10 Bizarre Video Games To Buy As A Joke For Friends

Highlights

• Enjoy bizarre games with friends for maximum shock and laughter – from suicidal babies to dating pigeons.
• Plug & Play
  offers a short but memorable interactive animation experience filled with unexpected humor.
• Surgeon Simulator 2013
  is a classic example of enjoyable absurdity with intentionally clunky controls.

With gaming being one of the biggest entertainment industries, there is no small selection of mind-bending and bizarre titles for those who are looking for the weirdest — and funniest — games to play. From the insightful to the outrageous, these strange games serve as a reminder of the sheer creativity that the medium allows.

Of course, better than enjoying them alone, it is best to share the shock and amusement with friends; especially unsuspecting ones who are not prepared for the madness that will unfold. This is where gifting comes into play, as players pressure their friends into playing the most absurd and baffling games that they can think of. After all, what is friendship if one can’t talk about games that revolve around dating pigeons with their pals?

10 Plug & Play

A Short, Strange Dive Into Relationships And Sex

• Platforms: Android, Microsoft Windows, Linux, iOS, SteamOS, Mac operating systems
• Release Date: February 2, 2015
• Publisher: Etter Studio

Usually described as an interactive animation rather than a game, Plug & Play offers a brief but memorable experience for players. Difficult to describe, even if it’s only around 10 to 15 minutes long, this weirdly funny animation sees plugs, outlets, and human-like figures with plugs and outlets instead of heads all interacting in surprising and humorous ways.

Although it’s easy to find a playthrough online, players might want to go in and experience the game “blind,” as it truly shines with its unexpected humor and bizarre flow.

9 Who’s Your Daddy

A Suicidal Baby And The Father That Tries To Keep Them Alive

• Platforms: Android, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, macOS, Xbox Series X and Series S, Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac operating systems
• Release Date: December 23, 2015
• Publisher: Evil Tortilla Games, Joe Williams

Who’s Your Daddy is a chaotic approach to baby-proofing as an extreme sport. In this asymmetrical multiplayer game, players control either a baby or their father in a two-floor suburban house. The baby’s objective is to kill themself, while the dad needs to ensure the baby’s survival.

Janky controls, frequent glitches, and simplistic and unappealing graphics add to the charming wackiness of the premise. This is a fun game that is better enjoyed with a friend laughing along.

8 Hatoful Boyfriend

A Dating Simulator Focused Exclusively On Birds

• Platform: PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, iOS, Android, Microsoft Windows, macOS
• Release Date: February 2, 2015
• Publisher: Etter Studio

Hatoful Boyfriend has players embark on an emotional journey as the only human student at an all-bird school. Literally. This is a dating simulator that sees players pursue a romantic relationship with an actual bird, albeit one that is part of a world where birds have a complex society and intelligence.

Perhaps the strangest aspect of this game is not its premise, but rather its interesting execution. The writing has been praised as witty and engaging, with a bonus story that veers into horror/sci-fi. The joke, then, is not the game itself, but the fact that many players will have to admit they are now fans of this pigeon dating sim.

7 Cruelty Squad

The Most Visually Aggressive And Chaotic Game Of The Decade

• Platform: Microsoft Windows
• Release Date: January 4, 2021
• Publisher: Consumer Softproducts

Cruelty Squad is, simply put, a joke in itself. Technically, it is a retro first-person shooter, an homage to games like DOOM and Quake. However, every design choice – the sound, the visuals, the strangely expansive lore, the gameplay, and even the description used for marketing – is a chaotic mismatch of concepts screaming for attention.

Players who can get over the intentionally off-putting visuals will find a surprisingly engaging game emphasizing planning and stealth over shootouts, with a deep story that provokes meaningful and lengthy discussion among fans. Although not everyone will stick around, Cruelty Squad will certainly shock the majority of players who try it out, one way or another.

6 Mount Your Friends 3D: A Hard Man Is Good To Climb

Stacking Scantily-Clad Men To Erect The Highest Tower

• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Mac operating Systems
• Release Date: February 23, 2018
• Publisher: Stegersaurus Software Inc.

