59 Online Games That Make Team Building Fun

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Ruth Hadari
Ruth Hadari
Agile Advocate, Engineering Ops Expert
Posted on
May 17, 2022
Updated on
Mar 21, 2023
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We geek out about virtual team building as a remote team, and we're constantly searching for new methods to bring our group together. Keeping your team engaged is critical for maintaining a healthy workplace culture and reducing turnover. We've rounded up 35 of the best online games to make team building fun, whether you work remotely or in an office.

What Is a Team Building Game?

A team building game is any activity or challenge that brings team members together to complete a task or goal. They are often used as icebreakers to get people comfortable working with each other. Team building games can also be used to improve communication, problem-solving, and collaboration skills.

You can play team building games at any time! They are great activities for new teams or when you have new members joining an existing one. You can also use them to re-energize a team that has been working together for a while.

What Is a Virtual Team Building Game?

A virtual team building game is an online game played by a team to promote team cohesion and build relationships. There are many different types of virtual team building games, but they all have one common goal: to bring the team together and promote communication and collaboration.

Some popular virtual team building games include quiz games, scavenger hunts, murder mystery games, and escape rooms.

Playing virtual team building games can also be a fun bonding experience for employees. It can help them feel more connected to their colleagues and build relationships that extend beyond the workplace. They can also help reduce stress, improve communication skills, and boost morale.

59 Team Building Games

1. Two Truths and a Lie

Two Truths and a Lie is a classic icebreaker that has been used in many companies and classrooms. It's simple to play—participants share three statements about themselves, one of which is false.

What It Promotes: Two Truths and a Lie is a great way to get people comfortable speaking up in front of the group. It also encourages creativity, as participants try to come up with believable but false statements about themselves.

Instructions:

  1. Each player shares three statements about themselves (two accurate facts and one lie).
  2. The remainder of the group attempts to figure out which is which and votes.
  3. For each person deceived, the individual who shared the statements gets one point.
  4. For each correct choice, the other players get one point.
  5. The person with the most points at the end is the winner!

2. Human Knot Game

The Human Knot Game is an interesting activity that forces teams to communicate and collaborate to untangle themselves from a large knot without letting go of each other's hands.

What It Promotes: The Human Knot Game promotes teamwork, communication, and trust-building. It's also great for encouraging creativity and problem-solving skills in a fun and informal setting.

Instructions:

  1. Participants stand in a circle and reach out to grab the hand of someone who is not standing directly next to them.
  2. Once everyone has grabbed a hand, their goal is to untangle the knot without letting go of anyone else's.
  3. This exercise can be modified by adding more people to the circle or making it more difficult to untangle the knot (e.g., using one hand instead of two).

4. The Egg Drop Challenge

The Egg Drop Challenge is a classic engineering activity that requires teams to design and build a contraption that will protect an egg from breaking when dropped from a certain height.

What It Promotes: The Egg Drop Challenge promotes teamwork, communication, problem-solving, and engineering skills. It's also an excellent way to help people see that with the right tools, mindset, and cooperation, they can accomplish even the most difficult tasks.

Instructions:

  1. Each team is given a raw egg and various materials that they can use to construct their contraption (e.g., newspaper, tape, string).
  2. Teams have 30 minutes to build a contraption that will safely protect an egg when dropped from a height of 3 meters or more.
  3. When the time is up, teams should drop their eggs from the agreed-upon height and assess how much damage was done.
  4. The winning team is the one whose contraption protected the egg without breaking it!

5. Human Predictions Game

If you want your team members to know each other better, the Human Predictions Game is an excellent icebreaker for people to share exciting things about themselves. This activity is similar to the classic Two Truths and a Lie game, but will make everyone get in the spirit much faster.

What It Promotes: The Human Predictions Game promotes creativity and communication. It's also a great way to get people thinking outside the box in order to come up with creative solutions to problems. 

Instructions:

  1. A participant shares one true statement about themself (e.g., "I was born in Canada").
  2. The rest of the group then takes turns adding additional statements that might be false but sound believable (e.g., "I have traveled to every country in South America").
  3. For each person who falls for the lie, the liar gets one point.
  4. For each accurate prediction, the other players get one point.
  5. The person with the most points at the end, wins!

6. The Scavenger Hunt Challenge

The Scavenger Hunt Challenge is a fun and interactive way to promote teamwork and communication. This activity can be done in teams or individually, and it's a great way to get people to explore their surroundings and work together to find hidden treasures.

What It Promotes: The Scavenger Hunt Challenge promotes teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills. It's also a great way to encourage people to be creative and think outside the box.

