While many folks play video games as an escape, others enjoy the artistic excellence of select games. Every aspect of a game, from its pacing to immersion factor and even the soundtrack, is important. For these gamers, playing is not just about entertainment. It’s about getting a reaction, and there’s no greater reaction than laughter.
We previously wrote about the funniest games ever made, but the laughs don’t end there. Along with providing fantastic gameplay, the creators of these controllable comedies made a particular effort to make these games hil–arious. Here are ten more of the funniest games out there for your gaming pleasure.
NSFW Warning: Some of these games are aimed at adult audiences and contain language, violence, and other content not appropriate for children.
1. Conker’s Bad Fur Day (2001)
Conker’s Bad Fur Day still stands as one of the most hilarious and replayable games in gaming history, despite its release late in the N64’s lifetime. Its humor, though raunchy at times, reaches every aspect of the game.
This game is satire at its best: an adult cartoon about a cute, murderous squirrel. It wasn’t enough to choose a cartoonish artistic style. Everything, from voice acting to character design, was meant to stretch the conventions of platform gaming at the time.
Every boss is memorable. Any given line in the game is one of the funniest in gaming. Conker’s Bad Fur Day has absolutely no respect and isn’t beneath using a fart noise (and too many poo jokes to count) for a laugh. That’s the point. While there are more realistically violent games — both physically and verbally — nothing will ever quite match the vile comedic brilliance of Conker.
In short: there are no fanboys when it comes to Conker’s Bad Fur Day. You either like it or you’re incorrect.
2. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004)
Everyone has a favorite Grand Theft Auto for one reason or another. Mine is undoubtedly San Andreas.
One bit we have to mention about San Andreas is how naturally smooth the game is. Although it was released on the PS2 in 2004 and thus suffers from the graphical oddities of yesteryear, the game covered topics of race, gang life, and financial success without ever feeling emotionally heavy.
Going to eat is funny. Cutscenes are hilarious. Even the hairstyles in the game were comical, and let’s not forget Grand Theft Auto‘s talk radio shows remain some of the funniest moments in gaming.
This game has it all, from a landmark Cluckin’ Bell drive-thru order to a cubic character fashioned after Eazy E. While most games from the 2000s simply can’t hold up due to graphical limitations, I dare you to tell me the game’s writing, familiar characters, and bare-bones hilarious missions wouldn’t hold up today.
3. Goat Simulator: Waste Of Space (2016)
Not Goat Simulator itself, mind you. I’m referring specifically to its expansion: Waste Of Space.
Why? It’s in the title — space!
You probably never thought of exploring space as a goat, but how can you argue with a trailer that sincerely funny? You don’t play as an anthropomorphic goat, though — only actual goats are present. Goat Simulator perfectly satirizes the simulator game market, wherein players perform common tasks in typical, professional instances. But its true brilliance comes from its ability to take the absurdity of an already ridiculous gaming franchise up a notch.
You’re a goat in space, but that’s not where the comedic element ends. Goat Simulator: Waste Of Space is hilariously referential. Even the name Waste Of Space can be taken ironically, considering the paradoxical vastness and uselessness of most modern gaming libraries.
This DLC has you start out in a Portal-esque branded jumpsuit speaking to a mustachioed man in a top-hat named Lawrence S. Windler (read as swindler) with Mass Effect-style chat menus wherein all entries are labeled “Baaa!”
And that’s just the first scene! In a gaming world where we’ve seen too many serious blockbusters,Goat Simulator: Waste Of Space is a fantastic relief.
4. Lisa (2014)
Many 2D games fail to impress because they reek of someone learning to make games using Unity. But the best show that a developer is confident enough to ingrain an entire and immersive world into two dimensions.
Lisa does just that. Fair warning: this isn’t your average sidescroller. It’s dark, it’s raw, and at times it’ll have you asking if there’s something wrong with the developer.
It also incorporates two of the rarest qualities in gaming: originality and hilarity. Every text box has a punchline, the fight mechanics are funny in their own right, the characters can’t be any more perfect, and the game is frustrating in a way that makes you love it even more.
To cite a specific example would be to rob you of a hilarious experience, and this game is full of them.
5. South Park: The Stick Of Truth (2014)
Before playing this game, many thought it was going to be a flop. A fantastic animated TV show turned video game seemed too susceptible to kitsch and bad taste. With South Park: The Stick Of Truth, I realized the truth — Trey Stone and Matt Parker can do no wrong.
