10 Best Party Games on Nintendo Switch

Mario Party Superstars is a fun game for smaller groups, but due to its board game nature, it can be time-consuming for larger parties.

Overcooked 1 or 2 is perfect for parties and offers short and exciting levels. However, the stress level can rise while trying to meet the time limit.

Pico Park is a great choice for larger groups, with cooperative gameplay and minimalist design. However, mischievous friends can make the levels last longer.

Throughout its lifespan, the Nintendo Switch has been promoted as the leading gaming system for any kind of social gathering. While we may not necessarily bring a Switch dock on the way to our co-worker's girlfriend's Quinceañera (unless she specifically asks us to, of course), we generally agree that the Switch is great for parties.

However, not every game on the handheld console is necessarily suitable for outings, birthdays, or events with more than three people. If you want to effectively steer clear of the tempting allure of gaming, you need to have the right games prepared and ready. To make this easier, we have selected and reviewed the best party games for the Nintendo Switch. Just don't forget to bring enough controllers.

10 Mario Party Superstars

It would be criminal to leave this title out of the list. It literally has "Party" in its name. Mario Party Superstars is a modern remake of classic levels from the series. And yes, it is an accessible game suitable for a wide audience, but it has one major drawback that holds it back as a suitable party item: it is too time-consuming for such a small number of players.

At its core, it is a digital board game. The best way to experience it is through rolling dice, landing on spaces, and playing mini-games. That takes time. Even a game with ten rounds, which is considered shorter, takes about an hour to complete. For a maximum of four players, it's not very entertaining for everyone else. But if it's just you and three other players, then Mario Party is definitely a thumbs-up recommendation.

9 Overcooked 1 Or 2

Both Overcooked games are the perfect recipe for a party game. Each level is short, exciting, and generally has easy-to-understand rules. Players can take turns on each level, and there is enough replayability to keep it fresh for everyone. However, there is a secret ingredient that might make things challenging: a hefty portion of stress.

In Overcooked, you play as a chef who must chop, cook, and prepare as many dishes as possible before time runs out. If you're too slow, the level fails. Up to three friends can join, but prioritizing your time and the ingredients you prepare can be challenging. As time runs out, the tension rises, along with the volume of voices. Before you know it, you'll be shouting at your friends like Gordon Ramsey and calling the best man at your wedding an idiot sandwich. But if you can handle the heat, it's an incredibly fun time.

8 Pico Park

Do you want the collaboration but without the time limit? Then Pico Park might be more up your alley. In this minimalist-designed platformer, you and up to eight other people have to work together to solve puzzles and reach the end goal. As one of the few games that offers split-screen multiplayer mode with more than four players, it's a particularly entertaining choice for larger groups at parties.

How smooth and hassle-free your experience is entirely depends on how mischievous your friends are. Since the game is designed for cooperation, proper collaboration is required, and even a little playful rebellion can result in levels taking much longer. There is also no single-player mode, so this is an exclusive party game.

7 Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

It's no surprise that Nintendo's heavyweight has made its appearance. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is the culmination of everything people love about Mario Kart. Choose from a vast collection of Nintendo characters and compete against others on wild and creatively designed tracks, with countless kart builds, while using items to support or hinder chaos as you please.

For good reason, it is among the most popular games of this decade. It's incredibly fun, easy to learn, and hard to put down. With relatively short levels, you can easily start a rotation of players at any event. It also offers a tremendous number of players, with four-player split-screen, eight-player local connections, and up to 12 racers in an online connection.

6 Jackbox Party Pack 4

Introducing the video game for non-gamers, Jackbox! Through clever innovation, Jackbox games allow a variety of players to join a game via their smartphones through a website. From there, they can participate. Each game in a party pack is explained at the beginning, and each concept is easy to understand. All of this combined makes it one of the most accessible games you'll ever find at a party.

In our professional opinion, Jackbox Party Pack 4 is the best. It offers five different games, each with a unique style and theme. However, Fibbage 3 is the best of them all. The biggest challenge here is the required level of social charisma sometimes needed to play. It requires creative thinking, improvisation, and humor. It's not for the shy at heart.

5 Duck Game

There has been too much cooperative play; it's time to let loose and have some fun. Duck Game is a fast-paced multiplayer platform shooter game. Each participant is a duck wearing a silly hat, who must quickly find a weapon on the battlefield and use it to defeat the others. Everyone dies from a single hit, and the countless weapons behave in unexpected ways.

All of this leads to tension-filled action and exhilarating fun, delivered in one- to two-minute encounters. The game also knows how to be silly. With quirky items, a button solely dedicated to quacking, and chaotic landscapes that tend to result in self-destruction rather than success, it's a game that brings forth hearty laughter from duck-related mayhem.

4 Keep Talking And Nobody Explodes

Technically speaking, Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes is a single-player game, technically a game for "as many people who can read the manual simultaneously." It is an asymmetric multiplayer game where a lone player has access to a ticking bomb with various controls. The only way to defuse the bomb is by disabling each module. However, the process is so convoluted that it is impossible to do it from memory.

Instead, you have one or more people nearby with the official Bomb Defusal Manual, which provides a detailed breakdown of how to defuse each module. However, they cannot see the screen (or the bomb). Therefore, they must communicate with you to solve everything in time. It's a perfect combination of tension, teamwork, and creativity. It's a game that anyone, even non-gamers, can enjoy without needing additional screens, controllers, or gaming knowledge.

3 Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics

Do you enjoy classic games from past decades? Would you like to play classics like Yahtzee, Go, Chess, Sorry, and Hanafuda but don't want to spend time setting up, tearing down, and remembering the rules? That's where Clubhouse Games comes in. As the name suggests, this game features 51 of the best board, card, and tabletop games in history. Each one comes with visually impressive environments, convenient control schemes, and detailed rule explanations.

What Clubhouse Games lacks in player count, it makes up for with its accessibility. Absolutely everyone will recognize a handful of the available games here. And it's very easy to jump in and play one or two games before moving on or giving someone else a chance to try it out. Each game is famous for its fun factor, so you're sure to have a great time.

2 Heave Ho

"Heave Ho" is the jump 'n' run equivalent of watching dogs attempting to run across a freshly polished kitchen floor. It's the chaos and comedy of observing someone desperately trying to maintain control. In "Heave Ho," you control a head with two arms. You must manually open and close your left and right hand while moving your arms to traverse platforms and reach the goal pool.

The magic unfolds when you bring a few more players onto the stage. In cooperative play, everyone must reach the goal, with some levels requiring collaboration to make it possible at all. Now you clumsily climb over each other, flop and fail, with each death managing to tickle your funny bone once more. It's an incredibly silly game, and every friend who joins only amplifies the fun.

1 Super Smash Bros Ultimate

It's no surprise that Super Smash Bros Ultimate wraps up the list. One of the most popular and beloved games on the entire Nintendo Switch, it combines all the fun of a fighting game into a dynamic and accessible format. Not to mention the sheer number of franchises and brands it draws from. There's only one game where Bowser can fight Samus Aran in a Pokémon arena.

The game is easy to learn and hard to master, making it captivating for anyone familiar with a game controller. The diverse maps, characters, and items allow for nearly endless variety in every match. And with eight-player battles on a single screen, many people can participate in each game. If you're looking for a game for a party with gamers, this game will attract attention all the time.