Instructions:

  1. Participants are divided into teams of two or more people.
  2. Each team is given an item or a list of items they must find within a certain timeframe (e.g., as short as 30 seconds or as long as 30 minutes). The facilitator can make this more exciting by giving characteristics of items (e.g., something old or something tasty) instead of just a list of objects to find.
  3. The team that finds the most items—wins!

7. Life Highlights Game

The Life Highlights Game is a fun and interactive way to get people to share stories and connect with one another. This activity can be done in teams or individually, and it's a great way to get people talking and laughing together.

What It Promotes: The Life Highlights Game promotes communication, storytelling, and connection-building. It's also a great way to encourage people to be open and vulnerable with one another.

Instructions:

  1. Participants are divided into teams of two or more.
  2. Each team is given a list of topics (e.g., "a time when you were embarrassed," "a time when you were proud of yourself," "a time when you laughed so hard you cried").
  3. Teams have a certain amount of time (e.g., 10 minutes) to discuss each topic.
  4. The team that can share the most stories within the timeframe, wins!

8. The Classification Game

The Classification Game is a fun and interactive way to get people to think hard and work together as a team. This activity is best suited for larger groups, but it can also be adapted for smaller groups.

What It Promotes: The Classification Game promotes creativity, teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills. It's also a great way to help people think more deeply about the world around them, challenge their assumptions about different topics, and learn from each other.

Instructions:

  1. Participants are divided into teams of at least three people.
  2. Each team is given a specific topic (e.g., "types of flowers," "types of trees," "types of animals").
  3. The teams have a set amount of time (e.g., 10 minutes) to come up with as many classification criteria as they can for their given topic.
  4. For example, if the topic is "types of animals," the team might come up with classification criteria such as "mammals," "reptiles," "amphibians," etc.
  5. The team with the most classification criteria at the end, wins!

9. Back-to-Back Drawing

Back-to-Back Drawing is a fun and interactive way to promote creativity, teamwork, communication, and collaboration. This activity can be done in teams or individually, and it's a great way to help people think outside the box and express their ideas more creatively.

What It Promotes: Back-to-Back Drawing promotes creativity, communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills. It's also a great way to encourage people to work together as a team and use their individual strengths to achieve common goals.

Instructions:

  1. Participants are divided into pairs (or small groups of three or four people).
  2. Each pair sits back-to-back with an easel, paper, and drawing tools in front of them.
  3. One participant is given a topic or theme (e.g., "a summer vacation", "your favorite place to visit", "the perfect day").
  4. The other participant must then follow the first person's instructions and draw a picture based on that theme or topic.
  5. In the end, each pair flips their easel around so that they can see each other's drawings and compare how differently their interpretations turned out!

Free Team Building Games

10. Kahoot!

Kahoot! is a free online game that can be played by teams of all sizes. This activity is ideal for larger groups, but it can also be adapted if you have fewer participants.

What It Promotes: Kahoot! promotes communication and problem-solving skills. It's also a great way to encourage people to share what they know about anything under the sun.

Instructions:

  1. Visit the Kahoot! website and create an account.
  2. Once you've logged in, click on the "Create A Game" button.
  3. Enter a game name and description, then choose a category (e.g., history, science, geography, pop culture). 
  4. Next, you'll be asked to create questions for your game. You can either use the Kahoot! question bank or create your own questions.
  5. Once you've entered your questions, click on the "Launch Game" button.
  6. This will take you to the game lobby, where you can invite players to join your game.
  7. Players can join your game by entering the game PIN displayed on-screen.
  8. The first player to answer all of the questions correctly wins the game!

11. All the News That’s Fit to Print

All the News That's Fit to Print is an interactive game that promotes communication and collaboration. This activity can be done individually or in teams of two, and it's a great way to help people think more deeply about the world around them.

What It Promotes: All the News That's Fit to Print promotes creativity, teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills. It's also a great way to challenge people's assumptions about different topics, encourage them to learn from each other, and work together as a team.

Instructions:

  1. First, divide participants into pairs (or small groups of three or four people).
  2. Next, assign one participant in each pair to be the "reporter" and the other participant to be the "editor."
  3. The reporter should choose a current news topic (e.g., recent natural disasters, emerging political conflicts, scientific breakthroughs) and present it succinctly to their partner.
  4. The editor then has one minute to find as many articles as they can that are related to that topic.
  5. After one minute is up, participants switch roles so that both partners have an opportunity to be reporters and editors.
  6. At the end of the activity, ask each person to share at least one article from their search with the group. Then, lead a discussion about how varied people's interpretations of events can range based on different news sources, perspectives, biases, etc.

