1 Content Warning
Lots of humour
You and your friends descend into spooky caves and film monsters and mishaps to go viral on the fictional SpöökTube. The mix of panic, slapstick and proximity chat makes for plenty of laughs in co-op.
108 games
The best hidden gem co-op games
Highly rated but little known: co-op games away from the usual suspects.
How to find games that really suit you: Select up to 5 games you have played and enjoyed. Playalike compares 36 traits such as combat, story and atmosphere and suggests games that hit exactly the same spot, even across genres.
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1 Content Warning
- Lots of humour
- Co-op or multiplayer
- Distinctive, stylised art style
You and your friends descend into spooky caves and film monsters and mishaps to go viral on the fictional SpöökTube. The mix of panic, slapstick and proximity chat makes for plenty of laughs in co-op.
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2 Bombanana!
- Puzzles and brain teasers
- Lots of humour
- Co-op or multiplayer
A chaotic three-player co-op game where a blind, a deaf and a mute monkey each hold only part of the information needed to defuse a bomb. Communication and laughter are at the heart of it.
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3 Just Shapes & Beats
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Distinctive, stylised art style
- Challenging difficulty
A rhythm-driven bullet-hell where you dodge geometric hazards perfectly synced to an electrifying soundtrack. It shines in chaotic, frantic co-op sessions with friends.
2 Bombanana!
Puzzles and brain teasers
A chaotic three-player co-op game where a blind, a deaf and a mute monkey each hold only part of the information needed to defuse a bomb. Communication and laughter are at the heart of it.
- Puzzles and brain teasers
- Lots of humour
- Co-op or multiplayer
A chaotic three-player co-op game where a blind, a deaf and a mute monkey each hold only part of the information needed to defuse a bomb. Communication and laughter are at the heart of it.
3 Just Shapes & Beats
Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
A rhythm-driven bullet-hell where you dodge geometric hazards perfectly synced to an electrifying soundtrack. It shines in chaotic, frantic co-op sessions with friends.
4 Supermarket Together
Economy and management
A free supermarket management sim built around co-op, where friends stock shelves, work the registers and chase shoplifters, with the chaos growing as more players join.
5 Sven Co-op
Shooting and gunplay
Sven Co-op is a Half-Life-based standalone game that turns the classic shooter into a team experience. You fight AI enemies, solve puzzles together and play a huge range of community-made maps.
6 Alien Swarm
Sci-fi setting
A free top-down co-op shooter from Valve where a squad of four marines with distinct classes fights through hordes of aliens. Teamwork, loadouts and unlockable weapons drive frantic, tactical firefights.
7 Barotrauma
Sci-fi setting
You crew a submarine with friends through the icy ocean of Jupiter's moon Europa. Every task, from reactor to weapons to hull leaks, matters, and small mistakes quickly spiral into chaotic survival.
8 PlateUp!
Runs that play out differently every time
A frantic restaurant management game where you cook, serve and expand your eatery alone or with friends, using roguelike upgrades and randomized layouts. Kitchen coordination and chaos drive the fun.
8 PlateUp!
- Runs that play out differently every time
- Economy and management
- Co-op or multiplayer
A frantic restaurant management game where you cook, serve and expand your eatery alone or with friends, using roguelike upgrades and randomized layouts. Kitchen coordination and chaos drive the fun.
9 Unrailed!
Co-op or multiplayer
A chaotic co-op game where you and friends lay track in front of an unstoppable train, gathering resources and improvising across procedurally generated maps. Teamwork and shouted communication drive the fun.
10 The Past Within
Puzzles and brain teasers
A Rusty Lake co-op puzzle adventure where two players occupy separate timelines, past and future, and must communicate to solve puzzles together. Its eerie atmosphere and Albert Vanderboom's scheme drive the experience.
11 Abiotic Factor
Sci-fi setting
A co-op survival crafting game set in a sprawling underground research facility where you play a scientist building gear and bases from everyday items. The tone blends Half-Life-style anomalies and monsters with dry humor.
