2012 PC Coop Game List

The cooperative list of PC games continues for 2012. I expect the zombie craze is over.  Probably gonna see more co-op titles springing up in the "Free-to-play" online market.

Coop list for a different year.

Rules for the following list:

• Online or LAN, no split screens
• Involve 2 or more human players
• Players work along a progressive storyline, campaign, or various goals
• Does not have to be the same as single player campaign
• Generic RTS Skirmishes and Team based game types like CTF and Deathmatch are not included.
• No MMOs (game must have a conclusion or set goal)
• I'll be subjective with Survival/Horde modes as the genera has matured a bit.   

Shooters: 

Syndicate - shooter - 4 player - February
[ Video ]
Coop runs a separate campaign from the single player, 9 missions.  If this game sounds familiar, its because this is a reboot, dropping the tactical elements of the original.  Coop action is L4D in nature.

The Darkness 2 - shooter - 4 player - February
[ Video ]
Coop gameplay will intertwine with the single player storyline.  Seems a bit like Dead Island without the RPG.

Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City - Shooter - 4 player - May
[ Video ]
Okay, its a zombie coop game.  Late to the party.  What more is there to say? Your Umbrella Security Service.  Wait, don't they die a lot?

Ghost Recon: Online - shooter
[ Video ]
Ubisoft killed the PC release of GR: Future Soldier [Then revived it] in favor of the "free-to-play" micro transactional model.  GR:O is a cover shooter, not so much a tactical shooter.

Ghost Recon: Future Soldier - shooter - 4 player
Ubisoft pulled this game from the PC lineup after a rant about piracy.  Now they decided to add it back to the PC, after presumably noting PC games sales on the rise.  This may place it in the crappy 'port' category, but at least GR:4 is a PC option.

Spec Ops: The Line - shooter - 3 player - June

A tactical shooter.  The Spec Ops series has been less then stellar in the past.  The decision to pull coop from the campaign, indicates a bad start for this one.  Its possible coop will be a parallel story.

Borderlands 2 - shooter - 4 player - September
[ Video ]
Return to Pandora with new characters, more guns, and the same cell shading goodness.

Aliens: Colonial Marines - FPS - 4 player - Q3
Its not Zombies, its Aliens.  Same thing really.

Arma 3 - shooter - Q4
In the past, its been one of the most inaccessible, confusing games ever.  Can this tactical shooter polish the gameplay without loosing its authentic elements that the series is known for?

Brothers in Arms: Furious 4 - shooter - 4 player
The series has become desperate, now taking a Inglorious Bastards/BF: Bad Company approach.  IT could work, but I always liked the authentic style.

MechWarrior: Online - shooter - 4 player
Free to play.  Very little known at this time.

Firefall - shooter - 4 player
Looks like a cross between Tribes and Borderlands.  It'll be a MMO Free-to-play, but should have a coop gameplay element that'll include 4 player coop PvE. Limited info at this time.

Resident Evil 6 - shooter - 6 player - November
All rumors at this point.

Warface - shooter
[ Video ]
Crytek's free-to-play shooter.  Promises Co-op missions that "reward teamwork and individual skill."

RPGs:

Mass Effect 3 - RPG - 4 player - March
Fight alongside your friends as the galaxy goes to war.  This mode will enhance the single play experience without directly effecting the storyline of single player.

Diablo 3 - ARPG - 4 player - Q1
Jesus finally, this game has been in the coop list for the last 2 years.   Sorry, Battlenet play only.  This game should be extremely fleshed out at this point.  The question is, can it live up to hype?

Grim Dawn - ARPG - 4 player
The spiritual successor to Titan Quest.  Like Torchlight, game is being developed on a small budget.  

All Zombies Must Die! - ARPG - 4 player - Q4
Low budget arpg with guns and zombies.

Torchlight 2 - ARPG - 4 player 
The first Torchlight was more of a pilot, just bare bones, single player ARPG. This adds coop, and is a planned lead-in to an MMO.

Path of Exile - ARPG
Another Diablo clone, with more blood.  It dabbles into MMO space, so I'll need more info on this title. Defiantly another Free-to-Play micro-transaction game.

Kingdom Under Fire 2- RPG/RTS - 15 player
Small amount of info on this title, the coop element may become MMO style, disqualifying it from this list.

Krater - ARPG - summer
Top-down RPG set in a post-apocalyptic universe.

Strategy: 

Defenders of Ardania - strategy - 2 player
Its a Tower Defense game,  with RPG elements.  Will allow players to be offensive or defensive players.  Guess that makes it a Tower Offense game too.

Sins of a Dark Age - strategy
Well, someone had to make a coop DOTA game.

Other:

Ibb and Obb - platformer - 2 player - March
[ Video ]
An indie title of sorts, It'll defy gravity and require working together, much like Trine but cuter.

A Valley Without Wind - Action/platformerFrom the indie developers that created AI War, Arcen Games are known for focusing on coop game play.  The platformer genera has found a resurgence in the indie world (Brade, Trine) it'll be interesting to see what twist is in store here.

Unlikely:

Eternal Light (Witches)  - Action - 3 player
Scantily clad chicks with swords. Its gone through a name change, then web site goes null.  I'd say title is DOA along with the developer.

Star Trek - Shooter - 2 player - 2013
Builds from the J.J. Adams reboot of the franchise.   Looks like a generic action title in the Trek Universe.