12. Build-a-Bot

Build-a-Bot is a free, collaborative game that helps participants build problem-solving skills and develop their innovation and creativity. This activity can be done individually or in teams of two or more.

What It Promotes: Build-a-Bot promotes teamwork, communication, collaboration, and critical thinking skills. It's also a great way to encourage people to think outside the box and come up with creative solutions for complex problems.

Instructions:

  1. To get started, ask everyone to gather around in a circle.
  2. Next, have one participant step into the center of the circle (the "bot designer").
  3. The bot designer must then choose a random object from their surroundings (e.g., a shoe, a hat, an empty soda can).
  4. The bot designer then has two minutes to come up with a creative way to use that object (e.g., build a robot out of the shoe and tin can).
  5. Once the two minutes are up, each person in the group gets one minute to try and recreate the bot as best as they can.
  6. At the end of the activity, ask participants for feedback on their design process (e.g., what worked well? What could have been done differently?) and encourage them to continue brainstorming new ideas for future iterations.

13. Office Olympics 

Office Olympics is a fun and competitive team-building activity that helps participants learn more about each other's strengths, weaknesses, and communication styles. This game can be played individually or in small groups of up to four.

What It Promotes: Office Olympics promotes teamwork, collaboration, creativity, and innovation skills. It's also a great way to encourage people to work together as a unit and foster healthy competition among coworkers.

Instructions:

  1. To get started, divide participants into teams of three or four people each.
  2. Next, give each team five minutes to come up with an Olympic event using office supplies (e.g., staplers, paper clips). The teams can choose to compete against each other or work together to set a world record.
  3. Once the five minutes are up, have each team present their event to the group.
  4. Finally, hold the Office Olympics and award medals (or other prizes) to the winning team(s).

14. Charades

Charades is a popular team-building activity that involves participants acting out or guessing different words, phrases, and concepts. This game can be done individually or in small teams of two to four people.

What It Promotes: Charades promote teamwork, communication, creativity, and critical thinking skills. It's also a great way to encourage people to use their imagination and have fun together!

Instructions:

  1. To get started, divide participants into teams of two or three people each.
  2. Next, head to RandomWordGenerator.com and generate a list of random words or phrases (e.g., "toothbrush," "outer space," "first kiss").
  3. Each team must then choose one word or phrase and act it out for the rest of the group. The other teams must guess what their teammates are trying to convey.
  4. At the end of the activity, lead a discussion about how different people interpreted the same actions or words in different ways and why that may be. Encourage participants to share examples from their personal lives where they experienced these situations.

15. Salt and Pepper 

Salt and Pepper is a team-building activity that helps participants learn about each other's strengths and weaknesses. This game can be played in small groups of four to six people.

What It Promotes: Salt and Pepper promotes teamwork, communication, collaboration, and critical thinking skills. It's also a great way to encourage people to think about how their individual strengths and weaknesses can contribute to or detract from the group as a whole.

Instructions:

  1. To get started, divide participants into teams of four to six people each.
  2. Next, have each team member write down three things they're good at and three things they're not so good at, on two separate pieces of paper (one for salt and one for pepper).
  3. After everyone has finished writing, have team members share their lists with each other. Encourage them to reflect on how these strengths and weaknesses contribute to the group as a whole and ask questions if they're unclear about anything.
  4. Finally, lead a discussion about what the participants learned from this exercise and how they could use this information to improve their teamwork skills in the future.

16. Mural Masterpiece

Mural Masterpiece is a team-building activity that encourages participants to work together to create a beautiful mural. This game can be done individually or in small groups of three to four people.

What It Promotes: Mural Masterpiece promotes collaboration, creativity, and innovation skills. It's also a great way to encourage people to use their imaginations and express themselves artistically with the help of their teammates.

Instructions:

  1. To get started, divide participants into teams of three or four people.
  2. Next, have each team choose a section of the wall for their mural (e.g., the upper left corner), and give them an assortment of paints, markers, brushes and other art supplies.
  3. Encourage teams to discuss what they want their mural to look like and come up with a plan before they start painting. Once they've started, encourage them to work together and be creative!
  4. At the end of the activity, lead a discussion about what the participants thought of the experience and ask if anyone has any suggestions for how the activity could be improved.

Free Online Team Building Games

17. Skribbl.io

Skribbl.io is a free online team-building game that encourages participants to work together to draw and guess words. This game can be played individually or in small groups of four to eight people.

