Games to Play With Friends: 48 Fun Games for Every Situation, in Person, Online, Two of You or Twenty

By The Rondovo team · Published October 9, 2026 · Updated October 11, 2026 · 15 min read

The best games to play with friends depend on where you are and how many of you there are. In person with nothing to hand, play Contact, Fishbowl or Mafia. On a video call, play a browser game everyone joins with a link or code, such as skribbl.io, Codenames Online or a Rondovo room. With just two of you, try Ghost, Drop Four or a quick word race. Below are 48 games sorted by situation, each with player counts, time and what you need, so you can pick one in under a minute.

In short

• In person, no supplies: Contact, Twenty Questions, Wink Murder, Psychiatrist.
• In person, with a pen and paper: Fishbowl, Categories, The Name Game, Telephone Pictionary.
• Online on a call: a drawing game, a team word game, a party game with anonymous answers.
• Long distance, different time zones: a shared daily word puzzle, a slow photo challenge, correspondence chess.
• Two friends: Ghost, Battleships on squared paper, Drop Four, Bookends.
• Big group (10 or more): Mafia, Fishbowl, Spy Grid, Fill-In.
• Ten minutes or less: Contact, Five Letters, Speed Wits, Rock Paper Scissors tournament.

Quick picker: which game fits right now?

The rest of this guide takes each situation in turn. Every game gets the essentials: how many people, how long, what you need, and the one rule that makes it work.

Games to play with friends in person

Being in one room is the easiest case. You can see faces, which is half the fun of any bluffing or guessing game, and you can talk over each other.

1. Contact

3 to 12 players, 10 to 20 minutes, nothing needed. One person thinks of a word and says its first letter. Everyone else tries to give clues for other words starting with that letter, without saying them. If another guesser knows your word, they say "contact", you both count down and say it together. If you match, the keeper has to reveal the next letter. The keeper can block a clue by guessing the word first. It sounds complicated for about one round, then it clicks.

2. Fishbowl

6 to 20 players, 30 to 60 minutes, paper slips and a bowl. Everyone writes five names or things on slips. Two teams take turns guessing the same pile across three rounds: describe with any words, then one word only, then mime only. By round three you are acting out an inside joke from round one. It is the single best pen and paper game for a mixed group.

3. Mafia (or Werewolf)

6 to 16 players, 20 to 45 minutes, a moderator and slips for roles. A hidden few are Mafia; the town has to vote them out before they take over. It needs one person to run the night, or a site that does it for you. Our full Mafia rules and role counts cover every group size.

4. Twenty Questions

2 or more, 5 minutes a round, nothing needed. Someone thinks of a thing. Everyone else gets 20 yes or no questions to find it. Start with "Is it alive?" and "Is it bigger than a microwave?" and you will rarely need all 20.

5. Wink Murder

8 to 20 players, 10 minutes a round, a deck of cards or folded slips. One player is secretly the murderer and kills by winking at people, who die dramatically a few seconds later. The others try to accuse the murderer before the room empties. A wrong accusation puts the accuser out.

6. Psychiatrist

5 to 12 players, 15 minutes, nothing needed. One player leaves the room. The rest agree on a hidden rule, such as "answer as if you were the person sitting opposite". The psychiatrist comes back, asks questions and has to diagnose the rule. Simple rules are harder to spot than clever ones.

7. The Name Game (Empires)

6 to 15 players, 20 minutes, slips of paper. Everyone secretly writes a famous name. A reader reads them all out twice, then players take turns guessing who wrote which. Guess right and that player joins your empire. The last empire standing wins, and the person with the best memory usually runs it.

8. Categories

3 to 10 players, 15 minutes, pen and paper each. Pick a letter and five categories (a food, a city, a band, something in a kitchen, an excuse for being late). Everyone writes an answer for each in two minutes. Unique answers score; matching answers score nothing. Arguments about whether a tomato counts are part of the game.

