Looking for the best party games to play this Christmas? Then look no further. Christmas is a time to come together with the people you care most about, whether that’s your family, significant other or friends. So what better way to celebrate the holiday season, and embrace the most wonderful time of the year, than to whip your grandmother’s butt at a trivia challenge, wreck her at racing or out-cook her in the kitchen? Suck it, grandma.
Yes, Christmas is a time to get together, but there’s nothing like a bit of chaotic fun to spice things up a bit and potentially ruin friendships forever – and there are some great party games available for PS5, Xbox Series X and Nintendo Switch that offer just that.
If you would rather play together than alone this Christmas, then look no further, as we’ve put together a list of the best party games to keep everyone entertained this festive season.
Overcooked! All You Can Eat
Platforms: PS4, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Nintendo Switch, PS5 and Xbox One
Number of players: Up to four
Preparing Christmas dinner is a certified nightmare. You can be sure that either the turkey won’t be defrosted, or that you’ll neglect to turn the oven on to pre-heat, or you’ll simply forget an integral part of the feast (where’s the stuffing?!).
Packing in Overcooked, Overcooked 2 and all available DLC, Overcooked! All You Can Eat is equally as chaotic and infuriating as making Christmas dinner (perhaps even more). It’s a cooking sim that can be played as single-player or multiplayer – but multiplayer is much more fun. You must work your way through various kitchen levels, aiming to deliver meals to starving customers and save the Onion Kingdom. But it’s not that simple, and these aren’t your everyday kitchens – oh no. You’ll be navigating swamps, haunted castles and collapsing mines as you cook.
You can choose to play together in two-player campaign mode, or go head-to-head in four-player versus mode. We advise versus mode with a full house – because nothing brings the family together like a culinary disaster.
Super Mario Party
Platforms: Nintendo Switch
Number of players: Up to four
There ain’t no party like a Super Mario Party, because a Super Mario Party may end with Joy-Cons being hurled about like snowballs. Nintendo’s Super Mario Party for the Switch is just that, allowing up to four players to take part in either the original Mario Party board game or the skilled-based mini-game mode Mariothon.
With a host of iconic Mario characters, madcap mini-games and more twists than a particularly twisty pretzel, Super Mario Party provides all the excitement (and rage) of original tabletop games, but for the modern era.
Jackbox Party Pack 8
(Image credit: Jackbox Games)
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, Stadia and mobile devices
Number of players: Up to 10
If you’re looking for a party game that’s a bit whacky and doesn’t tie you down to just one title, then a Jackbox Party Pack could be for you. Jackbox Games releases a new pack of party videogames for a variety of platforms pretty much annually, but these aren’t your normal trivia and charade games – instead, you can expect a variety of chaotic spins on classics which allow up to 10 players to compete (you can even play from your smartphone, so you don’t need extra controllers).
Jackbox Party Pack 8 is the latest addition to the series, and includes the guessing game Drawful Animate, interview game Job Job, survey game The Poll Mine, social deduction game Weapons Drawn, and trivia game The Wheel of Enormous Proportions.
Jackbox Party Pack 8 is available to purchase from Jackbox Games.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Platforms: Nintendo Switch
Number of players: Up to eight
Super Smash Bros Ultimate for the Nintendo Switch may have been released in 2018, but thanks to the trickle of new fighters over time (which has now come to an end) it’s as fresh as ever. It may not be the perfect party game to play with your family (as it’s primarily a fighting title), it should definitely go down a treat with your friends.
Ultimate has more fighters, more stages, and more gameplay modes than its predecessors, meaning you’ll be spoiled for choice as to which Nintendo character you’ll choose to beat down your best pal.
Knowledge is Power
Platforms: PS4 and PS5
Number of players: Up to six
Remember Buzz? The quiz game for the PlayStation 2 with the enigmatic wedge-headed quiz master? Well, If you were a fan of that, then Knowledge is Power is definitely for you – although it doesn’t have the aggressive button-bashing that Buzz did.
Knowledge is Power is a bizarre PlayLink trivia game that covers a range of topics, from history to music to television, and allows for up to six players. As it’s a PlayLink title, you play the game using smartphones rather than controllers, and there are even a few touchscreen challenges thrown in for good measure.
You can pick up Knowledge is Power from the PlayStation Store – there’s even a Knowledge is Power: Decades edition available.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Platforms: Nintendo Switch
Number of players: Up to four (or eight connecting multiple consoles)
Would a party game list really be a party game list without Mario Kart? Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for Nintendo Switch will let you recapture all the racing nostalgia and aggression we love about the series. Mum got you socks again for Christmas? Throw down a banana skin, that’ll teach her.
The latest Mario Kart adds five new characters and four new multiplayer modes, and has 48 tracks and over 40 racers – so you’re sure to be kept busy over the holiday period.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe supports two players in handheld mode, four players on one TV – but you do need extra Joy-Cons for four players – or up to eight if you connect multiple Switch consoles.
That’s You
Platforms: PS4 and PS5
Number of players: Two to six
Another PlayLink title, That’s You is a party quiz for up to six players, and is essentially a group version of Mr and Mrs, a TV quiz show for couples that was popular in the UK and Canada back in the day.
You’ll be asked hilarious questions such as “who is the most likely to survive in the wild”, and get points for knowing others players the best. Maybe grandad is a secret survivalist and would spear a trout quicker than the time it takes you to select him as your option – if so you’ll certainly find out here.
Much like Knowledge is Power, That’s You is played using mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets, so you just need to download the app.
That’s You is available from the PlayStation Store.
Gang Beasts
Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC (playable on Xbox Series X/S and PS5 through backwards compatibility)
Number of players: Up to four in local co-op
Gang Beasts is arguably our favorite title on this list (and probably the most ridiculous). It’s set in the fictional ‘meatropolis’ of Beef City, where you take on the role of a rubbery character in an effort to defeat your foes through punching them, kicking them, and throwing them off buildings and into fires, among other options.
If you have any pent-up rage against your loved ones, this is the perfect game for working it out in a harmlessly slapstick manner. Gang Beasts can be played by up to four players at a time locally, although it’s as much fun to watch as it is to play.
Sportfriends
Platforms: PS4 and PC (playable on PS5 via backwards compatibility)
Number of players: Up to four in some games
Sportfriends definitely isn’t for everyone – but if you love a game that’s a bit different and 100% weird, then it’s probably for you. Sportfriends encompasses a collection of four retro-style multiplayer games: whacky BariBariBall, Super Pole Riders, ice-hockey-like Hokra, and Johann Sebastian Joust (which is pretty much what it sounds like).
Each title is short, but worth a try simply for the experience – and the chance to joust with your grandparents to some classic music. Some of the games allow for up to four players, but you will need controllers, while Jousting requires the PlayStation Move controllers.
Clue/Cluedo
Platforms: Nintendo Switch
Number of players: Up to six
A modern spin on a classic, Clue/Cluedo for Nintendo Switch could be the perfect game if you’re an old-fashioned sort. Essentially the game works just like the board version, but the Switch is the game board – oh, and Mrs White has been replaced by Dr Orchid, which apparently happened a few years ago. Who knew?
You can play Clue/Cluedo with up to six players, but each player requires a mobile device and the free Cluesheet Companion app or Clue: The Official Edition app to participate. Sometimes the oldies are the goodies.
You can download Clue/Cluedo for Nintendo Switch from the Nintendo Store.
- Best co-op games: top games you can share with friends on console and PC
