Couch Co-Op Is a Lost Art and Gaming Is Worse Without It
Online Multiplayer Gave Us Convenience. Couch Co-Op Gave Us Something We Can't Get Back.
EDITIORIALS
MattGhostie
7/6/20263 min read
Couch co-op gaming has been a staple of video games since Pong. Playing with friends at the arcade or messing around with your buddies on Halo Combat Evolved as a kid, all the way up to modern day with games like It Takes Two and Split Fiction. They have always been one of the things that made gaming feel like more than just a hobby. They make it a shared experience.
But as time has gone on, we've seen less and less of them. The rise of online multiplayer meant people could connect without being in the same room, and that gave companies a reason to push toward it. Now, they can charge for online access. Split screen support quietly disappeared from most major releases. Today it's generally one player per screen, and the idea of gathering around the same television to play together has started to feel like a relic of a different era.
That's a loss worth talking about. Couch co-op wasn't just a feature; it was a core part of what made gaming so special. And I'm genuinely grateful that studios like Hazelight are still out there carrying that torch.
The Arcade Days
Growing up, my dad and I used to go to Boomers, one of those local arcades. (Pretty ironic now given that arcades are basically gone.) But back then it was just a way for us to connect; playing Jurassic Park, Time Crisis, Need for Speed, whatever we wanted to spend our quarters on that day. . As a young kid without home consoles, the arcade was the birthplace of my experience with gaming. There was one time they had an unlimited play night and we spent 3 hours trying to beat Jurassic Park. Those memories of sitting next to my dad while playing on a shared screen stay with me and I’ll cherish them forever.
When I did eventually get access to home consoles, that same energy translated. Playing Halo Combat Evolved with friends on Blood Gulch, laughing, doing stupid things, getting up to go run around outside and coming back in for more. Guitar Hero sessions where we'd attempt the hardest songs, fail spectacularly, drop back down to easy and just enjoy shredding together. There were snacks. There was noise. It was a deeply social experience, and I think it was core to what made gaming worth connecting over in the first place.
It Takes Two Changed Everything
Now I'm older, and it still holds true. One of the first games my fiancée and I ever played together was It Takes Two. She's not a huge gamer, though she played some growing up with her dad. She was nervous going in-- her previous experience involved being in charge of the “H” button to reload the health while her dad fought the most epic battle of his gaming life Gaming can feel intimidating if you don't have a lot of experience with it. And couch co-op used to be a way to get through that because someone could be right there to teach and experience the game with you.
After convincing her we’d have a good time and I wouldn’t leave her behind like her brother used to do while playing Kirby Dreamland, we had a blast. More than that though, I think it was the first time she genuinely realized that gaming is accessible to everyone. That it doesn't have to be competitive. That you don't have to be good at it to enjoy it. I credit Hazelight with the moment she realized how much video games mean to me and that they can be a really special experience between two people, no pressure attached.
Why It Matters
Couch co-op is a lost art in gaming. And I do hope it comes back in full at some point, even though I realize why there's been a push against it.
Couch co-op was never inferior to online multiplayer. It just stopped being as lucrative, and it’s a shame money killed art yet again. That’s why I appreciate the companies that go out of their way to make games like that. And I hope they stick around for when I have children and for when their friends come over to my house. To have a way to experience video games with people in the same room, making immediate connections. Gaming isn’t meant to be experienced in isolation. It’s a means of bringing people together in a fun and creative world where the best RNG you get is who is playing beside you. That's something worth preserving.
