
Here is our list of best online game show ideas.
Online game show ideas are fun virtual competitions where teammates play against each other for prizes. Examples include Match Game, Spin to Win, and Hollywood Squares. The purpose of these activities is to foster team bonding and create an environment where teammates can have fun and unwind.
These competitions are examples of virtual team building activities, remote employee engagement ideas, online events for team building, and online team games.
This list includes:
- online game shows with friends
- game show ideas for Zoom
- free online game shows
- online game show ideas for work
Here we go!
List of online game show ideas
From Win, Lose, or Draw to Match Game to Chopped, here is our list of fun ideas for online game shows.
1. Deal or No Deal: Company Perks Edition
Deal or No Deal is a classic show, and you can add a fun company twist by putting real office perks on the line!
To play:
- Designate a host and have them write company perks on a Deal or No Deal template. Examples include time off, merch, or coffee gift cards.
- Teams start by choosing the briefcase they believe has the grand prize.
- Participants then select other briefcases to open.
- Periodically, the host offers players a deal to stop opening cases.
- Play continues until players either make a deal or open their original case.
- Participants earn the prize they chose.
This game adds an exciting twist to the traditional game and encourages strategic decision-making.
Here is a Deal or No Deal slides template.
2. Headlines Game
Headlines Game is a fun and hilarious game for large groups. In this game, teammates must correctly guess the missing word in a headline within an allocated time.
To play:
- Gather headlines from news articles or random publications and blur out one or two words.
- Share the doctored headlines and have teammates guess the missing words correctly.
- The players earn a point for each correct guess.
- The player with the highest number of points wins the game.
To make this game even more fun, you can encourage teammates to offer their funniest guesses. This activity helps teammates unwind and is a great way to lighten the mood after work.
3. The Price is Right
The Price is Right is one of the best online game shows with friends. In this activity, players will bid on certain products, and the player who bids closest to the actual prize of the product wins the game.
To play:
- Gather images of makeup products, food items, cooking utensils, or gadgets.
- Split teammates into small groups of four to six.
- Display the images through a slideshow and have each team member take turns bidding on the products.
- Each player must attempt to bid as close as possible to the actual price of the products without exceeding it.
- Players cannot offer the same bid.
- The team with the highest correct bids wins the game.
This activity is thrilling and fun as it tests how well the teammates know the value of everyday products. In addition, the game builds healthy team competition and can help employees be more budget conscious.
4. Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares is a fun game that combines classic tic-tac-toe with fun trivia. The game consists of a three-by-three grid with a character in each open square. The players will need to answer questions correctly in the right order.
To play:
- Choose nine teammates as characters in the squares.
- Split the teammates into teams “X” and “O.”
- The first team to play will choose a square with a character.
- The host will ask questions, and the characters in the square will answer.
- The team must guess if the character’s answer is correct or not.
- If the team guesses right, then they get to claim the square. If they guess wrong, then the opposing team will claim the square.
- The character in the square will change their background image to “X” or “O” to match.
- The game will continue this way until a team gets the right pattern in the grid.
This activity helps teammates build strong strategic skills and encourages colleagues to work together. This game also helps teammates gain knowledge on a wide range of topics.
5. Win, Lose, or Draw
Win, Lose, or Draw is one of the most enjoyable game show ideas for Zoom because it promotes interaction and creative thinking among teammates. Like the popular game show, teammates will try to guess the image drawn by other team members.
To play:
- Split the players into groups of four to six members.
- Each group will nominate a player to draw.
- Set a timer for 30 to 60 seconds.
- The player will draw an image using the whiteboard feature within the given time.
- The teammates must guess what the player is drawing before the opposing teams can guess.
- If the teammates guess correctly, then they win a point.
- If the opposing teams steal the guess, then they win the point instead.
- The team with the most points wins the game.
In this game, teammates learn to cooperate and collaborate. This game also helps teammates show off their creative skills. You can offer work equipment, stationery, or food vouchers as prizes for the winning team.
