The Best Online Games for Long-Distance Couples to Play Together

On this page

1. How to pick the right game for the two of you
2. Free browser games you can play on a video call
3. Free and cheap games for your phones
4. Co-op games where only one of you needs to buy it
5. Cozy games that keep a shared world going
6. Puzzle and escape-room games for two
7. Competitive games (if you can handle losing)
8. Games you can play with no app at all
9. How to set up a game night that doesn’t fall apart
10. Keeping it fun (and not the only thing you do)
11. Where to start
12. FAQ

Games solve a problem every long-distance couple runs into: some nights you want to be together but don’t have a conversation in you. A game gives you something to do side by side, with the talking happening naturally around it. It’s the closest thing a video call has to sitting on the same sofa.

They also show you how the two of you work as a team, under pressure, when one of you is losing. Mostly that’s funny. Occasionally it’s useful. The trick is picking games that suit both of you, not dragging a reluctant partner into your hobby. Prices and platform details below are approximate as of 2026 and change often, so check the store page before buying.

How to pick the right game for the two of you

Two compatibility questions settle most debates: do you both prefer competing or cooperating, and do you want short sessions or long ones? If your answers differ, alternate: a co-op game one week, a quick competitive one the next.

Free browser games you can play on a video call

These need nothing but a link, so they’re perfect for the first “let’s play something” night. Most were designed for groups but work fine with two, and better with a few friends on the call.

1. Gartic Phone. Telephone meets Pictionary: write a prompt, the next person draws it, the next describes the drawing. Free in the browser at garticphone.com. Hilarious with two, chaotic with four or more.
2. Skribbl.io. One draws, the other guesses. Make a private room and add a custom word list of inside jokes.
3. Codenames. The official free online version runs at codenames.game. It’s built for teams, so it shines when you invite two friends; as a pair, look for the two-player co-op Duet rules.
4. Board Game Arena. A huge library of real board games playable in the browser, including plenty of two-player titles. The free tier covers a lot; some games need a premium account to start a table.
5. Lichess or Chess.com. Free live chess with a link-based challenge. Lichess is completely free; Chess.com has a free tier with paid extras.
6. GeoGuessr-style games. Get dropped somewhere on Street View and guess where. GeoGuessr itself has a limited free tier; there are free alternatives. Great for international couples.
7. JKLM.fun (BombParty). A fast word game: type a word containing the given letters before the bomb goes off. Free and silly.
8. Discord Activities. Inside a Discord call you can launch built-in games like card games, drawing and putt-putt. The lineup changes, but there are usually several free ones.

Free and cheap games for your phones

9. Words With Friends. Scrabble-style, turn-based, ad-supported. The all-day back-and-forth is the point.
10. UNO! Mobile or Ludo King. Familiar card and board games that work across iPhone and Android, with private rooms for friends.
11. Sky: Children of the Light. A gentle, beautiful exploration game where players can literally hold hands to guide each other. Free with optional purchases, on phones, consoles and PC.
12. Among Us. Free on mobile. Best with a group of friends, and very funny when you discover your partner is a confident liar.
13. GamePigeon. Mini-games inside iMessage, so only if you both use iPhones.
14. Daily puzzles. Wordle, Connections and the rest of the daily-puzzle crowd. Post your results to each other every morning; a tiny ritual that works across any time-zone gap.

Some old favorites are gone: QuizUp, which older lists still recommend, shut down years ago. For a trivia fix, see our guide to hosting a trivia night for two.

Co-op games where only one of you needs to buy it

This is the single most useful thing to know if only one of you is a gamer: you often don’t need two copies.

Cozy games that keep a shared world going

These are the games couples come back to for months. You build something together, and it’s still there next time.

15. Stardew Valley (~$15 each). Run a farm together: crops, animals, fishing, festivals, absolutely no pressure. Each of you needs your own copy, and multiplayer works best when you’re on the same platform family (PC and Mac play together easily). It’s the most common answer to “what game should we play forever?”
16. Minecraft (~$30 each). Build the house you’ll live in one day, a model of your hometowns, or something ridiculous. The Bedrock edition plays across consoles, phones and Windows; the Java edition plays with other Java players.
17. Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Switch). Visit each other’s islands, leave gifts, design clothes for each other. Online visits need Nintendo Switch Online (~$20 a year).
18. Don’t Starve Together, Valheim or Terraria. For couples who want a bit of danger in their cozy: survival-crafting with a shared base.
19. Final Fantasy XIV or World of Warcraft. For the deep end: an MMO world with years of content, housing, events and in-game weddings. FFXIV has a generous free trial; both need a subscription after that.

