I love co-op games, and odds are, if you're reading this you probably do too. Being able to sit down with a friend or family member and experience gaming together is always a lot of fun. My issue is, no one ever wants to play video games with me. I know, sad right?

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I like to think it’s because I’m so good at games, people will feel like they’re dragging me down. In reality, it’s probably just that they don’t want to deal with me screeching at a locked door after thirty minutes of searching for a key. Some games I’ve wanted to try in co-op longer than others, and maybe one day I’ll be able to give them a shot. If only someone will relent.

10 Keep Talking And Nobody Explodes

In-Game Screenshot From Keep Talking And Nobody Explodes

I found Keep Talking And Nobody Explodes recently, and the game seems like a fun and unique puzzle experience. However, I’ll admit that I understand the reluctance on this one. No one wants to be stuck in a room with me, screaming back and forth as if a real bomb was about to go off. What can I say? I get into the games I play, and I’d take my bomb defusal role seriously.

The other issue is, it's hard to explain to people who don’t play games. “Do you wanna come defuse bombs with me” isn’t the kind of thing most people hear every day… I hope.

9 Portal 2

Games like High on Life Portal 2 closed door

The reason I can’t get anyone to play Portal 2 with me is that everyone I know who also games is also acutely aware of the fact that I am terrible with puzzles. I can appreciate what goes into making a tricky puzzle, but I will hate it nine out of ten times.

Just because I suck at puzzles doesn’t mean I don’t want to experience the sheer joy and challenge that is Portal 2’s multiplayer. There’s something rewarding about solving a puzzle. I may only solve one or two, but hey, I’d still be there for moral support.

8 Left 4 Dead 2

Coach about to attack a construction worker zombie

I can’t even explain how many hours I’ve put into Left 4 Dead 2 with randoms online and with the bots themselves. It can be plenty of fun with random people, but the experience really is something different with a group of friends.

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If I had a couple of people to play with me, I could finally be free of some of the most notorious AI in gaming. I can’t count how many times I’ve been downed while Ellis is running around looking for pills instead of coming to save me.

7 Resident Evil 5

Chris Redfield punches a boulder in Resident Evil 5

Considering a majority of the complaints about Resident Evil 5 come from how the AI partner performs, I think I deserve to find out how awesome the game is with a friend. Me and that AI Sheva are practically best friends, and somehow, I’ve never had a single issue.

The whole situation has me wondering if I’m just as bad as the AI or if the entire experience would be life-changing with another person. Just for once, I want to be on the other side of the boulder punching and see what it’s like from a different angle.

6 Castle Crashers

castle crashers fighting corn boss

Considering how bombastic and hilarious Castle Crashers and its many great levels are, it’s probably safe to say that I’m missing out on some of the experience by not playing it with friends. The game is basically built for four players, so it would save me a lot of time in that boss fight from the ice stage with my classic Blue Knight.

It’s hard to explain the game to people, because “it’s a fun little beat-em-up” is too simple, and “there’s this one level where you can ride on a continuously pooping deer in order to get away from what looks like something you create if you put a Furby in the microwave” is a bit too much.

5 Scott Pilgrim Vs The World

Scott Pilgrim performing Makoto's Hayate

I’m starting to think that people just haven’t seen the movie version of Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, because this game is an absolute hidden gem of the beat-em-up genre. It’s got a cool throwback art style that’s also unique while featuring tons of great levels, enemies, and fun gameplay.

Every time I try to tell people to give it a try, I’m forced to explain that it doesn’t actually have much to do with the movie, and is based on the graphic novels. Then those people go to the nearest store to get the graphic novels, and I’m left to play on my own.

4 Army Of Two

army of two

There are plenty of underrated gems in the third-person shooter genre, and the Army Of Two games are definitely among them. They all feature tactical gameplay that requires two people to work in tandem to survive.

The games are fantastic for co-op, but it’s hard to entice anyone to play them when I say they’re gritty third-person shooters from the late 2000s and early 2010s. Everyone knows that the shooters of that time have a bit of a wrap for being drab and all the same, so I’ll forever be left to wonder what could be with a Salem to my Rios.

3 Kirby Air Ride

The Japanese art for Kirby's Air Ride, showing a smiling Kirby riding a warp star

While I think that Kirby games are for anyone, you’ll probably have a hard time convincing most people of that. Even though Kirby Air Ride might be the most accessible game in the series, most people don’t want to play a Kirby racing game with me.

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That’s so sad because Kirby Air Ride is so much more than a typical racer. In fact, it’s the City Trial mode that really stands out for a lot of people. No one will ever get to experience a literal alien invasion and an Avengers-level meteor threat in a Kirby game. Seriously, this game is hardcore.

2 TimeSplitters Future Perfect

Timesplitters Future Perfect First-Person Action

I know how TimeSplitters fans feel. It’s a forgotten series that the true fans still hold out hope for some kind of modern remake. The game may be a relatively standard shooter, but the absolutely bonkers story and the hilarious Cortez are what makes TimeSplitters: Future Perfect truly special.

The entire story mode is designed for two players, and it’s a much more thrilling experience with a friend by your side on the couch. Being a player two in this game is also great because you’d get to control the hilarious and mildly inappropriate Harry Tipper.

1 Fighting Force

Fighting Force character select screen

I can admit that Fighting Force isn’t going to be on anyone’s greatest games of all times list, but it’s still a great little game of a previous era. It’s a simple but forgotten early 3D beat-em-up game where you have to destroy everyone in sight to stop a criminal overlord.

It’s one of those games that I have a lot of nostalgia for as one of my first beat-em-up gaming experiences, but outside of that, it’s a pretty middle-of-the-road game. It’s hard to get anyone to try it with me because there isn’t much to say other than you run through small stages and beat up bad guys. Simplicity works for some, just not when you’re trying to convince them to spend a few hours playing a game.

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