Cooperative games are a genre that have gained a lot of popularity lately, and for good reason. Families especially can benefit from cooperative games because of their unique ability to remove barriers that might hinder a person or group from playing more traditional competitive games.
A cooperative game is a game designed to be completed together as a group, cooperatively. The people playing work together to solve a problem or complete a mission. The game is either won or lost together.
The nature of cooperative games make them ideal for adults and children who might be intimidated to try a new game that is outside of their comfort zone. Players who are more experienced can guide new players in what the steps are and support them in making decisions. This aspect also makes cooperative games great for families to play together, and it is especially helpful for families with children in a large age-range. In a cooperative game, every player has a unique roll and gets to make decisions to work toward the common goal, which will help everyone involved feel valuable.
One of the biggest reasons I recommend cooperative games is to help children who are either super competitive or have a hard time being good sports. We’ve all played with that person who wants to dominate everything and cackles with glee at the slightest victorious move. Those people are no fun to play with, and they can also intimidate and shut down more timid players. Cooperative games, especially played as a family, can help those competitive kids learn good sportsmanship and also learn that they can benefit from the ideas of others. On the opposite end, they help more timid children learn that they are capable of great gameplay and that their ideas are valuable.
If you are playing a cooperative game with your children and you have a child who easily dominates the conversation or gameplay, that is a great opportunity for you to model language that values everyone’s ideas. “Oh, you think we should move over there? Why do you think that’s the best move? How about you, other child? Do you agree that’s the best move?” If there are disagreements, it provides another opportunity to learn about conflict resolution and natural consequences.
One question that comes up is what to do with a child who likes to be the chaos element, also known as the contrarian or the mole. This is the child who does the opposite of what the group wants to do just because he or she can. They can add a very frustrating challenge to cooperative games, especially for siblings who really are trying their best to work together and win. When we’ve come across this situation, and we have many times, we reiterate our family rules about games being for fun and explain that if they continue to try to sabotage us as a group it’s not making the game fun for anyone else. If this becomes a habitual pattern, then that child will probably be asked to sit out next time we play.
There are a variety of cooperative games for all ages and skill levels. Here are some of our family’s favorites.
- Peaceable Kingdom Games (Hoot Owl Hoot, Count Your Chickens etc…)
- Out Foxxed
- Ghost Fightin’ Treasure Hunters
- Forbidden Desert (Island, Sky)
- Pandemic
- Chronicles of Crime
My kids and I have been playing a lot of Spelunky – it’s a videogame that’s essentially a cross between Super Mario Bros. and Indiana Jones. The current edition of the game allows up to four to work together to explore ruins, avoid traps, stomp on fierce creatures, collect treasure, and rescue lost pugs. If I player dies, their ghost can still trigger traps and nudge light objects – and her companions have the chance to revive her on the next level. Additional players also add new strategies playing alone lacked – you can pick up other players and throw them onto high ledges or over gaps, for example.
I remember you telling me about that! Thanks for the reminder. đŸ™‚ Going to look that up.