7+ Fun Online Games for the Whole Family

Different Online Games for the Whole Family: Our favorite games online version

This generation definitely belongs to the online world. Books can now be read via readers, most of our childhood games are now online, and we’ve learned to love them too. There are of course games and sports that are better played IRL but, with the restrictions placed, it is not as easy like before. While there’s some ease up given regarding sports, we believe that we should still be careful out there.

As with other things, there are safe games and others that are inappropriate for kids, it is always at their best interest for parents to look at what they play with. If you miss physical games with friends, here are some of the fun games you can play online, by yourself or with friends as multiplayer games.

Table of Contents

Card Games

UNO remains the most colorful and loved card game by our kids. And there are many online versions now that you can play with friends but you can also join forces in teams in “2 on 2” mode or other modes. You win by getting rid of your cards first by matching the cards laid down by previous player’s color or number. This can be easily played even when friends are miles away. Crazy 8s is another shedding-type card game to enjoy. It’s a game for two or more players, you get to put a card on a discard pile by matching the number or suit of the previous discard.

Now remember good ‘ol card game Solitaire? This was the card game we spent many hours passing time off when there were no friends to hang out with. You layout cards first one facing up followed by two with the first one facing down and top one facing up, and so on until you build a layout of 7 lined cards (see below photo). You then stack up each line alternately with red and black cards numbered going down. You can also take the aces aside and place cards that are of the same suits. The game is finished when you pile up all 4 suits.

I’ve only always played the classic Klondike Solitaire – even on a PC (along with Minesweeper), as this was one of the resident computer games back in the day. Online, there are now many variations – like the Spider Solitaire, Freecell, Tripeaks, Pyramid and more – although these may have been around long before I knew of them.

Different Online Games for the Whole Family: Card games – Klondike solitaire

Ball Games

Tennis, Volleyball, Basketball, and other team games are best played on a court. But in theory, one can also play just to get the gist of the rules, strategies, and pick up offense and defense play. There are a handful of tennis games online one can play against friends or PC mode. I only remember playing the Wii Fit version years ago.

There are also VR tennis games that may allow a little exercise. Tennis is well known to be a sport that is good for the body overall, and playing it virtually gives one a little of those benefits.

Different Online Games for the Whole Family: Ball games -Tennis

Board Games

Chess was and still is my favorite board game. I had some good games back in the days, and though I don’t play it a lot now, I’m glad that our little boy has developed a love for it and joined the school club. He played some matches on Interschool games and did won some. Nowadays, he gets to play chess online with a friend who has migrated to a different country. It’s a good way to bond.

GO, a popular Japanese game of Chinese origin (Weichi) is another interesting board game that can be played online. I’ve recently learned it’s the same as Baduk in Korean. Although they have the same basic rules, variations made differences and branched out to many other games using the GO board.

One of those games is “Go-Moku” (Japanese) or “wuziqi” (Chinese). It is similar in idea to tic-tac-toe using the GO board, thus this game can also be played on a sheet of graph paper using X’s and O’s. Go-Moku means “five points” – you win when you get 5 stones in a row the same way as you win in a tic-tac-toe game.

Different Online Games for the Whole Family, Giant Chess

Different Online Games for the Whole Family: Board Games: – Nothing Beats Giant Chess Pieces

Role-playing / Social Simulation Video games

While a lot of role-playing games are about heroes saving the world or a part of society that is threatened by a nemesis, most have violence in them. Thus, I shy away from such and have also explained to the kids the effects such games have on us. So as much as possible, guns and swords are things we don’t touch even in games.

For games like Animal crossing, or the Sims, and other such interaction games, play pretend is somewhat fun and amusing.

Word and Number Games

The classic crossword puzzles is a very loved game, whichever language it is presented. Scrabble, Letter Up, Letter Scramble, Boggle, are some of the word games we enjoyed playing with friends whether in-person or online. Zingo is a number game for kids that helps with arithmetic. Sudoku, a Japanese is a logic-based, number-placement puzzle may have been “young” compared to many games out there, but it’s one that’s challenging and enjoyable.

Dance Games

Online Games for the Whole Family: Kreuz

Just dance remains the best dancing game, which is also best for people who are not comfortable showing off their dancing skills or lack thereof. It is a motion-based dance video game for multiple players, with each game including a collection of classic and modern songs each with its own dance choreographies.

Building Games and Other Fun Online Games for the Family

While Minecraft is one of those games that is addicting, yes, they get to be creative but such games where it doesn’t end means they do not have a sense of when to stop. Another similar game is Roblox with a slightly different structure than Minecraft. These two sandbox games have been a hit for many players of various ages, having the power to create “worlds”.

For those who love to cook, there are a handful of cooking games to enjoy, one we like best is Food Wars. Some of the recipes we even tried too.

For cat lovers, dog lovers, and animal lovers, there are also games that are easily available as a phone app, or online ones that are really enjoyable. We’ve already mentioned animal crossing, but Hello Kitty World, Neko Atsume, Cat Café, Dog fun, Nintendogs, Pet Rescue are surely fun!

There’s no denying that in-person games are better, or mind games like Rubik’s cube, sliding puzzles and other spatial intelligence games but online games do keep you entertained when there are no friends around. It’s also safer nowadays. As with anything, moderation is the key, play to unwind, but don’t spend so much time playing to forget the more important things.