5 Best Video Games Like Overcooked

Both 2016's "Overcooked" and its 2018 sequel reveled in the chaotic possibilities of cooperative multiplayer gameplay. The game had players working together in a short-order kitchen, keeping up with customer orders while keeping their work space operational and efficient. More than just mixing up recipes as the game progressed, it began to create fantastical obstacles in the kitchen for players to adapt to while keeping the workflow going. Available on most major gaming platforms, "Overcooked" is one of the best co-op games to play with your friends right now.

While we wait to see if we'll ever get "Overcooked 3," there are plenty of similar co-op games available. These titles are frenetically paced but, at least in most cases, presented in a way that can be fun for the whole family instead of more high-octane co-op experiences. That all-age approach doesn't mean these games are any less intense, of course, requiring careful coordination between players working together. These are the five best video games like "Overcooked," each adding their own twist to the co-op video game space.

Whoever decided that video games are easier today than the '80s and '90s must not have played 2013's "Don't Starve." The survival game has players control a character named Wilson who finds himself stranded in a nightmarish world full of supernatural monsters. More than just evading these enemies, Wilson has to be kept nourished and his mental health maintained in the face of these terrors. Naturally, survival becomes much more difficult when the sun goes down, with Wilson needing to find a way to create light to navigate the darkness and ward off nocturnal creatures.

In 2015, the game received a free expansion for existing owners that rebranded it under the title "Don't Starve Together." Rebalancing the game as a multiplayer experience, the expansion allows for up to six players to work together to stay alive in the harsh environment. The game has released a number of updates to its multiplayer mode, keeping the experience fresh and challenging for players. With a Tim Burton-inspired art design and immersive world to keep players on their toes, "Don't Starve" is a richly rendered classic.

Rather than running a kitchen like "Overcooked," the similarly styled 2019 game "Tools Up!" has players control a team of home renovators. While clients are out of their homes, players must provide the requested changes before they return within a set time limit. This ranges from painting an interior to completely modeling and rearranging living spaces before time is up. There is a campaign mode for players to progress through increasingly difficult contracts, as well as a party mode that just lets them get in on the fun from randomly generated assignments.

Offering multiplay for up to four participants, "Tools Up!" definitely has the look and feel of "Overcooked," just in a different professional setting. The time limit aspect of the game and variety of assignments will keep players shouting at each other to ensure every detail is completed before time expires. The home renovation aspect of the game also keeps things fresh and fun, though not without unexpected challenges as players work together. With all the hallmarks of one of those frustrating co-op games that always start arguments – in a chaotically fun way — "Tools Up!" is definitely worth checking out.

One crucially important mechanic in the "Overcooked" games is to keep kitchens clean before they completely implode from the resulting chaos. That maintenance aspect is key to the 2020 co-op sci-fi game "Out of Space," featuring a team of characters manning a small spaceship. The vessel is infested with a strange extraterrestrial that must be contained, cleaned, and removed while keeping the ship operational. The game can be played solo or with a team of up to four people working together to keep the infestation at bay.

"Out of Space" was developed and published by the Brazilian team at Behold Studios, quickly finding a global audience. The game definitely raises the pressure as the infestation grows, encouraging players to work together quickly and efficiently to contain the crisis. The tasks and coordination within the gameplay definitely evoke "Overcooked" in their own tension-mounting way. A fun twist on co-op games that dials up the sci-fi intensity without losing its coziness, "Out of Space" is an entertaining ride.

While the 2020 simulator "Moving Out" takes place in various residences, like "Tools Up!," it features a very different premise. Instead of renovating homes, players are helping each other move out of a given location, carefully extracting furniture from the premises. This is where the game's sharply crafted physics engine comes into play, with players needing to be mindful not only of shape and size, but also weight. Up to three players can join in on the fun as they help friends vacate their old homes.

More than just a straightforward moving sim, "Moving Out" offers plenty of fun twists to keep the game fresh and engaging. Players will occasionally have to deal with everything from ghosts to inclement weather as they remove furniture. The game also features an extensive accessibility mode for those potentially put off by the difficulty or stress of many co-op games. If you're looking for a game to play while you wait for "Overcooked 3," "Moving Out" has got you covered.

Of course, it'd be hard to get through an article recommending games like "Overcooked" without including at least one more cooking sim. 2022's "PlateUp!" features a much more grounded approach to running a restaurant kitchen, both in art design and gameplay mechanics. Up to four players can work together running their restaurant, with most playthroughs involving dining shifts over the course of 15 days. Every three days, modifiers are added to make successful completion progressively more challenging as players try to keep up with customer demand.

One of the key factors to "PlateUp!" is its roguelike approach, randomizing gameplay to ensure no two playthroughs are exactly the game. This variety keeps the experience fresh and players coming back for more as they face new twists to the game. The game does feature something of a sharper difficulty curve, but one telegraphed to players as they advance through their playthroughs. And at the very least, "PlateUp!" is a cooking sim with a much better reputation than "Cooking Mama: Cookstar."