- Sci-fi setting
- Building and crafting
- Lots to discover
A co-op survival crafting game set in a sprawling underground research facility where you play a scientist building gear and bases from everyday items. The tone blends Half-Life-style anomalies and monsters with dry humor.
12 Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime
Sci-fi setting
A chaotic couch co-op space shooter where you and friends crew a neon-bright ship, juggling cannons, shields and engines. Only good teamwork saves the space bunnies from the forces of Anti-Love.
12 Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime
- Sci-fi setting
- Distinctive, stylised art style
- Co-op or multiplayer
A chaotic couch co-op space shooter where you and friends crew a neon-bright ship, juggling cannons, shields and engines. Only good teamwork saves the space bunnies from the forces of Anti-Love.
13 Atlyss
Fantasy setting
A charming low-poly online action RPG inspired by classic MMOs, playable solo or with friends. You build your character, complete quests and explore quirky areas full of strange creatures.
13 Atlyss
- Fantasy setting
- Strong character progression
- Action-packed real-time combat
A charming low-poly online action RPG inspired by classic MMOs, playable solo or with friends. You build your character, complete quests and explore quirky areas full of strange creatures.
14 The Jackbox Party Pack 7
Lots of humour
Five witty party games for up to eight players, all played using phones as controllers. From Quiplash 3 to drawing and guessing games, it delivers big laughs with friends and family.
15 Blood & Bacon
Shooting and gunplay
A co-op first-person shooter for up to six players where you fight waves of porcine monstrosities and giant bosses in a horde mode across day and night cycles.
16 How to Fish
Lots of humour
You and up to three friends wash up on a small island and must work your way home by mastering a physics-driven fishing simulator. Its chaotic humor and shared silliness with other players are what make it stand out.
16 How to Fish
- Lots of humour
You and up to three friends wash up on a small island and must work your way home by mastering a physics-driven fishing simulator. Its chaotic humor and shared silliness with other players are what make it stand out.
17 We Were Here Expeditions: The FriendShip
Puzzles and brain teasers
A pure co-op puzzle game where two players, separated from each other, must communicate over radio to solve puzzles together. Without good communication, you cannot progress.
17 We Were Here Expeditions: The FriendShip
- Puzzles and brain teasers
- Co-op or multiplayer
A pure co-op puzzle game where two players, separated from each other, must communicate over radio to solve puzzles together. Without good communication, you cannot progress.
18 We Were Here Forever
Puzzles and brain teasers
A pure co-op puzzle game where two players are separated in a frozen castle and must describe what they see over voice chat to escape together. Communication and teamwork are the core of the experience.
- Puzzles and brain teasers
- Co-op or multiplayer
A pure co-op puzzle game where two players are separated in a frozen castle and must describe what they see over voice chat to escape together. Communication and teamwork are the core of the experience.
19 The Jackbox Party Pack 3
Lots of humour
A collection of hilarious party games played with friends using their phones as controllers, from Quiplash 2 and Tee K.O. to the macabre quiz show Trivia Murder Party. Ideal for laughter-filled game nights with friends and family.
20 Rabbit & Steel
Runs that play out differently every time
A cooperative action roguelike where you play as rabbits raiding the Moonlit Kingdom with friends. Fast combat and shifting builds drive the replayability.
21 Devour
Dread and tension
A co-op horror game for up to four players where you complete ritual objectives while fleeing a possessed cult leader and her minions. Panic, hiding and jump scares shine best with friends.
21 Devour
- Dread and tension
- Dark, serious atmosphere
- Sneaking and hiding
A co-op horror game for up to four players where you complete ritual objectives while fleeing a possessed cult leader and her minions. Panic, hiding and jump scares shine best with friends.
22 Gunfire Reborn
Action-packed real-time combat
A fast-paced roguelite first-person shooter where you fight through procedurally generated levels alone or with up to three friends, crafting varied builds from heroes, weapons and upgrades.
