Some retro games are really only played for nostalgia, but these ones are still fun because they're genuinely great co-op games.
A lot of the games on this list are decades old at this point, but I'd still happily sit down and play them today. Some were arcade classics, some were console exclusives, and a few of them really haven't been matched by modern games.
This isn't a hidden gems list. You're probably going to know most of these games already. That's because they're really good. These aren't ranked either. They're just 20 retro co-op games that still hold up today.
TMNT: Turtles in Time
The arcade version of Turtles in Time is absolutely great. It's one of the best arcade beat 'em ups ever made.
I have a lot of memories of going to my local arcade pizza parlor, Savagand Pizza, right down the street from my house. During birthday parties, me and my friends would all circle around the Turtles in Time cabinet.
It's one of the most approachable beat 'em ups ever made. Anyone can jump in and start button mashing. And of course, I think the Ninja Turtles are timeless. The visuals are still cartoony and fun, and TMNT is still going strong today. My daughter likes it, and they just keep rebooting the franchise over and over again.
A lot of Turtle games are worth revisiting, but Turtles in Time is still one of the best. The Super Nintendo version is awesome too.
Contra III: The Alien Wars
Contra III on the Super Nintendo is fast, difficult, and still one of the best run-and-gun shooters of all time.
I recently played through it again with the Konami Code, because I really suck. And honestly, I think this game is a masterpiece from start to finish. It's nonstop action.
Even the top-down sections, which some people don't love, do a good job of breaking up the pace. One cool detail that I didn't learn until years later is that if you select Two Players A at the title screen, the top-down levels become split-screen. If you choose Two Players B, both players stay on the same screen.
It's just a neat little feature that gives you options. But yeah, Contra III is one of the greatest run-and-gun games ever made and one of the most influential games in the genre.
Streets of Rage 2
I've talked about Streets of Rage 2 endlessly.
To me, it's the best beat 'em up of all time. It's probably the most influential beat 'em up ever made and helped define what the genre could be.
The soundtrack is incredible. The combat feels great. Every character plays differently. I could go on forever about this game, and honestly, I already have in other videos.
It's an obvious choice for this list.
Secret of Mana
Secret of Mana is another masterpiece.
It was one of the first co-op RPGs where you could play with three players on a home console, and that absolutely blew my mind back in the '90s.
To this day, I think it's one of the best co-op RPGs ever made. The combat timing can feel a little weird if you're not used to it, but once you understand the rhythm, it feels really good.
Please don't take that out of context.
Seriously though, I can't say enough good things about this game.
Goof Troop
Goof Troop is one of my favorite co-op games of all time.
It's probably the closest thing we had to a co-op Zelda game for a very long time. Goofy is stronger, Max is faster, and the puzzles are genuinely fun.
Combat is simple. You don't get weapons. Instead, you're throwing barrels, catching barrels, and tossing them back and forth between players. The boss fights are fun, the music is fantastic, and the whole game is just incredibly well designed.
This was probably my favorite co-op game from my childhood. I was obsessed with it then, and honestly, I still am.
River City Ransom
River City Ransom is one of the all-time great co-op games.
Part beat 'em up, part RPG, part open world, this game was way ahead of its time.
When I first played it, I didn't really understand it. I kept trying to treat it like a linear beat 'em up. Once I figured out that you need to take out the bosses one by one and explore the map, everything clicked.
Then you start earning money, buying upgrades, punching faster, kicking harder, and suddenly you're destroying enemies with ease.
If you've never actually sat down and beaten River City Ransom, I highly recommend it. It's not a very long game if you know where you're going. Pay attention to the NPCs because they'll usually tell you exactly where to head next.
All you kids out there, play River City Ransom. You won't regret it.
Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers
The NES didn't have a ton of co-op platformers, but Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers is one of the best.
This game was clearly built around co-op play. You're Chip and Dale, and the mechanics are easy to understand once you spend a little time with them.
Unlike a lot of NES games, it's actually pretty approachable. Most players can sit down and beat it after a few attempts.
When it comes to co-op games on the NES, this is absolutely top tier.
Kirby Super Star
Kirby Super Star is the perfect game to play with your kid, your non-gaming partner, or honestly your grandma.
Anyone can play it.
The second player becomes one of Kirby's helpers, created from his abilities. If they die, it's no big deal. Just grab another ability and bring them back.
That makes it perfect for less experienced players.
Out of all the co-op Kirby games, this one is still my favorite. I was obsessed with it as a kid, and I think it holds up incredibly well today.
I also love Kirby's Dream Land 3. The art style in that game is amazing. You really can't go wrong with either one.
World of Illusion
World of Illusion is another fantastic co-op platformer.
What makes it special is that it actually requires teamwork. You're not just running side by side.
There are sections where one player has to launch the other to a higher platform. Then that player drops down a rope and pulls their partner up. There are moments where Mickey has to rescue Donald and vice versa.
The game constantly asks both players to work together.
It's simple, but it felt incredibly innovative at the time. There really weren't many co-op platformers doing this kind of thing back then.
It's still one of my favorite co-op Genesis games.
Goemon's Great Adventure
I love the Goemon series, but Goemon's Great Adventure is the game that really made me fall in love with it.
The N64 was known for 3D games, and while I liked plenty of them, I missed traditional 2D gameplay. Then I saw this game.
Not only was it a side-scrolling platformer, it was also co-op.
That was a no-brainer for me.
I don't know if it's objectively the best Goemon game, but it's definitely my favorite co-op game on the N64.
Sunset Riders
I love run-and-gun shooters, and Sunset Riders is one of the best.
The arcade version is fantastic because it's four-player. The Genesis version is only okay, but the Super Nintendo port is excellent.
