Top 10 Games To Play on the TV With Friends: Tested + Ranked

The living room has a habit of turning into an arena on game night. I rounded up the best games to play on the TV with friends, mixing voice-controlled titles with phone-as-controller Party Packs.

From trivia and jokes to puzzles and singing, there’s something all will enjoy. Setup is quick and rounds run short, so everyone can jump in.

10 best games to play on the TV with friends at a glance

Let’s kick it off with a quick look at the top 10.

* As of the time of writing (October 2025)

How I judged the list

I favored:

• Quick setup on the TV
• Low-friction controls
• Family-friendly content
• Licensed reliability
• Replay value
• Broad availability on living-room devices

Voice-first on TV scored the highest in living rooms with mixed ages, snacks, and limited controllers. Licensed formats with fresh content moved up my list. I rated phone-as-controller titles well for large groups when Wi-Fi was rock solid.

Some picks exist on console or mobile and may require one or the other to host gaming sessions.

1. Jeopardy!

Game type: Jeopardy! is a licensed quiz game you play on TV with your voice; it fits squarely under interactive TV games and classic TV party games for mixed ages.

Number of players: Small groups shine here: up to 3 active players on Roku, while solo on Fire TV (multiplayer coming soon!)

Jeopardy! on TV is a voice-controlled trivia game for Roku and Fire TV that recreates the classic game show format with Daily Doubles, Final Jeopardy, and real-time scoring powered by your voice.

It feels like the real show brought to life in your living room (Alex Trebek not included). Categories, clues, and wagers deliver authentic tension. Voice answers keep the pace quick.

Open the app, choose 1 of 3 modes (casual, classic, expert), select a monetary value from 1 of 4 provided categories, hear the clue, then shout your answer in the form of a question at the screen.

Scoring updates automatically, and the leaderboard keeps the rivalry friendly. Licensed audio and visuals keep everything official.

I ran 3 sessions on Roku and Fire TV with 3 active players and 4 spectators. Games finished in about 12–15 minutes when I capped boards at mid values.

Voice pickup improved after I raised the TV volume to around 65–70% and asked the room to keep music off. Late arrivals learned the flow in 1 round and jumped in without confusion.

Pros:

• Real show structure with Daily Doubles and Final Jeopardy
• Voice-first play that suits the couch
• Quick setup on Roku or Fire TV
• Fresh clue sets for strong replay value
• Rules land fast, so everyone settles in

Cons:

• Requires a compatible TV device
• Competitive tempo can rattle shy players
• Only 4 categories instead of the traditional 6 could be seen as a con for purists

Available platforms: Roku and Fire TV with a Volley subscription.

Pricing: Volley offers a 7-day free trial on Roku or Fire TV;  $12.99/month for those who commit.

Bottom line: Choose Jeopardy! when the room wants real game show drama and voice-first play.

2. Kahoot!

Game type: Kahoot! is a trivia game you play on TV with a phone for control. It also nestles neatly within interactive family games and other TV party games when the group keeps growing.

Number of players: Your live player limit depends on your plan/account type; check it in Account → Profile settings → Account details.

While testing Kahoot!, I ran 1 session as a small family night and another in a larger mixed group. The PIN-join moved quickly after I put it in large text on the TV.

I toggled “Randomize order of questions” and “Randomize order of answers,” which kept repeat games from feeling predictable. 20-second timers and 10–12 questions gave me a tidy 10–15 minute run without lulls.

Hosting felt flexible. I tried the Fire TV app, casting from a phone and a laptop browser. All worked, but the TV app was the least fussy. I also enabled “Allow guest hosting” so a friend could run the game while I played, which was handy for bigger groups.

Wi-Fi mattered. A 5 GHz network felt smoother than 2.4 GHz when more phones connected. Late arrivals learned by watching a round and joined without much complication.

Pros:

• PIN join works on any phone
• Scales to large groups
• Fast rounds keep energy high
• Custom sets fit birthdays and office nights

Cons:

• Needs steady Wi-Fi
• Community quizzes vary in quality
• Host spends time picking sets

Available platforms: TV via casting (AirPlay/Chromecast) or the Amazon Fire TV app. Mobile hosting on iOS/Android, plus browser play on laptops/tablets. “Guest hosting” lets someone else run your Kahoot without logging in.