The game makes absolutely no compromises. It’s as hilarious as South Park and the fight mechanics only add to the overall enjoyable feeling of being in South Park. More importantly, the storyline plays like a South Park episode. All your favorite lovable, deplorable characters are depicted just as they should be.
The developers have done something impossible with Stick of Truth. They’ve made all the typically boring parts of an RPG — like perks, game mechanics, and cutscenes — funny. Like, laugh-out-loud funny.
While I could also recommend the upcoming sequel to this game, The Fractured But Whole, it looks as though the creators bumped the absurdity level a little too high to appeal to everyone. If you’re aSouth Park fan, however, consider the games canon and play them. Trust me.
6. Psychonauts (2005)
Psychonauts is brilliantly weird. If you’re not familiar with the game, you’re not alone. But know that director Tim Schafer is not a name to take lightly, and his game writing ranks among my personal favorite and the favorite of many others.
This game is deep on multiple levels. The basic activity of the game is as follows: communicate with a twisted character, enter their minds, and solve (or at least understand) their issues through puzzle solving in a 3D platform environment.
It’s astounding how quickly you can understand the different character quirks through the dialogue alone. The characters are witty and individual, which makes the whole game an enjoyable experience. My favorite character is Napoleon — once you play the game, you’ll have a favorite too.
7. Banjo-Kazooie (1998)
You know Banjo-Kazooie, I know Banjo-Kazooie — do I really have to say more?
Banjo-Kazooie is one of those games that will never quite leave you, even if you last played it years and years ago. While there are plenty of offshoots which try to adopt aspects of this game, the unique storytelling — along with the tight-knit character comradery — is unmatched.
The fact that this game packs as much hilarity in without leaning towards depravity only stands as testament to how funny it actually is. Kids and adults alike will get a kick out of Banjo-Kazooie.
You’ll chuckle at Kazooie’s snide remarks, their happy faces whenever your honeycomb health is full, the overly cartoonish character eyes, alligator Banjo, walrus Banjo… there are too many enjoyable aspects of this game to list. Play it if you never have, and replay (or speedrun) it if you have already.
8. Ratchet and Clank Series (2002-Present)
Ratchet and Clank is one of those games that does almost everything right: from graphics to shooting mechanics, it’s a fantastic experience.
Unsurprisingly, Ratchet and Clank naturally oozes funny from every pore. Keep in mind that all these qualities can refer to the original, the sequels, or the 2016 PS4 remake. It’s a silly and enjoyable experience all the way through, and the sillier it gets — ehem, Skidd McMarx — the better it is.
Best of all, Ratchet and Clank manages to provide a hilarious gaming experience to young and old fans alike. Say what you want, I’ll never get over the Groovitron.
Playing Ratchet and Clank is like being a part of a movie, which it — in part — is. Better yet, it’s like being part of a legitimately funny movie.
9. Deadpool (2013)
I know — a game based on a movie? A superhero movie? Hear me out.
Deadpool has for a long time been the premiere comedic staple of the Marvel universe. That becomes immediately apparent in the Deadpool game. Somehow, the developers managed to pack everything about Deadpool that makes the franchise amazing in an entertaining shooter-slasher.
Besides the fun in-game mechanics, the writing is quintessentially Deadpool. From the cutscenes to the fourth wall-breaking offhand remarks, you still get the same quirky mutant. If you dig lewd and crude comedy — from one of the most hilarious heroes (and villains) in comic book history — playDeadpool.
10. The Stanley Parable (2013)
The Stanley Parable is an amazing game. The sheer amount of self-reflection this game mandates from the player is impressive. What’s more impressive in this game, though, is just how funny it is.
I don’t mean “ha-ha” funny. It’s more of an “I’m not comfortable with how comfortably the narrator is designating my decisions” funny. The Stanley Parable insults you constantly. The narrator’s dry British wit is annoying. Once you start playing, though, you won’t want to stop.
You can’t. The constant fourth-dimensional barrage is enough to hook even the most casual players. While playing, you can’t avoid thinking that the developers actually tried to do something with this title.
In most comedic games, the writing and plot are satirical. In The Stanley Parable, you are the satire.
Any other funny games you’d recommend? Tell us which games left you in stitches in the comments below!
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