Stay Connected! Games to Play Online with Friends or Family - Feb 2020

27-03-2020

Here at the GEMH Lab we are long-time advocates for the positive effects that video games can have, especially at times when we feel anxious and disconnected! 

A while back we already created a list of games you can play to keep in touch with your friends. Now, we - Joanneke, Nastasia and Anouk - feel like there's no better time than the present to provide you with an update!

Here's a selection of games that you can play online together with your family, friends, colleagues or even people you've never met -- quarantine or no quarantine!  (List last updated on 17-12-2020)


Ticket To Ride

Digital board games and party games

Enjoy the nostalgic feeling of playing board games with the family, but via internet!


Fish Bowl
Browser
Free
A fun-filled memory game that combines Charades, Password, and Taboo 

Codenames 
Browser
Free
Guess which code names (words) in a set of words are related to a hint-word, given by another team member! There is also a coop version which you can play here

Ticket to Ride
Steam, iOS, Android and Browser
€7-€10, or Free
Vie for world domination against other players by building as many complete railroads as possible!

Small World 2
Steam, iPad and Android
€5-€10
Take control of a fun fantasy race, and grab all the land you can in a world that is just too small to share with your opponents!

Catan
Browser
Free
Become a settler, and attempt to build and develop holdings while trading and acquiring resources from your opponents!

Santorini
iOS and Android
€5,50
Be a god, and build your island to victory in this accessible strategy game.

Hanabi
Browser
Free
Cooperative game in which players try to create the perfect fireworks show

Dominion
Browser
Free
Acquire the most valuable lands by building your deck with treasure and power cards

Monopoly
Browser
Free
You know it, you love it (or hate it); Monopoly, but online!

Set 
Browser
Free
Find the patterns in a set of cards and yell SET as quickly as possible (before your friends do)

Escape Rooms
Browser/printable
Prizes vary
Just google online escape room and find multiple examples that use videos or printable materials so you don't need to be in the same room!


Additionally, there are numerous free games at board game arena, such as Carcasonne, 7 Wondersand Sushi Go!

Don't Starve Together

Online PC and browser games

The PC is a gaming machine par excellence, and offers a wide range of fun multiplayer games!


Among Us
Steam/Android/IOS/
Nintendo Switch
Free (tablet/phone) or ~€5 on Steam or
Switch
A murder-mystery in space! Play either as one of the crew-mates on a spaceship or as an imposter who's job it is to kill others and sabotage the ship. Extra awesome: it's cross-platform! (so one person can be on the phone and other on the pc e.g.)

Mope
Browser
Free
Enter a digital ecosystem as a cute animal, and try to survive by devouring others!

Scribbl 
Browser
Free
Draw pictures for each other based on prompts and guess that it is! Play with strangers or create a private room.

Jackbox Party Games
Steam
€23
A range of fun and hilarious party games which people can join in using their smartphone.

Drawful
Steam
€10
The game of terrible drawings and hilariously wrong answers... but great fun!

Don't Starve Together
Steam
€15
Enter a desolate Tim Burton-esque world with friends in an effort to survive!

Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes
Steam, Android and iOS
€7,50
You're alone in a room with a bomb. Your friends have the info to defuse it, but can't see the bomb. So everyone will need to talk it out – fast!

Ibb & Obb
Steam, Switch
€10 - 15
Two-player cooperative game set in a puzzle-filled world where gravity goes both up ánd down.

Trine
Steam
€15
Control a wizard, thief or knight in a beautiful, enchanted side-scrolling world, filled with puzzles and challenges.



Draw Something

Mobile games

Almost everyone has a smartphone nowadays, which means that gaming with friends and family wherever you are is easier than ever!


Ludo King
Android, iOS and Facebook
Free
Move your tokens from the outer rims of the board to the center. First one to make it 'home' wins!

PhotoRoulette
Android and iOS
Free
Photo Roulette picks random photos from you and your friends’ phones. You compete to guess whose photo is shown.

Draw Something
Android, iOS and Facebook
Free
Select a word to draw for friends, then watch them try to guess and make hilarious drawings for you!

Words with Friends
Android, iOS and Facebook
Free
Expand your vocabulary and show off your spelling skills as you search for the highest scoring word.


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Playstation

Although the Playstation is usually associated with sprawling single-player games, there's plenty of fun to be had with others as well!


Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout
Playstation/Steam
€20
Play with up to 60 other players in a multiple-round struggle of escalating chaos until one victor remains!

PlayLink
Playstation
Depends on game
All kinds of multiplayer games you control with your tablet or phone. Please note though that some of these can only be played while being in the same room so check the game description to be sure!

Jackbox Party Games
Playstation
€25
A range of fun and hilarious party games which people can join in using their smartphone.



Unravel Two bei Steam

Nintendo Switch

The Nintendo has become thé video game company when it comes to family-friendly fun!


Unravel Two
Nintendo Switch
€30
Play as an adorable creature made of yarn and work together to overcome obstacles

Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Nintendo Switch
€60
Escape to a deserted island and create your own paradise as you explore, create, and customize!

Stardew Valley
Nintendo Switch
€14
You’ve inherited your grandfather’s old farm plot in Stardew Valley. Can you reset your life and turn these overgrown fields into a thriving home?

Splatoon 2
Nintendo Switch
€60
Become an Inkling, and enjoy this colourful but challenging first person paint-shooter!

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Nintendo Switch
€70
Legendary game worlds and famous fighters come together in this epic fighting showdown of a game.

Overcooked 2
Nintendo Switch
€25
The pressure(cooker) is ON! Work together to cook and serve out dishes within a time limit!

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Nintendo Switch
€60
Take on Mario, Bowser, Waluigi, and many others on these gravity-defying racing tracks in the latest instalment of this Nintendo classic.

Rocket League
Nintendo Switch
€20
It's a racing-soccer game, what else could you wish for?

Minecraft
Nintendo Switch
€30
Explore wild worlds and build fantastical things, while trying to fend off sneaky enemies that come in the night.


Did we miss any of your favourites? Leave your recommendations in the comments or tweet them at us!


Have fun playing!



Author

Joanneke Weerdmeester
Researcher at GEMH Lab

Behavioural scientist, lecturer, consultant, gamer, dungeon master, language enthusiast, and lover of all things geeky.

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