Playing games can be fun alone, but it is always more exciting when you can have a friend or two join the fun. While typical cooperative experiences tend to be more action or party-focused, sometimes it is nice to work together in dealing with a simulation.

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The Best Real Life Simulation Games

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Simulation games tend to emulate real-life scenarios, which may not seem like a ton of fun on the service. However, there are some great experiences that have enough depth and joy to them that can keep the player coming back for more. These are even more likely to bring joy if they are co-op simulation games.

Updated on June 2nd, 2024, by Ritwik Mitra: Most people would assume that the majority of simulation games are structured as single-player experiences, with people having to keep track of dozens of metrics that will govern how the game works. However, the simulation genre has evolved by leaps and bounds, encompassing both casual and hardcore experiences. Now, some sim games focus on multiplayer experiences, with a lot of people loving games in the genre that feature a co-op focus, allowing players to engage in these tantalizing gameplay loops with their friends. Given this expanding simulation subgenre, a few more games that fit these criteria have been added to this list in its latest update.

20 Saleblazers

Steam Reviews: 86%

• Platforms: PC, macOS
• Release Date: April 13, 2022
• Developer: Airatrafe Interactive

A lot of sim games focus on management gameplay coupled with a fair bit of combat thrown into the mix to make things engaging. This is precisely what Saleblazers brings to the table, with players loving this title's simple yet engaging gameplay loop. This title currently in Early Access, with a lot of room for improvement.

Saleblazers supports anywhere from 1-8 players, with players having to set up a shop from scratch by gathering materials in the open world. If Saleblazers manages to build upon its systems, then players will be able to enjoy an excellent co-op simulation game that will bring a lot of fresh ideas to the table.

19 Viscera Cleanup Detail

Steam Reviews: 93%

When going around taking down monsters in a game and then moving on, it is understandable to wonder what happens with all the corpses left behind and who has to deal with them. Well, Viscera Cleanup Detail is all about a janitor who is on the job to clean up the hero's mess.

From an office building to a spaceship, up to a whopping 32 players can take on the massive mop-up task of cleaning up blood, bodies, and other unpleasant scraps that are splattered around an area. While cleaning fun, tools in each area also allow players to make a little mess themselves if they would like.

18 PlateUp!

Steam Reviews: 96%

Players who loved the chaos of Overcooked will love PlateUp! for much of the same reasons. The game focuses on a Roguelite progression loop where players can decide how their restaurant looks as they try to satisfy as many customers as possible. Failure awaits them if a few mistakes derail their momentum, making it important to learn how the game works and nail as many orders as possible.

PlateUp! has impressed a lot of people in Early Access, and players can only hope that the 1.0 release adds even more things to mess around with. As it stands, this game is still a ton of fun to play with friends. At leastl until they start blaming each other for messing up an order, which is something that Overcooked players will be very familiar with.

17 Garry's Mod

Steam Reviews: 96%

Back in the early 2000s, the Source engine by Valve was one of the most critically acclaimed development tools out there and has been used to develop some of the best games ever made. One of the more experimental titles to be made using the engine is Garry's Mod, which has turned into a popular platform for creating mini-games.

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A lot of what makes Garry's Mod great is the co-op simulation game elements, which could involve a variety of things. Players can download many of the user-generated maps and modes to play with each other, or the group can work together to come up with their own concepts and just play around in the sandbox mode.

16 Wobbly Life

Steam Reviews: 97% Positive

What if life was just a little more silly? That is the concept of Wobbly Life, a game that can be played with up to 4 players either online or locally. The open-world sandbox allows players to take control of tiny characters that move around and interact with the world with ridiculous physics.

The simulation elements come with taking on jobs to earn cash, and then using that cash to purchase small things like clothing or major things like a home. Since Wobbly Life is an open world, there is so much to explore, including finding treasure and taking on missions.

15 Satisfactory

Steam Reviews: 97%

To survive in an unknown world, it is important to collect resources that will help take care of necessities. But doing this without assistance can be hard work, which is why Satisfactory is all about building large networks of machinery that will help automate the collection.

Better yet, players can build these factories with the help of some friends. Along with building, a main element of Satisfactory is exploring the world and seeing what mysteries are out there. The game gives players many means of transportation, ranging from trucks to jetpacks.

14 Goat Simulator 3

Metascore: 68

Sometimes, the simulator term can be used a little loosely. That is certainly the case in Goat Simulator 3, where players are goats but don't necessarily do things that goats typically do. In fact, the goats in the game are terrorizing society with their long tongues and sharp bleats.

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There are plenty of hoofed shenanigans that players can get up to in Goat Simulator 3, though some of them are better done sooner rather than later.

In Goat Simulator 3, players can hang out in the sandbox together and create as much chaos as they can muster. The co-op simulation game includes everything in the single-player, including finding outfits that can cause destruction, climbing to high heights and ragdolling off them, and completing a plethora of objectives that involve exploring the world and creating some fun.

13 Rust

Metascore: 69

Survival games could be considered a sub-genre of simulator games. And when it comes to starting the player off with nothing with the goal of surviving on a day-to-day basis, Rust is among the best as everyone starts out with absolutely nothing, not even clothes.

Each Rust game starts out in a brand new procedurally-generated world where players can run around and gather materials. The resource gathering is important as it will later allow players to build complex systems such as a train network or an electric grid. Be careful, though, as there are creatures and other people that are looking to kill.

12 Sea Of Thieves

Metascore: 69

There have been many attempts to simulate being a pirate in video games, but very few have been as successful as Sea of Thieves, a live-service experience where players join servers to sail across the seas, hunt for treasure, and potentially run into battles.

