Games to play with a friend, online
Almost every “games with friends” product is really a games-with-strangers product that lets you invite people. The lobby is the main event and your friend is an option inside it.
Duelo is the other way round. You pick a person, and the games exist to give the two of you something to argue about. There are no strangers, nothing to browse and nothing to queue for — just a friend, a game, and a score that has been running since the first time you played.
Pick by who you're playing
A friend …who is never online when you are
This is the hard one, and it's the reason most games with friends lapse. Use Anytime mode: you play, your score is stored, they beat it tomorrow. The word games, Trivia Duel, Doodle Duel and Know Me all support it, and none of them need you both awake at once.
A friend …who is sitting right next to you
Go live, and pick something with a clock — or put both of you on one phone. The whole point of being in the same room is the noise people make when they lose.
A friend …who you'd rather not compete with at all
Some people don't want a rival, they want company. PIVOT! puts you on the same side, one end of the sofa each, with no loser. Know Me has a winner but no rating, and it's mostly an excuse to find out things.
A friend …who is much better than you at everything
No rating can even this out, because you picked this opponent on purpose. Pick a game where skill matters least, or one where you have the edge.
Pick by who they are
All eighteen, plainly
- Crossword Chaos — crossword race. Race a friend to crack quick clues.
- Word Chaser — word search race. Hunt themed words before a friend does.
- Cluster Clash — word grouping puzzle. Lock 4 hidden themes before your friend.
- Cipher Storm — five-letter word race. Crack five hidden words head-to-head.
- Path Pursuit — word trace grid. Trace words to claim the grid.
- Anagram Race — anagram word race. Same 7 letters, 60 seconds — most points wins.
- Four in a Row — four-in-a-row board game. Line up four before your rival.
- Fleet Hunt — hidden-fleet guessing game. Call squares, sink their fleet first.
- Dots & Boxes — dots and boxes pencil game. Close the most boxes to win.
- Mancala — mancala board game. Sow your stones, steal theirs, fill your store.
- Trivia Duel — head-to-head trivia quiz. Seven questions, ten seconds each — right and fast wins.
- Doodle Duel — draw and guess game. Draw the word, then race to guess theirs.
- Know Me — how well do you know me game. Answer about you, guess about them.
- Word Brawl — word fighting game. Spell it, swing it — knock them out.
- Snake Battle — two-player snake game. Grow long, then cut them off.
- Bomb Pass — hot potato party game. Pass the bomb — don't hold it when it blows.
- Trapdoor Panic — hidden minefield game. Step careful — one tile drops you.
- PIVOT! — co-op furniture carrying game. One sofa, two movers, a very busy street.
The head-to-head record is the actual product
Every duel you finish against a specific person goes into a record against that person — per friend, per game, and it never resets. Not a global leaderboard you'll never place on. A number between you and one other human being.
That's the bit that makes people come back. A leaderboard says you're 40,000th. A head-to-head says you're 14–11 down to your brother, and that is intolerable.
Questions
What games can you play with a friend online for free?+
Duelo includes eighteen games for two: a crossword race, a word search, a word-grouping puzzle, a five-letter word race, a letter-trace grid, an anagram race, four in a row, a hidden-fleet game, dots and boxes, mancala, a trivia quiz, a draw-and-guess game, a quiz about each other, a word-fighting game, a snake battle, two panic games and a co-op furniture-carrying game. Four of them are free, one payment unlocks the rest, and joining a game a friend invites you to is always free. No subscription, no ads.
What can I play with a friend in a different time zone?+
Anything in Anytime mode — the five word games, Trivia Duel, Doodle Duel and Know Me. You play your round, it's stored, and it's answered whenever the other person next opens the app. The board games can also go a move at a time on one shared board. Word Brawl and Snake Battle need you both there.
Do we both need to download the app?+
To keep a running head-to-head record, yes — the record has to belong to two accounts. Joining a live room someone has shared with you works from the link they send.
Is there a game two people can play together rather than against each other?+
Yes. PIVOT! is co-op: you each carry one end of a sofa, a fridge or a grand piano across busy streets, and you either get it there together or you don't. Online on two phones, or both on one.
What's a good game to play with a partner every day?+
Something short with a permanent record. A daily Anytime challenge takes a couple of minutes each and builds a head-to-head score that never resets, which is what turns it into a habit rather than a session.