It’s also a lot of fun to watch, especially thanks to the tug-of-war competition format. It’s beautiful (you really have to see the sprites in motion), weird, and takes great skill to master. As a fighter, it’s a Bushido Blade-like struggle for one killing blow as two pixel fencers advance, parry, lunge, dive kick, and disarm each other with staccato bursts of button presses. Nidhogg is one of the best one-on-one competitive games on PC. Release date: 2014 | Developer: Messhof | Steam

Matches are a bit quicker and more frantic, but every bit as fun. Often mentioned in the same conversation as TowerFall is Samurai Gunn, which keeps the one-hit-kills but trades bows-and-arrows for, you guessed it, samurai swords and guns. A page full of special rules and mutators allows you to create new game modes on the fly, from giving everybody bouncing arrows to creating a single invisible super-player who the others have to hunt. In two-player co-op you take on a series of survival challenges against increasingly varied and interesting enemies. But there's much more to the game than that. A finite quantity of ammo makes it important to snatch arrows from the bodies of fallen foes-or grab them out of the air, if you're quick enough-and powerups, environmental hazards and shifting maps keep this process interesting. In its basic form, up to four players jump around 2D levels pinging lethal arrows at one another. TowerFall Ascension is a much more comprehensive offering than most. Release date: 2014 | Developer: Extremely OK Games | SteamĪ lot of single-screen deathmatch games are content to offer a single way to play, offering a lean, lightweight experience by doing one thing very well. Battleblock Theater is a great two-player platformer with full Steam Workshop support for custom levels, and the more recent Pit People is a more casual, controller-driven take on a turn-based strategy game. Local co-op is really the bread and butter of developer The Behemoth, and they have more games worth checking out. Sure, you can play it solo (or online), but we love playing with friends right on the couch-coordinating the “cat-fish” fight is way more insane when your companions are right beside you. There are tons of weapons, animal companions, and secret heroes to find and fight over, too. Each kill gets you experience for stronger sword swings or better magical attacks. Each player controls their own knight in a seriously warped fantasy kingdom, running to the right and slaughtering countless enemies through forests, towns, castles, dungeons, and more. Castle Crashers revels in that joy-it practically bathes in it. There’s a special joy in getting together with three friends and beating the crap out of everything. Release date: 2012 | Developer: The Behemoth | Steam

Fun free multiplayer pc games