The Best PS5 Games for Kids

If you only see the advertisements for games put on the TV and the internet, you might think that the only games made anymore are targeted at older teens and young adults. Everywhere you look is a soldier with a gun or a knight with a bloody sword. However, just because they don’t get the same marketing push as these more mature games, there are still plenty of games appropriate for all ages, kids included, coming out every year. The PlayStation 5 alone is home to some of the most kid-friendly franchises on the market, thanks to adorable mascot characters and plenty of smaller, colorful titles that offer a wide range of gameplay possibilities.

If you’re looking for a game right for kids, the sheer number of possibilities can be intimidating. You could spend hours sifting through all the options out there, and even if you go by the age rating, that won’t tell you if the game is actually good or not. That’s why we’ve curated this list of the best PS5 games for kids to help you find the right game for gamers of any age. We’ve made sure to include games from a variety of genres, styles, and lengths to give you the best information possible before making a purchase. Just remember to still check on the details of a game’s ESRB rating to see what content is included.

Further reading

Astro’s Playroom

You actually already own an amazing PS5 game for kids. The PS5 comes with Astro’s Playroom already installed and ready to play right out of the box. No extra purchase necessary! Some people call Astro’s Playroom a tech demo of sorts, and to some extent it is, but that would be selling this game short on just how much fun it is. Astro has appeared on the PS4 in the game Astro Bot Rescue Mission for the PSVR in a similar fashion, showing off the tech of the VR headset within a fantastic game, but you don’t need to have played that game to enjoy this 3D platformer.

You take control of the cute little robot Astro as he explores various worlds that are all themed around the different components of the PS5. While that may sound like a boring setting for a platformer, the team behind the game put fun first with levels like the GPU Jungle and SSD Speedway. In all honesty, Astro’s Playroom nearly reaches the heights of a Mario game. The controls are tight, platforming satisfying and creative, levels lovingly crafted, and nothing is ever too frustrating or difficult. What really sells this game is how it shows off the new functions of the DualSense controller. Kids will be amazed at how it actually feels different to walk Astro on different surfaces or how the triggers resist at different levels depending on what you’re doing on screen.

Sackboy: A Big Adventure

If Astro’s Playroom wasn’t a big enough experience, you can step up to a more full-fledged 3D platforming experience with Sackboy: A Big Adventure. This is another game that is connected to an existing series — this time, the Little Big Planet games — but those are by no means required to enjoy this joyful romp through this colorful platformer. The original games were 2.5D platformer experiences that also starred the titular Sackboy but had a huge emphasis on level creation. Sackboy: A Big Adventure takes the main character and handcrafted charm of the visuals into a pure 3D experience with tons of beautifully designed levels.

Controlling Sackboy is easy, intuitive, and fun. You can run around and jump, naturally, but also roll, grab objects, and even extend his jump a bit to make the platforming a bit more forgiving. Just getting through a level won’t cause frustration in younger gamers, and slightly older ones will like the challenge of going back for collectibles, secrets, and challenges. There are over 50 unique levels to explore, either alone or with friends. Playing on the same console or online, kids can team up with up to three others to run around and help each other through this family-friendly big adventure.

Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart

For the slightly older kids out there who can handle some cartoon violence and more complex controls, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart has been rightly compared to a Pixar film for many reasons. On the surface, the game certainly has the look. You could easily mistake this game for a feature film just based on how good these cartoonish characters look, with detailed fur, big, expressive eyes, and bright expressions. The story doesn’t quite hit the same level of narrative excellence as a Pixar film, with multiple layers of depth for different audiences, but instead targets the younger crowd and focuses on giving an inspiring, straightforward story.

Ratchet and Clank have been Sony mascots for over a decade, with a huge backlog of games under their belt. Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is the latest in a long line of action platformers, but as this will be many players’ first exposure to the series, it does a good job of establishing relationships and not leaning too hard on anything that happened in prior games. This game is full of guns, but not in the traditional sense. There are things like grenades that turn enemies into plants and laser pistols, so while the violence is certainly cartoonish, it is still one for the slightly older audience of kids.

Read our full Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart review

Bugsnax

Just take one listen to the song used in Bugsnax‘s trailer and you’ll be sold on this game. Looking like something straight out of a Dr. Seuess book, the world of Bugsnax is as fantastical and funny as a Saturday morning cartoon. The island, Snaktooth, is full of crazy characters and critters that are one part bug, one part snack, which you explore to solve puzzles while cataloging all the incredibly witty creatures inhabiting it. You will interact with things like the Charmellow, a flying s’more, Cinnasnails, which are cinnamon roll snails, Grapeskeetos, which should be self-explanatory, and dozens more with just as much creativity.

As you try and collect all the different Bugsnax, you will need to solve puzzles in order to catch them. If you’re trying to collect them all, there are some that can be a little tricky to work out, but there’s never any pressure, risk of dying, or way to fail at anything in Bugsnax. It’s all about observing these little snack-creatures and determining what you can do to lure them into a trap. There are sure to be plenty of laughs and moments of revelation throughout your journey on Snacktooth.

Overcooked! All You Can Eat

Speaking of food, what kid doesn’t like to play chef from time to time? Overcooked! All You Can Eat is technically two games in one, combining the original Overcooked! and Overcooked! 2, plus any DLC they got, into one delicious package. As we mentioned, this game puts you in the role of a chef who needs to fill different orders by preparing and combining different ingredients on a timer. That sounds simple enough, but the trick is that the kitchens you’re cooking in are never convenient. Some have pits in the middle, others conveyor belts running along the floors, and some are even split in two and floating beneath hot air balloons. After you learn the basics, the game never stops throwing new, fun obstacles to deal with.

