The Best Thanksgiving Video Games To Play Together

There is one of the few times during the year when families and friends come together without rushing to the next way station. Thanksgiving is one of those rare pauses in our otherwise frantic and fractious lives. Once the plates are cleared and conversation simmers down, games offer a low-key way to sustain those ties. Happy Thanksgiving video games do more than just distract you from the chatter: they create a sense of shared space. Think of it as a digital continuation of the holiday: the same teamwork, the same playful rivalries, only with power-ups instead of pumpkin pie. And Argentics compiled a list of great titles for family fun this year.

Thanksgiving is about connection. So what better way to celebrate that than to gather around a table and play a game that anyone can enjoy? When family and friends play cooperative games, the screen becomes a shared battlefield, puzzle board, or simply a playground.

Thanksgiving-themed video games and party-friendly titles add their own traditions to the mix of holidays. Some families gravitate back to casual brawlers like Super Smash Bros. for their annual grudge match, while others rely on cozy favorites like Animal Crossing to relax after the meal. Puzzle adventures like Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes or the Portal 2 co-op provide puzzles that are as likely to induce laughter as they are problem-solving. The best video games to play on Thanksgiving have the right kind of tone and difficulty for any crowd, from those who like their action fast-paced to those who can’t get enough of something slow and whimsical.

The holiday atmosphere often calls for activities that bring people together, and games provide the perfect bridge between generations. This curated list of Thanksgiving video games highlights titles that excel at creating memorable group moments, whether through frantic teamwork, lighthearted rivalry, or cozy collaboration.

Release Date: August 7, 2018
Genre: Cooperative Cooking Simulation
Multiplayer: Local and Online Co-op (up to 4 players)
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
Developer(s): Ghost Town Games, Team17
Publisher(s): Team17

There are few party titles that embody the blissful mayhem of teamwork quite like Overcooked 2. You find yourself in these wild, over-the-top kitchens. Everyone’s multitasking at once: one person is chopping vegetables, another is rushing to plate a dish. The frenetic tempo, along with levels that have constantly changing designs such as conveyor belts or kitchens cut across moving rafts, converts mere coordination into comedy gold. It’s the kind of cooperative play that flourishes in family settings, where winning seems secondary to the screaming laughter that will always follow one of the dishes of food burning.

The original trilogy was a book-inspired series that elegantly sat with Geralt of Rivia, developing in parallel to Sapkowski’s novels, and giving players a foundation to explore (hey there) the books with a grounded state of purpose. Each one iterated on its mechanics, but Geralt was the constant thread, grounding the experience in existing lore and viewpoint.
The Witcher 4 game takes a conscious break from the rules. CD Projekt Red has announced that this will kick off a new saga that focuses on new characters and new story threads (as opposed to carrying on Geralt’s story).

Source: https://www.thewitcher.com/sg/en/witcher4

Technologically, the transformation is equally stunning. Former Witcher games were built with CD Projekt RED's own REDengine, which made rich worlds with big, epic content but suffered from optimization and scalability issues. By comparison, The Witcher 4 is set to be developed in Unreal Engine 5, a more stable, performative, and graphically advanced engine.

In brief, the next entry is a real departure: a new hero, a new saga, a new technology. The first three Witcher games iterated on established foundations, and the next chapter of the series aims to extend them beyond the known limits and do something new with the universe.

And, as we wait for this AAA game to cut its niche and drag us into the Continent once more, there’s no reason to twiddle our collective thumbs. We're in the firm belief at Argentics that any idea, be it an epic world-shifting saga or a mere distraction for an easy evening, should be brought to life. We think of ourselves as your personal circle of mages: here to conjure mechanics and stories that resonate with the creative vision you hold. In the world of the Witcher, a well-cast spell can tip the scales of a battle; in game development, the right team can make a concept into something unforgettable. So, let’s chat!