight from Harmonix, as reported by Shacknews.  The confirmed songs at the moment are:

Joystiq got their hands on some rumored pictures of Duke Nukem 3D for the Xbox Live Arcade.  Well not leaked pics of the game so much, but leaked pics of the dashboard into the game.  Exciting, I know.  Listed on the achievement page is a picture of an achievement called "Piece of Cake" which is unlocked by completing the first episode in co-op mode.  Duke 3D was always know for its great co-op play, so it's nice to see that it (allegedly) made its way into the Xbox Live Arcade release.

The Gamerscore Blog has some information about the upcoming release of Fable 2.  Three minigames will be available in the Pub: Keystone, Spinnerbox, and Fortune's Tower.  As you can tell from the screenshot above, these minigames are based on casino games.  These minigames will be released as DLC for 800 MS points ($10).  However, you can get the games for free by preordering Fable 2 from participating retailers.  It's unknown what co-op features will be available in these minigames, if any, but getting content for free is always newsworthy.  More in-game content and other goodies will be available in the collector's edition of the game, but the Pub games are available with even a regular edition preorder. 

Astute readers will notice that "This Week in Co-Op" is a day early. Well, I'm heading off for a short vacation, but I figured you'd appreciate an early column more than no column at all.

 N+ for the Xbox Live arcade is based off a popular internet flash game.  So then why should you spend your 800 MS points on the game?  Simple - online co-op.  Read on for our full review of the game, and stick around for one of our best video reviews ever.  

E3 is right around the corner, July 13th through 17th to be exact, and with that comes our first coverage of the biggest show in the games industry.  We'll be onsite to cover all the co-op games that are on hand, and hopefully bring you guys some great exclusive content like developer interviews and in game footage!

When a game claims to be the "most co-op game ever" it has some big shoes to fill.  This week Schizoid can put its Microsoft Points where its mouth is when it comes out on the Xbox Live Arcade. 

So, we heard some rumors.  This comes straight from the source.  Well, really, it's from Kotaku, and it's more like the source's friend's ex-girlfriend's hairdresser's aunt, who knows this girl who worked at Chuck E. Cheese and found the list on a napkin, then shared it with her roommate's monkey's uncle.  In any event, our love for Rock Band is such that even rumors are worth reporting.  Two versions of a setlist, from different sources, have quite a bit of overlap, which might make them more believable, or might not.  The songs on these lists are fantastic, including some of my favorite bands and tunes ever.  Everlong!  Eye of the Tiger!  Freakin' Battery!  Man in a Box!  And even Dream Theater, a band that is a guilty pleasure of mine.  Take both lists with a whole shaker full of salt, and check them out after the break.

No, we didn't get to play Too Human with Silicon Knights president Denis Dyack.  Sure we've covered this game inside, outside, upside and leftside - but this week's 1UP show has a more personal look at the game as the crew from 1UP sit around an Xbox 360 with Dyack and plays some of his game. 

With July well underway and a co-op night already under our belt you may have thought you missed out on our Official Xbox Live Co-Op Night for this month.  Well THINK AGAIN!   The official Xbox Live Co-Op night for this month is actually a little later this month due to our E3 coverage starting in a little more than a week. 

Another day, and another Diablo III story, or in this case, two stories, one pretty absurd and the other sure to be popular here at Co-Optimus.