23 Chained Together
Jumping and platforming
You climb out of hell chained to your friends, where one slip can drag the whole team down. It thrives on chaotic teamwork, frustration and laughter, playable solo or in co-op.
24 The Outlast Trials
Dark, serious atmosphere
A co-op survival horror where you endure the cruel experiments of the Murkoff Corporation, alone or with up to three friends. You sneak, flee and complete objectives while sadistic stalkers hunt you down.
- Dark, serious atmosphere
- Dread and tension
- Lavish presentation
A co-op survival horror where you endure the cruel experiments of the Murkoff Corporation, alone or with up to three friends. You sneak, flee and complete objectives while sadistic stalkers hunt you down.
25 Fast Food Simulator
Economy and management
A chaotic co-op restaurant sim where you run a burger joint solo or with up to six friends, taking orders, cooking burgers and expanding the business.
26 Bokura
Puzzles and brain teasers
A cooperative puzzle adventure built for exactly two players, who guide two runaway boys past walls and obstacles toward a faraway place. The puzzles demand close teamwork while telling a quiet, emotional story.
26 Bokura
- Puzzles and brain teasers
- Co-op or multiplayer
- Distinctive, stylised art style
A cooperative puzzle adventure built for exactly two players, who guide two runaway boys past walls and obstacles toward a faraway place. The puzzles demand close teamwork while telling a quiet, emotional story.
27 Core Keeper
Lots to discover
A mining sandbox adventure in a vast underground world where you dig, build, craft, farm and fight bosses, solo or with up to eight players. The mystery of the ancient Core drives your exploration.
27 Core Keeper
- Lots to discover
- Building and crafting
- Sandbox with your own goals
A mining sandbox adventure in a vast underground world where you dig, build, craft, farm and fight bosses, solo or with up to eight players. The mystery of the ancient Core drives your exploration.
28 Flock Around
Cosy, great for unwinding
You wander a nature sanctuary with friends, snapping photos of birds and completing your field guide together. A calm, low-pressure co-op game about discovering and collecting.
28 Flock Around
- Cosy, great for unwinding
- Lots to discover
- Co-op or multiplayer
You wander a nature sanctuary with friends, snapping photos of birds and completing your field guide together. A calm, low-pressure co-op game about discovering and collecting.
29 Wobbly Life
Open world
A colorful, wobbly physics sandbox with an open town where you take on jobs, minigames and silly mischief alone or in co-op to earn money and unlock new things.
29 Wobbly Life
- Open world
- Sandbox with your own goals
- Lots of humour
A colorful, wobbly physics sandbox with an open town where you take on jobs, minigames and silly mischief alone or in co-op to earn money and unlock new things.
30 Escape Simulator
Puzzles and brain teasers
A first-person escape room game where you can pick up, inspect and move nearly everything to crack clever puzzles. It shines in co-op with friends and offers a wide variety of themed rooms.
31 Heavenly Bodies
Sci-fi setting
You control a 1970s cosmonaut's limbs one stick per arm, solving physics-driven tasks aboard zero-gravity stations. The deliberately unruly controls make it frustrating, funny and especially chaotic in co-op.
32 Mount Your Friends
Lots of humour
A chaotic physics-based climbing game where the mountain is a pile of other players' muscular bodies. The wobbly controls make it a source of laughs, especially in multiplayer.
33 Door Kickers: Action Squad
Shooting and gunplay
A retro side-scrolling shooter where you kick down doors, rescue hostages and defuse bombs, solo or in co-op. Fast, arcade-style gunfights in pixel-art style that shine with friends.
34 Charlie Murder
Action-packed real-time combat
A punk-rock beat 'em up with RPG progression where a garage band fights a demonic army. Up to four-player co-op, irreverent humor and a bold comic art style set it apart.
35 Dungeon Defenders
Fantasy setting
A blend of tower defense and action RPG where you build defenses and fight alongside them as enemy waves storm your crystal. Its strengths are loot grinding and four-player co-op.
