The best video games to play with your family over the holidays

Video games can become a point of contention at family gatherings like Christmas. 

But instead of grandpa yelling at the kids for not looking up from their Gameboys, there are lots of ways games can bring us together instead of tearing us apart over the holidays. After all, playing games together is a time-honored and universal activity for a reason.

For your sanity’s sake, we’ve compiled a list of the best family-friendly video games across a variety of platforms. Some are more easily picked up than others, though, depending on learning curve, availability, and whether or not grandpa (or grandma!) can participate. So we’ve also conveniently included an accessibility rating on a scale of 1-5 grandpas, with one grandpa meaning the least approachable and five grandpas meaning the family dog might even be able to join in.

Enjoy! And please stay away from Monopoly this year. It ruins lives.

Helping to cook a holiday meal IRL can be hell. So why not turn all that panic and stress into some wholesome fun? Basically like a co-op version of Diner Dash, the fun of Overcooked 2 is learning how to work together as a team to communicate when things get heated in the kitchen. So aside from being a blast, it’s got some real timely skills to teach! 

Be warned that the game does get hard, though, especially for older folks unaccustomed to using controllers.

Price: $24.99

Type: Local and online cooperative multiplayer for 1-4 players.

Platforms: PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PC, Mac

Grandpa Accessibility: ??

You can’t go wrong with a classic, and nothing tops Mario Kart. This one is sure to please many age demographics, too, because it includes the best tracks from all the older entries In the series. 

The actual gameplay is extremely accessible to all, but loses some overall points for being an exclusive and requiring lots of controllers to sustain the max amount of players.

Price: $59.99

Type: An online and local multiplayer racing game for up to eight players.

Platforms: Nintendo Switch

Grandpa Accessibility: ??

The virtual equivalent of charades, this trivia mobile game inevitably leads everyone to shout over each other at a single member of the family. You know, the holidays! 

One person holds the phone to their forehead with a word that everyone else has to help them guess correctly. Categories range from celebrities, films, animals, and accents (though watch out, that one can get problematic quick).

Best of all, you can get an instant replay recording from the front-facing camera, which will definitely give you some great blackmail footage of your siblings.

Price: $0.99

Type: Local multiplayer mobile party game for as many players as you want.

Platforms: iOS and Android

Grandpa Accessibility: ?????

Nintendo’s always a pretty sure bet, and Super Mario Odyssey continues that sterling reputation. A feat of fun and game design, it’s easy to get sucked in for hours. It supports local co-op too, with one player as Mario and the other as Cappy.

Also “Jump Up, Super Star” is an absolute bop everyone can jam to.

Price: $59.99

Type: A predominantly single person adventure game with a two-player co-op mode.

Platforms: Nintendo Switch

Grandpa Accessibility: ??

The odd wholesomeness of the award-winning Push Me Pull You is unparalleled. Yet as whacky as the core idea sounds — two-headed mutants wrestling and playing soccer — you stop asking any questions after you actually start playing.

Teams of two players share a controller (which is part of the fun), each operating one end of the adorably awkward worm person to bring down the other team. It’s a game that wears its heart on its sleeve, with buttons specifically dedicated to expressions of love. Anyone who can handle a basic controller will have a blast, no matter their age or skill level.

Price: $14.99

Type: 2-4 player cooperative that only requires two controllers.

Platforms: Playstation 4, Mac, PC

Grandpa Accessibility: ???

Jackbox knows what they’re doing when it comes to group party games, with classics like You Don’t Know Jack for trivia, Drawful for a type of Pictionary, and Fibbage for learning who in your life is way too good at lying. They get uber accessibility points for the sheer amount of possible players and ways you can play.

No need for extra controllers or a console — just one main device (even a TV) and some smartphones or web browsers on an iPad or laptop.

Forewarning, though, that not all the content (especially in Fibbage) is kid-friendly.

Price: $24.99

Type: A play-on-anything party pack for up to 16 players and endless spectators.

Platforms: Playstation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, Mac, iOS, Android, FireTV, Comcast Xfinity

Grandpa Accessibility: ????

How can one even begin to describe the simple brilliance of Untitled Goose Game? You play as a goose who unleashes utter chaos into the lives of every human being it encounters. While only one person can control the goose at a time, everyone can enjoy the hilarity and delight of figuring out the puzzles.

Oh and there’s a dedicated HONK button so what are you even doing still reading this instead of playing it right now?

Price: $19.99

Type: HONK.

Platforms: PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Mac, PC [coming out dec 17] 

Grandpa Accessibility: ???

Another Nintendo classic, this one is a bit more fun and interesting to watch even if you’re not playing. Like Super Mario Odyssey, there’s a co-op mode, but this time the second player gets to play as a true star: Gooigi (yes, that’s just a goo version of Luigi). 

Price: $59.99

Type: A predominantly single person adventure game with a two-player co-op mode.

Platforms: Nintendo Switch

Grandpa Accessibility: ??

Known best for its mobility, this co-op game makes you work together to figure out a series of logic and physics puzzles. Each solution is delightfully surprising, requiring genuine ingenuity and creativity. The controls couldn’t be easier and only takes two sets of Joy-Cons to fulfill the maximum capacity of players.

Price: $19.99

Type: A 2-4 person cooperative puzzle game.

Platforms: Nintendo Switch

Grandpa Accessibility:  ???

None of your plans ever really work out in Heave Ho. But that’s kinda the point. 

The goal is simple: Don’t die. To do so, you must scale up out of the hole you and your friends got yourself into. But you need to rely on and trust the coordination of your fellow team members, who catch you after you take a leap of faith. 

With ample ragdoll physics, it’s also just hilarious to watch as it is to play.

Price: $9.99

Type: A ragdoll physics coordination local multiplayer game for up to four people.

Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Mac, Windows

Grandpa Accessibility: ???

A decade after the seminal Katarmi Damacy and Noby Noby Boy, creator Keita Takahashi is back with the equally revolutionary and heart-warming Wattam. It’s hard to describe exactly what you do in this adorable friendship simulator, but it’s both a joyous celebration and serious meditation on the duality of human nature. Whether it’s sentient piles of poo to melancholic reflections on memory, there’s something for everyone in the family, from baby cousin to old grandpa.

You solve little story puzzles by inhabiting various anthropomorphized objects, restoring a demolished world through the power of play. It’s single-player, but best enjoyed together.

Price: $19.99

Type: Single-player friendship simulator that’ll bring everyone closer together.

Platforms: Playstation 4, PC, Mac

Grandpa Accessibility: ????