Video games are best when the experience is shared, but depending on what type of gamer a person is, this may not always be the case. Co-op games that rely on communication and teamwork can be stressful for people who like to be in control. However, if a team makes it through the game, their bond will only become stronger.

Co-op puzzle games fit this category perfectly. Some co-op puzzle games rely extensively on communication between the players, while others could technically be solved alone if only the other player would stop touching things. The ebbs and flows of co-op games often make the experience worthwhile. Puzzle co-op games are sure to test any relationship, whether it be with a partner or a friend, and will leave players laughing and sighing with frustration all at once.

Updated on February 29, 2024, by Guillermo Kurten: While co-op titles in general aren't as prevalent in the modern gaming scene as in past decades, there will always be a place for them. Particularly in the indie gaming scene, there are plenty of puzzle-focused co-op games to play with a companion. This list is being updated to streamline the available info on the games, as well as providing release info and their critical receptions.

20 Unrailed! Is A Frantic Race To Build Train Tracks

Unrailed! is a race against time as players frantically work to build train tracks for a moving train. Players will have to amass resources from the environment and build as they go, which makes the Minecraft-like aesthetic fit all the more perfectly. Players need to work together to manage resources and clear out room for the slow-moving train. At every train station, players can make upgrades to improve efficiency.

To anyone concerned the novelty will wear off quickly, rest assured that Unrailed! utilizes procedurally generated maps, so the experience never ends. Unrailed! also features numerous settings, so players can find the right difficulty and speed to best suit their group.

19 Shift Happens Is An Entertaining Puzzle/Platformer Hybrid

Shift Happens is a fun two-player puzzle game where each player can shift their character's size from big to small and back. Players will need to figure out when to be big and when to be small as they try to solve puzzles and overcome obstacles across numerous thematic worlds.

Shift Happens takes plenty of cues from LittleBigPlanet in its puzzles, platforming, and floaty jumping controls. Not to mention the fun backstabbing hilarity of "accidentally" pulling the wrong lever. Shift Happens is fun enough while playing alone, but it really shines with its two-player co-op, especially locally.

18 The Escapists 2 Tasks Players With Escaping Prison

The Escapists series is among some of the deepest strategy games around, but it's still a fun strategy series for beginners. Players will coordinate their escape from a maximum security prison. Players spend each and every day going through their daily schedule, building relationships, and amassing resources in order to plot their escape. While first The Escapists doesn't have multiplayer, its sequel does.

The Escapists 2 is very open-ended in how players approach their escape. It also rewards co-op players with an even greater amount of options and strategies. Whether playing with two, three, or four players, The Escapists 2 offers plenty of replayability with new and fresh ways to play based on the number of players.

17 Biped Will Test Coordination For The Simplest Tasks

Biped is a cute co-op game where plays play as two bipedal robots. Players control each of their respective robots with the left and right analog sticks. The left analog stick moves the left leg while the right analog stick moves the right leg. Even simply walking can be an adventure.

Biped features a variety of different puzzles and environments that require the utmost coordination, both in the co-op sense and in the hand-eye coordination sense. Along the way, players collect coins, which they can use to purchase adorable hats to customize their robots.

16 Death Squared Tasks Players To Overcome Increasingly Complex Obstacles

Death Squared may seem simple on the surface, but its puzzles involve a lot of experimentation and trial and error. In Death Squared, players control a colored cube. Their goal is to reach an endpoint that shares the same color as their cube.

Of course, this isn't always easy as obstacles will steadily be added as players progress levels. An example of this can be a level where a player who, as a green-colored cube, can spawn spikes when they're at its endpoint that knocks out other cubes when they go over it. So the green-cubed player will need to step off their endpoint so other cubes can pass.

15 Snipperclips: Cut It Out, Together! Should Make The Cut For Charming Cooperation

The Nintendo Switch is one of the best places to play any sort of co-op game. Snipperclips: Cut It Out, Together was one of the Switch's earliest puzzle co-op games released as a launch title in 2017. In the craft-like Snipperclips, players each control a shaped character.

Up to four players will need to work together to clip each character to an appropriate shape to solve each level. To make these precise cuts, characters will need to overlap their bodies. Then, one player snips another throughout the overlapped section. Snipperclips is adorable and fun without being overly complex.

