Operation Cooperation

By Ben Barker

Cooperative play got an initial boost on the Xbox® video game system long ago when the first Halo® wowed us all with its split-screen cooperative mode, which let a pair of matching Master Chiefs take on the game's single-player mode side by side. Co-op play moved onto Xbox Live™ with games like Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell®: Pandora Tomorrow™ and Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell®: Chaos Theory™.

Now developers at Vicarious Visions, the folks responsible for bringing id Software's PC hit DOOM 3® to Xbox, offer a completely redesigned co-op version of the game's story mode. It's not just two people racing through the single-player game, it's a whole new experience that's like nothing else on XboxLive.

Double your fun with DOOM 3co-op.

DOOM 3 co-op is similar in many ways to the single-player mode; after all, there's no reason to throw out the already gripping story. But when you're playing with a friend, you don't necessarily want a lot of mood and atmosphere. You want to shoot demons, and shoot a lot of them, as you progress through the 20 custom-built co-op levels. If you've played through the single player game, you immediately notice some big differences.

Information revealed in a cut scene might now pop up at a terminal so that you and your buddy can check it and get back to the slaughter. The layout of the levels has been slightly tweaked so that the two of you can more easily navigate hallways that were originally meant to feel confined and dangerous for a single space marine (mind you, they still feel confined and dangerous, but built for two). Most importantly, you face a lot more evil than before.

Yes, two marines means Vicarous Visions was free to add a slew of additional enemies for the fragging. Neither you nor your pal will ever want for something to shoot. And even if you've mastered single-player mode, you're still in for some nasty surprises.

This fits well into the cooperative theme, in which everything is doubled—sort of—for the marines. Power-ups are still tucked in corners, but now they're specifically for either the first or second player. That prevents your pals from "accidentally" taking all the ammo. Friendly fire is turned off (though you can change that in the options). But even when friendly bullets can't kill you, they can still take out your armor. You both have to be careful. After all, you're relying on your partner, just as your partner is relying on you.

The revamped co-op levels offer more foes to frag.

Co-op mode also provides new ways for you to take on the demons of Hell (which are on Mars, so I suppose they're Martian demons from Hell) and make use of the many delicious weapons at your disposal. One player might take aim and lay down heavy fire on a particularly dangerous foe, while the second player approaches the distracted foe from the side for a well-placed headshot.

Since the Xbox Voice Communicator lets both players stay in touch even when they're far apart, you can design strategies on the fly (and you can also call for help when the going gets a little rough). There's no need for the two of you to constantly stay right on top of each other. If you want to split up at the top of the game and explore separately, you can drive the needle on the Scare-o-Meter into the red and keep it there.

You should also experiment with weapons that work well together. Tossing a grenade while your pal is hitting the zombies with the chainsaw? Not so smart. Using one marine to stand back and draw the fireballs while the second marine sneaks around and tosses a grenade? Now you're thinkin', Johnny.

While DOOM 3 co-op is great over Xbox Live, you can also play via Xbox System Link. And if you don't already have a partner, you can load a game on Xbox Live, jump in, and let another player find you and join in. Vicarious Visions has made it incredibly easy and rewarding to get into cooperative play. Now you just need to survive it if you can!

Comments about this article?