- Fantasy setting
- Strong character progression
- Action-packed real-time combat
A blend of tower defense and action RPG where you build defenses and fight alongside them as enemy waves storm your crystal. Its strengths are loot grinding and four-player co-op.
36 No More Room in Hell
Post-apocalyptic setting
A cooperative zombie survival-horror shooter built on the Source engine, inspired by George Romero's films. Scarce ammo, deadly infection and teamwork drive tense, short survival rounds.
37 Farm Together
Cosy, great for unwinding
A relaxed farming simulator where you plant, harvest and expand a farm alone or alongside friends on a shared plot. With no pressure and no story, the focus is on cozy cooperative building.
38 Death in Unison
Dread and tension
A two-player co-op horror game set in a prison full of dangerous psychopaths, where you carry out duties and survive. Teamwork and communication are key to getting through.
39 Heave Ho
Lots of humour
A chaotic co-op climbing game where up to four wobbly characters grab each other's hands, swing and haul one another to the goal. The fun comes from teamwork, slapstick and the unpredictable tangle of limbs.
39 Heave Ho
- Lots of humour
- Co-op or multiplayer
- Distinctive, stylised art style
A chaotic co-op climbing game where up to four wobbly characters grab each other's hands, swing and haul one another to the goal. The fun comes from teamwork, slapstick and the unpredictable tangle of limbs.
40 Sunderfolk
Turn-based combat
Sunderfolk is a turn-based tactical RPG for up to four players that feels like a cozy board game night on the couch. Each player controls their hero and coordinates moves together while adventuring through the storybook-like Sunderlands.
40 Sunderfolk
- Turn-based combat
- Tactical depth
- Fantasy setting
Sunderfolk is a turn-based tactical RPG for up to four players that feels like a cozy board game night on the couch. Each player controls their hero and coordinates moves together while adventuring through the storybook-like Sunderlands.
41 Escape the Backrooms
Dread and tension
A co-op horror game where you wander eerily familiar, endless Backrooms levels together, solving puzzles and avoiding entities to find the exit. Each level offers its own escape route and dangers.
42 The Jackbox Party Pack 5
Lots of humour
Five humorous party games for up to 8 players using phones as controllers, with an audience of up to 10,000 joining in. From trivia to drawing to rap battles, it's ideal for group game nights.
43 Dyo
Puzzles and brain teasers
You guide two minotaurs whose screens are linked, so you have to help each other out to find a way through the maze. The appeal lies in clever puzzles that only work when both halves cooperate.
43 Dyo
- Puzzles and brain teasers
- Co-op or multiplayer
You guide two minotaurs whose screens are linked, so you have to help each other out to find a way through the maze. The appeal lies in clever puzzles that only work when both halves cooperate.
44 Ember Knights
Action-packed real-time combat
A fast-paced pixel-art action roguelite where every run lets you combine weapons, spells and relics into new synergies. Its local and online co-op for up to four players is a highlight.
- Action-packed real-time combat
- Runs that play out differently every time
- Fantasy setting
A fast-paced pixel-art action roguelite where every run lets you combine weapons, spells and relics into new synergies. Its local and online co-op for up to four players is a highlight.
45 Struggling
Lots of humour
A chaotic physics-based co-op game where each player controls one arm of a grotesque flesh creature. Climbing, grabbing and failing together makes for absurd fun and plenty of shouted coordination.
45 Struggling
- Lots of humour
- Co-op or multiplayer
- Jumping and platforming
A chaotic physics-based co-op game where each player controls one arm of a grotesque flesh creature. Climbing, grabbing and failing together makes for absurd fun and plenty of shouted coordination.
46 The Jackbox Party Pack 4
Lots of humour
A bundle of five hilarious party games where everyone plays on their phone: bluffing with fake facts, roasting friends' internet answers, spooky dating, absurd debates and collaborative doodling. Great for group nights with up to 16 players plus an audience.