What It Promotes: Skribbl.io promotes teamwork, communication, and creative thinking skills.

Instructions:

  1. To get started, visit the Skribbl.io website and select your preferred game mode (e.g., solo, team vs. team).
  2. All participants enter the designated team room after logging in.
  3. Each player will then take turns at being the artist.
  4. When it's their turn, they must select a word from three alternatives and draw it in 80 seconds.
  5. The other players have 80 seconds to guess what the person is drawing.
  6. The person who guesses the drawing the fastest receives the most points, and the one who has the most points at the end of the game—wins!

18. Donut.AI

Donut is an app that integrates with Slack. It matches up employees in your organization at random on a recurring basis in a separate Slack channel. 

Donut randomly chooses people from your channel and sends them a direct message, inviting them to meet up for lunch, donuts, or a virtual coffee over video chat, on a regular basis. It’s an excellent way to introduce team members who wouldn’t typically interact with each other.

What It Promotes: Donut promotes socialization, collaboration, and networking within an organization.

Instructions:

  1. When someone in your Slack workspace sets up Donut, they'll pick the channel, frequency of intros (several times per week, once per week, bi-monthly, etc.), your team's time zone, and the time the app will send out the intros.
  2. These options can be adjusted via the Donut.ai dashboard.
  3. Donut analyzes members under different channels and groups people who aren’t part of the same channels—i.e., those who don’t interact with each other very much.
  4. The app then sends them messages that encourage them to meet up.
  5. Donut also keeps track of who has been matched previously to minimize repeated introductions.

19. Guess the Emoji Sentence Game

This is a fun game best for small groups and individuals familiar with emojis. It can be played with any electronic device that has an emoji keyboard.

What It Promotes: Guessing emoji sentences promotes collaboration and communication skills. Employees have to work together to guess what their teammates are saying using only emojis.

Instructions:

  1. The game begins with one person sending a sentence made up entirely of emojis to another player or group. For example, an emoji of a person with crossed arms and a cup of tea can mean “Not my cup of tea.”
  2. The next player then tries to guess the meaning of the sentence.
  3. If they can’t, they send their own sentence made up of emojis.
  4. The next player then tries to guess the meaning of both sentences, and so on.

20. Evil Apples

Evil Apples is a similar game, but this one is available online, making it a fantastic game to play with your buddies over a glass of wine in a video call. 

What It Promotes: Evil Apples promotes creativity, laughter, and bonding over shared creative minds.

Instructions:

  1. Players must first download the Evil Apples mobile app.
  2. One topic card is selected for each round, and the participants pick from their answer cards to drag toward the topic card.
  3. Players will have to provide the judge with the funniest or most outlandish card.
  4. The judge will then select the funniest card. Whoever has the most winning cards, wins!

21. Remote Work Bingo

Remote Work Bingo is a simple and fun way for employees to stay engaged while working remotely.

This game requires each player to complete certain tasks or check off boxes after completing a task within a set time. These tasks can be things like "check-in with one teammate," "complete any urgent work," or "check your email."

What It Promotes: Remote Work Bingo promotes collaboration and communication between remote workers and increases productivity and accountability within the organization.

Instructions:

  1. To play the game, you'll need access to a sheet of bingo cards that includes various squares that participants must complete. 
  2. Depending on the size of your group, you may want to have one or more players act as "checkers" and keep track of each player's progress throughout the game.
  3. At the end of the designated time, the checker(s) will review each player's card and determine who has completed all their tasks first. The winner is then declared, and everyone can enjoy some fun remote work bingo bragging rights!

22. Gather.Town

Gather breaks up the usual video call meeting style, providing a platform with an 8-bit video game-style UI.

There are plenty of public "towns" to choose from, or you can create a unique one for your team. You can also add private meeting rooms for more sensitive conversations.

What It Promotes: Gather.Town promotes collaboration, communication, and creativity. The platform allows users to interact with each other in a variety of ways, including playing games, drawing, and sharing documents.

Instructions:

  1. To begin, select a virtual environment. You can choose from a cozy workplace, space station office, mystic library, coffee shop, rooftop party, and many other options.
  2. Next, select an avatar and a hair/clothing combo for your character.
  3. Move about your virtual environment and communicate with coworkers' avatars using your PC keyboard.
  4. You can still chat using your webcam and microphone.
  5. The free Gather plan supports up to 25 online participants.
  6. You may also secure your virtual workstation with a password and utilize an interactive whiteboard.