Years ago, me and my friend Will decided we were going to beat it. We sat there and played it over and over until we finally got good enough.
No cheats. No shortcuts.
I don't know if the game is actually considered difficult, but at the time it felt like a huge accomplishment.
Compared to games like Contra or Metal Slug, I think Sunset Riders is a little more approachable, which makes it a great entry point for the genre.
Metal Slug X
If I had to pick a Metal Slug game, I'd go with Metal Slug X.
It's basically an upgraded version of Metal Slug 2 with better performance, more weapons, different enemy placements, and a handful of visual changes.
The biggest improvement was fixing the slowdown that plagued the original release.
The pixel art is incredible. To me, Metal Slug is one of the main reasons to own Neo Geo hardware.
I remember playing this in an arcade called Bumpers at the mall. Later, I got the PlayStation version, which lets you use unlimited lives. Me and my friend Danny sat down and played through the whole thing together.
We died constantly. We laughed constantly.
Everything about this game just works.
Bubble Bobble
Bubble Bobble looks like a game made for babies, and I mean that in the nicest way possible.
The gameplay is incredibly simple and approachable. Anyone can understand it within a few minutes.
That doesn't mean it's easy though. The difficulty ramps up significantly as you progress.
As one of the earliest co-op platformers, Bubble Bobble helped establish a lot of ideas that would influence games for decades.
When it comes to single-screen co-op platformers, it's one of the most important games ever made.
Guardian Heroes
Guardian Heroes is one of the best games that not enough people have actually played.
Originally released on the Sega Saturn, it later got a remastered version on Xbox Live Arcade, but that's about it.
The art style is beautiful, and it's another early beat 'em up that mixed in RPG elements. A lot of modern beat 'em ups are still borrowing ideas from this game.
I keep saying it throughout this list, but Guardian Heroes was ahead of its time.
That's really the theme here. These games weren't just good when they came out. They influenced the games that followed.
Gunstar Heroes
Another Treasure classic.
Gunstar Heroes took a lot of what Contra did and made it faster. It also introduced weapon combinations that allowed for a ton of customization.
The level design is fantastic, the bosses are memorable, and the game constantly throws new ideas at you.
Despite all that, it's still pretty approachable because you have unlimited continues. If you fail, you can just keep trying.
Me and my brother eventually beat it through sheer persistence. We definitely weren't experts.
It's one of my favorite co-op gaming memories.
ToeJam & Earl
ToeJam & Earl is one of the most unique games ever made.
It might honestly be the first co-op roguelite. It has procedurally generated levels, random items, exploration, and a structure that feels surprisingly modern.
The game doesn't take itself seriously. It has this weird Nickelodeon-style '90s humor that I absolutely loved.
But the thing that really blew my mind was the dynamic split-screen. If you're together, you're on one screen. If you separate, it splits.
I thought that was magic when I was a kid.
A lot of people bounce off ToeJam & Earl because they approach it like other games. That's a mistake. This game is doing its own thing.
Slow down. Listen to the music. Appreciate the humor. Enjoy the exploration.
And if you still don't like it, well... I guess you're a lost cause.
Twisted Metal 2
Years ago, me and my friend Will played through every co-op Twisted Metal game.
Twisted Metal 2 was always our favorite.
This is one of those games that defined the PlayStation for me. It made the PS1 feel edgy and mature. Games like Twisted Metal, Loaded, and later Metal Gear Solid made the console feel completely different from what came before.
Maybe the graphics haven't aged perfectly, but I've actually grown nostalgic for that early PS1, Saturn, and N64 3D look.
When it comes to vehicle combat games, Twisted Metal 2 is still my favorite.
Perfect Dark
I was obsessed with GoldenEye.
Then Perfect Dark came out and we basically never played GoldenEye again.
Not only did it have similar gameplay, but it added a co-op campaign, bots, and a ton of extra options.
My friends and I would load up four-player split-screen with a bunch of AI opponents and just go nuts.
The frame rate absolutely collapsed.
We did not care.
Back then there weren't many split-screen co-op shooters, and Perfect Dark stood out because it offered so much more than anything else.
It's still one of my favorites.
Gauntlet Legends
Gauntlet Legends is pure nostalgia for me.
The same group of friends that I played GoldenEye and Perfect Dark with also played a ton of Gauntlet Legends.
We'd stay up all night during sleepovers grinding levels and fighting monsters.
Somehow, despite all those hours, I've still never beaten it.
I think we spent so much time leveling up and messing around that we eventually got distracted by other games.
But regardless, Gauntlet Legends is one of those core gaming memories that will always stick with me.
The Simpsons Arcade Game
The Simpsons Arcade Game might not be the best beat 'em up ever made, but it's definitely one of the most iconic.
The gameplay is incredibly simple. You punch, jump, perform a jump kick, and occasionally pick up an item.
That's about it.
But the mechanics are so solid that it doesn't matter.
Like Turtles in Time, this was another arcade game that I played constantly with my friends.
And if you were a kid in the '90s, The Simpsons felt edgy. It felt like you were getting away with something.
The game also included fun co-op attacks and little competitive mini-games between stages, which helped keep things fresh.
Most importantly, it proves that beat 'em ups don't need complicated combo systems.
Just make the gameplay fun.
And make sure it's at least two-player co-op.
I'm not playing a single-player beat 'em up. Come on.
Final Thoughts
There are plenty of games that could have made this list, and I'm sure some of your favorites didn't.
So let me know what retro co-op games are your favorites.
And if there's anything on this list you haven't played yet, I genuinely think every single one of these games is worth sitting down and playing with a friend.