Your Guide to December's Family Friendly Video Games
With holidays around the corner, there's not much coming over the next month. But hey, who's up for some mobile PowerWash Simulator?
December is sometimes a big month for video games—like, say, the release of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond this week—but it makes sense there’s far less offered up for younger audiences. In early December, parents are locking up their holiday gifts. If anything, you should wait until January, when people might be heading out to use gift cards.
Still, there’s some. There’s always Apple Arcade, of course, wherein Apple benefits from the supreme confidence that for many young people, there will be a shiny device waiting for them sometime in December, prepared to take advantage of a free trial.
Which reminds me: I should start locking up my own holiday gifts!
If you represent these games and have a potentially interesting story to share about how these games consider kids as part of their audience, do get in touch with me!
Marvel Cosmic Invasion (PS4/5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch, Switch 2, PC) — December 1
Description: Tribute Games and Dotemu are teaming up again, in collaboration with Marvel Games, to craft an original, fresh beat ‘em up. Featuring dynamic combat combos and dazzling pixel art, this planet-hopping adventure stands as a love letter to the Marvel Universe.
Rating: E10+
Price: $29.99
I’m curious to try this with my kids, especially my five-year-old. We watched the trailer above together recently and she had a blast trying to recognize all of the characters. (They even stumped me on one or two, but to be fair, I’m mostly a MCU person.) But my problem with this and the TMNT game before it is a lack of meaningful difficulty settings. These games are pitched at nostalgic fans looking for a modern 2D beat ‘em up experience, but these are timeless characters who should also be approachable for audiences who aren’t familiar with praising quarter munching.
Popucom (Switch) — December 3
Description: POPUCOM is a multiplayer co-op platform adventure game. As an adventurer, you are summoned to an unknown planet to embark on an exoplanet adventure with your friends. You will face various enemies and use engaging items and techniques to eliminate threats and restore the world to its former glory.
Rating: E10+
Price: $19.99
This game rules. I had a blast playing through it on PC with a buddy, and it should hopefully find a bigger audience on Switch 2. That said, the difficulty is a little deceptive. The first few areas are easy enough to navigate in terms of puzzles and platforming, but hoo boy, the game really ramps up as it goes along. You don’t have to beat every level, but you will have to work together to make it through many stages.
Viewfinder (Switch) — December 3
Description: Challenge perception, redefine reality, and reshape the world around you with an instant camera. Viewfinder is a new single player game offering gamers hours of interesting and fun experiences while uncovering the mysteries left behind.
Rating: E
Price: $24.99
Another true delight. This game went a little in one ear and out the other, but I’m always happy when a puzzle game is able to scratch an itch for me. I like puzzle games, but find that most of them are beyond me. Viewfinder was right in the middle, and while I didn’t play it with my kids, I could imagine we would’ve had fun together.
Powerwash Simulator (Apple Arcade) — December 4
Description: PowerWash Simulator brings the satisfying experience of blasting away dirt and grime to mobile, exclusively through Apple Arcade. Optimized with touch controls and gyroscope support, players can wash away their worries with the soothing sounds of high-pressure water. Arcade players will also have access to popular packs and jobs at launch, including the SpongeBob SquarePants special pack and bonus jobs, with even more special packs coming post-launch at no additional cost.
Rating: 4+
Price: $6.99/month
I picked up the sequel on Switch 2 a few weeks back and expected it to become a big hit in the house, but the mechanics, however simple they seem, proved too much for my five-year-old, mostly because of having to navigate the Joy-cons. We’re going to give this another go, where the touch controls might make it more navigable for all.
Subway Surfers+ (Apple Arcade) — December 4
Description: Jump into Subway Surfers+, the premium Apple Arcade edition of the iconic mobile game loved by billions. Dash through vibrant cityscapes, dodge trains, and collect your favorite characters and boards. Same run, new platform!
Rating: 9+
Price: $6.99/month
Ah, damn. Neither of my kids have been suckered into one of these games before, but they are always chuckling at the different ads featuring them or getting confused when we watch a video where, confusingly, a game like this is featured on the side. I expect this to be a hit when it comes out. I’ll report back on whether that happens.
NARUTO: Ultimate Ninja STORM+ (Apple Arcade) — December 4
Description: A Naruto game full of 3D competitive action! NARUTO: Ultimate Ninja STORM finally makes its way to Apple Arcade! NARUTO: Ultimate Ninja STORM+ thunders in with new playable Free Battle mode characters Zabuza and Haku, and adds increased controller support! Experience the stories and battles of Naruto’s childhood through beautiful graphics!
Rating: 13+
Price: $6.99/month
The original version of this game came out in—wait for it—2008. I’d just moved to San Francisco to work at 1UP.com! My wife was just my girlfriend. I had no money in my bank account. I lived in an apartment where that was once invested with bed bugs and, another time, where a guy who crapped his pants fell asleep in the hallway. Also, IGN praised this game at the time, saying gameplay was mixed but “Ultimate Ninja Storm is fun and the fast-paced battles look and feel very tight. I have to once again reiterate just how incredible this game looks. Say what you will about the gameplay, but watching these characters perform Ultimate Jutsu is certainly a sight to behold.”
SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit 2 (Apple Arcade) — December 4
Description: In this Krabby Patty caper, SpongeBob and Plankton must put aside their differences and work together. Their mission: Recover the Krusty Krab’s missing fry cook station, locate Plankton’s mysteriously vanished inventions, and save Bikini Bottom from a devious mastermind whose identity remains just out of reach.
Rating: 4+
Price: $6.99/month
A sequel to one of the earliest Apple Arcade releases! And also one of the first platformers that my nine-year-old, who would’ve been 4ish when the original came out in 2020, showed genuine interest in. We might have to give this a genuine shot.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (Switch 2) — December 4
Description: Race across 24 tracks and warp to 15 CrossWorlds with Travel Rings, a unique gameplay mechanic that transports the iconic characters from the Sonic and SEGA universes into new dimensions. Use unpredictability to your advantage as you change the landscape of each race!
Rating: E
Price: $59.99
It’s my bad that I haven’t sat down and tried this with my kids yet. I remain puzzled Mario Kart World did not take off with them, but simultaneously, they have not asked to play Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, so we’re just in one of those moments where the game isn’t pulling them. Did any of your kids fall for this? I have no idea how it landed. Eurogamer liked the game, saying about its original release: “How much you are going to enjoy Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds really depends on what you want from an arcade racing game. If Mario Kart (let’s say World, but all of them work) is Jaws, a refined and lauded take on the shark attack film, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is Under Paris, a more ludicrous entry in the genre that pushes excess without a modicum of restraint.”
Nicktoons & The Dice of Destiny (Switch 2) — December 5
Description: Nicktoons & The Dice of Destiny is a vibrant, universe-spanning mashup that brings iconic Nickelodeon heroes into a world of fantasy-style tropes and real-time RPG action. Get ready to roll the dice and dive into a wild, action-packed adventure with SpongeBob, Katara, Leonardo, and others as they swing spatulas, bend water, slice katanas, and more. Get ready for epic battles, dynamic environments, and recognizable character moments, all with an engaging gameplay experience for players of all ages.
Rating: E10+
Price: $49.99
Like Sonic Racing, this is a Switch 2 update for an existing game. When the reviews came out for the original release earlier this year, they announced: “well, it’s okay?” Nintendo World Report described it as such, too, saying: “It’s a serviceable dungeon crawler with a lot of love for the Nicktoons involved that is super cute and playful.”
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