Long distance relationship games you can play online

What makes a good long distance relationship game

Most couple games assume you are on the same sofa. Long distance breaks that in three ways: you are often awake at different times, you are tired of staring at a call, and you run out of fresh things to say once you have covered “how was your day” for the fourth time this week. A game that helps has to work around all three.

• It works without a shared screen. Each of you plays on your own phone, wherever you are.
• It works when you are not online together. If one of you is going to bed as the other wakes up, you need a game you can take a turn at and leave.
• It gives you something to talk about afterwards. The best part of a good question is the conversation it starts on your next call.
• It takes almost no setup. If starting the game takes longer than a voice note, you will stop doing it.

Everything on Letternerd runs in a browser, so it does not matter if one of you has an iPhone and the other has an Android phone, or if one of you is on a laptop at work. You send a link and the other person taps it. They can play as a guest without making an account.

Long distance games on Letternerd, and when to play each

There is a whole long-distance shelf written for couples who live apart, plus a photo game that suits it well. Here is what each one does and the moment it fits.

When you are in different time zones

Start Miles Apart as a room that runs over several days. A question lands for both of you, you each answer with a voice note when you can, and then you listen to the other’s. Hearing their voice at the start of your morning is the whole point. Show Me works the same way with photos, and after a week you have a small album of two places.

When you are both free on a call

Play live instead. Across Time Zones is quick, and the fun is in the answers you did not expect. Letternerd has no call built in, so keep your usual video or voice call open and play in the browser alongside it. There is more on that in our guide to games to play on a video call.

When a visit is coming up

Until I See You turns the countdown into something you build together: where you will go first, what you will eat, what you want to do that you have only seen in photos. Play it a few weeks out, then again the week before.

When one of you is having a hard week

Your Day Without Me asks you to guess how the other person’s day actually went. Getting it wrong is useful: it tells you what you have been missing, and it gives them an easy way to say “actually, it was rough”.

• Miles Apart2–8 players · 13 minFor long distance. Answer each question with a voice note, whenever you are awake.
• Across Time Zones2–8 players · 8 minLong-distance either/or. Miles apart — are you still on the same page?
• Until I See You2–8 players · 10 minPlan the next visit together, one answer at a time.
• Your Day Without Me2–6 players · 9 minLong distance: guess how their day really went from far away.
• Dares From Afar2–6 players · 12 minTruth or dare by video. Pick one, film it, and they pick the best.
• Show Me2–6 players · 10 minSend a photo of your day. Pick the one you wish you were in.

How to set up a game with your long distance partner

1. Open a game page, such as Miles Apart, on your phone or computer.
2. Host a room. Choose live if you are both free now, or over several days if you are hours apart.
3. Send the link in your usual chat. They tap it and join in their browser, no download and no account needed.
4. Each of you plays on your own screen. In a room that runs over days, take your turn whenever you are free.

Games to play with your long distance boyfriend or girlfriend on a call

The long-distance games are not the only ones that work apart. Every couples game on Letternerd is played on your own phones, so all of these work across a city or an ocean:

• In Sync: answer at the same time, and you only score when you both pick the same thing.
• Know Your Person: they answer about themselves, and you predict what they said.
• Date Night Dilemmas: would you rather, for couples. Pick a side, then defend it.
• The Deep End: questions that skip the small talk. Answer out loud, then listen to theirs.
• Sweet Talk: finish the sentence about each other, out loud. The best line takes the round.

A good call night is two games: one light, one deeper. Start with In Sync while you both settle in, then move to The Deep End when the call has warmed up.

Questions for long distance couples

If you just want something to ask tonight, here are questions we wrote for couples who live apart. Send one in a message, or ask it on your next call.

Light

• What is something on your street I would notice that you have stopped seeing?
• What did you eat today that you wish you could have sent me?
• If I turned up at your door right now, what would you be embarrassed about?
• Which of your friends would I get on with first?
• What is the most “you” thing you did this week?

Closer

• When do you miss me most: mornings, evenings or the middle of the day?
• What is a small thing I do from far away that helps more than I know?
• What do you not tell me because you think it would worry me?
• What has living apart taught you about yourself?
• Is there a message from me you have reread?

The future

• What does “closing the distance” look like to you, and roughly when?
• Whose city would you rather we ended up in, and why?
• What is one thing you want us to do together every week once we live in the same place?
• What is the first ordinary thing you want to do with me, like shopping or cooking?

For a much longer list, see deep questions to ask your partner.

A simple weekly routine for long distance

Games work best as a habit rather than a rescue. Here is a week that takes a few minutes a day:

• Monday: open a Miles Apart room over several days. One voice note each, whenever you are awake.
• Wednesday: a Show Me photo of wherever you are at lunch.
• Friday: Your Day Without Me, to catch up on the week you each had.
• Weekend call: In Sync or Across Time Zones to warm up, then Dares From Afar if you are both in a silly mood.

If you have used other couples apps

Some couples use an app built around daily questions; if that is you, our Paired alternative page compares the two honestly. Others play iMessage games, which only work when you both have an iPhone; see the GamePigeon alternative page for games that work on any phone. Letternerd’s difference is that it is a set of games rather than one daily routine, it is free to play, and everything runs in a browser.

Play the games from this post

Free in your browser. Share the room code and everyone joins from their own phone, no signup.

• Miles Apart2–8 players · 13 minFor long distance. Answer each question with a voice note, whenever you are awake.
• Across Time Zones2–8 players · 8 minLong-distance either/or. Miles apart — are you still on the same page?
• Until I See You2–8 players · 10 minPlan the next visit together, one answer at a time.
• Your Day Without Me2–6 players · 9 minLong distance: guess how their day really went from far away.
• Dares From Afar2–6 players · 12 minTruth or dare by video. Pick one, film it, and they pick the best.
• Show Me2–6 players · 10 minSend a photo of your day. Pick the one you wish you were in.
• In Sync2–8 players · 8 minAnswer at the same time. Score only when you both pick the same thing.
• Know Your Person2–6 players · 10 minThey answer about themselves. You predict what they said.

More games like these

• Long-distance games
• Games for couples
• Two-player games