These are dark times, and lockdown seems relentless.
And though the novelty of Zoom meetings and spending every waking moment (or so it seems) at home, we’ve come with some options to spice up your isolation.
Lockdown Games Night.
When the good vibe with our good mates are literally out of reach, it’s time to dial-up the group video chat, pour yourself a bevvy, and get down to business with some of our fave old school games brought into the 21st century.
Stay strong in there, people and play hard!
Kahoot!
Everyone loves a bit of trivia, and everyone loves that iconic soundtrack, so obviously Kahoot is the pick to bring joy while we’re isolating.
Gather the gang into the video chat and fire up the Kahoot quiz of your choice (there are so many). Back in Zoom, ‘Share’ the browser window with Kahoot! in it, enter the game PIN and get started. And if you want the Kahoot! music, click ‘Share Computer Sound’. Let the goof times roll.
Pictionary
This can either use the Zoom whiteboard (depends on the version of Zoom on your laptop of tablet), or your own real-world whiteboard – but, either way, it’s a hoot.
If you have the actual game, that’s an added bonus; or, you can make up your own, or use a nifty word generator like this one.
Happy days.
Cards Against Humanity
The cult favourite is now available online, which makes it perfect for a Zoom Game Night in quarantine. Welcome to the future. Get on the video call with your friends and create a virtual CAH room on Playingcards.ioio, and send the link to your pals.
The rules online are the same IRL – a question card is pulled, everyone chooses their best (or worst, depends on your tactic) card, moves it to the “answer cards in play” section. When the judge picks a winner they move it to the slot next to the question card. Easy peasy lemon squeezy, right?
ReFlex: The Game
The “self-development, psychology conversation card game” by everyone’s fave Flex Mami (Lillian Ahenkan) is an absolute mind-melter. Perfect for games night. Especially if you want to work on your critical thinking skills and spark up some conversations you and your pals don’t usually have.
Pull a card, read the prompt, and answer straight away. Think about why you answered it that way, and how the answer could possibly be different. It gets deep.
Naturally, this requires you buying the game (#1 or #2) – retailing for $29.95 in the Flex Factory – or you could use the few quotes Flex has scattered around her and the game’s insta pages. But that only gets you so far.
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@reflexthegame + good company = the perfect recipe for a gamechanging chat ?
Word of warning, this game’s probs best suited for the friends you trust and are comfortable having (likely) uncomfortable (but healthy) conversations with.
Scattergories
Obviously owning the game is a bonus, but you definitely don’t need to. All you need is a list of prompts (like this one from Swellgarfo) and to share your screen; and everyone needs pens and paper (or just a Word doc). Easy.
Each player has the amount of time to come up with as many words that start with that letter for each category. Once the timer goes off, you count and compare your words in each category with everyone else. Any double-ups don’t count toward your score (for either of you). Whoever has the most points at the end wins the round. Also, no word double-ups in your own page (if “orange” is a fruit and a colour, only one counts).
Charades
Now we’re doing a proper throw-back with charades, an underrated but perhaps the most hilarious party game of all.
For those who need a reminder, charades is a game where you act out a word or phrase without speaking, and your teammates have to guess what it is. To do it over Zoom, you’ve just got to divide up the teams, have some kind of suggestion generator (there are plenty online; or DIY), and take turns acting and guessing. And to help you stick to the rules, you can mute your mic. Let the hilarity ensue.
Of Course, Classics Like ‘Truth or Dare’ & ‘Would You Rather’
How could you not, games night isn’t games night without Truth or Dare, or Would You Rather. And you know what? When you add a little booze to the mix, all kinds of secrets will be exposed.
Games night has moved to cyberspace and I’m here for it. Especially if I don’t need to wear actual clothes, and can roll straight from my phone to bed. Brilliant.
Image Sources: Giphy, YouTube (The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon)