10 Fun Game Apps to Play With Your Friends & Family
10 Fun Game Apps to Play With Your Friends & Family
Recreate game night virtually with these mobile versions of your favorite board games and more.
1. Mario Kart Tour
Die-hard Mario Kart fans may scoff at playing this classic Nintendo game on a phone, but the mobile app version is still plenty of fun and can be played remotely with a group of friends (just be sure to call dibs on Yoshi before anyone else does). To organize a match, you’ll need to jump through a few hoops first.
Directions: After downloading the app, you’ll need to create a Nintendo account and play a few games on your own. Once you clear the first level, the “Friends” icon will appear when you tap the menu button at the bottom of the home screen. After selecting the “add friend” option you’ll be able to enter your friend’s Player ID or Nintendo Account into the empty field and challenge them to a match.
Cost: Free
2. Scrabble GO
The board game Scrabble has been around for more than 80 years and various knock-offs have existed in the app game space for over a decade. But since video game developer Scopely relaunched the official mobile game as Scrabble GO in March 2020 with Mattel and Hasbro, more than 2 million people have played the game each day.
Directions: This new version offers an experience much closer to the original board game and can be played remotely with friends by adding them through your phone or by connecting the app to your Facebook account.
Cost: Free
3. KAHOOT
If you’d rather host your own trivia night, Kahoot allows you to create your own quizzes with multiple choice or true or false answers. After you are done creating your the quiz, the app generates a unique game pin code, which you can share with your friends.
Directions: All they have to do to join in on your live quiz is add the code via the “Enter Pin” button on the home screen. You can invite up to 10 players per game with the free version of the app, while Kahoot! Plus lets you invite more people for $9.99 per month.
Cost: Free
4. Words With Friends
Devotees of the original Scrabble game will prefer the new Scrabble GO, but since the Scrabble-like Words With Friends has been around since 2009, it’s more likely that your friends have this version downloaded on their phones already. If you’re willing to look past some discrepancies when it comes to scoring, it’s virtually the same game.
Cost: Free
5. Sky: Children of the Light
For those looking to participate in a videogame-like experience without having to purchase an entirely new gaming system, the social adventure game Sky: Children of Light is now available to download for free on both iOS and Android phones. Apple named it its iPhone Game of the Year in 2019, and it’s easy to see why. This enchanting game immerses you in the gorgeously animated kingdom of Sky, where your objective is to fly through seven realms solving mysteries with your friends in order to return fallen stars to their constellations.
Directions: You can easily play the game alone, but it’s more fun with friends. To add a friend, you can create and send a QR Code Friend invite to them (find more step-by-step instructions on how to do that on thatgamecompany’s website).
Cost: Free
You may have played the regular Heads Up! app with your friends in person before and you may have used the Houseparty recently to keep in touch with them, but did you know that there’s a way to play this charades-like game within the video chat app?
Directions: All you have to do is invite your friends to a chat in Houseparty, then select the small dice icon in the upper right hand corner of the screen and select Heads Up! to launch a new game. There are a handful of free decks to choose from and dozens more themed decks that you can purchase for about a $1 or so.
Cost: Free
7. UNO
While this colorful app offers multiple variations on this popular card game, you can still play the original game in “classic mode” with a group of friends remotely.
Directions: To invite your friends to a match, click on the “social” button on the bottom right of the screen and then click on the yellow “invite friends” button. From there you’ll be able to send invite links to your friends via text or another messenger like WhatsApp or Slack. The game also comes with text and talk functions so you can speak to each other through the app while you’re playing.
Cost: Free
Created by the same company as Heads Up!, Psych! Is a Balderdash-like game that you can play on your phone with your friends. Each person takes turns creating fake answers to various trivia questions—those who guess the correct answer among the false ones earn points. You’ll earn points for each player you “psych” into choosing your made up answers.
Directions: To play with a group, one player will need to choose “start a game” on the home screen and then share the secret game code so others can add it to their app from the “join a game” screen.
Cost: Free
9. 8 Ball Pool
Recreate a night playing pool with your friends at the local pub with this virtual version of billiards. The app allows you to play one on one with anyone using the app at random, but you can also link your account to your Facebook page so you can challenge people you know.
Cost: Free
10. Boggle With Friends
The mobile version of this classic game is played just like the one you know and love. After shaking lettered dice into a grid, you earn points for all the word combinations you can spot in the letters. The best part about it is that the app keeps score for you.
Directions: You can play random opponents online, but to challenge people you know, click on the Friends tab at the top right corner and select friends from your contacts who already have downloaded the app or text invite links to others to join.
Cost: Free
Source: www.goodhousekeeping.com
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