With its offer of different ship sizes, Sea of Thieves allows up to four players to manage a ship in co-op simulation gameplay. There are many adventures to be had, either quests that are picked up at an outpost or adventures that players make up as they go along. There is also a ton of customization that the crew can partake in.

11 Embr

Metascore: 72

When looking to be a hero, it is nice to have a team of friends ready to save lives by your side. That is a very loose premise of Embr, a game about being a firefighter looking to put out flames that have gone out of control and protect the people and things that are in danger.

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There are 25 levels in Embr, all of which present a unique challenge that can be tackled in multiple ways. The main goal of the game besides firefighting is making money, which means that players may also steal valuables from the places that they are trying to protect if they can get away with it.

10 Arma 3

Metascore: 74

While there are a plethora of war games out there, few offer the amount of customization that Arma 3 has. The military sandbox gives players all the tools to set up their own battlegrounds where they can take on enemies alone or with friends by their side in co-op simulation gameplay.

All battles take place on the fictional islands of Altis and Stratis, offering varying terrain to practice setting up war operations on. There are 40-plus weapons that players can bring to the battlefield as well as 20 different vehicles. In addition, Arma 3 does have a single-player mode with its own unique story.

9 PowerWash Simulator

Metascore: 75

Tasks in simulation games can be absolutely brutal to take on alone, which is especially true in PowerWash Simulator. This game puts a power washer in the hands of the player with the sole job of getting everything clean in the area, which can be as small as a bicycle and as large as a Ferris Wheel.

Luckily, up to six friends can join a player to take on some of the largest tasks in the game that would otherwise take hours to complete. PowerWash Simulator seeks to give all players involved a relaxing experience of hanging out while everyone works to get everything to a nice and shiny state.

8 Heavenly Bodies

Metascore: 75

Space can be very scary as trying to manage a ship while also trying to stay alive deep into the infinite skies can be a difficult task to take on alone. Luckily, Heavenly Bodies is one of the better co-op simulation games that allows a friend to join while implementing silly mechanics.

The goal of Heavenly Bodies is to survive specific scenarios that astronauts may face while in space. The game stands out as one of the main elements of the gameplay is that the astronaut the player is in control of has each limb controlled by a specific button. That means that it provides an extra challenge while making the scenarios feel a lot less serious.

7 Moving Out 2

Metascore: 80

One of the best co-op experiences when looking to play something at parties, Moving Out 2 offers a wide variety of hilarious scenarios based around the idea of moving packages and furniture into a moving van. What makes this entry special is that this is the first game in the series to have an online co-op mode.

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The game picks back up in the original setting of Packmore. However, portals have opened up throughout the town which are taking the movers to different dimensions. Work together with up to three friends to move items out as quickly as possible, or pay attention to the variety of different challenges the game might give for certain levels.

6 Anno 1800

Metascore: 81

A city-building simulation title that brings the series back to its historical roots, it's a shame that more people don't talk about Anno 1800 all that much. The game is a blast to play, and players can operate from the same faction if they wish to enjoy a co-op experience with this title, working together to build their city up from scratch.

Players will have a blast pooling their resources and moving in tandem to achieve their goals. It's a deeply rewarding simulation game, and friends who may get tired of working together can try out a new competitive game to flip the script.

5 SnowRunner

Metascore: 81

Driving around in a truck can be a lonely job, but SnowRunner allows up to four players to drive and work together to complete difficult challenges. Players will need to learn the basics when it comes to managing vehicles and delivering under brutal conditions.

SnowRunner, as the name suggests, will put players in the position to drive through snow, mud, and other paths that no normal car would be able to overcome. There are up to 40 vehicles for players to unlock over the course of the game, all of which can be upgraded to make the experience easier and more personalized.

4 Escape Simulator

Metascore: 82

In recent years, a group activity that has become a great reason to get out of the house for a bit is escape rooms. These places put people into a small space that is filled with puzzles that they must solve in a limited amount of time. But if people don't want to go to an escape room in person, Escape Simulator is a nice alternative.

In a game that can have up to 10 players online, players are given the ability to solve 23 rooms that were made for the game. However, the best part about Escape Simulator is that there are plenty of rooms made by the community that will make Escape Simulator a nonstop gem to keep returning to.

3 Overcooked! All You Can Eat

Metascore: 84

Working in the restaurant service industry can be hectic, but Overcooked! All You Can Eat somehow makes it feel even more chaotic than it already is. Players work together as chefs preparing meals as quickly as they can and delivering them before time runs out.

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However, the twist with Overcooked is that it isn't always that simple. Players are put in situations such as cooking on moving cars or running around on ice to add some extra flavor to the general task at hand. All You Can Eat combines the first two games into one and adds new content so cooks can spend hours in the game.

2 Keep Talking And Nobody Explodes

Metascore: 84

It is rare to find a co-op simulation where only one player is in control of the actual game but Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes puts a spin on working together that requires an equal amount of patience and work from everyone involved.

The goal of Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes is for one person to defuse a bomb while one or more individuals read the manual and tell the player what to do. The bomb defuser can't look at the manual and the people reading instructions can't look at the screen. It is a game that is meant to emulate the chaos of a bomb-defusing situation.

1 Stardew Valley

Metascore: 89

One indie simulation game that took the world by storm when it came out is Stardew Valley, with gameplay centered around building up a farm and interacting with civilians in Pelican Town and beyond. However, after many updates, a cooperative mode was added to the game.

Playing with friends is not too different from playing alone, except for there being more than one home present on the grounds. Players do not need to stay on the same screen together, as one person can go to the mines for the day while others go fishing, for instance. Players can also marry each other, which plays similarly to the Stardew Valley single-player experience.

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