Life is a funny thing. You know what else is funny? Video games. Creating an enjoyable or uplifting gaming experience is challenging enough. But creating a game that manages to be hilarious? That's a feat of design and writing worthy of admiration.
If you need a good laugh, we have the list for you. We've put together a selection of the best video games that are really fun. From amnesiac cops to flying suitcases and more, here are 10 games (and series) with the best comedy writing the medium has to offer.
Image: ZA/UM
Where to play: Mac, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series
Elysée Nightclub Many consider it one of the best-written RPGs of the last decade, so it's no surprise that it's also considered one of the most fun. No matter how the player chooses to customize his starting stats, the protagonist of Elysée Nightclub is the living human embodiment of a train wreck, moving from one perversely embarrassing encounter to another in his existential mission not only to uncover the culprit behind a murder, but also to establish an ideological framework by which to judge that murder. Most of the time, you can't stop your character from putting his entire foot (or worse) in his mouth. All you can do is try to roll with the punches and laugh. —Toussaint Egan
Image: Interactive IoT
Where to play: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series
The Homing Briefcase alone would be enough to earn the Hitman series' place on this list. But that's just one example of the many ways IO Interactive's immersive assassination simulator lets players tinker with the game's impressive stages. Instead of trying to create massive open-world environments, the games play more like the best apple simulators you've ever played, each with their own intricate series of patterns, paths, and ridiculous characters. The games' winking tone, silly weapons, and penchant for mischief mean that every attempt at a level is a chance for something fun to happen. —Pete Volk
Image: Terrible Toybox/Devolver Digital
Where to play: Android, iOS, Linux, Mac, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox Series X
starting with The secret of monkey island in 1990 and running until Return to Monkey Island in 2022 (which came in at number 16 on Polygon's list of the 50 best games of the year), this series has been a standard bearer for comedy in point-and-click adventure games. That's a credit to Ron Gilbert, a master of wordplay and interactive story design, who directed every game in the series. Very few games have made me laugh out loud while playing them, but all six Monkey Island games have. Although you need to like word games. —Maddy Myers
Image: ink
Where to play: Android, iOS, Mac, Nintendo Switch, Windows PC
In Into the water!You are not motivated by righteousness, unless you believe that pushing your husband off a cruise because he is holding you back in life is righteous. This point-and-click murder mystery begins with a gruesome murder like any other, but in this colorful take, you're not trying to solve it, you're trying to get away with it. It has to be inherently fun, otherwise it would be morally depraved, and the game succeeds at that. The main character is sensual and witty, and you may find yourself ordering her to seduce the captain by flattering his hat or smothering a nasty old woman who knows too much. Whether you end up in jail or not, when each 20-minute game is over, you'll be able to start over with your new information and some new objectives in tow. —Zoë Hannah
Paper Mario: Color Splash
Image: Intelligent Systems/Nintendo
Nintendo's writers like to go with the flow when it comes to the humor and real-world references in the Paper Mario series. The entire franchise has varying degrees of fun, but the series may have peaked in 2016. Paper Mario: Color Splash for Wii U, a game that is unfortunately still stuck on that platform.
Paper Mario: Color Splash sends Mario to Prism Island, after the heroic plumber receives a letter in the mail, which actually turns out to be a paper Toad that has had its color removed, having met that fate thanks to paint-slurping and wielding Shy Guys. straws. On Prism Island, they meet Huey, a sentient paint can who provides many of the game's jokes and meta commentary. color splash It's also full of prankster Toads (this game has a LOT of Toads) and Bowser's henchmen who prank anything. There are fantastic sight gags on paper, fourth-wall-breaking jabs at the Mario franchise, cleverly disguised gun control jokes, and even jokes about the Watergate scandal. Some of the game's real-world references may have even gotten a little too interesting for Nintendo's tastes.
