The Best PC Co-Op Games

I originally wanted to title this ‘best games for couples in a long-distance relationship’. Which, I still think would be super accurate, though perhaps a little long-winded. These are definitely some of the games I’ve had the most fun in with my partner, and it’s almost guaranteed that you’ll have fun in them too, if you have the right person to play with!

Really though, with the right partner, any game can be fun – whether that partner is your long-distance beau, your best friend that moved away, or – heck, your sister in the other room.

Half the time, it’s not even really the game that’s so good, it’s the chemistry with the person in your Discord; the connection between you two that makes you feel all warm and bubbly. All those cute little sappy feelings affect the game, and even though maybe the game would be completely mediocre on its own, it’s the best darn game ever when you’re with your buddy.

To start off with what is probably my personal favorite on this list:

With a split screen, you always can be super nosy and see what your partner is up to. Almost every part of the game includes working together in some way, and the interactions between the characters are, simply put, adorable as heck.

With the friend pass, only one of you has to own the game… but if you’re a stickler for achievements like my partner and I, you’ll probably both want to own it!

There are plenty of mini-games to find around the world, with a system that keeps track of who has won the most. If you’ve both got a competitive streak, then it’s on, baby! Buuuuut, all of the mini-games are also pretty chill, so if you just want to have fun with it, that’s totally cool too.

It’s an incredibly heart-warming and funny game that brings whoever is playing it closer together.

Orcs Must Die! 2 is…. Well, I was hesitant to try it, at first. I wasn’t entirely sure I liked tower defense games that much, and it was kind of an old game – but my partner pushed me to try it with him, and I’m super glad I did.

With two player co-op, it’s up to you and your partner (and all of your traps) to defend the portal against a bunch of no good, stupid orcs – hence the name, Orcs Must Die! …. 2!

… Oh, I get it! It’s the second game, and it’s the first in the series to have 2 player co-op. That’s witty.

Anyways, it’s fun! You can divide up the lanes and decide who defends what, or maybe you can both meet in the center and put your traps together. It’s a game that can honestly suck hours out of you if you’re not careful… but when you’re with that special someone, it doesn’t feel like a waste at all.

Orcs Must Die! 3 is supposed to come out this month – July 23, 2020, to be exact – so now is the perfect time to get into the series!

So, obviously Sea of Thieves is a massively popular game. The Pirates of the Caribbean expansion just came out, and as of writing this article, there are over 45,000 players on Steam (and probably thousands upon thousands more on console)… and I’m literally writing this on a Wednesday morning. That’s wild.

I still feel like it deserves a mention though, because I’m not sure it gets enough respect as a game for two people. It’s possible to get up to four people on your crew of booty-gatherers, and all hop aboard the biggest ship of all, The Galleon.

… Honestly, all I hear is Galleon this and Galleon that, but what about The Sloop? She doesn’t get nearly enough attention, let me tell you. Sure, she may not even be the fastest ship, and she definitely isn’t the biggest…

but she is the cutest and coziest.

There’s nothing quite like rocking back and forth in a tiny little boat with your best friend, both trying desperately to find treasure and not let the ship sink on the way to Booty Isle.

“Go West, you idiot!”

“I am going West!”

“West is to the left.”

“Oh.”

Fun times.

It’s like a mix of Minecraft and Stardew Valley, which obviously means it’s going to be great.

You can make a custom character (yes, you can have furry ears) and run around an open world collecting wood, stone, bugs, fish – all those cool things that you can craft with and turn into custom items. Then you can use those custom items to decorate your farm!

Personally, my favorite part of almost any video game is the decorating. Maybe that sounds silly… and I guuuueeesss it is, but who cares? Games are supposed to be fun, even if it’s dumb!

Staxel’s decorating system is very cute. You’re able to take furniture from the other townspeople (if you turn off the lock on their property), and then use that furniture to decorate your own home. Have one big bedroom for you and your partner, or each of you can have your own separate rooms –

heck, you can both have separate homes, if you feel like spending some time apart (and also if you feel like building that much).

It’s super satisfying, watching something get clean. Whether that be your room, your kitchen, or… you know, the site of an alien massacre. Just take my word for it, it’s one of the most satisfying things in the world, watching all that blood and green goop be washed away…

Then someone tips over a bucket of dirty water, and you get to clean it up all over again!

Though you’re able to get through the level just by doing the bare minimum, it’s so much more gratifying to whip out your little Sniffer and see where all the dirt and debris are hiding, so you can throw them into the incinerator and watch them burn! Hahahaha!

Anyways—

Viscera is a satisfying game, but I’ll have to admit that more than an hour or two at a time is just a little too much cleaning. If I wanted to clean that much, I’d just… you know, clean in real life.

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In conclusion, long distance relationships – whether that be romantic or platonic – can be incredibly hard. Watching movies together and chatting over Discord is awesome, amazing, fantastic, but – gaming together. That’s where the magic really happens.

Being able to turn your mouse to the right and look straight into the eyes of your partner’s pixelated little avatar… well, there’s nothing better. Except, you know, being together in real life – but we’ll take what we can get.