35 Perfect Games for Couples to Play During Date Night
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."
Board game night isn’t just for families or friends. In fact, it’s actually one of the cutest date ideas out there! It’s a great way to change up how you spend time together, and it’s low or no-tech, so you can focus on connecting with fewer distractions. It also has unique relationship benefits: “Gaming as a couple can bring out different elements and characteristics of yours that may not be apparent in day-to-day life,” explains certified sex educator and Bumble’s sex and relationships expert Shan Boodram. “You can see new sides of your partner by doing challenging and fun games together, and you may even gain new skills. That’s a win-win, in my book!” It’s a great exercise in communication, and trying new experiences together helps keep that spark in your relationship.
Plenty of games are perfect for two, ranging from verbal games you can play anywhere to longer games to play around the table. Try these couple games for a phone-free date night that can be as cozy or as competitive as you want. Some of our recommendations are questions for couples, while others are strategy games, board games, word games, and even a video game to play together. Whether you’re looking to try something new or you’re already a game fanatic, one of these games will be perfect for your next date night.
Ransom Notes
Cards Against Humanity meets fridge poetry in this wordsmithing game. Choose a prompt card and a handful of word magnets, then arrange them to make a funny poem that matches the prompt. It’s technically meant for three or more people but is still fun with two, especially after a drink.
Ransom Notes - The Ridiculous Word Magnet Party Game
Overcooked (or Overcooked 2)
You’ll need a gaming platform for this high-stress, intensely fun cooking game, but the investment will give you hours of playtime. Avoid obstacles and work together to serve up recipes within a time limit. How does your partner handle pressure? How well do you work together? Wait until you accidentally catch your kitchen on fire and you’re all out of hamburgers, and you will surely find out.
Overcooked! + Overcooked! 2
Splendor Duel
Best-selling board game Splendor has been adapted to a two-player game, perfect for couples who love board games but hate hosting other players. Gameplay is quick and the pieces are satisfyingly high quality in this gemstone-themed game, making it a great choice for game enthusiasts.
Splendor Duel Board Game
Cinematic Synonyms
This is an easy guessing game you can play to pass time in the car, on a hike, or just out and about. Think of a movie title and then replace the words in the name with synonyms and see if your partner can guess it — like bug dude for Spiderman. Or, don’t change the name of the movie but only tell your partner the title’s initials, and see if they can guess the right movie. For example, M.R. would be Moulin Rouge.
Crossword
Two heads are better than one! Print out a crossword to solve together, reading the clues out loud and trying to decode them together. If you’re both word game aficionados, print out two copies and race to see who can finish first.
New York Times Simply Easy Crossword Puzzles
Chess
In a healthy relationship, you shouldn’t be playing mind games with each other. But nobody said anything about strategy games! Chess is a classic game perfect for strengthening your strategy skills or passing a rainy afternoon with a little good-natured competition.
Magnetic Wooden Chess Set
Name That Tune
All you need for this two-player game is your music streaming service of choice and a decent bank of musical knowledge. Play a few seconds of a song and have your partner guess the title and artist. Make it harder by avoiding the hooks, or more meaningful by sticking to songs from your personal history.
Where Should We Begin
This card game from Esther Perel, host of the popular relationship podcast by the same name, will get you and your loved one sharing stories. With a mix of story cards and prompts, it may uncover tales from your past that even you forgot about that can teach you and your significant other even more about each other.
Where Should We Begin?
We’re Not Really Strangers
Designed to be played by anyone from total strangers right down to intimate partners, this game will take players through three levels: Perceptions, Connection and finally, Reflection. It’ll put you in your feelings and draw you closer, guaranteed.
We're Not Really Strangers
Scrabble
Perfect for the wordsmiths among us, Scrabble has just the right amount of competition to keep things interesting. Brush up on those two-letter words ahead of time to really bring the heat. Trust us, they can really make a difference.
Scrabble
The Ultimate Game for Couples
Doesn’t the title say it all? This is one part connection game, one part silly challenges, and even gives you the opportunity to play against other couples to demonstrate your titanium bond. Plus, with 200 cards, you can play over and over again without the gameplay feeling stale.
The Ultimate Game for Couples
Truth or Dare
It’s not just for sleepovers anymore. Truth or dare is even more fun between people who know each other really well because you already have a sense of exactly what dares will get them blushing — and what truths will make them squirm.
Checkers
This one’s a classic for a reason. Is anything so satisfying as shouting “king me” when your piece reaches the other person’s back row? No, there is not.
Checkers
Toilet Tag Game
Multitaskers, this one's for you. Play this game when you're perched on the throne, and then your partner can do the same when nature calls for them. It'll make the one chore we've all got to do a little relationship-builder at the same time.
Toilet Tag
Tacos vs. Burritos
Do yourselves a favor and order some grub before you start this delicious game. The goal is to create a weird and wild menu while avoiding pitfalls along the way. Yum!