6. Who Wants to Be Rich?
Who Wants to Be Rich? is an imitation of the popular game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? In this game, teammates answer several questions to win prizes. The players have five different levels to get to the grand prize, with each level increasing in difficulty.
To play:
- Split the teammates into groups of four to five players.
- The host will ask trivia questions covering different topics such as entertainment, sports, or health.
- Each team must answer correctly to move up a level.
- Players can ask a friend or use the 50:50 option to remove some options from the answers given.
- If the teammates answer incorrectly, then they move down a level.
- Any team with two consecutive wrong answers is out of the game.
This activity tests teammates’ knowledge of a broad range of subjects and topics. This activity also allows teammates to interact and work together to achieve a common goal.
7. Name the Tune
Name the Tune is a fun game that music enthusiasts will enjoy. In this game, the teammates will play different songs from a playlist, and other team members must guess the tune.
To play:
- Compile a playlist of classic and trendy songs on any music platform like Apple Music or Spotify.
- Play a short snippet of a song.
- Players have 30 seconds to guess the tune.
- The first player to answer correctly with the song’s title gets a point.
- Players get a bonus point if they can also guess the artist behind the song.
This activity is a fantastic way for players to enjoy their favorite songs with teammates. This game also promotes team bonding and interaction between colleagues.
8. Chopped
Chopped is a popular game show where chefs work with mystery ingredients to create amazing dishes. Participants get to make different types of meals in each round. It is important to note that the players must use all the ingredients provided in their recipe.
To play:
- Send a box containing different ingredients to participants.
- Players must not open the box until the start of the game.
- Players have 30 minutes to combine the given ingredients into a meal.
- Players must remain in view of the camera while cooking.
- You can judge the participants on presentation, speed, and creativity.
You can also ask questions while teammates cook to get some culinary tips or an idea of what inspired the meal. Players can also enlist a family member or friend to taste the food and give honest feedback. The feedback will aid in providing a final judgment.
Pro tip: This game can double as a virtual team dinner!
Check out this list of possible Chopped basket ingredients.
9. Match Game
Match Game is a fantastic guessing game that teammates can play on any video conferencing platform. In this game, the host will provide a sentence with a missing word, and other teammates will fill in the blank. Teammates will share answers and gain points for every matching response.
Examples of prompts include:
- The office coffee is so weak, it’s like drinking ____.
- Our team meetings would be more exciting if we played __________ instead of discussing budgets.
- To motivate the team, the boss promised everyone a bonus in the form of __________.
- In the company’s secret recipe for success, the main ingredient is a pinch of __________.
- To make the workday more enjoyable, we decided to replace the elevator music with __________.
- The company’s superhero alter ego would definitely be called Captain __________.
- Instead of casual Fridays, our office instituted __________ Mondays to boost morale.
You can write these prompts and display them through a slideshow and set a timer for 30 seconds to make this activity even more exciting. This game encourages teammates to think quickly and helps broaden participants’ vocabulary.
10. Spin to Win
Spin to Win is a classic game where teammates spin a wheel to win various prizes. This activity is one of the best online game show ideas for work because it allows teammates to win actual loot.
To play:
- Choose a suitable platform like Social Point to host the game.
- Customize the prize wheel with prizes that suit your team’s needs. Some good ideas include work tools, laptops, and gift vouchers.
- Send the players links to the game via email.
- Teammates will click on the link to access the game.
- Players will spin the wheel and get rewarded with prizes.
- You can set the number of spins per participant to ensure players do not spin the wheel more than once.
This activity is a great way to reward employees for their efforts. You can set prizes to suit your budget, but if you have a larger budget, you can also include all-expense paid trips or dinner reservations at a fancy restaurant to give the teammates a unique experience.
Create a customized prize wheel with Social Point.
11. Time Machine Trivia Show
Time Machine Trivia Show is one of the most exciting free online game shows because it is easy to organize. In addition, this game tests how well teammates know their history.
