Sometimes you don’t want to play a game by yourself; sometimes you want to have a good time with a friend. For the purposes of this list, we stuck to games that don’t typically fall under the category of competitive multiplayer shooters like Call of Duty, Battlefield, Rainbow Six Siege, and more. The games below give a great cooperative experience without the threat of random strangers mowing you down and possibly ruining the fun.
Best co-op games for PS4
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★ Featured favorite
Borderlands 3
Love or hate the series’ trademark humor, Borderlands is one of the best franchises out there when it comes to co-op play. Borderlands 3 introduces four new Vault Hunters with a variety of character builds so that even if you and your friends are playing as the same character, no two will ever be alike. Whether you play as a mystical Siren or digi-cloned ex-hitman, you’ll need some friends if you want to help save the galaxy.
$25 at Best Buy
$20 at Amazon
Double the badass
Borderlands: The Handsome Collection
Staff pick
Borderlands: The Handsome Collection compiles Borderlands 2 and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel into one outstanding package. Its over-the-top theatrics and gunplay make for a breath of fresh air compared to serious, gritty first-person shooters. The world of Pandora is full of colorful monsters looking for their next meal. When you team up with a buddy (or three), the fun never ends.
$30 at Best Buy
$17 at Amazon
More Badass bad guys
Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition
With the original badassery co-op experience of Borderlands being revamped this past April to update graphics, loot, and bug fixes. Borderlands: GOTY is now just as fun as The Handsome Collection. Grab your friend(s) for the first shoot and loot installment of the series. You’ll get 75 gold keys for free as well as a set of weapons for each character to start your adventures in style.
$20 at Best Buy
$30 at PlayStation
Escape prison together
A Way Out
A Way Out made waves when it was first revealed for being out-of-the-box. It wasn’t the typical type of experience players were used to seeing as it requires you to play with a friend. Two players take on the role of two inmates who, only with the help of each other, attempt to escape prison. Because of this, you can play A Way Out either online or through local split-screen co-op.
$30 at GameStop
Tactical takedowns
The Division 2: Warlords of New York Edition
Don’t let the bitter taste of The Division turn you away from The Division 2, this is the essential example of a company learning from their mistakes. Grab some friends, pick your unique class and hit up some online tactical co-op. You can focus solely PvE or toss in a little PvP as you complete missions to build out your base. With a long term plan, this game is going to get updates regularly with the first year mapped out.
$60 at PlayStation
Fighting Nazis
Wolfenstein: Youngblood
Nothing is quite as satisfying as killing Nazis. B.J. Blazkowicz’s kids, Soph and Jess, take up the family business after their father disappears in Paris. Players can team up and play as either sister and complete the entire campaign together. This game was designed with cooperative play in mind, and even if you don’t have a buddy to play with, an AI partner will have your back.
$30 at Best Buy
$20 at Amazon
Masterclass raids
Destiny 2: Forsaken – Legendary Collection
Destiny 2 has some of the best six-player raids out there, and new ones keep getting added with each major expansion. Shadowkeep is another separate purchase from the base game, but this bundle still nabs you The Curse of Osiris, Warmind, and Forsaken expansions. Team up with some friends and take on the universe’s toughest challenges.
$39 at Best Buy
$18 at Amazon
Building your dream world
Minecraft
There’s almost no limit to what you can do in Minecraft, making it a highly versatile game. You want to explore and slay monsters with friends? You got it. Build elaborate castles together? You can do that too. With the help of a few other players, you can even create and build your own mini-games within it. All you need is your imagination and some extra manpower to get it done.
$30 at Best Buy
$35 at Amazon
The bad guy club
LEGO DC Super-Villains
Any recent LEGO video game is always good to play through with a friend, and LEGO DC Super-Villains just so happens to be one of the newest in the series. If you’ve ever wanted to play against your favorite heroes and see how the bad guys operate, this is the way to do it. While this one doesn’t support online co-op, you can play the entire campaign through local couch co-op with a friend.
$15 at Best Buy
$15 at Amazon
Cook your heart out
Overcooked! 2
Overcooked! 2’s premise is simple: cook the best meal you can in the allotted time while dealing with wacky obstacles. Add a friend or two into the mix and the game becomes even more hectic. The good thing is that chaos is part of the fun. If you don’t want a helping hand in the kitchen, you can compete against a friend to sees who’s best. Overcooked! 2 also supports online or local co-op.
$26 at Best Buy
16-Bit arena combat
TowerFall Ascension
TowerFall Ascension was primarily designed by one person, but it has the exceptional quality of an indie made by a group. This 16-bit action game is great for parties where you can play locally with friends. You’ll be thrown into an arena armed with a bow and arrows to fight to the death in your own little mini-battle royale.
