If you're feeling ambitious, you can get everyone more involved in the process. At the extremely low-effort end, simply agree on a time and video chat platform (again, calendar invites go a long way), and everyone can eat dinner together in front of their cameras. The great thing about this is you can put as much or as little effort into it as you want. Hosting a dinner partyĮating with friends is always better than eating alone, and another option is to get a group of friends together for a virtual dinner party. If you're willing to get creative - and be flexible with rules - very few games should be off limits entirely. Someone else rigged a game of Scattergories. One Twitter user told me she arranged an impromptu game night with a few friends around the New York Times crossword puzzle.
Friends have also reported joining remote poker nights and elaborate pub quiz-style trivia tournaments.
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Jackbox has also published a detailed guide on how to play its games remotely on various platforms, including Steam, Discord, and video conferencing services.)Īnd, if you're already tired of these options, you shouldn't be afraid to try something totally different. (Again, you'll want to use a separate device, like a laptop or tablet, in order to play while on a video call. One player "hosts" the game - the host is the only person who needs to purchase the game - and others join in via their smartphone browsers. Though each is slightly different, they are well suited to multi-person remote play. It has several games built-in, including Heads Up, trivia, a Pictionary-like drawing game, and something called Chips and Guac, a word-association game similar to Apples to Apples or Cards Against Humanity. If you're mainly looking for a low-key way to kill some time with a few friends with minimal effort, Houseparty, the group video chat app popular with teens, might be the best option. Pulling off a game night can take a bit more planning and setup, but the extra effort is worth the payoff.
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This setup may not be ideal if you're watching a plot-heavy movie that requires you to follow along closely, but it was a lot of fun while watching 47 Meters Down. This way, we were able to watch the movie and also chat with each other. Once synced, we used an iPad with Google Hangouts open with the camera pointed at me and my partner on the couch and our friends did the same. This takes a little more finessing, so it might not be ideal for larger groups, but it's totally doable, and doesn't require you to connect your laptop to your TV. If that's the case, you can try the workaround a friend and I came up with while improvising a movie night with our partners, when we opted to manually sync up our feeds based on the timestamp. And, the extension only works for Netflix, so if you want to watch something on another service, you'll have to find another workaround. Netflix Party has recently had some technical issues, though, so you might need a backup plan just in case. Lengthy video calls will drain your battery very, very quickly so if you can't keep your device plugged in for the whole call, at least have a charger handy. For example, if you're going to be sharing your screen, you'll likely need a separate laptop or a phone if you want people to be able to see your face (just don't forget to mute one of them).įinally, don't forget to stay charged. If you plan on sitting more than a few inches away from your camera, try to use a headset with a mic.Īlso consider whether you'll need more than one device.
If you'll be using a phone, make sure you have somewhere stable to prop it up. It's worth taking a few minutes before your virtual hangout sesh to scope out where you'll place your laptop or tablet so that you're in the frame as much as possible. Your friends likely aren't expecting a professional-level setup, but everyone will have a better time if they can actually see you.
You'll also want to think about lighting and how you're going to set up your camera. If you can, send out calendar invites with relevant links and detailed instructions ahead of time. You don't want to keep the whole group waiting because you forgot your Zoom login, or didn't realize one of your green-bubble friends doesn't have FaceTime. It sounds obvious, but double check that everyone knows when you plan on starting, and what apps they need ahead of time.