Taco vs Burrito
Marital Bliss Game
Played over the course of a week instead of a single sitting, this creative card game sends you on secret missions to collect points through performing acts of kindness for your sweetie. It keeps the fun going for several days instead of a one-and-done.
Marital Bliss Game
The Mystery Drink Challenge
Did you ever play the Coke or Pepsi challenge when you were a kid? It’s just as much fun as adults. If you drink alcohol, consider having your sweetie taste test different types of hard seltzer, different brands of a favorite beer or wine, or even different spirits. If you go with liquor, buy airplane bottles to keep from running up a serious tab.
Couple Connect
This card game for couples was created by licensed psychologist, Dr. Tania Sharma, so you know it’s based in tried-and-true techniques. The questions will help you think deeply about your relationship, and it’s portable enough to bring on road trips, camping, or to a coffee shop date.
Life Sutra
The Couples Game That’s Actually Fun
Once again, this one’s all in the name. Take a break from soul-searching for a game that will get you giggling. This easy, silly game is perfect for a low-budget date night at home.
The Couples Game
Uno
The kids’ card game is just as much fun for adults, and you can toss it in a bag to bring to the coffee shop or brewery to add another element to nights out. Plus, other patrons are bound to strike up conversation when they see what you’re playing.
UNO
Rainbow of Feelings
Taste the rainbow in a whole new way with this game that combines confections and conversations. Assign a feeling to each color of Skittles, M&Ms, Starburst or your favorite multicolored sweets. Maybe yellow is happy, blue is sad, and so on. Then, close your eyes, choose a candy, and tell a story that matches that emotion. You’re bound to learn a few things about each other.
The Gottman Institute Quiz
There’s a reason why this is the O.G. relationship quiz: it’ll teach you everything from your partners’ life philosophies to their approach to everyday scenarios. Pour each other a glass of your favorite beverage and get into it.
Put a Finger Down
The classic “put a finger down” game can get daring, so players beware! Hold up five or 10 fingers and ask your partner to “put a finger down” if they’ve ever “shoplifted from a drugstore,” “gone through my partner’s email,” “done (insert adult act here),” you get the picture. The last person with fingers still up at the end of each round wins.
Monopoly
Over the winter, my family played Monopoly and actually read the rules. We discovered we’ve been playing a wrong (and much longer) way all these years, and when we actually adhered to the rules, everyone had a lot more fun. If that’s you too, give it another go.
Monopoly
Two-Person Cook Off
Heat up the competition in the kitchen and re-enact your favorite Top Chef episode by challenging each other to a cooking contest. If neither of you have chef skills, it can be as easy as decorating prepared personal pizzas, or you can level it up with from-scratch dishes. Let’s be honest, everyone wins when you eat the results.
Online Escape Room
If you love escape rooms but don’t want to leave the comfort of your couch, play online instead. The collaboration, communication and puzzle-solving required will definitely give your relationship a boost.
Guess the Episode
Are you an absolute Friends fanatic? Think you know The Simpsons better than anyone? Have every episode of Gilmore Girls memorized? Cue up your favorite show on your streaming service of choice, start playing an episode at random, and see how long it takes your S.O. to realize which one it is.
Marriage.com Couple Quiz
Spend an evening figuring out just how well you really know each other with this bank of couple quizzes that run the gamut in topic and difficulty. With 65 of them, you can play for hours.
Progressive Story
A campfire favorite, this game also works great for car trips, quiet moments at home or just about anywhere. The first person begins telling a story with one word, then the other person has to jump in with a word of their own. Go back and forth until you've created a funny, scary or even hot tale.
Pass the Pigs
Not only is the goofy premise guaranteed to get you giggling, this game is also easy enough to play without really thinking about it. That makes it perfect for those times when you need something to occupy your hands while you turn off your brain.
Pass The Pigs
Exploding Kittens
We'd like to say no kittens were harmed in the making of this fast-paced card game, but we don't like to lie to our readers. The NSFW version is fun for adults but you might want to pick up the more vanilla deck if you've got kids in the house.
NSFW by Exploding Kittens
Monogamy Board Game
This board game is sort of like truth or dare without the truth. As your piece moves around the board, players get prompted to do various actions that increase in intimacy and intensity as time goes on.
Monogamy
Wheel of Love
If you played Spin the Bottle in high school, turn it up a notch with this wheel that follows a similar idea. It's got even spicier options that are more appropriate for already established couples than kids at a party if you know what we mean.
Wheel of Love
Staring Contest
It's proven that sustained eye contact can bring you and your sweetheart closer. Turn it into a game by holding a staring contest. After a few rounds, you might find yourself graduating to, ahem, more strenuous activities.
Love Lingual
Go deep with this question deck that covers five categories: Family, Intimacy, Couple, Individual, and Past & Future. Stick to one category you want to explore further or shuffle them up for a more surprising experience.
Love Lingual
You Might Also Like