Pricing: Free to host. Paid plans start at $3.99/month (plan-dependent), billed annually.

Bottom line: The free tier held up for varied nights with some curation. Paid plans only mattered when I needed vetted sets or higher player caps.

3. Quiplash

‍Game type: Phone-as-controller comedy party game for TV. You write punchlines to on-screen prompts, the room votes, and the funnier line wins.

Number of players: 3–8 active players. Audience voting supports very large lobbies (up to 10,000), so late arrivals still participate. The sweet spot is 5–8.

Quiplash feels like handing the room a shared mic and daring everyone to top the last joke. One player hosts on a console or PC. Everyone else joins at jackbox.tv with a short room code. The first prompt lands, and everyone leans in at the same time.

It runs in 3 rounds. In the first 2, each player answers 2 prompts, then paired answers face off, and the room votes on the funnier line.

A clean sweep triggers a “Quiplash” bonus. The last round gives everyone the same setup and awards points by rank, and audience votes still move the scoreboard.

I hosted on a PC with an HDMI to TV connection, for 6 players plus 3 in the audience. Join time averaged 30–45 seconds once the code was big on the screen. Two rounds and a final took 15–18 minutes, and the family filter kept the tone PG when kids were around.

Casting from a phone worked, but felt a touch slower than HDMI. 5 GHz Wi-Fi handled inputs better than 2.4 GHz when more phones joined. I asked players to keep notifications off, which reduced mid-prompt distractions and sped up voting.

Pros:

• Phones join fast with a simple room code
• Prompts coax jokes from shy and bold players alike
• Audience voting welcomes drop-ins
• Short rounds keep momentum high

Cons:

• Humor leans PG-13 without filters
• Needs a console or PC and steady Wi-Fi
• Prompts can repeat during very long sessions

Available platforms: Console or PC to TV; join from phones at jackbox.tv.

Pricing: Quiplash comes inside Jackbox Party Pack 2, 3, and 7. Packs typically list around $24.99–$39.99 on console and PC stores, and often drop to $9.99–$19.99 during sales. Players join from phones at jackbox.tv at no extra cost.

Bottom line: Among multiplayer TV games, Quiplash stands out for instant joins and crowd-fueled voting.

4. Wheel of Fortune

Game type: Voice-controlled word-puzzle game on TV with spin, buy, and solve mechanics.

Number of players: Best with 2–3 active players (like the show) and a couch of spectators. Also works great in teams to include guests who want in on the fun.

Wheel of Fortune for Roku lets players spin the wheel, buy vowels, and solve phrases using spoken commands. And it feels like a living-room drumroll.

Rounds play out with a simple rhythm. Call a consonant. Decide when to buy a vowel. Solve when the phrase clicks.

I ran 3 games with 2 other players and 4 spectators. My fastest rounds wrapped in about 8 minutes, and the longest stretched to 14. Rotating the wheel after each solve kept turns fair and the pace steady.

Categories like Before & After and Around the House keep brains switching lanes. BANKRUPT shows up as the villain, and the room howls when a big stack of cash disappears.

Voice control matched the pace. I set the TV volume near 65% and asked the room to keep the background music off. Letter pickup improved, and solves landed well. The game tracked cash and standings, so attention stayed on the board.

Pros:

• Classic spin-and-solve loop with real show categories
• Voice input that matches the game’s tempo
• Easy to learn across mixed ages
• Fresh puzzle sets for strong replay value
• Quick setup on Roku

Cons:

• BANKRUPT swings can frustrate very competitive players
• No offline play if your connection drops

Available platforms: A Volley subscription gives Roku users access.

Pricing: Snag a 7-day free trial on Volley, after which it’s $12.99/month.

Bottom line: Play Wheel of Fortune when you want a fast puzzle and voice-first simplicity.

5. Song Quiz

Game type: Music identification trivia with voice scoring on TV.