47 Guns of Icarus Online
Co-op or multiplayer
A team-based online airship combat game where captain, gunners and engineers must cooperate to pilot, repair and fight in a steampunk ship. Coordination and communication matter more than individual skill.
48 Scrap Mechanic
Building and crafting
A colorful physics sandbox where you engineer your own vehicles and contraptions from parts. Its survival mode has you and friends scavenging and farming on a planet overrun by hostile Farmbots.
49 Rec Room
Co-op or multiplayer
Rec Room was a social VR platform where you hung out with friends, played minigames across millions of player-made rooms, or built your own creations. It centered on community and creativity, and its servers were shut down in mid-2026.
49 Rec Room
- Co-op or multiplayer
- Sandbox with your own goals
- Lots to discover
Rec Room was a social VR platform where you hung out with friends, played minigames across millions of player-made rooms, or built your own creations. It centered on community and creativity, and its servers were shut down in mid-2026.
50 Jamestown: Legend of the Lost Colony
Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
An arcade-style bullet-hell shooter set on a 17th-century colonial Mars, blending British colonial history with science fiction. It stands out for its lovingly crafted pixel art and co-op play for up to four players.
50 Jamestown: Legend of the Lost Colony
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Shooting and gunplay
- Action-packed real-time combat
An arcade-style bullet-hell shooter set on a 17th-century colonial Mars, blending British colonial history with science fiction. It stands out for its lovingly crafted pixel art and co-op play for up to four players.
51 Necesse
Open world
A 2D sandbox survival game in an endless procedurally generated world where you build a settlement alone or with friends, delve into dungeons, fight bosses and craft gear. Its appeal lies in blending base building and settler management with action-driven gear progression.
51 Necesse
- Open world
- Building and crafting
- Sandbox with your own goals
A 2D sandbox survival game in an endless procedurally generated world where you build a settlement alone or with friends, delve into dungeons, fight bosses and craft gear. Its appeal lies in blending base building and settler management with action-driven gear progression.
52 Pico Park 2
Puzzles and brain teasers
A chaotic co-op puzzle platformer for 2 to 8 players where only communication and teamwork get everyone through each level. Simple pixel visuals, lots of laughs and the occasional friendly argument are guaranteed.
52 Pico Park 2
- Puzzles and brain teasers
- Co-op or multiplayer
A chaotic co-op puzzle platformer for 2 to 8 players where only communication and teamwork get everyone through each level. Simple pixel visuals, lots of laughs and the occasional friendly argument are guaranteed.
53 Earth Defense Force 5
Sci-fi setting
A gleefully cheesy third-person arcade shooter where you, alone or in co-op, mow down enormous swarms of giant insects and robots with a huge arsenal. B-movie charm, mass destruction and weapon collecting define the fun.
- Sci-fi setting
- Shooting and gunplay
- Action-packed real-time combat
A gleefully cheesy third-person arcade shooter where you, alone or in co-op, mow down enormous swarms of giant insects and robots with a huge arsenal. B-movie charm, mass destruction and weapon collecting define the fun.
54 Ibb & Obb
Puzzles and brain teasers
Two little creatures live on opposite sides of a horizon with inverted gravity and solve clever co-op puzzles together. It thrives on teamwork, timing and a minimalist, colorful look.
54 Ibb & Obb
- Puzzles and brain teasers
- Distinctive, stylised art style
- Co-op or multiplayer
Two little creatures live on opposite sides of a horizon with inverted gravity and solve clever co-op puzzles together. It thrives on teamwork, timing and a minimalist, colorful look.
55 Streets of Fury EX
Melee combat with weapons or fists
A classic 90s-style beat'em up where you brawl through Paris gangs alone or with up to three friends. Combos, powerful fury special attacks and unlockables add variety, and you can also fight each other.
56 Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine
Sneaking and hiding
A top-down heist game where you play solo or in co-op as a crew of specialists, casing buildings, dodging guards and grabbing loot. It shines with friends, when carefully laid plans fall apart in chaotic ways.
