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Long-distance couples

Phone games for long-distance couples

Games for two phones in two cities: which work across iPhone and Android, which suit a lunch break, and which are worth a whole evening.

4 min readUpdated

When you are in a long-distance relationship, your phone is where the relationship lives. It is the good-morning text, the voice note on the way to work, the video call that ends with both of you asleep. So it makes sense that the games you play together live there too.

Here are our picks of phone games for long-distance couples who are already together, sorted by how much time you have. One thing first: check which phones you both have. Some of these are Apple only, and that matters if one of you is on iPhone in London and the other on Android in Lagos. Facts about each game are checked and sourced at the bottom.

Works on any phone

These run in the phone’s web browser, so iPhone and Android can play together.

Wordle

One free word a day from The New York Times, the same for everybody, in the browser or its app. Thirty seconds of effort, a whole day of “how did you not get that?” Its creator first made it for his partner, so it has the right history.

skribbl.io

Free drawing and guessing that works on phones. Make a private room, add your own words and take turns drawing with your finger. Finger drawings are worse than mouse drawings, which makes the game better.

Lichess

Free chess in the browser with no adverts. Set up a game and send the link. Good on a bus, good in bed, good during a meeting (we did not say that).

WorldGuessr

A free geography game: guess where a Street View photo was taken. It runs in the browser and also has Android and iOS apps.

AJ Cities

Our own game, so weigh our opinion accordingly. AJ Cities is a free open-world game set on the edge of Ajegunle, Lagos, and it was built for phones first: it runs in the browser, with nothing to install. On a touch screen you move with your left thumb, drag on the right to look around, and tap the Action button to talk to people, open doors and sit down. See the full controls.

For couples, the together part is party mode. You each sign in with your email, make a character and pick the same world: always day, always night, or real Lagos time. Everyone in a world sees the same time, so the one in Lagos and the one in London stand under the same sky. The estate radio plays the same song at the same moment for every player. Walk June 12 Street, head to the beach past the bush, or catch Joe-Izzy at Prizm from 9 pm Lagos time.

Honest notes: it is a 3D game, so it asks more of a phone than Wordle does. The estate is shared with other real players, up to 60 at a time. The party and the club are virtual, inside the game, with no real venue, date or ticket. Most guests who ask the gate police are let in free; optional tickets from ₦250 last 24 hours (every price). If you take a real call, pause: you stay in the world as “away” for up to ten minutes. It is 18+.

Apple only

GamePigeon

If you are both on iPhone, this is the obvious place to start. GamePigeon is a free set of games inside iMessage: 8-ball pool, mini golf, darts, cup pong, sea battle, word hunt, chess, four in a row and more. You take your turn in the chat and your partner takes theirs whenever they look at their phone. It works only on Apple devices; extras cost money, the games do not.

Games over FaceTime

Apple’s SharePlay lets you play some Game Center games together during a FaceTime call, if everyone has the game installed. Check the App Store listing to see whether a game supports it.

Free with in-app purchases

Ludo King

Ludo on your phones, free with in-app purchases. Online games take two to six players, you can open a private room for the two of you, and it has voice chat. It is also a good way to bring the family in on a Sunday.

Which game for which day

You havePlay
Thirty secondsWordle; your turn in GamePigeon
A lunch breakA game of chess on Lichess; a round of WorldGuessr
An evening on a callskribbl.io; Ludo King; a walk round the AJ Cities estate
A different time zoneTurn-based games through the day, then one live game when your evenings meet

When you are hours apart

Lagos to London is easy: most of the year your evenings line up. Lagos to Houston or New York is harder, because one of you is finishing dinner while the other is still at work. That is where turn-based phone games earn their place. Take your Wordle and your GamePigeon turn in the morning, leave a voice note with it, and save the live games, a round of skribbl.io or an evening on the estate, for the weekend, when a Lagos late night and an American afternoon finally meet.

Tips for gaming on two phones

  1. Use headphones on the call. Game sound and call sound fight on one speaker.
  2. Charge up first. A video call plus a 3D game drains a battery fast.
  3. Use Wi-Fi when you can. Live games and video calls use data; turn-based games barely do.
  4. Keep your games in one folder. And the links in your shared chat.
  5. Do not let it replace talking. The game is the excuse; the call is the point.

For more, see our picks of online games for long-distance couples, or our long-distance date ideas, Lagos to London.

Questions

What phone games can long-distance couples play together?

Wordle, skribbl.io, Lichess, WorldGuessr and AJ Cities work in any phone browser. GamePigeon works if you both use iPhone, and Ludo King is a free phone app.

Can an iPhone and an Android phone play together?

Yes, with browser games such as skribbl.io, Lichess, WorldGuessr and AJ Cities. GamePigeon and FaceTime SharePlay are Apple only.

Does AJ Cities work on a phone?

Yes. It is built for phones first and runs in the browser, with touch controls and nothing to install.

Sources

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