Good things usually come in twos. Have a think about that one. From two of each animal in Noah's Ark, if you wish to go biblical, to comedy duos - Vince Noir and Howard Moon in The Mighty Boosh, oh how I love that show - and then right to the other sextreme, with a nice pair of knockers - but then there is that woman in Total Recall who proudly displays three, so she might be the exception to this fabled good things come in twos rule, similarly breaking the old 'three don't agree' myth at the same time.

Army of Two has nothing to do with two breasts fighting for attention however, and nor is it about pairs of animals - but it is very funny, like comedy duos can be. The relationship between our two heroes, Rios and Salem, is like the relationship you'd find between two stereotypical, working class, heavy drinking men. They like women - and they love money. Women they don't see many of, but money, they get plenty of that - and it seems like these guys are only in it for the cash, too. While there is some genuine concern for human life shown by our dynamic duo from time to time, it's mostly all about the money - and that makes for some dark humour both in and out of the cut scenes.

In fact, it's safe to say that EA have nailed the audio side of things in Army of Two. The voice acting is highly amusing and takes some of the stress out of the more intense boss fights, when our couple of capable marksmen are bantering like they're down at the local. Combine this with the other well-acted personalities you'll encounter and a really inspiring, sometimes moving, epic soundtrack, and you've got the perfect grouping a game that relies heavily on forging a co-operative relationship. Of course, like an unstoppable Army of Two, the audio works with the graphics like you wouldn't believe to create something that looks so shiny and beautiful. The explosions are spectacular, enemies and allies alike move across the desert very realistically and bullets meet flesh, causing blood to meet anything in close proximity. Then think about the mountainous backdrops in the middle of a warzone, or the watery boat trips, or even scenic parachuting scenarios that really do gratify and promote war for what it isn't - and that's pretty. So very, very pretty!

But before I enlist, I'd better tell you about Army of Two. It's a game that has been purposely built for co-op play. This shows too, because you can play co-op offline through split screen, or over Xbox Live with a buddy from halfway around the globe. Although it's no massive detriment to most of us, it's a shame that there's no system link for those who have the means to use it, as co-op play is so much more fun when you're not sharing a screen but still have a friend next to you to share beers with. What does make up for the lack of system link however is the 2 v 2 online play - grabbing a friend and taking down other teams, Army of Two deathmatches can be highly satisfying.

Let's say you have no friends however and you're buying this to play on your own. Is it worth it? Yes - but only to a certain extent. You see, if you play in single player mode, you still have a teammate, except he's controlled by the AI. Now don't get me wrong, the AI is actually quite clever. You, as the team leader, can give your partner simple commands - push left on the d-pad once to tell him to regroup and stay close, push again to tell him to stay close but be aggressive. The two tap aggressive command system works very well and I've never once had problems getting my teammate to listen to what I have to say. Likewise, my partner will come and heal me if I fall down in battle and he'll cause no amount of AGGRO if I simply ask him to.

If you've ever played an MMORPG then you'll probably have some idea of what AGGRO is - it's something that can cause the enemy - or enemies - to solely focus on one player. In this Army of Two situation, you'll be either the one holding the AGGRO, or it will be your teammate, but whoever has the AGGRO lights up red, so you, or your teammate, quite literally stand out like a sore red thumb. Now, AGGRO is determined by a number of factors. It's sometimes down to the type of weapon you are using - if your weapon is more powerful than your teammate's then you'll get the AGGRO. Obviously, if you're the only one causing damage then you'll be seen as the biggest threat, too. Now, one member is glowing red with all the AGGRO, while the other member, which could be you or your mate, becomes partially invisible. This means that if your team member is causing all the pain and holding the attention of a group of rebels with the AGGRO system, then you could quite safely go behind enemy lines and take them all out one by one, somewhat satisfyingly, with a pistol to the head. This method is sometimes a must use on bosses who only die from shots in the back, too.

There are even further strategies you can use with the AGGRO system; if you get too hot in battle and you cannot handle the AGGRO, with all those enemies turning their fire on you while your teammate walks around unscathed, then you can feign death so those enemies turn on your teammate instead. Feigning death will only fool the same enemy once however, so be careful how you use that one! On the flipside, while your teammate holds the AGGRO and keeps increasing his AGGRO meter, you can go into Overkill and become completely hidden for a short period of time, running in slow motion and shooting people down with stealthy pleasurable ease.