9. Telephone Pictionary

5 to 15 players, 20 minutes, paper strips and pens. Everyone writes a sentence, passes it, the next person draws it, the next writes what they think the drawing shows, and so on. Unfold the strips at the end and read them out. Online, Gartic Phone does the same thing in a browser (see our Gartic Phone alternatives for others), and our own Chain Sketch replays every chain at the end.

10. Card games with one deck

3 to 8 players, 15 to 40 minutes, a standard deck. One deck covers a whole night: Cheat (lie about the cards you put down), Spoons (grab a spoon when anyone collects four of a kind), President (the winner of each hand gets the best cards next time). Our guide to card games for groups has rules for a dozen more.

11. A modern board game

2 to 8 players, 15 to 60 minutes. If someone owns them, Codenames, Just One and Wavelength all teach in five minutes and work for people who say they "do not really do board games". Longer strategy games like Catan suit a smaller group who want to sit for an hour.

Fun games to play with friends online

Video calls kill games that rely on talking over each other, so the best online picks give everyone something to do on their own screen while the call carries the laughter. A few rules help: one person hosts and sends a link or code, everyone mutes when they are not talking, and you pick games with short turns. Our guide to games to play on FaceTime covers the call side in more detail.

12. skribbl.io

2 to 20 players in a private room, free, any browser. One draws, everyone else types guesses. No accounts. Make a private room and share the link so strangers stay out.

13. Gartic Phone

Free, any browser. The write, draw, describe chain from Telephone Pictionary, built for calls. The final replay is the best part, so leave time for it.

14. Codenames Online

4 or more, free in a browser at codenames.game, run by the publisher Czech Games Edition, as of October 2026. Two teams, a grid of 25 words, one clue giver each. One person sends a room link. It is the most reliable team game on a call because only the clue givers need to concentrate.

15. Jackbox Party Packs

Paid; only the host needs a copy. The host runs the game on a computer or console and shares their screen on the call. Players join on their own phones. Quiplash and Trivia Murder Party are the usual favourites. Our games like Jackbox guide compares free alternatives.

16. Spy Grid (Rondovo)

4 to 16 players, about 15 minutes, free in a browser. Our own take on the one-word-clue team game: two teams, a 5×5 grid, a handler on each side who sees which words belong to whom. One host opens a room and everyone joins on their own screen with a four letter code. In a living room the grid can go on a TV; on a call, everyone picks "Just this screen" and sees the grid on their own device, so nobody has to share a screen. No download, no account for guests.

17. Fill-In (Rondovo)

3 to 12 players, about 15 minutes. A sentence with a blank appears, everyone types the funniest ending, and the room votes on anonymous answers. It works well on a call because everyone writes and votes on their own screen, and nobody has to perform out loud.

18. Mindline (Rondovo)

2 to 16 players, about 15 minutes. In Mindline, one player sees a secret spot on a line between two extremes, such as Freezing and Scorching, and gives a clue. Everyone else slides their guess on their own screen. It is a gentle game that tells you a lot about how your friends think.

19. Online trivia

Any number. Free trivia sites and quiz apps abound, or one friend writes a 20 question quiz about the group itself, which is usually funnier than general knowledge.

20. Co-op video games

If your friends game, co-op titles like Overcooked 2, Minecraft or Among Us are their own world. They need everyone to own the game on a compatible device, so check before game night. For a no-install night, stick to browser games. Our virtual game night ideas has a full running order for a call.

Games to play with long distance friends

Different time zones need games you can play asynchronously: a move whenever you are awake, no call needed.

21. A shared daily word puzzle

Everyone solves the same daily word puzzle and posts their result grid in the group chat. It takes two minutes and gives you a reason to talk every day. Our Wordle with friends guide covers ways to turn it into a real competition.

22. Correspondence chess

Free chess sites let you play with days per move. A single game can run a fortnight, and that is the point.

23. Slow photo challenge

Each week someone sets a theme ("something blue", "your view at 8 am", "the worst mug you own"). Everyone posts a photo by Sunday and the group votes. No winner needed.

