Since gaming’s origin in the arcades, cooperative play has been a prevalent feature. Atari’s driving game Fire Truck was released as a coin-operated arcade machine in 1978 and is considered to be the first to ever offer cooperative play. Since the late ’70s, co-op gaming became more and more prevalent until the mid-2000s. The release of the Xbox 360 and PS3 changed the way multiplayer gaming was perceived, as the consoles brought online gaming into the mainstream.
The sudden rise in online multiplayer initially favored competitive multiplayer, as many players had never tested their skills against a large pool of players before. Thankfully, co-op gaming began finding its feet again, and as the Xbox One games on this list show, this feature is still alive and well.
9 Dark Souls III (87)
Dark Souls isn’t a series known for giving players a helping hand, and the third game is no different. Players have no map, no waypoints between bonfires, and no list of quests to flick through. Instead, FromSoftware requires players to understand the world around them to progress. Whether that’s through interacting with NPC’s, learning the game’s lore, or simply using intuition to choose a path to follow.
One of the few ways that the game does offer a helping hand is through summoning. By using the White Sign Soapstone, another player can be summoned to aid in the fight against a boss or a tough section of enemies.
8 Guacamelee! Super Turbo Championship Edition (88)
Despite its smooth framerates and stunning visuals that are bursting with sharp colors, Guacamelee! is a throwback to the days of arcades and the early generations of home consoles. The 2D Metroidvania takes players back to the days of classic beat ’em ups like Double Dragon, Double Axe, and Streets of Rage.
One of the game’s many old-school features is its drop-in co-op, letting a second player quickly join in on the action.
7 FIFA 14 (88)
Although the games have come under a great deal of criticism lately, there was once a time when FIFA fully deserved its spot as the most popular sporting game series. As the Metascore suggests, Fifa 14 is one of the most critically acclaimed entries in the series. This was helped in no small part by the inclusion of the holy grail of yearly sporting game features — a new game engine.
The game’s co-op predominantly comes in the form of Pro Clubs. The mode lets players team up with friends online, who each play as one individual player, rather than controlling an entire team.
6 Divinity: Original Sin – Enhanced Edition (88)
A prequel to 2002’s Divine Divinity, Larian Studios’ Divinity: Original Sin – Enhanced Edition released in 2014 to universal praise. Just over a year after its initial PC release, the game came to Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in the form of an enhanced edition.
Along with visual and voice-acting improvements, the enhanced edition expanded on the game’s online co-op by adding simple drop-in couch co-op.
5 Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin (89)
Dark Souls II and Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin may be considered the weakest entries in the soulsborne series by fans, but they’re also two of the most critically acclaimed games in the entire series.
Summoning is an even more vital feature in Dark Souls II than in the other soulsborne titles, as the game includes significantly more bosses. As would be expected, Dark Souls II‘s summoning works very similarly to Dark Souls III‘s, with White Sign Soapstones again being key.
4 Monster Hunter: World (90)
The iconic Monster Hunter series is known the being one of the best series of RPG games ever made. 2018’s Monster Hunter: World continued the IP’s consistency as a critically acclaimed series, as the game picked up Japan Game Awards’ Game of the Year award in 2018.
One of the many features that the series’ is praised for is its excellent co-op, which allows players to team up and take down the many tough monsters.
3 Forza Horizon 3 (91)
The Forza games are slowly but surely becoming one of the most critically acclaimed racing series in gaming history. Forza Horizon 3 is no different, evidenced by its huge Metascore and Best Sports/Racing Game of the Year accolade at The Game Awards 2016.
It’s not often that racing games offer co-op, but Forza Horizon 3 lets up to four players take part in a co-op campaign.
2 Divinity: Original Sin II – Definitive Edition (92)
The second Divinity: Original Sin appearance on this list, Larian Studios impressively found ways to improve on the already excellent predecessor. Similarly to the first Original Sin game, Original Sin II was released on PC first before coming to consoles a year later with numerous improvements.
The game was nominated for Best Co-op Multiplayer at the Reader’s Choice Best of 2017 Awards but was ultimately beaten by Studio MDHR’s Cuphead.
1 Grand Theft Auto 5 (97)
One of gaming’s most iconic franchises has always been known for its single-player gameplay. However, the post-release GTA 5 online mode has given the series a new identity by offering tons of new missions, heists, and jobs that can be completed with a friend.
The mode reportedly earned Rockstar a whopping half a billion dollars in 2019. The eye-watering amount that the company is earning is presumably a big reason as to why the highly-anticipated GTA 6 is taking so long to be announced. With Rockstar’s giant earnings, it’s not entirely unrealistic to think that GTA 6‘s single-player campaign may be little more than an after-thought.
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