It’s officially been one full year since San Mateo High School started distanced learning. This year has been like no other, testing our capabilities as human beings to interact with each other in an unusual, completely online format. Friends and families have had to get creative with gatherings, which has led to a lot of silly moments as well as new opportunities. I’ve been lucky enough to hang out with a group of friends over Zoom once or twice a week, usually for several hours at a time. We’ve explored countless ways to entertain ourselves, but nothing has been more effective and engaging than playing games together. Since it has worked out so well for me, I figured I would share the five most fun and easy games to play over Zoom, whether it be with friends, family, classmates, or coworkers.
- Jackbox Games: Exploring the different games of Jackbox has easily been the most hilarious experience for me and my friends. Jackbox Games makes highly interactive and competitive online party games for one to eight players. “Party Packs” for purchase usually contain four to five games. My group has Party Pack 2, which has games including “Fibbage”, where one has to try and fool their friends into picking their answer instead of the truth to a random prompt. Our favorite game is called “Quiplash”, where two people in your group go head to head trying to come up with the funniest response to a prompt/question provided. Packs are generally around $25, but only one person needs to buy it for the entire group to play. On Zoom, whoever has the pack can just share their screen while players join a room code from Jackbox.tv on another device. This game brings out a lot of funny moments, and has a wide array of content and prompts that make it playable for hours on end. If you’re looking for a low stakes party game for your friend group, Jackbox is 100% worth checking out.
- Codenames: Codenames is a free team vs. team game that requires a bit more thinking than Jackbox. Each team has one “spymaster”, who is in charge of developing clues to get their team to guess different words on a board. The game is highly competitive, especially for the competing spymasters who have to try and think of clues that connect as many words together as possible. If you have an even number of people, this game is a great way to interact with each other while trying to reach an objective. My friends and I find ourselves playing games back to back, switching up the teams and trying to redeem ourselves if we keep losing. This one is also fun for families, and it’s exciting to come up with clues that have a special meaning or relate to something only your group would understand.
- Among Us: Many people play Among Us with random people online, just using the chat function on IOS. But if you can get a group together of six to ten people, playing this game on Zoom is much more high-stakes and interactive. Among Us is all about discovering the imposters in a group of crewmates, thus involving a lot of lying and deception. Being able to watch your friends faces and listen to their voices during meetings adds a much more complex element to the game, and definitely puts one’s lying abilities to the test. There are currently only three maps to play on, but a fourth should be coming some time before the summer. Among Us is a great game for people who like a challenge and enjoy the thrill of lying and coming up with a story on the spot. I definitely feel like my deception skills have improved since I started playing with my friends.
- Uno/Crazy 8: I’m sure that most people are familiar with Uno, as it’s a classic card game for families and friends. The online version is equally fun in my opinion, and on Zoom you can still keep up the energy and pace of the game. One can play Crazy 8 with the Game Pigeon app from the App Store or letsplayuno.com. This game definitely brings out a lot of laughable moments, as well as frustration for those who are targeted into taking +12 cards. I would again recommend this one for families as well, since it’s relatively easy to learn and light-hearted.
- Drawing Games – Scribl.io: Lastly, I would suggest trying out some different online drawing games with your friends, particularly skribbl.io. In this free online game, each player takes turns choosing a word from three options and drawing it for the other players to see. Players get points for guessing the word, and the artist gets points for how many people guess the word and how fast. Whoever gets the most points wins. This one is simple and a good laugh if you have friends that aren’t great at drawing, which includes pretty much everyone that I play with. There’s also the option before the game starts to input words for the artists to draw, which can lead to funny moments where someone draws a specific person or subject that the group is familiar with.
Each of these games are ultimately lighthearted (but still competitive), silly and a great distraction from the crazy world around us this year. Hopefully you’ll find that they help keep your spirits up and your friendships solid. Have fun Bearcats!