24. Story chain

Someone texts the first line of a story. Each friend adds one sentence when they see it. Read it back at the end of the month.

25. Scheduled live games

When you can find an overlap, a 30 minute window is enough for a few rounds of Five Letters or Fill-In. Pick a game where everyone plays at once rather than waiting through turns, because a lagging connection hurts turn-based games most.

Games to play with two friends

Two players is its own category: no teams, no hiding in the crowd, every move matters. Our two player online games guide goes deeper.

26. Ghost

2 or more, nothing needed. Take turns adding a letter to a growing word. Whoever completes a real word of four letters or more loses the round, and you must always have a real word in mind. You can challenge someone to name theirs.

27. Battleships on squared paper

2 players, 20 minutes, squared paper. Draw two 10×10 grids, hide your fleet, call coordinates. It was a pencil game long before anyone sold it in a box.

28. Dots and Boxes

2 to 4 players, 10 minutes, paper. Draw a grid of dots, take turns joining two, close a box to claim it. Our Dotty adds a die, so you draw as many lines as you roll, which makes the endgame far less predictable.

29. Drop Four (Rondovo)

2 players or two teams, about 10 minutes. In Drop Four, drop discs into columns, line up four first. Best of three or five rounds.

30. Bookends (Rondovo)

2 players, about 5 minutes. In Bookends, one of you draws a first letter, the other draws a last letter, and you race to type a word that fits between them. Longer words score more.

31. Would You Rather

2 or more, nothing needed. Take turns posing impossible choices. With two people it turns into a real conversation, which is the best version of it.

32. Rummy or Gin Rummy

2 players, 20 to 40 minutes, a deck. The best classic two player card game for a long evening. Learn it once, play it for years.

Games to play with a big group of friends

Above ten people, turn-by-turn games stall. You want games where everyone plays at once, or teams. For a full list built around crowd size, see party games for large groups.

33. Mafia, scaled up

With 12 to 16 players, add one more Mafia and a role or two. It is the best large group game there is, as long as the moderator keeps days moving.

34. Fishbowl in teams

Fishbowl handles 20 people fine in two or four teams. Keep each turn to 60 seconds.

35. Human knot

8 to 12 per knot, 10 minutes, nothing needed. Everyone grabs two different hands across the circle, then the group untangles without letting go. Only for groups comfortable with touching.

36. Rock Paper Scissors tournament

Any number, 5 minutes. Pair up and play. The loser becomes the winner's cheerleader and follows them, chanting their name. The final is two players with a whole room behind them.

37. Odd One Out (Rondovo)

4 to 12 players, about 15 minutes. In Odd One Out, everyone gets the same secret word except one player (two in groups of seven or more, if the host chooses), who gets a close cousin. Take turns typing short hints, then vote out the bluffer. Nobody is told which group they are in, so even the odd one out may not know.

38. Hush (Rondovo)

4 to 16 players, about 15 minutes. Describe the word without six forbidden ones while the other team watches for slips and buzzes. It is our take on the forbidden words format; the Taboo rules guide explains the original.

Games to play with friends with no props

Nothing in your pockets, nothing on the table: these need only voices. We collected over 40 of them in games to play with no props, so here are five favourites.

39. I'm Going on a Picnic

The leader decides on a secret rule (only things with double letters, say). Players say what they are bringing; the leader says yes or no. Keep going until everyone cracks the rule.

40. Word Association, with a buzzer

Go round saying words linked to the last one. Anyone can buzz a link that does not make sense, and the speaker has to explain or drop out.

41. Fortunately, Unfortunately

Tell a story one sentence each, alternating "fortunately" and "unfortunately". It always ends somewhere ridiculous.

42. Botticelli

One player picks a famous person and gives the first letter of the surname. Others ask indirect questions to earn a direct yes or no. It is Twenty Questions with homework.

43. Charades

The classic needs nothing but a list. Our charades ideas has hundreds sorted by difficulty.

