The trendsetters online might have moved on from playing Gartic Phone, but my family has not. Developed by Onrizon, Gartic Phone combines the children’s game Telephone with the board game Pictionary. It might sound a bit simple, but this lighthearted game is a genuine delight. More importantly, it’s the perfect game to share with family and friends throughout the holiday season.
What makes it perfect for the family? Well, lots of things. For starters, it’s free and you can play it on any device with a browser. I’ve had family members easily join in and play on phones, computers, and tablets. So even if you have a younger kid without a phone, you can likely find another device that allows them to join. No fancy consoles are needed and up to 16 people can join a single game.
The one drawback is that the game does have some ads, but once you watch them the game can get started. Gartic Phone is super easy to learn and navigate. Although drawing might be intimidating to a person who doesn’t play video games often, even that can be fun. In my personal experience, the crudest of drawings have a way of leading to some of the funniest rounds.
It’s also very simple to pick up and play. In the game’s main mode, you start by typing in a prompt. After that, another player will draw a picture of that prompt. From there, someone will receive your drawing, and then type in what they think the prompt was. The cycle of drawing and guessing continues, letting ridiculous misunderstandings and hilarious accidents get funnier with each new guess. It frequently results in hilarious chains of prompts and drawings as people make sense of the scuffed pictures.
At the end of it all, you and the players get to watch the series of drawings and prompts in an endgame recap. I just love to giggle at all the drawings as my family and I scribble on our phone screens scattered around the living room. At the end, we download the funniest drawings as photos, so it even feels like we can get a little keepsake of the night.
Easy to learn, adorable, and fun, Gartic Phone is the perfect family activity for this holiday season.