Number of players: Players take turns solo or as a team in quick rounds. Multiplayer coming in the future.

Song Quiz is a voice-controlled music identification game for Roku and Fire TV where players name songs and artists from short audio clips across multiple decades and genres.

Each round begins with a few seconds of a song, and it’s up to the player to guess what it is. You provide the title and/or artist, and the score updates right away.

I ran 3 solo sessions with a couple of spectators waiting their turn. “Best of 5” took about 9–13 minutes, which worked for warm-ups and quick rematches.

I mixed decades every round. Parents carried the 80s and 90s, and teens led the 2010s and 2020s. Rotating eras kept scores close and stopped 1 person from running away with it.

New players learned in 1 round. They watched a few clips, saw how points work, and jumped in without coaching. Short turns made it easy to rotate seats and keep the game moving.

Pros:

• Voice answers keep everyone in play
• Decade and genre picks level the field
• Short turns keep rotations smooth
• Large catalog supports lots of rematches
• Quick setup on Roku or Fire TV

Cons:

• One-era dominance can tilt a session
• The song clips used can be too short, making it difficult to recognize the tune

Available platforms: Access on Roku and Fire TV when you subscribe to Volley. Also available on smart speakers through Alexa in an “audio-only” capacity.

Pricing: Enjoy a 7-day free trial with Volley, then it’s $12.99/month on Roku or Fire TV.

Bottom line: Cue Song Quiz when the room wants fast redemption arcs and a soundtrack that lingers after the TV goes dark.

6. Guess the Emoji

Game type: Voice-controlled emoji riddle game on TV.

Number of players: As many as you can handle. I tested it on a team of 8 with a single Roku remote.

Guess the Emoji delivers a jolt of energy, instantly sparking competitive banter as soon as teams gather. Each round feels like a race against the clock, with players shouting answers and laughing at creative guesses.

Testing with groups of different ages revealed how clever emoji combinations play-on-word style either stumped us or brought out wild, off-the-wall answers. Kids gravitated to animal and TV clues, while trivia buffs argued over tricky phrases.

Clues come at a rapid clip, each using clever emoji combinations to hint at a specific word, phrase, title, or item. For example, frog 🐸 + crown 👑 might mean “The Princess and the Frog,” or ring ◯ + volcano 🌋 could be "Lord of the Rings."

The puzzles move lightning fast and range in categories from animals and books to brands and movies, with the challenge ramping up as each clue gets harder. Normal and hard modes help everyone feel included, even when things get tough.​

Guess the Emoji brings out a mix of excitement and satisfaction, especially when a team shouts an answer no one else sees. The game seamlessly tied my group together through laughter and fast thinking.

Pros:

• Wide variety of categories to choose from
• Visual clues invite kids and non-readers
• Speedy rounds keep fun, party energy high
• Simple and quick setup

Cons:

• Needs mic access and a host’s account
• Vague emoji combos can feel frustrating

Available platforms: Play it on Roku with the Volley Games app.

Pricing: Enjoy a 7-day free trial with Volley, then it’s $12.99/month on Roku.

Bottom line: Guess the Emoji works as a fast-paced, lighthearted icebreaker that builds confidence across generations.

7. The Chameleon

‍Game type: Social-deduction party game on TV with one-word clues and a hidden role (the Chameleon).

Number of players: Works at 3–8; my results are from a group of 6–8 players.

The game begins with a grid of topic words on the TV, where one is the secret topic. All but the chameleon have access to the secret topic on their phone. It's up to the chameleon to blend in and avoid detection.

Play flows in 4 beats:

1. Reveal the grid on the TV, e.g., animal words with the secret topic “octopus.”
2. Have each player say a single-word clue about the secret topic, e.g., “tentacles,” then “ocean,” then “ink.”
3. Vote after the last clue on who seems like the Chameleon. Vague words like “blue” or “salt” raise suspicion.
4. When the group catches the Chameleon, they take 1 last guess at the grid, e.g., they gamble “shark” to steal the win, and, if wrong, the table scores the round.

