Virtual Variety: Video Games to Try! Part 1

Image by Darwin Laganzon from Pixabay

Lindy Liedl from the Rice Lake Public Library returns with her monthly column on all things virtual to help you connect with your teen patrons!

Where do you start when you have gaming interest in your community?? Here’s a list of the multiplayer games--that I’m aware of--that would be playable in a library group setting, or virtually, over platforms like Zoom and Discord. I’m certain there are many more out there, so keep digging if you have any age group who are interested in gaming together!

This month we'll look at games that can be played both virtually or in-person.

Skribbl.io is a website that allows you to create a private game room to play with people you invite. It will give you a website link to share with your players. From there, each player just needs access to a device that can open this link. 

 

If you’re playing virtually, they’ll need to be able to open both this link’s page, and Zoom or Discord where you’re all chatting. This is easiest with a computer + smartphone, or a computer + a tablet, but I’m told that iPads now have a split-screen mode where they can view two programs at the same time (if your players only have an iPad available).

 

The game itself is a doodling challenge made even more hilarious by how difficult it is to draw using a computer mouse, or your finger on a touch screen. (You don’t have to be good at drawing!) It’s basically the game Pictionary where players take turns drawing a provided word or phrase while others type their guesses into a chat box on the same page. This game and Gartic Phone work great for in-person gaming if you ever have technical difficulties with consoles. They’re both easy crowd-pleasers.

 

Gartic Phone is another website that lets you make a private room to play with friends. Beware the deafeningly loud, but skippable, advertisement that plays once you click “Start”. After that it’s smooth gameplay. Simply click the “Invite” button to automatically copy a link to share with your players over Zoom, or wherever you’re communicating. Again, they’ll need to be able to view this website, and have Zoom or Discord open at the same time. If you didn’t read the above section: iPads also have a split-screen mode if players only have a tablet available.

 

This game is just like Telephone where you’d whisper a phrase to the person next to you, and the following listeners try to repeat whatever was whispered to them, resulting in a hilariously misheard phrase at the end...Except it’s in doodling form! Each player will start by writing a prompt sentence that someone else will have to draw. Then you’re each given someone else’s prompt to doodle, and you all get to see how everyone interpreted each prompt at the end of the round. Again, you don’t have to be good at drawing; that’s what makes it fun! There are also many game modes to try, so if your group gets tired of the basic game, try the other rules!

 

Jackbox Games are a set of variety, multiplayer games. To play, your library only needs to buy the game on the online store, Steam for computer, or on select gaming consoles. To interact with the game, your players just need to open a browser to Jackbox.TV and enter their name and a private room code your base game will give you once you start playing. From here, everyone can interact from their own phone or tablet. 

 

If you’re playing virtually, simply open the game on your computer and screen share with everyone over Zoom or Discord so that they can see your game while they interact on their home devices. Does that make sense? If not, Jackbox has handy tutorials for playing virtually, or you can look up walkthroughs on You-Tube.

 

These mini-games are usually recommended for teens and older, but be sure to turn on Family-Friendly mode in your settings if you want to keep things library-appropriate.

 

There’s doodling games, word games, and trivia games. Murder mystery, joke-writing, and task-completing games–So many! A narrator for each game will give you an optional tutorial every time you play, so it’s easy to pick up the rules.

 

Minecraft Realms allow you to invite people you know to play in a Minecraft world together. This is different from a Minecraft server where strangers are able to join in, but some libraries make that work just fine. 

My library has two private Realms set up: One for Java Minecraft users (those who play on computer) and one for Bedrock Minecraft users (those who play on a mobile device or on a gaming console). Right now, these different types require separate Realms, but hopefully this gets updated in the future and only one Realm will be necessary for all players.

Once you have paid for a Realm subscription, your players need to be added by their Minecraft usernames. Our teens play virtually over Zoom by chatting to each other on mic while they build and explore the world. I had our first players write the “Realm rules” that everyone has to follow, and they’ve all been respectful so far.

Stay tuned on Thursday January 26 for Part 2 when we focus on in-person video games!