23. Virtual Water Cooler

The Virtual Water Cooler is an online space where employees can gather to chat, share articles or news, and connect with each other on a personal level.  

By pairing up your online team members on Slack, the WaterCooler bot encourages them to take five minutes to discuss something unrelated to work. Even in a virtual workplace, you can simulate the camaraderie that comes with office banter and water cooler discussion.

What It Promotes: The Virtual Water Cooler promotes communication, collaboration, and connection between employees. It's a great way for employees to stay connected and engaged with each other, even when they're not in the same physical space.

Instructions:

  1. Create a #virtualwatercooler Slack channel. Each day, add a new question or prompt to the virtual water cooler. You can, for example, encourage your employees to talk about their hobbies, interests, or how their day is going.
  2. "What is your favorite song?" might be a simple prompt.
  3. To make things exciting, you can try more controversial topics such as, "Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?"

24. Team Jeopardy

This team building game needs planning, including setting up a Jeopardy game for your team with your chosen categories.

What It Promotes: Team Jeopardy promotes collaboration, communication, and critical thinking. It's a great way to get employees thinking about solutions together and identify areas where they may need further training or education.

Instructions:

  1. Visit Factile to create a free account and create your own Jeopardy game.
  2. You can choose from a variety of templates or make up your own categories.
  3. Divide your team into groups and assign each group a set of questions to answer. You can choose from existing questions or create your own for the game.
  4. The team with the most points at the end of the game, wins! 

25. Head’s Up

This is similar to The Office's notorious diversity day scene, except faster and less likely to irritate Human Resources. Each round is sixty seconds long, and the goal is to predict as many answers as possible within that time limit.

What It Promotes: Head’s Up promotes collaboration, communication, and healthy competition.

Instructions:

  1. Choose a category, such as movies or celebrities.
  2. Place the phone on your brow. A name appears in the app.
  3. Clues are shouted out by teammates.
  4. Correctly guess the name.
  5. To generate a new name, simply flick the phone.

26. Virtual Team Talent Night or Concert

A talent show or concert is a great way to engage your team and promote creativity. You can have employees sign up to perform virtually, or you can assign roles based on their strengths and interests.

What It Promotes: This activity promotes creativity and builds connections. In addition, it's an excellent way for employees to showcase their talents and have fun in the process.

Instructions:

  1. Encourage employees to sign up to perform in the virtual talent show or concert.
  2. You can assign roles based on their strengths and interests, or let them perform whatever talent they choose.
  3. Plan for the virtual event by creating a performance schedule.
  4. Be sure to promote the event ahead of time so employees can prepare.

27. Virtual Poetry Slam

A poetry slam is a competitive event where poets perform original work in front of an audience. The poets are judged based on their performance, not the quality of their writing. This is a great way to engage your team and promote creativity in an activity they surely won’t forget.

What It Promotes: This game promotes creativity, collaboration, and connection.

Instructions:

  1. Divide your team into groups of two or three.
  2. Give each group a random topic to write about. It can be something as simple as “summer” or “love,” or it can be more specific, like “the best day of your life.”
  3. Have each group perform their poem in front of the rest of the team.
  4. Vote on the winner based on performance, not the quality of their writing!

Online Team Building Games

28. Among Us

Among Us is an online multiplayer game where players take on the role of crewmates or impostors.

Players must work together to complete tasks and figure out who the impostor is before they can vote them off the ship.

What It Promotes: Among Us promotes communication, collaboration, and deduction skills. It's a great way to get employees thinking about solutions together.

Instructions:

  1. Have all participants download the app.
  2. Invite employees to join the game by sending them the code to your game room.
  3. Start the game and play together as a team. Crewmates must finish the assigned tasks while avoiding getting killed by the impostor. Meanwhile, the impostor tries to kill the crewmates without getting caught.
  4. For added fun, have the team play in a video call so they can easily discuss their suspicions on who the impostor is.

29. Virtual Escape Rooms

Virtual Escape Room is an easy online game in which your group plays and interacts with one another through Zoom or Microsoft Teams to escape from a themed area. Participants must break free by working through a sequence of unexpected evidence, curveballs, and mind-boggling questions.

What It Promotes: The goal of the game is to use strategy, communication, and collaboration to escape and earn points before time runs out. 

Instructions:

  1. With a virtual briefing, remote presenters will establish the anxious scenario by explaining why you must flee.
  2. Each participant will then be able to utilize a simple app on their smartphone to complete the task.
  3. While keeping an eye on the clock, counting down your timeframe, tap on things to discover clues, evidence, and enigmatic codes.
  4. You must move through the phases of the online escape challenge while discussing the plan with your team.
  5. Unravel the clues to unlock the code and break free before time runs out.

