Games to play with friends, sorted by situation

The right game depends on where your friends are. Below are picks for the same room, a call, phones, and big groups, each checked for November 2026. If none fit, make one with your group in it on Roam.

Pick by situation

Most group nights fail at the setup step. Someone has the wrong console, someone has no account, someone is on a phone. Start from where people are, not from the game.

Same room, one screen. It Takes Two and Split Fiction (Hazelight) are two-player co-op games built for split screen. Online, the Friend's Pass lets a friend join for free when one person owns the game.
On a call, any device. Gartic Phone mixes drawing and telephone. Skribbl.io is quick draw-and-guess with private rooms for up to 20 players. Share a link and go.
Teams that like to argue. Codenames Online is the word-clue team game. Two spymasters, two teams, four to eight people is the sweet spot.
Fast and loud. Smash Karts is a kart battle game you can play on the web or on a phone. Private games keep it to your own group.
PC group, new this year. Super Battle Golf came out on Steam on February 19, 2026. Up to 8 players share a match and sabotage each other with items like land mines and golf carts.

New this autumn

Two PC party games picked up a lot of groups in October 2026. Worst Class Ever topped Valve's list of the most played demos at the October Steam Next Fest. It is an asymmetric game for up to 6 players: one is the teacher, the rest are students causing trouble behind the teacher's back.

Scam With Your Friends (JakeHub and Metater) entered Steam Early Access on October 16. It is a comedy co-op call-centre game for 1 to 8 players on PC, where you try to talk AI callers out of their money. The theme is dark humor, so check it before playing with younger kids.

Roam games your friends can join

Roam is a free iPhone app where you can play alone first and send the game to friends when they are online. The picks below are made for more than one person: Block Wars is a 5v5 street shooter, Time Machine Coop is a crew heist, Clip In or Fall ties two climbers to one rope, Mind the Pane has two people carry one sheet of glass through traffic, Knockout Party Online puts 16 players into knockout races until one is left, and Toot Rapids races four animals down a river.

Play it on Roam

Make a game starring your friends with Roam

Describe the game in a sentence, or start from a photo of the group. Roam makes it playable, and your friends can be the characters.

Try: "party race through our school, my friends are the racers, last one out of the gym loses"

Create it with Roam See Roam

Questions people ask

What are good free games to play with friends online?

Gartic Phone, Skribbl.io, Codenames Online and Smash Karts are free to start and only need a shared link or room code.

What games can two friends play on different devices?

It Takes Two and Split Fiction have a Friend's Pass, so only one person needs to own the game. Web games like Skribbl.io work on any device.

Can I make my own game to play with friends?

Yes. On Roam you describe the game in a sentence or start from a photo. It comes back playable, and friends can join or be in it.

Keep exploring

More on Roam: All Roam games Make your own game