What Bleed 2 is
Bleed 2 is a fast side-scrolling arcade action game built around a small set of moves you can combine at the same time. You shoot, dodge in the air, reflect bullets back at enemies, and slow time down, all with controls designed so these actions overlap rather than take turns. You play as Wryn, the world's greatest hero and the only one left, fighting an invading force of villains. The game runs on 7 levels containing over 25 boss fights, so boss encounters are the main event rather than a rare treat. There's an original soundtrack by Jukio Kallio and sound design by Joonas Turner behind it all.
Playing it together
Bleed 2 supports 2-player local co-op for all modes, and it needs at least one gamepad to get going. That covers Arcade Mode, where you take the game on one life and compete for leaderboard position, and Endless Mode, with its randomly-generated levels and daily challenges. If your group is spread across Discord rather than sitting on the same couch, Remote Play Together lets someone stream the game so you can join in from your own machine. Either way, the co-op is shared-screen and side-scrolling, so you and your partner are pushing through the same levels and boss fights side by side.
Before you start
There are 4 difficulty levels, and they remix enemy placement and boss patterns rather than just tweaking damage numbers, so a run on a different difficulty genuinely plays differently. Along the way you unlock weapons, characters, and abilities, which gives you reasons to come back after a first clear. Expect a steep, relentless pace: the game is tagged as bullet hell and fast-paced, and the controls ask you to shoot, dodge, reflect, and slow time in the same moment. Give yourself a few attempts to get the timing down before judging it. Make sure a gamepad is available if you plan to play the co-op modes, since at least one is required.