5 Smartphone Games You Need For Christmas

5 Smartphone Games You Need For Christmas

We have all been sat there with family and friends, stuffed from overeating and probably a little merry when someone suggests bringing out the same old board games….
This year why not change it up a bit and play some family games using your phone or tablet instead?
There are some really fun and affordable apps around that can give hours of entertainment and some laughs too!
Here are our top 5 and hopefully at least one of these will spark your interest.
 
5.  Ticket To Ride
Not really a party game as such, it is still good fun to play. A classic board game turned into an app, players compete to build as many railroad tracks as long as they possibly can. It is a good multiplayer experience with options for ‘pass to play’ where its shared turns on one device or has cross platform support between android and iOS so people can play against you on their own device.

4. Spaceteam
A free to play, cross platform game which can be downloaded for between 2 – 8 players. Your spaceship has been crippled and you are the last of your crew. A nearby star is about to explode and the only way to escape is to work together to flip switches and press buttons at the right time to save your crew. This will surely lead to plenty of laughter as your friends will be shouting instructions for you to act out, so be prepared for it to get very chaotic and loud.

3. Reverse Charades
 It’s like normal charades but switched around. Instead of one person doing the actions for the rest of the group to guess, here the team act out as many words as they can for one person to guess. This obviously will lead to many funny moments as your friends and family all try to act together. It is free to download for both Android and iOS although you can purchase expansion ‘decks’ to expand the topics it can cover.

2. Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes
Another group activity but this time using a VR headset. The person using the VR has the task of disarming a bomb but will need help from the ‘bomb disposal team’ to work out how. The rest of the group will then have to hurriedly search through the bomb disposal manual and diagrams to instruct the wearer on what to do and when. Stop talking, or take too long however and the time runs out ad you all get blown up. This is designed for 2-6 players and is available on most VR devices, but if you don’t have a compatible phone or headset it can be downloaded on windows/mac via steam.

1. Heads Up!
Similar to reverse charades but with so much more, this is clearly our party favourite. Simply hold your phone to your head and try to guess what it is from your friends’ actions and clues. Tilt your head down for the next clue when correct or tilt up to skip if unsure of the answer. Once your time runs out you can check your score and pass to the next player. It is cheap to download and can be expanded with in game ‘theme deck’ purchases AND as an extra layer of amusement, the app records your friends jumping and screaming and acting out the clues so you can all watch it back afterwards……or posted to Facebook for everyone to enjoy!