If you don't have a Wii U on hand, I hope Nintendo sees fit to bring it. color splash forward to the Switch. But Switch owners have another great option in Paper Mario: The Origami Kingwhich is also very funny, but not as consistently funny as color splash. —Michael McWhertor
Image: Valve
Where to play: Android, Linux, Mac, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 3, Windows PC, Xbox 360
The first Portal stands out for its puzzle design, an irrepressible gem that remains on almost every critic's personal list of the best video games of all time for good reason. But the other reason it stands out is its dialogue. You play as Chell, a silent protagonist trapped in a series of maze-like puzzle rooms that turn out to be a testing facility run by a sentient robot named GLaDOS. For some reason, this robot has been programmed to be a master at talking shit, and will make you laugh even as you wonder what the hell is going on in each puzzle room. She continues with the trick Portal 2but his jokes become much meaner and (in my opinion) less funny; the original Portal It has the perfect balance. —Maddy Myers
Thank God you're here!
Image: Coal Dinner/Panic
Where to play: Mac, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC
Do you like Monty Python? Fawlty Towerseither That Mitchell and Webb look? If so, do I have the game for you? If not, consider it an introduction (or indoctrination) to the world of British absurdist humour. Developed by Coal Supper and published by Panic Inc. (the latter best known for Untitled Goose Game), Thank God you're here is a comedic adventure game about a little sidekick who runs errands for the locals of Barnsworth, a small fictional town in the north of England. You interact with everything, and I mean everything, by throwing punches, which proves to be an exceptionally effective strategy. The writing is energetic and daring, supported by an exceptional cast of actors including What we do in the shadows star Matt Berry. —Chris Plante
The Yakuza series/Like a dragon
Image: Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio/Sega via Polygon
Where to watch: Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Wii U, Windows PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series
Think of the Yakuza series (recently renamed Like a Dragon in Western markets) as a collision of the godfather and The Simpsons. Each entry tells a life-or-death story of a former Yakuza member navigating the gray space between crime, law enforcement, and civilian life. But these dramatic narrative threads are intertwined with hundreds of supporting characters and their comedic and sincere ambitions. Take for example the most recent version, Like a dragon: infinite wealth. The protagonist's desire to save Hawaii from a megalomaniac cult leader is put on ice as he helps a struggling musician rediscover his passion for environmental death metal. For nearly two decades, game designers have chosen joy over all else, whether it's a Pokémon parody where you collect local perverts, an Animal Crossing clone set on a garbage island, or a boss battle in the that the squad defends itself from the construction. vehicles with a collection of impeccable office furniture. —CP
No game: wrong dimension
Image: Draw me a pixel
Where to watch: Android, iOS, Mac, Nintendo Switch, Windows PC
I am remiss in saying anything about how No game: wrong dimension play, because watching the confusing narrative unfold with each chapter is a joy in itself. It feels clearly inspired by old point-and-click browser games like The most difficult game in the worldwhere the game itself conspires against the player. This version is animated and adapted to the current moment, full of decisions and puzzles that will confuse you and force you to leave the game, but will motivate you to pick it up a few minutes later. This game is not fair, but it is extremely fun: the perfect antidote for the current moment, which also It feels like the wrong dimension. —ZH
Image: Holy Wow Studios
Where to play: Mac, Nintendo Switch, Windows PC
Trombone Champion It could have been a one-note joke, that note being the flatulent twang of a trombone. The rhythm parody game could have effectively mocked the genre with nothing more than its out-of-tune, fart-adjacent impersonation of the instrument. A tongue-in-cheek selection of public domain hits like “The Blue Danube” and “The Old Gray Mare” would have sealed the deal as an instant hit on Twitch streams. But the more you play Trombone ChampionThe funnier it gets, as you discover strange “Trombone” cards and an inexplicable deep story involving baboons. The community has created hundreds of custom tracks if you want to trombone your way through fire and flames. But if that's too much satire for you, it's ultimately still a game about making fart sounds, and that will always be fun. Perfect! —Clayton Ashley