I played 3 sessions with 6 and 8 players. Names joined by code in under a minute on the TV app and browser. Rounds averaged 2–3 minutes, and a 4-round game lasted 12–18. We spotted the Chameleon in 7 of 10 rounds; 2 last-guess steals kept rematches interesting.

Pros:

• One-word clues create instant tension
• Phones join quickly with a room code
• Short rounds invite rematches
• Social deduction without heavy rules

Cons:

• Needs clear boundaries for clue detail
• Groups can develop meta-clues that reduce variety
• Requires a shared screen and steady Wi-Fi

Available platforms: Big Screen Games in a TV browser or via casting; phones join by scanning or entering a room code. Also available as a physical board game.

Pricing: $23 for the digital Big Screen Games edition (includes The Chameleon) on Big Potato’s U.S. store.

Bottom line: On a crowded TV lineup, The Chameleon earns its spot by turning one-word clues into bluff tests.

8. Tower of Babel

Game type: Cooperative, physics-based block-stacking party game on TV; phones act as cranes via AirConsole.

Number of players: 2–8 supported; I got the best results with 4–6.

Tower of Babel turns physics into a group challenge. Players drop blocks 1 piece at a time and push a shared tower past a height line before gravity wins. Sounds simple until the power-ups come into play. Irritations like gusts of wind and bombs keep things exciting.

Think Tricky Towers without the duel. Same playful physics, same digital Jenga vibes.

I tested 3 groups: 4, 5, and 6 players. Runs lasted 3–6 minutes. We cleared the starter height on try 3 after calling placements aloud. The big cheers arrived on last-second saves, not perfect stacks.

Setup was quick. I reached the first drop in about 2 minutes from the AirConsole start screen. The smart TV app felt smoother than casting to a laptop tab. Phones joined by room code in under a minute.

Pros:

• Phones join in seconds with a code
• Cooperative tension that pulls the room in
• Short runs invite instant rematches

Cons:

• Needs AirConsole on a TV and a solid Wi-Fi connection
• Input delay can spoil precise drops
• Lighter depth than big show-style games

Available platforms: Play it on AirConsole through a smart TV app or a browser.

Pricing: Playable on the free tier; full library and extras unlock with AirConsole Hero (typically about $4.99/month, region dependent).

Bottom line: Tower of Babel turns group stacking into short, satisfying sessions.

9. Karaoke

Game type: Voice-scored karaoke on TV with on-screen lyrics; no extra mics required.

Number of players: Works solo or in duets; best as a rotation with 2–6 singers and a couch of spectators.

Karaoke on TV is a singing game for Roku that displays synchronized lyrics and rates pitch accuracy in real-time without external microphones.

Here, song choice shapes the vibe. You could be “making your way downtown” like Terry Crews in White Chicks or vibing to the tunes of Journey's Don't Stop Believin'.

My test groups (friends and family) went through dozens of songs in a night thanks to being able to choose any song directly. Search turned up deep options across decades and genres, and adding the next track to the queue took only a couple of taps.

Duets were simple to add, and switching songs between turns took only a few taps. Sessions ran 15–25 minutes with 2 songs per person, which worked well between trivia rounds. On-screen scoring pushed friendly rematches, and lyrics stayed readable from the couch, so no one hovered near the TV.

Make sure to balance the volume so each track carries and the TV hears the singer. Once that dial is right, the whole room can relax and start planning their next rock love ballad.

Pros:

• On-screen lyrics and live pitch scoring
• No external mics required
• Works for solos and duets
• Crowd-friendly flow with instant results
• Quick setup on Roku

Cons:

• Song library breadth matters for mixed ages
• Competitive players could feel slighted by perceived unfair results due to pitch inconsistency

Available platforms: Subscribe to Volley to play on Roku.

Pricing: Grab your 7-day free trial with Volley, and then pay $12.99/month on Roku.

Bottom line: Big choruses, friendly flexing, and applause keep the Karaoke queue growing.

10. Fibbage

‍Game type: Phone-as-controller bluffing trivia where players submit lies and try to spot the truth.

