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Posted 11/20/2018

Top 5!

Games to help you survive Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Dinner

If you are anything like me you get exhausted in social situations easily, and with Thanksgiving in just a few days you may find yourself surrounded by friends and family for extended periods of time.

 

So what are you going to do in order to keep your batteries charged, your family happy, stave off your Aunt Nancy from asking you for the Nth time why you aren’t in a relationship, and avoid awkward political conversations?

 

Play games of course!

 

This is a list of my Top 5 recommendations to keep your Thanksgiving game time a fun and family friendly experience!

#5
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

After hours and hours of travel time to get to your holiday destination naturally the very first thing you’re going to want to do is more traveling!

 

Race against your friends and family in multiplayer matches with up to four players competing to be the fastest racer on the track!

 

With Nintendo Switch’s exclusive features like Smart Steering and Auto Acceleration even the youngest kart aficionados can join in on the fun.

 

Duke it out in the updated Battle Mode, which now has a variety of exclusive modes and tracks, and settle the score once and for all to declare true Mario Kart supremacy!

 

You might even unknowingly give the gift of Switch-mas fun to your younger nieces and nephews by showcasing what a great system Nintendo’s latest console is in front of your Aunts and Uncles.

#4
Tricky Towers

Tricky Towers, developed by WeirdBeard Games, has recently made its debut on the Nintendo Switch!

 

A physics based engine combines with the very familiar mechanic of placing tetromino blocks to create a game that is easily picked up by veteran and non-gamers alike!

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The real fun comes in when you realize that your block stacking Wizard can cast White Magic to help themselves, or Black Magic to hinder their opponents!

 

But watch out, because you’re just as much a target as the enemy!

 

With three different games modes (Survival, Puzzle, and Race) to tickle the fancy of yourself and up to three other players, and priced at a very reasonable $14.99, Tricky Towers is a must play for all your holiday parties!

#3
Jack Box Party Pack 1 - 5

While the Switch comes with two JoyCon to start, which will usually allow for at least two player multiplayer in most games, purchasing extra JoyCon to guarantee everyone has a controller can get a little pricy.

 

That’s where the always ridiculous Jack Box Party Pack comes in!

 

Using your phone you can connect to the multiplayer lobbies created by the game when you start up, which means pretty much everyone can get in on the fun.

 

Each Jack Box Party Pack comes with five different games included, and priced at $24.99 per pack (although buying pack 1, 2, or 3 will save you 20% on both of the remaining packs), that’s a pretty good bang for you buck!

 

If I had to recommend one particular pack it would be Jack Box Party Pack 3 due to the game Tee K.O., which has you designing t-shirts with pictures and phrases in an all out war to declare the artisan of Tee craftsmanship!

 

Fun fact, you can even buy the custom t-shirts designed after completing a game!

#2
Super Bomberman R

Have you ever wanted to just make that obnoxious family member that always takes the last piece of pie when clearly you were saving room for it explode in a fiery blaze of your wrath?

 

Well now you can!

 

Super Bomberman R is a glorious return to the classic Bomberman gameplay featuring top down bomb based battles!

 

With the ability to use a single JoyCon as a controller, you can have up to eight players in a game, which causes some frighteningly explosive fights to break out!

 

Collect power-ups to boost your bomb-ability and strive to be the last Bomberman standing in this knock-down drag-out fight!

 

If you turn Revenge Karts on, no one is ever truly out of the battle, as defeated players will fly around the side of the arena attempting to blow an active player up to get back into the game!

 

I can speak from personal experience that even young kids who don’t quite understand how to play still have a blast with this game, as my nephew enjoyed just blowing himself up!

#1
Overcooked 1 & 2

With all the cooking that needs to be done you may often find yourself separated into two groups.

 

Those who can cook, and those who can’t.

 

Luckily, Overcooked is here to turn everyone into a professional, or not so professional, chef!

 

If you thought politics can get your family and friends in heated confrontation that could rival the temperature of the turkey, think again.

 

Overcooked is a, supposedly, cooperative cooking game that asks you and up to three others to run a successful restaurant.

 

With easy to master one button controls you will chop, fry, mix, blend, wash, and roast your way to victory.

 

With such a simple concept, it’s hard to understand why Overcooked will have everyone yelling at each other in mere minutes, but take it from me, that is just the way it is.

 

And it is a full plate of fun.

The Runner Up
Brawlhalla

If you have quite a few gamer friendly family members coming to your Thanksgiving, you might find yourself in a situation where everyone is talking about Super Smash Bros Ultimate, which is releasing just 15 days after that blessed Turkey Day.

 

If this is the case, then I recommended downloading the Free-to-Play Smash-like competitive fighting game, Brawlhalla.

 

While I personally haven’t spent too much time with Brawlhalla, only playing it for a few days after its initial release on PC, the time I did spend with it was wonderful, and it definitely gave me that Smash Bros. like feeling of joy.

 

And at the low low price of free, it fits into anyone’s budget, even with crazy Black Friday sales.

 

But, if that’s not enough to keep your Super Smash Bros. obsessed mind satiated like delicious stuffing, then why not head over to my Smash Bros DLC Fighter Predictions and read up on who I think is going to make it for the five new fighters after the game launches.

 

You can find that article here.

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If you're looking for a solo experience to get you through Thanksgiving, check out my first impressions Moonlighter, a dungeon crawling and retail store running indie game developed by Digital Sun Games!

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You can find that first impression over here.

 

Thanks for checking out this Top 5!

 

Feel free to leave a comment below and let me know what games you would recommend for these holiday gatherings!

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