30. Watson Murder Mystery

The Watson Murder Mystery game is designed for teams of up to six players. The game takes about 60-90 minutes to complete and is open to anybody with a computer.

You'll work together in groups to answer trivia questions, solve exciting puzzles, and—spoiler alert!—discover proof of spies, intrigue, and other shady dealings. Can your team decipher a code that will prevent a catastrophic international incident?

What It Promotes: Watson Murder Mystery is a thrilling-team building activity that helps employees work together to solve complex problems and think on their feet. By leveraging the power of technology, you can create an engaging experience that gets everyone collaborating and thinking creatively.

It's a terrific way to bring workplaces together, keep in touch with remote workers, and increase morale. Your team will have a good time while cooperating in an entirely novel manner.

Instructions:

  1. To play, simply visit Watson Adventure and choose your themed game. 
  2. A Watson Adventures host will lead the game through Zoom or another video conference platform, setting the tone, providing advice, updating the teams on their progress, and offering tips if they get lost.

31. The Great Gatsby Game

The Great Gatsby is a party game for groups of friends who want to have a roaring good time. Players take on the roles of guests at a Gatsby-esque party, and the goal is to collect as many points as possible by socializing, dancing, and drinking.

What It Promotes: The Great Gatsby promotes teamwork, communication, and strategic thinking. 

Instructions:

  1. To play, each player will need a copy of the game board, which you can find online.
  2. Players will also need a copy of the point tracker, which can be downloaded or printed from the game website.
  3. Using these materials, players will work together to move their tokens around the board and earn points by performing tasks such as socializing with other guests, dancing at the party, and drinking champagne. The player with the most points at the end wins!

32. Mission: Space Race

Mission: Space Race is an exciting team-building activity that tests your employees' ability to work together under pressure. You and your colleagues will have 60 minutes to repair and launch your ship.

Your gentle research expedition has devolved into a frenzied scramble for repairs after you crash-landed on the surface of Mars! Radiation levels are rapidly increasing. If you want to make it out alive, you'll need to get your systems back up and launch into orbit.

What's the actual test? The Command Deck has been shut off from you! The only way to save the ship is for your squad to work together and guide an obsolete service android through the repairs.

What It Promotes: Mission: Space Race promotes teamwork, communication, leadership skills, and strategic thinking. It's a great way for employees to learn more about each other, overcome obstacles as a team, and celebrate their success with colleagues.

Instructions:

  1. To play Mission: Space Race, you'll need to book a time slot via its website.
  2. Once your time slot is confirmed, you'll work together in teams of up to four players to complete a series of challenges in the simulator.
  3. You'll be provided with instructions and resources before you begin so that you can plan your strategy and execute it when the race begins.
  4. The fastest team wins!

33. Codenames

This online version of the popular board game tests your employees' ability to think creatively and work together as a team. Two teams compete to see who can correctly guess all of their codenames first.

The appeal of Codenames is to see how your teammates think—what links do they make between terms, and do you make the same ones? You also have the pleasure of collaborating with others to solve each other's puzzles, which is probably not something you do every day.

What It Promotes: Codenames promotes teamwork, communication, and creative thinking. It's an excellent way for employees to learn more about each other and cooperate in a novel way.

Instructions:

  1. This online version of the famous board game Codenames is perfect for four to eight players.
  2. Spymasters give single-word clues and the number of cards that the clue refers to (e.g., "animals 2" can imply "kangaroo" and "phoenix").
  3. Players aim to properly identify their team's codenames before the other.

34. Dominion Card Games

Dominion is a medieval-themed card game with a fantastic multiplayer online adaption.

This is not a "collectible card game" in the sense that it does not need players to purchase their own packs of cards; rather, it is more akin to a game of Monopoly in which each edition of the game comes with its own set of cards.

By purchasing cards with in-game cash, players are encouraged to create their own strategies. As a result, it's laid-back yet hard, easy to pick up as it is challenging to master.

You can observe what strategy your colleagues like in Dominion: are they playing offensively or defensively? Are they looking for fast wins, or are they planning to play a long game?

What It Promotes: Dominion is a great way to promote teamwork, strategic thinking, and leadership skills. If you want to improve your employees' collaboration with each other and their ability to lead complex projects, this card game can help.

Instructions:

  1. To play Dominion online, first, go to Dominion Games and create an account using your email address.
  2. Once you're logged in, you'll be able to select from a variety of rule sets and gaming environments. 

