Top 10 Games That Are Fun To Watch Others Play

You know how people have a hard time looking away from car accidents? In this series, that’s one of the least exciting things that can happen. The sprawling metropolises that populate the world of “Grand Theft Auto” have generated a huge let’s play fanbase, with particular focus on the fifth entry. High-octane missions keep players and viewers glued to their screens, and some crazy mods and stunts have populated several of our other lists. The amount of content in the original game provides hours of viewing entertainment, but when considering online content and mods, you could spend weeks watching gameplay and just barely scratch the surface. It’s always a fun time in this world, even in the passenger seat.

This game is an excellent choice for Let’s Plays, as most of the game is the narrator speaking to the player, which gives the player a lot to interact with. No two playthroughs will ever be the same, since the player has the choice to listen to the narrator or not, each time resulting in a different continuation of the story, so even if you’ve played or watched the game, there’s still a lot out there to see. A comical adventure that’s just as fun to watch as to play, particularly as the game mocks and insults the player, often leading to some priceless reactions.

Remember how bad you felt when your favourite character on “The Walking Dead” died? Imagine being at fault for that death. Playing this game is stressful, and the sadist in all of us can appreciate seeing the look in a player’s face when their choices result in macabre consequences, which occurs more often than not. As a heavily story-based game, watching it is akin to watching a series, particularly with its episodic format, with the player becoming a key character, as he or she is in control of what direction the story takes. You also have someone to blame if things don’t turn out the way you want them to!

“Rocket League” blasted onto the gaming scene in 2015 and quickly became an online multiplayer phenomenon. In one of the strangest, yet coolest premises to emerge in recent years, players team up to play various sports, including ice hockey and basketball, but primarily soccer, while utilizing rocket-powered cars. It’s one of the fastest-growing e-sports, quickly accumulating professional players who participate through various streams. At the time of the game’s one-year anniversary, 2,728 years had been spent watching matches by spectators around the world. That number continues to grow, including a Championship Series in 2016 with a prize pool of $55,000.

For anyone who’s ever played a “Super Mario” game, which is probably most of us, you can appreciate the effort that goes into creating and playing levels from the various instalments. Those who aren’t playing can help create levels, or, if your friends are real daredevils, they can try their hands at some of the craziest levels created by the online community. With all of the options for level creation, no two are going to look or play alike, allowing for maximum variety for both the player and the spectator. Plus, who doesn’t love watching players fall into your death traps? Here’s some guys struggling with one of our levels.

It may seem like a joke that the premise of this game is to complete mundane tasks such as grocery shopping and working around the house. Well, it kind of is a joke, and a pretty fun one at that. With insanely hard gameplay, it’s common to see the player become frustrated as Octodad flails around helplessly. The difficult controls lead to some hilariously complicated visuals as he slides and stumbles his way through the levels. It could even be argued that it’s more enjoyable to watch the slapstick humor than it is to play it. Actually, that’s probably a safe bet.

Have you ever watched a horror movie and yelled at the TV, telling a character not to split off from the group? Well, if you’re watching this game, you know exactly who to yell at. The player takes control of eight teens headed to a cabin in the woods, which, of course, quickly takes a turn for the deadly. Depending on the choices he or she makes, everyone can survive, everyone can die, or anything in between. The only thing better than seeing an annoying character meet his or her end is seeing the reaction of the person that caused it. Not to mention all of the jump scares and gory content often provide hilarious reactions.

It may not be the best looking game of recent years, but it certainly allows for maximum freedom in creation. Some Let’s Players have even created their own world and narrative that continues in their series, creating a highly unique binge-watching experience. It’s a strange and oddly fulfilling experience joining someone on his or her “Minecraft” journey, starting from the humblest beginnings and blossoming into a world of its own. If that’s not your style, no worries; there’s a huge variety of Let’s Plays in this world, including some that feature mods as well as helpful tutorials, should you decide to create your own world.

Being scared is always more fun when you know someone else is in the same boat. It’s probably a good idea to keep the volume down on these videos, though, because there’s going to be quite a bit of terror coming from the player. The game follows a night security guard at a strange pizza restaurant called Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, which is full of some of the scariest animatronic animals you could imagine. The abundance of jump scares creates a highly tense mood, which players deal with in various ways, often with screams and jumps, which just might be even more enjoyable than watching the gameplay itself. But really, who is actually scared by-OH MY GOD!

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honourable mentions.

“Doom” (2016)

“The Last of Us” (2013)

“Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain” (2015)

Similar to “Octodad,” this game features some incredibly specific and difficult controls, often resulting in frustration from the player and some uproariously gross surgical procedures. Seeing organs and tools flying all over the surgery table is fun enough, but watching the player react to this ridiculousness is the cherry on top of an admittedly gross cake. Different game modes add to the enjoyment of watching, as there are options to perform surgery on an alien or uh…certain people who have been in the news a a lot lately. Disclaimer: watching “Surgeon Simulator” gameplay is not a substitute for medical school.
Do you agree with our list? What’s your favourite game to watch someone else play? Let us know in the comments! For more visual top 10s published every day, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.