14 BoxBoy + BoxGirl! Adds Co-Op To An Unexpected Nintendo Success Story

BoxBoy! is one of Nintendo's most surprising success stories. Developed by Hal Laboratory, the BoxBoy! series initially began as an experiment during the development of Kirby: Triple Deluxe and Kirby and the Rainbow Curse. Nintendo later green-lit full development of this minimalistic puzzle series, which has since spawned three sequels, mostly on the Nintendo 3DS.

The latest in the BoxBoy! series is BoxBoy + BoxGirl!, which adds a co-op layer to BoxBoy!'s box-chaining gameplay. BoxBoy + BoxGirl! shows that two boxes are better than one with engaging puzzles that previously weren't possible in solo BoxBoy! outings. BoxBoy + BoxGirl! is the first, and so far only, BoxBoy! entry released for the Switch.

13 Heave Ho Is A Hilarious Game That Isn't As Simple As It Looks

Trial and error is a staple of puzzle games, and in few games is this more prevalent than Heave Ho. Released for PC and Switch in 2019, Heave Ho tasks players with making it from point A to point B. That sounds all well and good, but Heave Ho's physics and controls make reaching the end goal a complex and hilarious experience.

In Heave Ho, players only control their character's arms and hands. Heave Ho's level design often leads to intense scenarios where a player can't remember which button goes with which hand, especially when holding onto another character. Heave Ho is a great game that is sure to provide no shortage of laughs as players try to plot out their pathway to the end.

12 Keep Talking And Nobody Explodes Is A True Test Of Communication

Communication is key, and no game tests a pair's communicative abilities like Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes. In Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes, one player faces a ticking time bomb. The other player has an instruction book. The player with the bomb must describe to the other player the inner workings of the bomb, while the other must frantically find the solution to each puzzle and relay that to the bomb defuser.

Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes was originally released as a VR game in 2015. Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes eventually made its way to non-VR systems. VR is still the most engrossing way to experience this explosive title, but it's an amazing experience regardless of the system.

11 Never Alone Is A Masterclass Of Puzzles And Education

Never Alone, or Kisima Inŋitchuŋa (meaning "I am not alone"), is a rare game that educates players just as much as it tests them. Based on the Iñupiat story "Kunuuksaayuka," Never Alone was developed as an opportunity to highlight the Alaskan Native culture, which is severely underutilized in gaming and other media. Never Alone also includes behind-the-scenes documentary videos for players eager to learn more.

In Never Alone, co-op players control Nuna, an Iñupiat girl, or they control an Arctic fox as they make their way through a treacherous and snowy journey. Never Alone later received an expansion DLC titled Never Alone: Foxtales and a sequel was announced in 2022.

10 Escape First 3 Can Be A Competitive Or Casual Escape Room

Escape First 3 is the third installment in the series by OnSkull Games, known for its very affordable escape room games. Escape First 3 has improved upon the first two installments, and it isn't necessary to play those before enjoying the third game.

Escape First 3 can be played alone or with up to six people. It even has a versus mode where players are locked in rooms alone and must escape before the others do. There are three escape rooms to choose from and all have a slight horror atmosphere, which adds a little extra fun for those playing the game in VR. While Escape First 3's gameplay may be a little clunky, its puzzles aren't.

9 Ibb & Obb Sees Players Take Turns Being Upside Down

Grab player two's virtual hand and bring them along in Ibb & Obb, a two-player cooperative online game by Sparpweed. In Ibb & Obb, players will find themselves in control of the titular Ibb and Obb, two little blobs with feet, who each view gravity differently at times.

Ibb & Obb starts simply enough, but as the challenges grow, so does the frustration. As players navigate the terrain, they'll want to keep an eye out for the secret rooms. Ibb & Obb is available on multiple platforms, including Windows, PlayStation, and Switch.

8 Curious Cases Is A Detective Game Where Players Test Their Sleuthing Skills

Curious Cases is another OnSkull Games puzzle game and continues OnSkull's escape room style. This time, players find themselves to be detectives solving curious cases no other detective can solve. Similar to other OnSkull games, Curious Cases can be played alone or with up to six players and includes a versus mode. Fans of true crime and detective games should give Curious Cases a whirl.