$15 at PlayStation
The name says it all
Don’t Starve Together
As the name implies, your goal here is to not starve… together. The world around you will do its best to tear you down, and you’ll need to survive with the help of a friend to ensure you stay well-fed and healthy. The influence of Tim Burton is evident in its art style, so make sure you go into Don’t Starve Together prepared for a dark adventure.
$15 at PlayStation
A yarn of a tale
Unravel Two
This puzzling co-op is local only (unless you happen to have a PS Vita). But, for a couch co-op what is better than Yarny? Two Yarnies! Work your way through a world from a new perspective where the simplest things can now propose difficult challenges. Approach each new puzzle with an open mind and perhaps discover the unbreakable bonds of friendship.
$20 at PlayStation
Tick tock
Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes
Defuse a bomb in VR without the pressure of real-life consequences. That’s literally the game. One player is tasked with talking their buddy through disarming a bomb, but here’s the kicker: the person disarming the bomb can’t see the instructions, and the person providing instructions can’t see the bomb. Bombs are procedurally-generated so players never know what they’ll be walking in to. It’s the ultimate test of trust and communication.
$15 at PlayStation
Dungeon raiding
Diablo III: Eternal Collection
Dive into the acclaimed Diablo III and its Reaper of Souls expansion with the Eternal Collection. You and a friend can team up and play as one of seven character classes to fight the Lord of Terror and his demonic minions. This RPG became an instant classic since its release and it only got better with age. Nothing says “teamwork” like fighting the forces of hell again.
$40 at Best Buy
Death battle
Nidhogg 2
Nidhogg 2 was made for two players. Pitting you against another, you’ll need to use everything in your arsenal to fight your way to the end of your opponent’s side of the screen. The first one to do so wins and gets eaten by mythological Norse serpent Níðhöggr — you know, just your usual side-scrolling shenanigans.
$15 at PlayStation
Puzzle solving
Human: Fall Flat
Puzzles are a lot easier to solve with friends… usually (two minds are better than one and all that jazz). Human: Fall Flat contains a wide variety of physics-based puzzles that players can complete either alone or together with two players in local co-op or up to eight players online. Don’t let the minimalist art style fool you because navigating through the dream-like environments is tougher than it seems.
$15 at PlayStation
Explore the Mexiverse
Guacamelee! One-Two Punch Collection
Guacamelee! and its sequel are some of the finest platformers you’ll come across. They ooze character and you can tell that a lot of love went into crafting its universe. Team up with a friend and take on its insanely difficult boss battles and platforming sections together. There’s a reason it’s described as a Metroidvania, after all.
$40 at Best Buy
Save the kingdom
Rayman Legends
Looking for something a tad less frustrating but still want a challenge? Try out Rayman Legends. There’s a reason the Rayman series has become so successful since its inception in 1995. The fantastical worlds it introduces us to in each iteration are gorgeous, and the platforming itself is impeccable. Try it out with some friends to get the most out of it.
$20 at PlayStation
Soccer with cars
Rocket League Ultimate Edition
Have you ever thought “soccer would be cool if we played it with cars instead?” That’s the basic premise of Rocket League. Two teams try to score on the other’s goal, and the only thing you have to move the ball is a rocket-powered car. The “rocket-powered” is a point to note because it makes for some incredible gameplay when you can drive up the sides of arenas and blast into the air for a long jump.
$30 at Best Buy
Acclaimed RPG
Divinity: Original Sin 2 – Definitive Edition
If Diablo III isn’t really your speed, then try your hand at Divinity: Origin Sin 2. It wears its fantasy inspirations on its sleeve so you’ll easily get sucked into the world of Rivellon. This is more for people who love the intricacies of true role-playing games and nothing watered down. That’s not to say you need to be an expert to play it, though, so hop in and have fun.
$20 at Best Buy
Couch co-op
Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime
Work together to defeat the evil forces of Anti-Love in Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime. Each player controls certain aspects of your spaceship, like its thrusters and shield, while you move from station to station in the ship and try to make your way to the end of the level by rescuing some lovable creatures along the way.
$15 at PlayStation
Opt for co-op
When you want to ignore the online world of multiplayer games for a while, why not play with a friend? Borderlands: GOTY, Borderlands: The Handsome Collection, and Borderlands 3 give you four games total and so many hours of gunning fun. They are a blast playing with a group of friends, but the humor in them is oriented towards adults.
For children out there, Overcooked! 2 is great. You can also hop into Minecraft where your imagination is your only limitation.