56 Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine
- Sneaking and hiding
- Tactical depth
- Distinctive, stylised art style
A top-down heist game where you play solo or in co-op as a crew of specialists, casing buildings, dodging guards and grabbing loot. It shines with friends, when carefully laid plans fall apart in chaotic ways.
57 Kukoro: Stream Chat Games
Co-op or multiplayer
Kukoro is a bundle of over 20 mini-games, from 2D shooters to tactical RPG bits, built to be played live with your Twitch chat. Your audience gets a real role in the action, which helps your channel grow day by day.
58 Monster Prom
Lots of humour
A irreverent dating sim visual novel where you spend three weeks at a monster high school building stats and chasing a prom date. Absurd, unapologetic humor and plenty of branching choices make it especially fun in 1-4 player multiplayer.
58 Monster Prom
- Lots of humour
- Choices with consequences
- Distinctive, stylised art style
A irreverent dating sim visual novel where you spend three weeks at a monster high school building stats and chasing a prom date. Absurd, unapologetic humor and plenty of branching choices make it especially fun in 1-4 player multiplayer.
59 Rampage Knights
Action-packed real-time combat
A co-op beat 'em up with randomly generated dungeons where you fight alone or with a friend through a goblin- and skeleton-infested ruin using ridiculous weapons and spells.
60 LEGO DC Super-Villains
Lots of humour
Play as a custom-built villain alongside Joker, Harley Quinn and the rest of DC's rogues, causing mischief across open LEGO versions of Gotham and Metropolis. It is full of brick-smashing puzzles, hundreds of collectible characters and plenty of slapstick humor, and works well as relaxed couch co-op.
- Lots of humour
- A party of several characters
- Lots to discover
Play as a custom-built villain alongside Joker, Harley Quinn and the rest of DC's rogues, causing mischief across open LEGO versions of Gotham and Metropolis. It is full of brick-smashing puzzles, hundreds of collectible characters and plenty of slapstick humor, and works well as relaxed couch co-op.
Nothing matches this selection.
What matters: Hidden gem co-op games
Hidden gem co-op games tend to be built around one clear idea that works best with friends: running a restaurant, laying train tracks, or keeping a submarine alive. Because they are less polished by big budgets in some cases and more experimental in others, the fun usually comes from the chaos of working together. Before picking, think about how many people you will play with, how much stress you want, and whether everyone is on the same platform.
Tone and pace vary a lot. If you want something relaxed and funny, Supermarket Together suits a calm session on PC, while PlateUp! and Unrailed! lean on colorful, hectic teamwork and are both available on PC, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch. If you want tension, Barotrauma combines survival, sci-fi and horror in a way that rewards communication, and Content Warning mixes horror with comedy and a roguelike structure. For a more demanding option, Just Shapes & Beats is tagged Difficult and is known for its soundtrack, so it fits players who like to learn patterns together.
Also check availability. Several picks here, including Supermarket Together, Sven Co-op, Alien Swarm and Barotrauma, are listed for PC only, so a mixed group of console and PC players will have an easier time with titles like Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime, which is listed on all four platforms. Older entries such as Sven Co-op and Alien Swarm reward players who enjoy classic shooter design.
Frequently asked questions
What are good hidden gem co-op games for a relaxed evening?
Supermarket Together is tagged Relaxing and Comedy, and it is listed for PC. PlateUp! and Unrailed! are colorful and funny too, though they can get busy once the pace picks up.
Which hidden gem co-op games work on consoles?
Content Warning, Just Shapes & Beats, PlateUp!, Unrailed! and Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime are all listed for PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch as well as PC. Abiotic Factor and Bombanana! are listed for PlayStation and Xbox but not Switch.
Are there any scary co-op games on this list?
Barotrauma and Content Warning both carry horror tags, with Barotrauma leaning atmospheric and survival-focused and Content Warning leaning comedic. The Past Within is a puzzle game with horror and mystery tags, designed for co-op.
Not quite your taste?
Tell us your favourite games and we'll find recommendations that fit you exactly.
