Games to liven up remote drinking parties. You can play even when you're far apart!
Drinking parties are often held to deepen connections with coworkers and friends.
It can be hard to coordinate times and locations, and sometimes it’s tough to get everyone together.
That’s when games you can enjoy remotely really come in handy.
We’ve picked out options everyone can play together using video features on tools like Zoom or LINE.
The lineup ranges from quick quiz-style games to full-fledged titles.
Even when you’re far apart, try adding games that bring people closer to your remote drinking party.
- Special Feature: Games You Can Play Online [Board Games & Party Games]
- [Online] Recreation Games to Liven Up Your Zoom Sessions
- Party Games That Spice Up Your House Drinks Night
- Perfect for killing time! A roundup of games for three people to enjoy
- [Punishment Game] Embarrassing Lines: A Collection of Material That Will Make You Blush
- Office party games that get everyone excited
- A party game that gets everyone excited at home. A fun recreational game.
- Simple mini-games that liven up a party
- [Simple but Fun] Penalties That Hype Up Elementary School Classrooms
- [For Elementary School Students] A Collection of Games and Activities You Can Enjoy on Zoom
- Recreation activities that large groups can enjoy on Zoom
- Apps to enjoy at drinking parties: from games to handy utilities
- Party games you can play without any props! A collection of ideas everyone can enjoy together
Games to liven up remote drinking parties. Play together even when you’re apart! (11–20)
No-English game
You see “no English allowed” talk segments in lots of TV shows and YouTuber projects.
This idea might seem commonplace at first glance, but it’s still so fun that I can’t help watching.
Back in the day, the Big Three—Tamori, Sanma, and Takeshi—played this game while golfing.
I’m sure it would liven up remote drinking parties too.
You’ll end up blurting out the names of things around you—like the remote or a cup—without thinking! It might get even funnier as it gets later into the night.
And watch out for digital terms like “mute” and “click,” too.
The “Haa” game
With the “Haa” game, you might discover acting skills you didn’t even know you had! Each prompt card features an interjection like “haa” and eight different situations in which to use it.
The performer draws one card labeled A through H and acts out the situation they drew.
If the guess is correct, both the performer and the guesser earn points! There’s also an online system for distributing cards: one member accesses the URL and shares the dedicated QR code provided there with participants.
Give it a try at your next remote drinking party!
Fastest-finger quiz with everyone
If you want to have fun remotely, playing an app game is another option.
When it comes to quiz apps, this one is hugely popular—affectionately known as “Minhaya,” the game “Everyone’s Fastest-Finger Quiz.” How about giving it a try? A classic quiz-style buzzer appears on the screen, and the questions scroll above it; you press the button as soon as you know the answer and respond.
You can send friend requests in the app and hold versus matches with people who’ve become your friends, so use this feature to get the party going even when you’re remote!
Sea turtle soup
An impossible situation—yet once you hear the answer, everyone groans, “Why didn’t I think of that?” ‘Umigame no Soup’ is a type of lateral thinking game.
Changing your perspective can bring you rapidly closer to the correct answer, but as long as you take the question at face value, it’s hard to solve.
The questioner provides hints while answering the players’ questions.
Let’s work together—connected remotely—and deduce the right answer from the subtle words the questioner drops!
Just One
There are plenty of board games you can enjoy online, too.
This game, “Just One,” is a board game played with one respondent and the rest as clue-givers.
First, the respondent holds up a card with several prompts so that everyone else can see it, but they themselves cannot, by facing it toward the camera.
Everyone writes down a hint based on the prompt, and then the respondent tries to guess the prompt by looking at those hints.
However, if any hints overlap with someone else’s, those hints become invalid and can’t be used.
It’s even possible that the respondent ends up with no hints at all!
Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics
Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics is a Nintendo Switch title that lets you enjoy board games, card games, and more from around the world.
Because it can be played online, it should be easy to incorporate into remote drinking parties as well.
Keeping a call open makes it easy to decide which game to play, and you can enjoy conversational mind games during play.
If you start with games you both know and then try ones you’ve never even heard of, the mood is sure to liven up.
Close-up Photo Quiz
For a game that gets people excited remotely, how about trying a “zoomed-in photo” quiz? As the name suggests, this quiz is very simple: you look at a magnified photo and guess what it’s a picture of.
But it’s surprisingly hard! Even everyday items and household goods that you’re used to seeing become unrecognizable when magnified, which makes it all the more fun.
I recommend preparing 3–4 images—ultra close-up, close-up, and the full view—and giving it a try.
mahjong
Mahjong is a classic table game and seems easy to incorporate into gatherings like parties.
If you use an app to play online, you won’t need any equipment and it’s easy to enjoy even when you’re apart.
Using apps that let you create private rooms and fine-tune rules makes it possible to tailor the experience to the participants, which I think is important.
Keep your mahjong screen hidden from others, and run a video or voice call at the same time—this lets you chat casually while you play, and the conversation adds a reading-the-opponent element as well, so I highly recommend it.
Yamanote Line game
The Yamanote Line game is a classic recreational game, also known as the “Kokon Tozai” game.
It’s a simple game that everyone can enjoy—from small to large groups, and from children to adults.
You pose a topic, and players take turns saying answers that fit that topic.
While the rules are simple, the difficulty can vary a lot depending on the theme.
For example, topics like “animal names,” “vegetable names,” or “country names” are easy and have many possible answers.
But when the topic is a bit more niche—like relatable ‘common situations’ that require explanation, or specialized fields that only enthusiasts know—it suddenly becomes much harder.
Magical Banana
The game called Magical Banana that used to be played on quiz shows has now become a staple of recreational games.
It starts with the call “Magical Banana!” and continues as a word-association game like “When you say banana, you think yellow,” “When you say yellow, you think lemon,” and so on.
If you can’t make an association, say something too much of a stretch, or fail to keep the rhythm, you’re out.
Not sure if it counts as an association or not? In that case, everyone discusses it and decides whether it’s safe or out!
In conclusion
We’ve introduced games you can enjoy at home while relaxing with alcoholic drinks or soft drinks, suitable for groups from small to large. Because everyone can play in a laid-back atmosphere, you can really feel the benefits unique to remote settings. As you get into these exciting games, you might discover unexpected sides of your coworkers and find opportunities to strengthen your relationships. Also, appointing a host or facilitator will help keep things running smoothly. Even with a busy lifestyle, try playing games you can casually enjoy remotely.