We’re at the time of year when family come to visit and the games come out. But this year you might not need to hunt around the cupboards for board games – the party games can be streamed via your television.
Both Netflix and Amazon Luma (the retail giant’s online gaming service) are offering a selection of party games at no extra cost to subscribers (in Amazon’s case, Prime subscribers).
Here you can play classic games such as Tetris or Angry Birds, digital versions of board games such as Ticket to Ride and Pictionary, or renowned crowd pleasers such as the Jackbox Party Pack. All of these games are multiplayer and perfect for family gatherings, and you won’t need a bevy of games controllers to play them – everyone can join in the fun using their own smartphones as controllers.
Here’s what’s on offer from the competing services.
Amazon Luna Party Games
Amazon Luna has the biggest selection of party games of the two, which you’ll find by visiting the Luna website and clicking on GameNight. You’ll need an Amazon Prime account to access these games.
Here the selection includes Courtoom Chaos, a game where a virtual Snoop Dog is presiding, and players have to improvise testimonies and invent characters to please the AI-powered judge.
Then there’s the Jackbox Party Pack 9 and various minigames from previous Party Packs, which are great family entertainment (although you may want to put it in kid-friendly mode if you’re playing with young children). Fibbage, where you have to fill in the blanks on outlandish statements such as “William Shatner raised $25,000 for Habitat for Humanity by selling his _______” and vote for which answer you think is true is one of my family’s favorites.
It also has Garfield Kart 2, a surprisingly playable Mario Kart style-game where you use your smartphone as a steering wheel; Tetris Effect which is a tense multiplayer version of the classic block-dropper; and Ticket to Ride, one of the many digital versions of the board game. Just beware that when I played Ticket to Ride for about 40 minutes, it sapped half of my phone battery, so you might want to keep phone chargers handy.
All of these games are best played on a big TV screen, so you’ll need to either plug in a laptop or wirelessly beam the screen from your laptop or tablet to the TV. When you start any of the games, you’ll be given a QR Code or website to visit on your smartphone, which turns that into the game controller. It’s all very straightforward and slick.
Netflix Party Games
Netflix has a much smaller selection of party games, at least here in the U.K. where I’ve been testing.
Annoyingly, these aren’t available via the Netflix app for smart televisions. You’ll have to fire up a laptop/computer and connect it to a television, either via cables or wirelessly, and then access the games via Netflix.com. Or use a laptop as the main screen with people sitting around that, although it could get a little cramped.
Lego Party is a great game to play with younger children, where you have to partake in a series of mini-games as you move around various zones on a Lego island. It’s similar to games such as Super Mario Party and Fall Guys.
Other party games in the Netflix library include Tetris Time Warp (another multiplayer version of Tetris), the drawing game Pictionary and the word game Boggle Party.
Between the two services, there should be plenty of party games to keep your family entertained over the holidays. And you won’t spend half an hour searching for missing pieces or dice down the back of the cupboard, either…