Game #1041: The Adventures of Cookie & Cream

  The Dark Souls of cooperative games.

 Before Dark Souls, From Software made this little, charming and downright brutal game called... The Adventures of Cookie & Cream, and I am not kidding about the brutal part. This is a puzzle/platforming co-op hybrid in which you play as the titular rabbits as they try to make their way around an Island and all its themed zones.

 It features a pretty novel control layout that is made to facilitate two players holding a single joystick, which is cute if you play with a significant other, and awkwardly fun if its with a friend. Cookie is controlled with the left analog stick and the two L shoulder buttons, while Cream is controlled with the right analog stick and the R shoulder buttons. If it gets too awkward, multiplayer can also be played on individual joysticks, but that's no fun!

 Each bunny is set on their own side of the screen, but they should try to keep up with each other, as the camera will try to focus on the one that is left behind, so if you get too far ahead you won't be able to safely see what's coming up. And do keep in mind that every stage must be beaten under a time limit, and getting hurt in any way will cost you valuable seconds.

 As you could probably tell, the game will often times pit you with obstacles that a bunny must help the other one overcome, from their own side of the screen. For instance, one bunny might have to push platforms onto the other screen, or operate a mechanism to move the other bunny or maybe even carry it on a boat! It's pretty inventive, and pretty fun.

 There's one tiny caveat tho, the game is challenging enough in co-op, and really fun, but, while single player is doable... it gets crazy hard eventually. Heck, if a rabbit stays still for too long, an annoying time-zapper enemy will try to hit it, so you have to be constantly on the lookout on both sides of the screen while having the bunnies perform widely different tasks. It's fun, but a different kind of fun, to the point that some of the later world feel downright unfair. I'll admit I wasn't able to finish the game in Single Player, the Circus World became impossible to get through, at least as far as my hand-eye coordination could manage.

 I thought The Adventures of Cookie & Cream was a fantastic, very original game. I love the fact that the game doesn't change whether you play it by yourself or with another player, but the kind of entertainment value you get out of it does change. I admit that I think they should've made some parts a bit easier, or maybe grant you more time and leeway with the time-suckers in Single Player, but hey, it's still a great game.

 8.0