A sequel to the popular indie game Mount Your Friends, this title greatly expands on the innuendo-filled premise of its predecessor, delivering a surprisingly engaging experience. As described by the developers themselves: “This game contains muscular male figures wearing thongs with suggestive bulges.” The main goal of Mount Your Friends 3D is to stack the aforementioned scantily-clad men into imposing towers.

Although challenging and full of features, the game never loses its focus on hilarity, with its weird visuals, ragdoll physics, and awkward but tight controls providing a constant flow of chaotic humor to the experience.

5 KIDS

A Weirdly Deep Reflection On Social Pressure Where A Bunch Of Kids Fall Into Holes

• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Linux, iOS, Android, SteamOS, Mac operating systems
• Release Date: May 28, 2019
• Publisher: Playables

A short game with simple interactions and a focus on animation, KIDS is an exceptionally bizarre experience about individuals and crowds explored through simple but very strange visuals.

As with other similarly brief games – with KIDS’ playtime being around 30 minutes – describing it is difficult and might even be doing it a disservice, as it is best experienced without prior knowledge. With artistic flair and a smooth animation style, this is a game that is discussed for way longer than it is played.

4 The Kraken Wakes

Great Concept Of AI NPCs That Is Still Absolutely And Hilariously Awkward

• Platform: Microsoft Windows
• Release Date: March 27, 2023
• Publisher: Charisma Entertainment Limited

A very interesting approach to integrating AI into gaming,The Kraken Wakes attempts to use language models to avoid multiple-choice options for player dialogue. As such, players can either type or speak their responses, with NPCs responding accordingly.

Although a fascinating proof of concept in adapting a beloved novel, the game is held back by the limitations of current AI technology, with the AI voices still feeling unnatural and dialogue being clunky. Taking that in with its graphic style, which is reminiscent of 90s games, it creates a bizarre experience that has unintended humor, albeit with vast and fascinating potential backing it up.

3 Snakeybus

The Classic Game Of Snake, But With Ever-Growing Buses

• Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Mac operating systems
• Release Date: May 10, 2019
• Publisher: Stovetop, LLC., Digeratti

Harkening back to the original Snake arcade game,Snakeybus tasks players with controlling a bus in different 3D environments. As the bus picks up passengers, however, it will grow in length, with the goal being to have the longest bus possible that can still move around.

With unexpectedly good graphics and a simple premise that is easy to pick up and play, Snakeybus is a wacky game that is better enjoyed with friends, as different buses compete and crash against each other. All while occasionally using rockets, because why not?

2 Surgeon Simulator 2013

The Least Accurate And Most Awkward Simulator About Surgeries

• Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Android, iOS, Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac operating systems
• Release Date: April 19, 2013
• Publisher: Bossa Studios, tinyBuild

Perhaps one of the trailblazers for all the other “simulator” games that are not, in fact, simulators at all, Surgeon Simulator 2013 is still a classic example of designed absurdity being enjoyable. Players have to use intentionally clunky controllers to perform complex surgery procedures, with the outcome being the expected disaster that comes from such a setup.

Although it did have a sequel, players might still enjoy the original outing more, as it does not have the sequel’s light puzzle and platform elements that later divided the fanbase, instead focusing more on the simple and ridiculous premise of obtuse controls and fussy physics.

1 My Exercise

A Chubby Boy Doing Sit-Ups And Weird Things Happening Around Him

• Platforms: Android, Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac operating systems
• Release Date: August 27, 2020
• Publisher: Playables, New Deer

With the simplest gameplay possible, My Exercise tasks players with pressing only one button throughout the entire game. As it is pressed, a chubby boy on screen will do a sit-up that results in him lightly burrowing his face into his dog’s fur, with a counter keeping track of the number of times he does this.

Although strange, it truly turns bizarre as the counter goes up, with new animals – and even the Buddha – showing up at different times, which, combined with the beautiful animations, creates quite an unusual but joyful experience for a game this simple.