Ten minute games to play with friends

For the gap before food arrives or the last ten minutes of a call.

44. Five Letters (Rondovo)

2 to 16 players. Everyone races on the same five letter word on their own screen, with six guesses each. The TV shows only colours, so nobody can copy. One word takes about two minutes.

45. Speed Wits (Rondovo)

2 to 16 players. A word picture puzzle built out of type, such as the word HEAD written above the word HEELS for head over heels. Type what it says; quicker answers score more.

46. Fizz Buzz

Count round the circle, saying "fizz" for multiples of three, "buzz" for five, "fizz buzz" for both. Get it wrong and you are out. Add "bang" for seven when it gets easy.

47. Most Likely To

Someone reads a "who is most likely to" prompt and everyone points at once. Our most likely to questions list has plenty to start with.

48. Two Truths and a Lie

Each person tells three statements; the group spots the lie. Ten minutes covers a group of six. See Two Truths and a Lie for statement ideas.

Fun games to play with friends when bored

Boredom usually means low energy, so pick a game with almost no setup and short rounds. Our order for a flat evening: start with something everyone does at once (Five Letters, Categories), move to talking games (Contact, Psychiatrist) once people warm up, and save the long one (Mafia, a board game) for when the room is properly awake.

Three tips that make any of these better:

• Teach in one sentence, then play. Explain the rest during round one. Nobody remembers rules they have not used.
• Rotate who picks. If one friend always chooses, the quiet ones never get their favourite.
• Stop while it is still fun. End a game one round early and people will ask for it next time.

How to choose a game for your friends

A few questions settle it:

• How many of you? Two to four suits turn-based games. Five to ten suits most party games. Above ten, teams or everyone at once.
• Same room or not? In person, bluffing and acting games shine. Online, choose games where everyone acts on their own screen.
• How much energy? Loud and quick (Fishbowl, Hush) versus calm and thinky (Mindline, Codenames).
• Who is new? With people who do not know each other well, avoid games that put one person on the spot for long. Our icebreaker games guide handles that case.

If you want the whole picture of party games, from house parties to holidays, start at our party games hub.

Questions people ask

What are some fun games to play with friends?

Contact, Fishbowl, Mafia and Twenty Questions work in person with nothing or almost nothing. Online, skribbl.io, Codenames Online and party games you join with a code work best. For two people, Ghost, Battleships and Drop Four are quick favourites.

What games can you play with friends online for free?

skribbl.io and Gartic Phone are free browser drawing games. Codenames Online is free on its official site as of October 2026. Rondovo's games, including Spy Grid, Fill-In and Mindline, are free in a browser and guests do not need an account.

What can I play with friends when bored with nothing?

Contact, Psychiatrist, I'm Going on a Picnic, Fizz Buzz and Twenty Questions need only voices. They work in a car, a queue or a living room.

What games can two friends play?

Ghost, Battleships on paper, Dots and Boxes, Gin Rummy and Would You Rather all work for two. Online, try a two player board game or a quick word race like Bookends.

What is a good game for a big group of friends?

Mafia and Fishbowl handle 10 to 20 people. Rock Paper Scissors tournaments work for any number. Online, pick a game where everyone plays at once on their own screen.

How do you play games with friends who live far away?

Use asynchronous games: a shared daily puzzle, correspondence chess, a weekly photo theme or a story chain in the group chat. When you can all be online together, a 30 minute call with a browser game is enough.

Pick one and play tonight

Any game on this list makes a good night. If you are together, or on a call, and want to try one of ours, open Spy Grid or Fill-In, share the four letter code, and start as soon as everyone is in. Guests need no download and no account.

skribbl.io, Gartic Phone, Codenames, Codenames Online, Czech Games Edition, Jackbox, Jackbox Party Pack, Quiplash, Pictionary, Trivia Murder Party, Just One, Wavelength, Catan, Overcooked, Minecraft, Among Us, Battleship and Wordle are trademarks of their owners. Rondovo is not affiliated with them.