35. Quizbreaker

Quizbreaker is an online quiz game that tests your knowledge of random topics. It's perfect for team building, as it encourages competition and collaboration.

What It Promotes: Quizbreaker promotes teamwork and cooperation. Players must work together to answer the questions correctly, and the game is more fun when everyone is involved.

Instructions:

  1. Go to the Quizbreaker website and create an account using your email address.
  2. Once you're logged in, you'll be able to select from different quizzes and gaming environments. You can challenge friends or compete against random players from around the world!
  3. You can use Quizbreaker’s curated set of 100 icebreaker questions or add your own.
  4. Unlock new achievement badges and levels as your team learns new things.

36. Woyago

Woyago has developed virtual tours that will allow you to spend an hour or two in Paris! Your team will learn hilarious French vocabulary and compete in ridiculous Parisian trivia.

Whether your group is familiar with Paris, they will bond, communicate, and engage with one another during the tour. In addition, the tours' upbeat and comic tone makes them an excellent morale booster for virtual or hybrid teams of any size.

What It Promotes: Woyago promotes learning and building connections in a fun and unique environment.

Instructions:

  1. Go to Woyago and schedule a call to plan and review your activity proposal.
  2. Once you've booked a date, your team will be able to go on the virtual tour of Paris. You can go to a virtual party, clinic, bike ride, and even a cooking class!

Team Building Games for Work

The importance of team-building games for work cannot be understated. By fostering a sense of teamwork and cooperation, these games can help improve communication and collaboration among employees. This can lead to increased productivity and creativity in the workplace. 

Additionally, team-building games can help reduce stress levels and promote a positive work-life balance. There are several team-building games that can help to improve communication and collaboration in the workplace. Here are five examples:

  1. The Whisper Challenge: This game requires teams to communicate a message without speaking. Each team member must whisper a portion of the message to the person next to them, and the final team member must then repeat the message out loud. This game can help encourage listening and effective communication within a team.
  1. The Marshmallow Challenge: It requires teams to build the tallest free-standing structure using only marshmallows and spaghetti noodles. The challenge helps to promote creativity and problem-solving within a team.
  1. The Balloon Drop: This game requires teams to catch as many balloons as possible in a given time period. The challenge helps encourage teamwork and cooperation within a team.
  1. The Paper Airplane Challenge: Teams are asked to build the best paper airplane possible. The challenge helps to promote creativity, engineering, and problem-solving within a team.
  1. The Scavenger Hunt: Requires teams to find specific items within a given area. The challenge helps develop teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills within a team.

Virtual Team Building Games and Activities

These are online games that help employees bond with each other and work as a team. Some popular examples include online escape rooms, bingo, and virtual cooking classes. Not only do these games help employees bond with each other, they also promote healthy competition and improve overall productivity.

  1. Werewolf: This game is perfect for large groups and can be played virtually. Players are assigned roles (e.g., werewolf, villager, seer, etc.) and must work together to root out the werewolves before they kill all the villagers.
  1. Bingo: This classic game of bingo is easy to play online and is a great way to get team members to interact with each other. To make it more challenging, try playing with multiple boards simultaneously or adding fun twists like Reverse Bingo.
  1. Quiz Show: A quiz show is a great way to test team members' knowledge and get everyone interacting with each other. You can create your quiz or use an online resource like Quizlet and Kahoot.
  1. Pictionary: This classic game can be played virtually using a tool like Skribbl.io. Team members take turns drawing words or phrases, and the rest of the team has to guess what they're trying to draw.
  1. Word Ladder: Word Ladder is a great way to get team members thinking creatively and working together. The goal is to create a chain of words, each of which must be different by one letter from the previous word (e.g., CAT-COT-COG-DOG).

Zoom Team Building Games

A good team-building activity will promote communication, collaboration, and problem-solving within a group. But what sets Zoom team-building games apart is that they can be done online, making them ideal for virtual teams. 

Not only do they help build relationships between team members, but they can also be a lot of fun. And because they can be done remotely, they’re perfect for team members who are located in different parts of the world. There are countless ways to use Zoom for team-building games. Here are five examples:

1. Scavenger Hunt: This is a great way to get everyone up and moving. Hide items around the house or office and have teams race to see who can find them first.

2. Charades: This classic game can be played with any number of people. One person acts out a clue while the others try to guess what it is.

3. Pictionary: Similar to charades, this game requires players to draw clues for their teammates to guess.

4. 20 Questions: One person thinks of an object, person, or place, and the others take turns asking up to 20 questions to try and figure out what it is.

