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Electronic Arts has announced that new Army of Two: The 40th Day downloadable content is on the way. Entitled "Chapters of Deceit," the pack contains two campaign maps (once again set in the city of Shanghai) where "players stumble upon information that could lead to ending the invasion by Jonah and his 40th Day Initiative army." The DLC will arrive for both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on April 1 and will cost $9.99 and 800, respectively.

Since the game flaunts its strength as a co-op shooter right in the title, EA Montreal's new content seems like a natural extension. Here's hoping it maintains the impressive level design and high degree of polish we experienced the first time around.

Looking to add some more psychotic mercenaries to your life in increments of two, but light on cash in this ridiculously overstuffed Q1? Look to Amazon's Video Game Deal of the Day to fulfill your Army of Two: The 40th Day-related needs. For today only (or until the retailer runs out), both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of the co-op shooter are marked down to $39.99.

If that's still a bit much to pay (and if you're really desperate for some masked mayhem in a game), we'd like to suggest employing the same "buddy system" that Salem and Rios use. Buy it with a friend, play it together, and strengthen your relationship! You know, while blowing stuff up.

You've already heard our incredibly well-thought-out critique of Salem and Rios' latest mercenary endeavor, Army of Two: The 40th Day -- however, we understand your impulse to shop around. Here's what some of the other reviewers have been saying about the supremely bromantic game.

• IGN (85/100): "A disaster movie in a game package, Army of Two: The 40th Day capitalizes on its co-op play to deliver an awesome action experience that's incredibly fun to play."
• Official Xbox 360 Magazine (80/100): "Marry that to some satisfyingly chunky gunplay and the odd spectacular, building-levelling explosion and you have an action game that is far more fun than it has any right to be. You get plenty of co-op games, but not that many 'buddy' games and this is a fine example - a frantic, punchy bullet-storm that's best enjoyed with a friend."
• 1UP (B): "Even though I think they ultimately contributed to the Army of Two's inconsistent tone, which moves from "flippant" to "serious business about how messed up people can get," the morality moments are what I'll remember most about The 40th Day."
• Game Informer (65/100): "With so many great co-op experiences available to gamers, it's tough to recommend The 40th Day. Lacking a cohesive story, solid controls, key multiplayer features, and polish, this sequel fails to close the gap of mediocrity running through its core game design."

EA Montreal boss Alain Tascan admitted to Videogamer.com that the first Army of Two game "piss[ed] off a lot of people" with some of its missteps; most notably the killing of terrorists for cash in areas in which real soldiers were dying. So the mistake was, basically, the whole game.

Before we pile on EA too much, we'd like to remind you that the stuffing of tampons into bullet wounds was actually cut from the game, so the final version of Army of Two didn't have nearly as many bad ideas in it as it could have.

Tascan went on to say that "the new one I feel is still very funny, but at least it's more 'Bruce Willis funny' than 'Steven Seagal funny.'" Well great, guys, you've gone from pissing off overly sensitive people to pissing off Steven Seagal. Talk about leaping from the frying pan into the fire that also happens to be a reincarnated, part-time deputy sheriff.

Never did I think that, after finishing the original Army of Two, I'd ever be re-enlisting for a sequel. Sure, it sold well, but its myriad not-quite-fulfilled ideas and irritating "Dude! Bro!" lead characters just made me want to shrug off the game and move on with my life. So I sit here writing this pretty amazed at how good the sequel is. It's not, say, Assassin's Creed to Assassin's Creed 2 good -- but a very solid improvement on the core co-op action concept, shedding just the right things and finally delivering an experience that actually plays off the strengths of being a two-man fighting force. Plus, it does so with a high degree of polish and prettiness, not to mention reworked characters that are -- and I can't believe I'm saying this -- actually funny and ... cool.

Army of Two: The 40th Day's Salem and Rios are no strangers to the modern world. Sure, they may have acted a bit ... out of place during previous visits to EA Montreal and EA Headquarters, but that doesn't mean they're not fit for retail life. Take, for instance, the video above of the two trying their best to lend a hand to the fine folks at GameStop.

They might be a bit rough around the edges, but that doesn't mean that they didn't get the most magazine upsells for the month of December (they did!) or that they aren't capable of re-alphabetizing the used PS2 section six or seven hundred times a day (they are!). Give them a chance, folks. Under the inhuman terror mask and bullet-proof chest padding beats the heart of a human being.

So, okay, Army of Two: The 40th Day is kind of the definition of a multiplayer mode: "All co-op, all the time." But on top of the constant comradery of the core campaign, this sequel also features several traditional multiplayer modes inspired by other popular multiplayer games.

This latest trailer chronicles the classic struggle between the colors Red and Blue across the game's four muliplayer modes: Warzone, Co-op Deathmatch, Control, and Extraction. Sadly, it appears that the So You Think You Can Fist Bump competition didn't make the cut.

While Army of Two's focus has always been cooperative gameplay, EA Montreal's Eric Chartrand is responsible for designing the competitive multiplayer aspects of The 40th Day. In an interview with with That VideoGame Blog, Chartrand notes that one of the big changes for the AoT sequel is to adapt the multiplayer aspect, and make it play differently from the campaign mode. Whereas the story can feature designed bottlenecks (such as doors that require both players to open), multiplayer cannot, simply because humans play differently than AI. "The toolset we use in single-player has to be different from the one we use in multiplayer," Chartrand explains.