In this game, teammates will meet on any video conferencing platform and answer trivia questions about history, sports, entertainment, or science. For example, you can ask questions about events in the late 90s, the Roman Empire, the Bronze Age and the prehistoric era. The players can play individually or in groups, and the team with the highest point wins the game. To make this activity even more fun, you can make the prize an item related to history, such as an ink pen or a ship in a bottle.
12. Lip Sync Battle
Lip Sync Battle is a fun and exciting game show where celebrities face off against each other. The players will show off amazing performance skills while singing popular songs. Teammates can recreate this activity on any video conferencing platform. It is best if the players get time to prepare for the game in advance, preferably a day or two before the meeting.
To play:
- Split teammates into groups.
- Each group will choose two songs.
- Teams will face off against each other in the first round.
- Every teammate must participate actively during the game.
- The judge will award points based on each team’s performance and teamwork.
- Then, the teams will perform the next song, and the judge will give a final review.
- The best team wins.
You can make this event even more fun by encouraging teammates to get into character with costumes to match their performances. This game helps teammates build stronger relationships and teaches players to work together.
Here are some great songs to lip-sync to.
13. The Chase
The Chase is a thrilling game where players answer questions against a quiz expert, “the chaser.” In this game, teammates get closer to safety with each correct answer, and with each wrong answer, the chaser gets closer to catching the player. Teammates can easily recreate this game show virtually.
To play:
- Create 20 trivia questions about science, entertainment, history, and sports.
- Split the players into two groups.
- One team will represent the chaser, and the second team will represent the contestants.
- The host will ask trivia questions, and with each correct answer, the contestants move closer to safety.
- The contestants have 30 seconds to answer correctly.
- If the contestants answer incorrectly or do not give an answer within the allocated time, the chasers move a step closer to catching them.
All members of the teams need to participate in answering questions to save the players from the chasers. This activity teaches players to work under pressure and also promotes teamwork.
14. Chain Letters
Chain Letters is an engaging word game where teammates steal words from each other to build points.
To play:
- Players will choose an order in which to play.
- The first player will create a word. Each letter in the word gives a point. For example, the word “Grapevine” has nine letters and will get the player nine points.
- The second player may steal the word “Vine” to create the word “Vineyard.” This word gives the second player eight points while the second player goes down to five points.
- The game will continue this way until all the players get several turns.
- The player with the highest points wins the game.
It is important to note that players can only cut words from the end of a player’s chosen word. If the teammates can not cut the word, then the next player must come up with a new word. This game is a great way for teammates to bond and have fun with each other.
15. What’s the Next Line?
What’s the Next Line? is a great way to test how well teammates know their favorite songs. In this game, teammates will listen to short snippets of popular songs and have to complete the next line within 30 seconds.
You can replay the song twice or offer clues such as song title, artist, or year of release to give teammates a chance to get the answer right. Each player receives a different song, and each player gets a point for every correct answer. You can host this game on any video conferencing platform like Google Meet, Zoom, or Skype. To create a playlist for this game, you can use music platforms like Spotify or Apple Music.
Here are some What’s the Next Line lyrics to give you some inspiration.
16. Call My Bluff
Call My Bluff is an interactive word game where teammates learn various new words and their meanings.
To play:
- Split players into groups of three members.
- The host will reveal a word for the first group.
- Each member of the group will define the word. One definition is true, and the others are false.
- The opposing group needs to guess which definition is correct.
- The team with the word wins a point if the opposing team guesses wrong.
- The opposing team wins a point if they guess right.
- The game will continue in this manner until each group has had several turns.
This activity is a simple way to teach teammates new words and help broaden employees’ vocabulary. This activity also teaches teammates to work together and helps build a friendly work environment.
Conclusion
Online game shows are a fun and easy way to build and improve team interactions and help liven up game nights or online meetings. These activities also help to build healthy competition among teammates and help foster good relationships among employees.
There are many tools available on video conferencing platforms like Google Meet and Zoom that you can use to make the games easy for participants. For example, the whiteboard tool and screen sharing can make these games very interactive and easy for players. You can also use many online gameshow websites to facilitate these activities. Of course, offering prizes makes these events feel more authentic and exciting!
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