The AGGRO system is unique, and I do love it - but only when I'm playing with a friend. Though my AI teammate is clever and obedient, he doesn't have the same qualities of a real friend. You can't say, "Quick, I'll hold them, you sneak behind the bastards and give them a nasty surprise!" to your AI friend, and after a short while you see the single player for what it really is - a lonely affair. And if great things really do come in twos, then what are you doing playing this game on your own?

However, if this game is to shine in co-op then it gets compared to all those other games that shine in co-op too, like Halo, Rainbow Six: Vegas and Gears of War, the latter of which Army of Two closely resembles. Sadly, Army of Two doesn't come close to being a Gears of War beater - if you've played GoW in co-op then there's still nothing else that compares.

Army of Two is much like an old-school shooter. You don't do much hiding, you don't pull triggers to put your back against the wall and you certainly don't mess around with split paths or a lot of choice - but all of these features aren't what people want! Understand that Army of Two is as linear as a 15 cm ruler, an analogy chosen for the simple reason that you cannot bend such a short ruler without breaking it - and then, emphasis on the short, because the game doesn't last that long either. Not that short games are a bad thing if you can go and do them again, but there's not much reason to go back to Army of Two unless you fancy saving your cash up for new $10,000 masks or upgrades for guns.

Speaking of cash, in Army of Two you earn money for objective completed and then maybe at four points during the mission you can stop and shop for new weapons, new upgrades and new masks to change your appearance. You can buy weapons in three different categories and then have one weapon from each of those categories equipped. You have your primary weapon, which usually consists of automatic machineguns, your small weapon category, like a pistol or sub machinegun, then your big weapon, which is your rocket launcher or sniper rifle. You can't pick weapons up from fallen enemies, but you can swap weapons with your friend to mix things up a little. Buying, upgrading and then unloading your weapons into the gut of a terrorist is a lot of fun, so credit is due to this feature.

Other features that stand out from the competition are the co-op sniping, where you both snipe together, counting down and firing at the same time to take out pairs of enemies that would make life difficult if you were to go it alone and take them out one at a time. Co-op sniping can be activated when you need it, but the other cool co-operative feature - Back to Back - cannot be. You just go with the flow when cut scenes sometimes become a Back to Back game, where you and your mate stand in the middle of a room, back to back, and take everybody down around the perimeter in slow motion. Very nice. Lastly, when your teammate loses his health he falls down. He can still shoot, but he can't move. If he continues to remain under fire then his last bit of health depletes and he dies - however, if you run back to your mate, drag him to cover and heal him, you'll both live to fight another time.

This is about the extent of co-op for Army of Two. You have AGGRO, which is unique and dare I say outstanding, and then a couple of other co-op features that you could live without if the game were as good as say, Gears of War. There are no split paths like there are on Gears of War and just generally not a lot of partner interaction, besides the banter and the wisecracks. In GoW you sprint together, you fight monsters up close together, you hack things up with melee weapons together and then it's heart wrenching when you get split up for five minutes, but very exciting at the same time. It's similar in Army of Two - you do fight together, but not in a way that makes you cry out at your TV when your partner dies or in glee when you both defeat a boss. Maybe it's the setting or maybe it's the fight for money attitude, but for a co-operative game everything just feels too linear, too shallow and a bit samey all the way through to evoke any real emotion or team spirit that a rival game could pull off with ease. The problem is, Xbox 360 owners have been spoilt. Army of Two looks as good as Gears of War and that's why it gets compared. It certainly does a few things better than Gears of War too - the Army of Two swear a lot more, it's a lot funnier and the AGGRO system really does work well - but none of that matters when the overall feel of the gameplay doesn't weigh up.

Army of Two is a great effort and comes with my recommendation despite the scrutiny I've subjected it to - it has plenty of redeeming and rewarding features to offset its linear limitations, but it was designed to be played with a friend, so approach with caution if you don't have Xbox Live or a friend to partner up with. All in all however, it's not two shabby at all!

Reviewed by Dexter Pearson for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).