Curious Cases puzzles are challenging but far from impossible to solve, making them perfectly suitable for casual puzzle players. Like other OnSkull games, Curious Cases is available for both desktop and VR, as well as on the Nintendo Switch.

7 Human: Fall Flat Will Have Players Fighting Physics And Their Own Laughter

Fall flat with friends in this light-hearted puzzle platformer that can be played solo or with up to eight players. In Human: Fall Flat, teamwork makes the dream work. Puzzles often have multiple solutions as diverse people come up with diverse solutions to the obstacles presented in the game.

Laughter is almost guaranteed when setting out on the journey of getting each character to do what players intend, as the characters at times can feel like they lack bones. Solving the puzzles in Human: Fall Flat is rewarding and encourages players to be creative.

6 Unravel Two Is A Beautiful And Positive Experience

Unravel Two is different from what most people think when hearing co-op because it's only available for local co-op or single-player, and online players can't use PlayStation's Share Play feature. Made by the Swedish studio Coldwood Interactive, Unravel Two is inspired by real Scandinavian locations.

Featuring beautiful scenery while players try to figure out the challenges and how to progress, Unravel Two includes more storytelling than typical puzzle games and focuses on positivity when faced with challenges and uncertainty. Unravel Two is available on Windows, PlayStation, Xbox, and Switch.

5 Trine: Enchanted Edition Has Three Heroes For Players To Play As

Trine: Enchanted Edition is the first game in a series of four by Frozenbyte, which are all highly recommended. Trine is not only a beautiful medieval fantasy-inspired world, but it also has enjoyable physics-based puzzles that rely on cooperation between the three playable characters.

The Trine series can be played either alone or with up to three players, and it is possible to swap between characters should another skill set be needed to solve the puzzle. As cooperation is important in the Trine series, it's easy to become frustrated when the team's wizard keeps conjuring boxes when planks are actually what's needed.

4 Escape Simulator Brings The Escape Room Experience To The Living Room

Escape Simulator is a first-person puzzler by Pine Studio. A keen eye is needed to discover all the hidden items in order to escape. One can play alone or online with a partner or friend, but Pine Studio recommends 2-3 players. However, more players are supported.

Escape Simulator will put to the test each of your unique skills and points of view to escape all 20 rooms designed by real-life escape room operators. The puzzles are interactive and should players run out of things to do, the Steam Workshop Community keeps designing new puzzles for everyone to enjoy, making Escape Simulator quite replayable.

3 Tick Tock: A Tale For Two Will Have Players Talking Things Through Wherever They Are

Tick Tock: A Tale for Two stands out from other co-op puzzle games. It can't be played alone, but an online connection to each other isn't required. All that's needed is for two players to have a copy of the game. It doesn't even have to be on the same platform. All players need is an open line of communication with each other.

One player can play Tick Tock: A Tale for Two on an iPad and the other on a laptop as long as they can talk to each other. Each player has a different perspective and the puzzles are impossible to solve without talking to each other. Time is of the essence in the relatively short but very eerie and enjoyable world of Tick Tock: A Tale for Two.

2 Portal 2's Co-op Mode Is A Triumph

The Portal series comprises some of the two most enjoyable puzzle games in the 21st century. Thankfully, Portal 2 includes an amazing co-op mode. With advanced physics and increasingly harder challenges that require players to have perfect timing and be in sync with each other, Portal 2 remains one of the best multiplayer puzzle games available.

Portal 2's two-player version has its own entirely separate campaign from the single-player version, so even if someone has played alone, the co-op experience won't be ruined. Portal 2 is a co-op experience no puzzle gamer should miss out on.

1 We Were Here Requires Heavy Communication

We Were Here is the first in a series of four games that rely heavily on communication between the two players. In the first game, which is free on Steam, the two individuals are split up inside an abandoned castle and the only tool available is a walkie-talkie to communicate with each other.

As players try to navigate through the castle, We Were Here tests the strength of any relationship because each player has the hints to solve other puzzles but not their own. Only time will tell which player will end up with the achievement of "Worst Friend Forever."