The best couch co-op games on PS5, PS4, and PS Plus

The best co-op PlayStation games offer platinum trophies, local couch multiplayer, and laugh-out-loud moments that you'll never forget.

The best couch co-op games on PS5, PS4, and PS Plus
Lee Brady

Lee Brady

Published

As more and more games move multiplayer online, it has become something of an ordeal to find the perfect couch co-op experience among the very best PS5 games. That's why, to help make the search a little easier for you, we've listed the top 10 best co-op PlayStation games below, all of which you can find on PS5, PS4, and often also on our best PS Plus games list.

Diablo IV

Whether you're on PS5 or PS4, collecting Diablo IV trophies with a partner in couch co-op is truly one of the highlights of gaming available in 2023. Sometimes, when you're in the zone, you're simply relaxing, both of you collecting loot and enjoying a stroll in the endlessly miserable environments of the Diablo universe. At other times, you're howling and screaming to keep your plan together if you have any hope of beating a boss together. In both cases, you'll be having the best time (unless you lose to that boss, of course).

Towerfall Dark World

While we can't stop shouting about how great the experience of collecting all of Towerfall Ascension's trophies is — especially while trying to master the game's tricky 2-player co-op adventure — it's the game's Dark World expansion we want to recommend for this list. In Towerfall Dark World, the co-op gets expanded with new rules, a new revive system, and 4-player co-op — all the tools you need to make a great co-op experience even messier and even more memorable.

Totally Reliable Delivery Service

Collecting Totally Reliable Delivery Service trophies isn't an experience we can recommend to just anyone. The game is very loose in structure, and if you like your games to have strong rules and a firm structure, then maybe give this one a pass. However, if you happen to enjoy games that provide endless opportunities to accidentally sabotage your own teammate the moment they try to do something halfway useful, then hop onto PS Plus Extra and give this one a whirl.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge

Back in the day, co-op multiplayer was effectively synonymous with arcade beat-em-ups like those you can find in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection. Yet, while those iconic four-player brawlers certainly still warrant a fresh replay, earning Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Shredder’s Revenge trophies with friends updates that classic experience expertly for old players and new players alike.

Shredder’s Revenge is absolutely crammed full of loving references to TMNT lore and media, updating the classic arcade game formula just enough to feel fresh and slick without changing what makes the game fundamentally appeal to players even today. Plus, now you can play this PS5 and PS4 arcade brawler via the PS Plus Extra Game Catalog, so if you haven't checked it out yet, now's your chance.

Stardew Valley

The curious thing about collecting Stardew Valley trophies in co-op is that, in a lot of ways, it feels like playing the game in single-player. You can move around freely of your own accord, slaying blobs miles underground while your farm mates go on a fishing spree or spend the day growing crops. It’s an ideal blend, as it means when you do want to get together or help each other on a project, you can — otherwise, it’s your game.

It’s hard to express exactly why this makes for a greater co-op experience than other titles — maybe there’s just something more meaningful about choosing to play together, even when you’re technically already playing a game together. There’s something more honest to the way we work as human beings here that Stardew Valley taps into, and when you throw in the spectacle of three friends working together to fix a farm together, it’s all pretty special.

The Quarry

If you’re a fan of getting your friends together, having a few drinks, and laughing at terrible horror movies, then perhaps you might consider taking an additional step: collecting The Quarry trophies and "writing" that terrible horror movie in co-op. Prepare to embark on the most unsatisfying tale you’ve ever been involved in, as all of your less game-savvy friends accidentally get their characters killed in unceremonious ways, and you end the session having learned nothing about the game’s central mystery.

You might think that sounds like a bad time, but honestly, failing is the best thing about The Quarry. If you’ve ever tried collecting trophies in any of The Dark Pictures Anthology games or Detroit Become Human, you’ll probably have had a fairly easy time beating the story with nary a sudden character death. A group of friends (up to eight players) playing The Quarry is a chance to see just how messy the story gets if you didn't make all those quick-time events count.

Lego Harry Potter Collection

Hands down one of the best Harry Potter games this side of Hogwarts Legacy, two players in local co-op are in for a magically nostalgic time teaming up to earn all those Lego Harry Potter Collection trophies.

Featuring levels themed on all eight Harry Potter movies (with some subtle nods to the books that the films never quite managed to cram in), you might need a little bit of tolerance for noise and on-screen chaos, but if you can adapt to it, you have a massive co-op adventure on your hands here. Sadly, the game is no longer available on PS Plus, but you can often find it on sale, so keep your eyes peeled!

Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands

Tina Tina's Wonderlands trophies are not only attached to one of the best FPS games on PlayStation — they're also a great incentive to blast through this fantastic couch co-op experience with up to four players.

The game takes the well-trodden four-player standards of the Borderlands series, loads it up with the improvements seen in the more recent Borderlands 3, and injects it full of wacky guns with a fantastical, D&D-inspired makeover. Wonderlands also supports local and online play, including cross-play with other platforms, so you can still play with your friends and family even if they've committed the eternal sin of owning an Xbox.

Best PlayStation Co-OpSackboy breaks into the third dimension!

Sackboy A Big Adventure

Since this game came to PS Plus Essential and Extra in 2023, we seem to have written monthly about just how great this PS Plus LittleBigPlanet follow-up truly is. Collecting Sackboy A Big Adventure trophies on PS5 and PS4 feels exactly as challenging and as rewarding as playing any of the original LBP games, and we genuinely can't stop recommending it.

It Takes Two

There really is no direct parallel for the experience of collecting all those It Takes Two trophies in co-op. A beautifully creative, funny, and thanks to one particular magical talking book, terrifying adventure — there's something in here for everyone. Plus, it's available on PS Plus Extra now, and thanks to the 'Friend's Pass,' if you want to play it online, only one of you needs a subscription. Though, of course, we recommend couch co-op for this one.

Heavenly Bodies

Heavenly Bodies trophies trophies might be near impossible for most players to earn entirely, but we more than recommend this QWOP-style chaos simulator for two players. Trying to navigate your own characters' loosy-goosy limbs to try and help your partner cross sections of a spaceship is a genius, hilarious nightmare, and so long as you're playing with someone who doesn't mind messing up constantly, you're sure to love this one.

Looking for more recommendations, regardless of multiplayer? Check out our best PS4 games list for more select choices, and shout us out in the comments if there's a game you think should be on this list!
Written by Lee Brady
Staff Writer Lee keeps one eye on the future (Marvel's Spider-Man 2, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth), one eye on the past (PS Plus Premium, recent Sony news), and his secret third eye on the junk he really likes (Sonic Superstars, Final Fantasy XVI). Then he uses his big mouth to blurt out long-winded opinions about video games.
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