While you could play the entirety of Overcooked! All You Can Eat alone, the game was made to be played with friends and family. Up to four chefs can team up to earn up to three stars on the dozens of levels spread across multiple food-themed worlds. Just make sure the one playing is ready to laugh at their own frustration because part of the appeal of Overcooked! All You Can Eat is the chaos that comes from trying to coordinate preparing meals as fast as possible under crazy circumstances. It can be a great way to encourage cooperation and communication while still being a blast to play.

Chicory: A Colorful Tale

For all those artistic kids out there who want to let their creativity shine, Chicory: A Colorful Tale is the perfect game to explore. This little indie game got a lot of attention when it came out, and for all the best reasons. It’s a very chilled-out experience, with a soothing soundtrack, creative puzzles, and an art style that is both adorable and interactive. The player takes on the role of a puppy who wields a magical paintbrush that they will use to decorate the land, solve puzzles, and do some light combat. Your goal is to bring color back to Picnic Province while helping the other animal inhabitants along the way.

Giving players the freedom to express themselves is at the heart of Chicory: A Colorful Tale. Aside from being able to paint just about anywhere, you can also unlock new clothing options and brushes to make your character your own. You can even design your own shirts with custom designs and wear them throughout the game. Painting is the solution to everything in this game, from the puzzles to the bits of combat, encouraging creativity at every turn. Even if you don’t want to engage with the story or puzzles, hours could be spent on each screen just bringing the world to life with your brush. They all start out as essentially blank coloring books just begging to be filled in.

Slime Rancher

If cooking and painting aren’t quite what your kid is after, then perhaps becoming a slime rancher will fit the bill! Taking place on a planet simply called the Far, Far Range, you take on the role of a, well, slime rancher trying to build up a farm full of these different slime inhabitants. You will gather up, provide housing for, and take care of cute, bouncy slime creatures. The open world is vast and lets players build up their ranch however they like. As you collect and feed more slimes, you earn currency to upgrade your ranch with new buildings and tools. Slimes are collected using your Vacpack, which hoovers them up until you’re ready to release them into your ranch.

There’s no plot or story to follow. Slime Rancher really is all about the experience of starting out small and building up a massive ranch full of all kinds of slimes. If it wasn’t obvious, these slimes are downright adorable, too. Aside from the basic, smiling pink slimes, some have ears, wings, tails, and other traits you can collect and breed with other slimes. The loop of exploring the world looking for slimes and things to feed them, figuring out what slimes like to eat what, what breeding different slimes will produce, and upgrading all fit together perfectly. There’s no way to fail in Slime Rancher, only learn and get better through experimentation.

Minecraft

If your kid isn’t already addicted to Minecraft, then they just haven’t played it yet. This game probably needs no introduction at this point. It’s been a cultural phenomenon for over a decade now, with fans spanning from toddlers to grandparents. To use the dusty old comparison one more time: Minecraft is basically just Lego but with even more options for creativity. The number of ways to play can cater to any skill level, age, or desire. Want to just build with no constraints? Hop into the creative mode where you can fly, have an infinite number of any block in the game, and can’t die. Want to explore, survive, and work your way toward taming the land? The classic or survival modes are there. You can even go after tough bosses if you want.

There is some light violence in Minecraft, but the blocky art style has no blood or gore of any kind. For example, swinging a pixelated sword at a green zombie makes him fall over and disappear into a puff of smoke. And the number of ways Minecraft can, and has, been used is almost limitless. Aside from just being a fun game on a base level, it is used in schools to teach all sorts of lessons. Minecraft is a game you can feel good about your kid sinking their free time into.

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout

This entry is another one of those games meant to be a chaotic mess, only this time themed around a game show-style obstacle course instead of cooking. Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout is a game where you control a customizable little egg character through various games, competing against other players until only one remains as the winner. The games range from simple races where you need to run, jump, and navigate all sorts of obstacles, plus deal with other players who can trip you up, to tag-style games and team competitions. There are dozens of games and maps that cycle randomly, so you never know what’s coming up next.

The little egg characters you play as are as cute as they come. The way they run, jump, and flop around is entertaining enough, but when put into these crazy scenarios where an entire crowd is trying to run up a hill as giant fruit barrels down is a perfect recipe for laughter. The most complex the game gets is with some memory-based games but otherwise, it’s easy enough to pick up that anyone can mess around and have a good time, regardless of whether they win or not. There are plenty of fun costumes and clothing to unlock as well, with new options being added all the time, making it a great game to keep coming back to.

Read our full Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout review

Worms Rumble

The Worms series has always been a strange one. The main series is normally a turn-based, somewhat tactical battle game where teams of worms take turns unleashing their massive arsenal of weapons on each other on fully destructible maps. Worms Rumble takes that basic premise of waring worms and makes it into a real-time action title. Again, this one is a little more violent than the others, with worms having access to things like rocket launchers, shotguns, and assault rifles, but also wacky ones like the sheep launcher and bananas bombs. Still, all the guns and explosions are heavily stylized to be cartoonish, and there’s no gore whatsoever.

The real-time gameplay makes Worms Rumble much more accessible than the slower-paced main series, but it is a multiplayer-only title, so you will need to be able to go online to enjoy this game. Each game has 32 worms duking it out, leading to a mess of explosions, bullets, and worms that is just out-of-control fun. There are a few different game modes here to play around with, but the basic gameplay doesn’t really change. A new feature to Worms is customization. In past titles, you could name your worms, but this time, you can outfit them with new hairstyles and hats, masks and face paint, eye shapes, facial expressions, and even your worm’s entire color. For a slightly older gamer, Worms Rumble is a great alternative to the more gruesome and realistic shooters out there.

Editors’ Recommendations