Now that you’ve had the opportunity to deck the halls with boughs of holly, you can relax and enjoy this season where it’s apt to be jolly. Whether you are suffering through some holiday travel to get to grandma’s house for dinner or you’re just staying at home and hosting some of your friends for a Christmas party, you will want to have some entertainment on hand. Why be passive and watch some TV specials when you can get engage in some great video game action?
Depending on your company, it may not be such a bright idea for them to sit around and watch you play Gears of War 2. In this way, you need to take a look at video games that are more appropriate for parties, even if they’re not explicitly marketed as party games. The top ten list that I have provided below are based on two very simple criteria. First, the multiplayer-minded game must be simple enough for novices to enjoy. Second, it has to be fun. That’s it. On with the party!
10. Bomberman Live
With full support for up to four local players, Bomberman Live is one of the newest additions to the Bomberman franchise. It’s been available through the Xbox Live Arcade for some time now, but with the arrival of the New Xbox Experience (NXE) came support for those quirky Xbox Avatars too.
The explosive action (bad pun intended) is incredibly fast-paced and, because each individual match is relatively short, a good number of people can get in and play. The Bomberman paradigm is easy for anyone to understand and the control scheme is similarly simple. There’s nothing quite as fun as blowing up your best friend.
9. Wii Sports
Yes, the Nintendo Wii is already two years old and this is the title that is packed into the system bundle, but it’s still the one that attracts the most attention from non-gamers.
Swinging that Wii Remote like an idiot to play Wii Sports: Tennis will be remarkably enjoyable for anyone who hasn’t yet had the opportunity to play on the Wii. Seeing how there are still system shortages, I’m thinking that Wii newbies will still want to try Wii Sports. Kids will get a kick out of boxing and grown-ups enjoy the intricacies of bowling.
The physically involving controls, coupled with the cute Mii characters, will get everyone in the family involved. Games like Wii Sports can be much more inclusive, because everyone from little Mary Lou right up to Grandpa Stu can have a good time. Wii Fit may be a hot ticket this year, but it doesn’t really boast anything in terms of multiplayer content.
8. NHL 09
This is probably the Canadian in me speaking, but playing hockey is great during the winter months, even if you’re actually hitting the rink (or the pond). I’ve always been a fan of the NHL franchise from EA Sports, so it’s not surprising that I still like playing NHL 09. Even more fun can be had if you have family and friends coming in from around the country, because all of those team rivalries will rise to the surface in some friendly competitive play.
Will you rise to the occasion with the Sedin twins and the Vancouver Canucks or will you go on a scoring frenzy with Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins? NHL 09 is available on the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, and the Xbox 360 and it has full support for up to four local players.
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7. Scene It? Box Office Smash
Although I enjoy watching various trivia shows on television, I’ve never really been a fan of the trivia games that you’d play on a home console. That said, I can see how an experience like that offered by the Scene It series can be great for a quick diversion during holiday parties. Box Office Smash is the latest in this series and, as its name implies, its questions are all related to the silver screen.
The included big button controllers add to the game show experience. If you want to have a little bit of extra fun, you can tie in some inexpensive gifts in place of glorious game show prizes.
6. Soul Calibur IV
You may want to avoid the fighting game genre if you have young ones in attendance, but if you’ve only got the older kids at your party, bashing their faces in with a huge sword can be very appealing. One of the reasons why I chose Soul Calibur IV instead of something like Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix is because the former holds a good balance between being approachable and technical.
On the one hand, Soul Calibur IV offers enough depth for experienced gamers to get some serious competition from their friends. On the other hand, people who are not as familiar with the franchise can have a good deal of fun with just a button-mashing strategy. It’s not hard to piece together some rather interesting combinations … by accident.
Better still, thanks to the DLC route, you have the opportunity to pit Darth Vader against Yoda in one epic lightsaber battle here. That’s enough for me already!
5. MotorStorm: Pacific Rift
Racing games can be a lot of fun, but in the interest of approachability and the “fun” factor, you’ll want to avoid the more technical racing games available on the market. Even people who aren’t normally interested in racing games will love flying through the back country in this sequel to the first MotorStorm.
Available only on the Sony PlayStation 3, MotorStorm: Pacific Rift improves on its predecessor in just about every way. The graphics are more intense than ever and the multiplayer aspects have been very well implemented. Also, because it’s a racing game, it won’t take long before everyone gets a turn.
4. Mario Kart Wii
MotorStorm might be a little too intense for some people, but everyone can enjoy a quick race in Mario Kart Wii. Nintendo has designed this newest Mario Kart game to be more palatable to casual gamers, so you can do the “power slide” without having to waggle your control stick.
Further still, some of the holiday party-goers may get a kick out of using the Wii Wheel. Those unfamiliar with the franchise may need a little time to get accustomed to soaring red shells and magic mushrooms, but they’ll catch on quickly. They’ll need to if they want to win.
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3. Super Smash Bros. Brawl
The action is frantic and the buttons will surely be mashed if you introduce Super Smash Bros. Brawl into any holiday party. Unlike classic fighting games that may be a bit too violent for the younger ones in attendance, the comic mischief displayed in this game is really not much worse than the battles between the Pokemon.
Nostalgic gamers will have a great time creating some rather interesting dream matches, pitting Bowser against Ganondorf for true bad guy supremacy, getting Wario to tackle Pikachu for the crown of yellow mascot king, and even convincing Solid Snake that he should hide in a box from Kirby. That pink puffball is deadly!
2. Castle Crashers
The Simpsons. Golden Axe. Battletoads. What do all of these games have in common? They’re all incredibly awesome!
Tapping into our desire for retro side-scrolling incredible-ness, Castle Crashers is an Xbox Live Arcade game available on the Xbox 360. If you’ve ever unfurled a roll of quarters in an arcade of the 1990s, then you would have surely encountered the numerous beat-em-ups that populated the space during that time. They all had something like an attack button, a jump button, and maybe a “magic” button.
Castle Crashers plays in much the same way. You don’t need to know the story. You don’t need to learn anything too complex. You just need to hack and slash your way to the end of the stage by mashing on the attack button. The developers have added a few small RPG elements for fun, but they’re all secondary to the terrific side-scrolling action. Great for parties.
1. Rock Band 2
No party would be complete without Rock Band. While you may be able to have almost as much fun with Guitar Hero World Tour, Rock Band 2 has a much better multiplayer experience if only for the screen layout. Rock Band parties can be a lot of fun, so why can’t you have the same kind of fun during the holidays? Wail on those drums, belt out the lyrics, and hammer on that guitar like you’re a real rock star.
Full band games like Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero World Tour are much better for parties than karaoke games like Lips for the Xbox 360, because not everyone will want to sing. Those who do enjoy singing can still do it in Rock Band 2, but those who prefer the drums, bass, or rhythm guitar can play those instead. And let’s not forget that Rock Band 2 is just plain old fun. That’s all that matters.
Gaming and Holiday Parties Go Together Like…
Turkey and stuffing. Pumpkin pie and whipped cream. Hot chocolate and candy canes. It doesn’t matter if you’re being dragged to some boring family dinner in the middle of the countryside if you can still get in a video game fix with some of your loved ones. Yes, you may have to leave Left 4 Dead and Resistance 2 behind for a few days, but you can still have plenty of fun racing around with your nephews in Mario Kart or rocking out with your buddies in Rock Band 2. Get in the festive spirit… and play some video games.
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