5. Word Association: Players take turns saying a word, and the next player has to respond with a word associated with the first word. This can continue for as long as desired.

Funny Team Building Games

There are plenty of reasons to incorporate funny team-building games into your workplace. For one, they can help build rapport and trust within a team. Funny games also encourage creativity and problem-solving and provide an opportunity for everyone to let off some steam. 

In addition, funny games can help break the ice between new employees or different departments within a company. Ultimately, funny team-building games can positively impact productivity and morale in the workplace.

  1. Balloon Stomp: Divide the group into teams of two. Each team is given one balloon. The game's objective is to keep the balloon off the ground for as long as possible by stomping on it with both feet. The team that keeps their balloon in the air the longest wins.
  1. Marshmallow Towers: This is a classic team-building game that can be played indoors or outdoors. The game's objective is to build the tallest free-standing tower using marshmallows and spaghetti noodles. Teams are given a limited amount of time to plan and build their towers. The team with the tallest tower at the end of the allotted time wins.
  2. Balloon Pop: Divide the group into teams of two or three. Each team is given a balloon and a straw. The game's objective is to inflate the balloon and then pass it to another team member using only the straw (no hands!). The team that inflates and passes their balloon the quickest wins.
  3. Trust Fall: This game requires a large open space and a bit of trust (hence the name!). People take turns falling backward and (hopefully) being caught by their teammates. This game fosters trust and communication within a group, as well as helping people overcome any fear of heights!

Best Team Building Games

Team building games are a fun and effective way to promote collaboration and communication in the workplace. By working together to complete challenging tasks, employees can better understand each other's strengths and weaknesses. In addition, team-building games can help build trust and rapport within a team. 

When coworkers feel comfortable communicating and cooperating, they are more likely to be productive and successful. As a result, team-building games can have a positive impact on both individual employees and the overall workplace.

  1. Judge a Book by its Cover: This game is designed to show team members how important it is not to make assumptions and how crucial it is to think outside the box. To play, each team member is given a piece of paper with the book's name on it. They then have two minutes to come up with a one-sentence plot summary. 

Once everyone has shared their summaries, the team must guess which plot belongs to which book. This game can be adapted to any topic, including business-related topics like marketing case studies.

  1. Correct the Grammar: In this game, teams must work together to correct grammar mistakes in a short paragraph. The catch is that they can only discuss the mistakes using proper grammar themselves! This game can help team members learn to communicate effectively and improve their grammar skills simultaneously.
  1. Codenames: Codenames is a word guessing game for groups of four or more people. The objective of this game is to guess the words on a card by using clues provided by one player (the spymaster). 

When a team correctly guesses all of their words, they win the game. Playing this game encourages attentive listening and lateral thinking amongst team members.

  1. Pictionary: Pictionary is a classic game that can be played with any number of players. Players take turns guessing what an artist has drawn based on a given word or phrase. The team with the most right guesses wins. Players will improve their ability to collaborate and share ideas.
  1. Charades: Charades is a classic party game that can be played with many players. The other players guess what word or phrase the actor is acting out based on his or her actions. 

The team with the most right guesses wins. Players of this game will improve their ability to work together and think creatively.

Final Thoughts

The games listed above are just a few fun and engaging team-building games that promote collaboration, communication, and leadership skills. No matter what type of work environment you're in, there is sure to be a team-building game out there that will help hone your employees' skills and improve their performance at work.

These team building games are best for Agile and remote teams. If you are looking for a fun, engaging way to improve communication and collaboration among your team members, consider trying out one of the games listed above, especially before starting your team's retrospective.

Retrospectives are a crucial part of agile methodology but can sometimes be challenging to manage. Having a fun, zoom ice-breaking activity like one of these team building games can help ease the tension and get everyone thinking about what they need to improve upon.

GoRetro is a great online retrospective tool. With its intuitive dashboard, flexible statuses, and analytics tools, you'll be able to handle your team's retrospectives successfully.

Incorporate one of the games above into your next GoRetro retrospective and experience increased collaboration and communication among your team members. Give it a try today!

About the author

Ruth Hadari
Agile Advocate, Engineering Ops Expert

Highly experienced in leading multi-organizational teams, groups, in-shore as well as off-shore. The go-to person who is able to simplify the complex. An agile advocate, experienced in all common methodologies. Responsible for the entire software development lifecycle process from development, QA, DevOps, Automation to delivery including overall planning, direction, coordination, execution, implementation, control and completion. Drives execution, and communicates on status, risks, metrics, risk-mitigation and processes across R&D.

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