8 Virtual Happy Hour Games to play at your next team event
You don’t need to lose the TGIF feeling of a good happy hour just because you’re a remote team.
In actuality, since the pandemic remote work is more popular than ever, and therefore virtual happy hours have become a common virtual event type that companies have hosted all throughout 2021 and 2022, charting as the second most company-hosted event type behind employee training (via Statista). With tons of online games now readily available, it’s easier than ever to bring your team members together and have fun.
Which video conferencing tool should you use?
In order to get together and have a fun games played, you need a video call, but where should you host this? Zoom is probably the first video conferencing tool that comes to mind, zoom happy hours are quite popular, however this is not the best type of tool to use. Zoom, Google Hangouts, Microsoft Teams, or Skype are all great for virtual meetings, but for a fun virtual happy hour you need to go to the next level.
With Remo, you can network, walk around, and host any type of virtual team building activities or holiday party.
There are multiple Remo features facilitating your happy hour games:
- Video chat (private chat, table chat, general chat)
- Whiteboards
- Table where you can talk in small groups
- Presentation mode with up to 10 speakers at once
- Shuffle mode to encourage employees to chat with other people
- Announcements and countdowns
Experience Remo For Yourself!
Best Virtual Happy Hour Games
Are are some of the best virtual happy hour activities you can do, from classic games to fun ways to make this social event memorable. So put on a nice houseparty playlist, set up your video call and get started!
1. Two Truths and a Lie
This game is foolproof. Everybody writes down two things that are true about them and one thing that’s made up. Then the others try to guess what is true and what is made up. This is a great virtual happy hour game for people who are trying to get to know each other–even for a romantic date. You can add a drinking element to this game by taking a shot when you get something wrong. Sometimes it can be hard to think of an original idea for a lie. Some lie ideas to trick people can be a skill or family members.
2. I Spy
This game starts with “I spy with my little eye something beginning with…”. You say the first letter of the object and your friends guess the word. You might think you can’t play this happy hour game virtually because your friends can’t see your room. But you can upload an image of a virtual room with items in it so everyone can see the same. And of course, a shot for every wrong answer.
3. Dress Up
Why not dressing up to spice up your virtual happy hour? You can even make a game out of it by giving a prize to the best dressed, and have a new virtual happy hour theme every weekend to shake things up. It’s also a nice icebreaker to start the party.
4. Pictionary
Pictionary isn’t a game that we would normally play at a happy hour. But for your virtual happy hour, it will go down a treat. Make sure you pick a virtual event platform with an interactive whiteboard, such as Remo. Using your virtual whiteboard, you can change the color of the pen and draw some cool images. Who knows, you might discover the next artist in your group of friends!
5. Never Have I Ever: Lockdown Edition
So many people have taken up exciting new hobbies during the lockdown. Get a list of never have I ever ideas and see what your friends have been up to in lockdown. Usually more of a drinking game, everyone takes a drink if they have done something, but it may be a mocktail for your virtual happy hour.
6. Paint and Prosecco
Getting creative has been popular during the lockdown. But of course, we all miss our friends so why not make it a group activity? A few glasses of prosecco will get the creative juices flowing. And this virtual happy hour game might show the competitive side of some of your friends!
7. Drink Tasting
For your next virtual happy hour why not create a game where you and your friends taste drinks? There are many drinks you can choose from:
- Whiskey
- Wine (red, rosé or white)
- Cocktails
- Mocktails for those not drinking alcohol
- Beer
Pick a theme for every week, discuss the flavors and pick a winner! There are also fun cocktail kits you can use like Happied or Cocktail Courier.
8. Charades!
Heads up! is a great app you can use for a virtual happy hour game. It is a quiz where the people in your group describe a word that is on the app on your phone. At the end, you add up your score to see how many questions you got right.The themes of the quizzes are really fun and include:
- Disney movies
- 90’s songs
- Accents
There’s something for everyone and you’ll be sure to get a laugh during your happy hour.
9. Trivia game
Test who has the best trivia on your team with a quiz! You can have a different theme every time. Some fun quiz ideas include around the world, guess the lyrics, or name the celebrity. Try to use some questions that teams can’t google to be as fair as possible. This is a fun team activity to get to know people you don’t normally work with and encourages teamwork.
10. Scavenger hunt
Get a list of things that you have to find around the house and then show it on camera. Try to come up with a fun list of items to find so everyone can get a laugh. Could be items that match the theme, like spooky items for halloween or red items for valentine’s day.
11. Virtual escape room
Escape rooms are growing in popularity and now you can do so many different ones online! Trying to figure out the clues and puzzles so your team can exit the room before the timer runs out is not only exciting and fun, but it’s also a great team-building activity for your happy hour. There are ton of amazing team building facilitators who can help you set them up, like Moniker, or Virtual Team Experience.
12. Virtual board game night
There are different boardgames you can play online just as well as you do in person, like scattegories, yahtzee and even battleship.
13. Would you rather
It’s super fun to play would you rather online with your coworkers, not only will you get to know them better, but prepare to have heated arguments about every single questions. There are tons of lists of would you rather questions you can find online, simply adapt them to your team, and then choose one person to answer each one. You can also do a poll in the Q&A section of Remo to see how many people would choose each choice.
14. Show and tell
Let your remote team prepare something they’d like to talk about during the happy hour. Can be their animal, a fun story, a trip they made, as long as they have some kind of object or animal to show, and then a story to accompany it. It’s a good way to get to know each other better and put the spotlight on your employees.
15. Murder mystery
Just like virtual escape rooms, virtual murder mystery is now more popular than ever, and multiple company now offer experiences for your team. Team up in small groups to find clues and get the murderer.
16. Talent show
Your team members have hidden talents, that’s for sure! Some people sing, dance, paint, play an instrument, other may just have quirky fun thing they do for fun at parties that they’d like to share with the team. Let them express themselves, you’ll be surprised at how talented they are.
It’s Happy Hour Time!
Now that you know our top 16 virtual happy hour games, it’s time to organize your next social hour event.
You’ll need a fun virtual events platform for your next event. Why not try out Remo? We have all the features you need for your happy hour. Check out our free trial for a feel of the platform or check our pricing options.