Interestingly, Chartrand notes two games as his main inspiration for The 40th Day's multiplayer offerings: the decade old Counter-Strike and the recently-released Killzone 2. "What works in Counter-Strike is that you don't get progression," a stark contrast to the level-up gimmick common in most online shooters. "So why it works is because the gameplay in it. The second-to-second, the movement of the character, the shooting, the intensity of the combat is still fresh, even ten years after. So that's why we wanted to craft an experience that is as close to this as possible."

Chartrand has even more praise for Guerrilla's FPS. "Killzone 2 has great maps, probably the best maps out there," he admits. However, what inspired Chartrand the most appear to be the game's community features, particularly its stats-laden website. "This link between stats, profile, friends, leaderboard ... all the community aspects, I think the Killzone guys did a very good job and we strive to imitate them."

Feeling left out by today's Army of Two demo news, PSP owners? You may not get to play the PSP version of Army of Two: The 40th Day today, but EA sent out a trailer, ensuring that you'll be able to ... watch it being played. And this trailer does feature a good amount of footage of the Commando/Ikari Warriors-esque top-down shooter.

Not that you won't get the chance to step into the shoes of a masked, bloodthirsty murderer before the January 13 release in North America. A PSP demo will be available on PSN January 7 (January 14 in Europe). Just try to hold out until then. Maybe seek comfort from one good friend.

A reminder from your friendly neighborhood Joystiq: The Army of Two: The 40th Day demo promised earlier this week is now available on Xbox Live Marketplace. Weighing in at a less-than-diminutive two gigabytes, the demo allows players to try out a part of the first level of the game. And, since Army of Two kind of depends on cooperative play, the demo thankfully offers both offline and online co-op for two players.

The demo may or may not also contain bro hugs. We hope it does.

Shortcut: Add the Army of Two: The 40th Day demo to your 360 download queue
[Via Xbox.com]

Modern Warfare 2 has made blowing up American capitals so passé. EA Montreal is far more visionary, preemptively blowing up the largest city of our future masters: Shanghai. The explosive intro to Army of Two: The 40th Day certainly fits the studio's new "blockbuster-type" focus and reassures doubters that this game will be a more serious affair than the first. Perhaps you've noticed the deliberate lack of bromance in this clip?

According to comments made to Edge by EA Montreal general manager Alain Tascan, you can expect more big action titles like Army of Two: The 40th Day from the studio. While previous Wii games, including Skate It, Boogie Superstar and the recently released Need for Speed: Nitro, have enjoyed acceptable levels of success, Tascan believes that targeting HD consoles with "fewer and bigger things" might yield improved results. It's a prudent approach, no doubt stemming from the publisher's recent layoffs.

Tascan explains that the Wii market is "a little bit unpredictable these days," further encouraging a shift to additional "big, blockbuster-type titles." We probably don't need Tascan to point out that Army of Two is "the most successful original IP EA has had in the last few years," since it's the first to get a big, blockbuster sequel ahead of Dead Space and -- can we dream? -- Mirror's Edge.

We've never felt satisfied by the weapon customization options afforded to us by first-person shooters. Oh, three different kinds of scopes? An optional grenade launcher attachment? Yeah, those are pretty cool, we guess -- however, we'd also like a different stock, ammo clip, suppressor and barrel on there as well. Hey, while we're at it, we also need a blender. You know, for when we require a cool coconut smoothie in the middle of a heated firefight.

The latest trailer for Army of Two: The 40th Day gives us a look into the weapon customization engine we've always dreamed of, giving us unparalleled control over our in-game boomsticks. You can quickly turn your military grade M107 into a hulking, unwieldy monstrosity, complete with hideous, circus-themed camouflage. Sadly, the above trailer doesn't show off any kitchen appliance attachments -- we're sure they'll show up as DLC shortly after the game launches on January 12.

While we must absolutely stress that the above headline is true, it's also misleading. It's true that the video above contains no fist bumps whatsoever; the bulk is comprised of the various co-op tactics that can be performed in Army of Two: The 40th Day, including back-to-back gun play, lifting, hostage grabbing and -- our personal favorite -- mock surrender. That said, there is bumping in the video, specifically the bumping of forearms.

So why the change? What is the social significance of the forearm bump? Is it a sign of greater manliness, or are the characters in Army of Two simply trying to fight the spread of deadly germs? Please, contribute your theories in the comments.

Major Nelson has shared with the internet the following facts: Army of Two, Midnight Club: LA and Sonic Unleashed are now available on Xbox Live Games on Demand. Army of Two and Midnight Club are available everywhere except Japan and North Korea, while the madness that is Sonic Unleashed is available worldwide. In North America, Army of Two is $19.99 and Midnight Club is $29.99. Sonic Unleashed will cost you $29.99 and the immediate forfeit of your immortal soul. Prices in other regions will vary (except for the soul part; we're pretty sure that's constant).