Number of players: 2–8 active players, with audience voting supported. Best at 5–7.

Fibbage starts with a ridiculous fact that’s missing a single word. The point is to bait friends with a believable lie while spotting the real answer first.

Everyone writes a fake answer on their phone. The board then mixes those lies with the real answer. A player can earn points by providing the best bluff and/or uncovering the truth.

I tested with 5–7 players across 2 nights. 30-second timers kept writing sharp. Three rounds plus a final ran 14–20 minutes. “Enough About You” worked best with close friends and produced the biggest laughs.

Hosting on a console or PC felt steadier than casting. Wi-Fi mattered once phones joined in, so I asked guests to stay on the same network.

Difficulty varies depending on the Party Packs available. Pick a couple of curated versions ahead of time so you’re not scrolling through every option during game night. One good pick per Pack kept momentum and reduced repeats.

Pros:

• Phones as controllers with quick room codes
• Bluffing rewards clever deception and wordplay
• “Enough About You” adds a personal twist
• Rounds generate lasting inside jokes

Cons:

• Hosting requires a console or PC, while phones need steady Wi-Fi
• Some prompts repeat during long sessions
• Personal mode can feel awkward with new acquaintances

Available platforms: Inside The Jackbox Party Pack 1 (Fibbage XL), 2 (Fibbage 2), 4 (Fibbage 3 with “Enough About You”), and 9 (Fibbage 4).

Pricing: Party Packs typically list $24.99–$34.99 and often drop to $9.99–$19.99 during sales. Players join free at jackbox.tv.

Bottom line: Fibbage is the game of choice when the room prefers bluffing battles over button mashing.

Voice-first vs. phone-as-controller

Volley builds voice-first games for TV that create an immersive experience and keep eyes up toward the screen. You speak, the game responds.

Voice works best when guests drop in mid-round. Everything is there on the screen, and there are no controllers to pass.

On the other hand, phone controllers can fit giant groups where everyone needs to participate at once. Codes make joining easy. Drawing and text input work well here for games that require it.

I recommend using voice for living rooms with mixed ages and chatter. Jeopardy!, Wheel of Fortune, Song Quiz, and Karaoke run clean with spoken answers.

If you need drawings or typing, phone-led Party Packs make sense. Explore games to play on TV with a phone as a controller for that style.

Why Volley Games is a strong choice for your game nights

We build voice-first games to play on the TV with friends. Shout your answer and watch the screen react. Watch as the pace ramps up, the room roars, and the winner earns bragging rights.

Want your living room to move quickly and welcome everyone? Voice play on Roku or Fire TV keeps things simple. Content rotates in, so the vibe stays new. Friends learn by watching a single turn.

Our app includes a 7-day free trial and a growing bundle of games for one low price:

• Jeopardy!
• Wheel of Fortune
• Song Quiz
• Karaoke
• 20 Questions

Searching for another game? Add a timeless crowd-pleaser like The Price Is Right. Need everyday voice tips? Skim the Alexa Life Hacks: 12 Tips & Tricks guide.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Can I use my phone as a controller for TV games?

Yes, many TV games require your phone as a controller. In Volley’s case, you can shout answers at the screen and receive feedback without one. However, a controller is still necessary for navigation and as a handy “buzzer” option.

How many people can join TV multiplayer games?

The number of people who can join TV multiplayer games varies by title. In my testing, voice-led games worked best with 2-3 active players. Phone-as-controller games often allow 3–8 active players, and some add audience modes for larger groups. Check the lobby limit.

What equipment do I need to play interactive TV games?

The equipment necessary to play interactive TV games depends on the style. Voice-led titles in this guide run on Roku or Fire TV with Volley. Phone-as-controller games run on a console or PC, or in a smart-TV/browser setup. Kahoot also offers a Fire TV app.

Do I need to pay for multiplayer TV games?

No, you don’t necessarily need to pay for multiplayer TV games. Whether you pay depends on the platform. Volley on Roku and Fire TV uses a subscription with a trial. Jackbox sells one-time Party Packs, while CrowdParty and AirConsole have free tiers with optional paid plans.