Puzzle and escape-room games for two

20. We Were Here series. You’re separated and can only talk over radio, describing what you see to solve puzzles neither can solve alone. The first game has been free on Steam; the sequels are inexpensive. Each player needs a copy.
21. Portal 2 co-op (~$10 each). Still one of the best co-op puzzle campaigns ever made, built around two robots and a lot of “no, YOUR left.”
22. The Room or other single-player puzzle games. One person plays and screen-shares; the other calls out ideas from the passenger seat. Swap every chapter.
23. Online escape rooms. Real escape companies now run hosted online rooms and print-at-home kits. Our virtual escape room guide covers the options.

Competitive games (if you can handle losing)

24. Mario Kart. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on the original Switch, or Mario Kart World on Switch 2. Easy to learn, short races, and the items keep it random enough that anyone can win. Online play needs Nintendo Switch Online.
25. Chess. Live games when you overlap, correspondence games when you don’t. Analyze your games together afterward.
26. Fortnite, Rocket League or similar free-to-play games. Free to start and cross-platform, though the skill gap can be brutal if one of you plays daily.
27. Codenames or Gartic Phone with friends. Team the two of you up against another couple for a double date that isn’t awkward.

Games you can play with no app at all

When the Wi-Fi is bad or one of you is on a work laptop, these work on any call or even text:

• 20 Questions with a theme (things in my apartment, places we’ve talked about visiting).
• Would You Rather with real stakes (the loser takes the 6 a.m. call).
• Two truths and a lie about your childhoods. Even long-term couples learn something.
• Draw it blind. Describe an object; your partner draws it without knowing what it is; reveal on camera.
• Desert island picks. Five albums, three films, one snack. Defend your choices.
• Story chain. Alternate sentences of a story over text through the day.

For conversation-heavy date nights, see our video-call date night ideas.

How to set up a game night that doesn’t fall apart

1. Check platforms first. Before anyone buys anything, confirm the game supports online play on both of your devices, and whether it needs cross-play.
2. Run audio separately if in-game chat is bad. Discord is the usual choice on PC; a phone call with earbuds is the most reliable everywhere.
3. Wear headphones. Otherwise the game audio echoes back through the call.
4. Plug in if you can. A wired connection or sitting near the router helps more than anything else for fast games.
5. Install and update the day before. Game updates have killed more date nights than arguments have.
6. Agree on an end time. Especially across time zones: one more round at midnight your time can be 5 a.m. theirs.

Keeping it fun (and not the only thing you do)

• Teaching with a sigh. If you’re the experienced one, explain once, then let them figure it out. Nobody enjoys a backseat gamer.
• Buying five games at once. Pick one, play it through, then decide. Most couples end up with one or two “our games,” not a library.
• Gaming every single date. Rotate with movie nights, cooking on a call and actual conversation.
• Playing when one of you is fried. Fast competitive games plus exhaustion equals a pointless argument. Choose something cozy instead.
• Ignoring that one of you isn’t into it. If your partner keeps saying “sure, whatever,” ask what they’d actually enjoy. It might be a drawing game, not a shooter.

Where to start

If you’ve never played anything together: open Gartic Phone on your next call tonight, free, in two minutes. If one of you owns a console or PC: Split Fiction or It Takes Two with the Friend’s Pass. If you want something cozy to dip in and out of for months: Stardew Valley. Those three cover most couples.

Games go nicely alongside other shared-activity dates: synced movie nights, creative Zoom dates, and the full list of 50 free long-distance date ideas.

Frequently asked questions

What games can long-distance couples play for free?

In a browser: Gartic Phone, Skribbl.io, Codenames online, Board Game Arena and Lichess. On phones: chess apps, Words With Friends, UNO! Mobile and Sky: Children of the Light. In Discord calls, the built-in Activities include several free games. On PC, the first We Were Here game has been free on Steam.

Do we both need to buy It Takes Two or Split Fiction?

No. Both use Hazelight’s Friend’s Pass: one person buys the game and the other downloads the free Friend’s Pass to play with them online. Split Fiction supports cross-play between PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series consoles; It Takes Two’s Friend’s Pass has been more limited by platform, so check before you buy.

Can we play a local co-op game together online?

Often, yes. Steam’s Remote Play Together streams a local multiplayer game from the owner’s PC to the other player, who doesn’t need to own it. Only games tagged with Remote Play Together support it, and it works best on a fast, stable connection.

What are good games for couples who don’t play video games?

Start with no-pressure browser games like Gartic Phone or Codenames, turn-based games like chess or Words With Friends, or a cozy game like Stardew Valley where nobody can really lose. Avoid fast competitive games with a big skill gap for the first few sessions.

What games can we play on a video call without downloading anything?

Browser games such as Gartic Phone, Skribbl.io, Codenames and Board Game Arena run from a link. Non-digital options work too: 20 Questions, Would You Rather, two truths and a lie, or a trivia round you write for each other.