No matter which style of game you prefer, there is an escape from massively multiplayer games that doesn’t mean you have to play alone. No matter if it’s online or in-person for a couch co-op that you are looking for, we have a little something for everybody. Grab a friend, grab a game and have some fun!
Best social games for PS4
Original fun
The Jackbox Party Pack
Stuck at home with nothing to do and want a fun party game to get your friends together (virtually)? The Jackbox Party Pack is your answer. It features iconic games such as Drawful, Fibbage XL, and You Don’t Know Jack, along with Lie Swatter and Word Spud. It’s perfect if you want to have a laugh without worrying about the stress that other games might induce.
$25 at PlayStation
2 Jackbox 2 Party Pack
The Jackbox Party Pack 2
Just can’t get enough of the original Jackbox Party? You have plenty of offerings to choose from. The Party Pack 2 introduces the ever-favorite Quiplash XL along with Fibbage 2, Earwax, Bidiots, and Bomb Corp. Everyone can join in with their phones so no extra controllers are needed.
$25 at PlayStation
Jackbox Party Pack: Tokyo Drift
The Jackbox Party Pack 3
The Jackbox Party Pack 3 contains Quiplash 2, Trivia Murder Party, Guesspionage, Tee K.O., and Fakin’ It for hours and hours of even more laugh-inducing fun. Quiplash 2 is the big hit of this pack, and it gives players the ability to come up with their own questions. Whether you’re looking to take on a killer in a battle of wits in Trivia Murder Party or need something more lighthearted like Guesspionage, The Jackbox Party Pack 3 has you covered.
$25 at PlayStation
Jackbox & Party Pack
The Jackbox Party Pack 4
Fibbage 3, Survive the Internet, Monster Seeking Monster, Bracketeering, and Civic Doodle all make up The Jackbox Party Pack 4. Fibbage is a classic by now, but a few of these certainly offer some variety from the games you may be used to in these packs. Monster Seeking Monster is a dating game where you message and date fellow monsters with special powers. For all of you people into that sort of thing.
$25 at PlayStation
Jackbox Five
The Jackbox Party Pack 5
The fifth edition of The Jackbox Party Pack features You Don’t Know Jack, Split the Room, Mad Verse City, Patently Stupid, and Zeeple Dome. You could always go for the classic pop culture trivia game You Don’t Know Jack, but why would you when the epic robot rap battle game Mad Verse City is right there? Just think of how much you can annoy your friends and laugh together.
$30 at PlayStation
Now that’s a lot of sequels
The Jackbox Party Pack 6
And thus concludes the Fast & Furious references. This final (for now) Jackbox Party Pack includes Trivia Murder Party 2, Dictionarium, Push The Button, Joke Boat, and Role Models. Ever wonder what your friends think of you? Try out Role Models and see how strong your friendship is. Just want to make up weird and funny definitions for words? Dictionarium is for you.
$30 at PlayStation
Digital pictionary
Drawful 2
When you don’t care for many of the other games in The Jackbox Party Pack, you can buy Drawful separately. Why? Because it’s just that’s good. Drawful is like Pictionary on video game steroids. It also adds the ability for players to add their own prompts, so there’s no limit to what you can come up with. Whether you want to keep it PG or go for rated R, you’re bound to have some fun.
$10 at PlayStation
Head-to-head
Quiplash
Quiplash was so popular it also got its own standalone release. Players go head-to-head completing simple prompts, with the rest of your friends and audience voting on whose answer they think was the funniest. The only rules? There are none! You can fill in whatever you’d like. This is the ultimate party game that anyone can play, and you’ll almost never tire of it.
$10 at PlayStation
Wrestlemania
Gang Beasts
Want to mindlessly brawl with your friends using weirdly gelatinous characters? That’s the premise of Gang Beasts. Take to the streets of Beef City and wrestle it out in some wacky and hazardous environments all for your enjoyment and bragging rights. But mostly bragging rights. Battle against enemies in local and online multiplayer or team up with friends in the gang game mode.
$20 at PlayStation
Party time
The Jakcbox Party Pack series is the ultimate party franchise, built entirely around having fun with your friends. The Jackbox Party Pack 3 in particular is amazing because it doesn’t get much better than Quiplash 2. Drawful comes close, though, so for that you’ll want the original Jackbox Party Pack. And you can always buy those two games separately should you wish to.
If you’re sick of seeing The Jackbox Party Pack everywhere and want something a little different, then try out Gang Beasts. It comes highly recommended by a lot of us here at Android Central. Sometimes you just need some stupid, silly fun in the form of wrestling gelatinous figures.
