Are you looking for a fun activity to do with your friends this weekend, but are stuck indoors? Trivia contests can be the perfect way to kill time with your friends while still having some competitive spirit.
Learn how you can host your own trivia nights with friends while using Zoom, as well as which games are worth playing.
How to Host Trivia Contests on Zoom
Zoom is a great way to connect with friends online and still be able to see each other and talk in real-time. When the pandemic forced everyone indoors, the rise of group trivia nights became the perfect way to connect while distancing.
It’s easy to use Zoom to host these nights because you can play your game on your computer, and then share your screen so that others can see what’s going on. The sound of the game will play to everyone, but you’ll still be able to hear your friends and family talking.
Before opening your meeting and playing your game, it’s important to communicate ahead of time with your group on which game you will be playing. It’s easy to spend your entire call with your group trying to decide what you want to play instead of getting straight to the fun.
Once the game is decided, plan your technical details. Who will be hosting this game and is that person familiar with sharing the screen with everyone else on the Zoom call? Understand if the online trivia game will be able to include everyone while playing, or if some people will have to wait till the next round.
After ironing out the details, schedule a Zoom meeting at a time that works for everyone. Remember that free accounts on Zoom only allow for 40-minute meetings for more than two people.
Here is what to do when everyone has logged on to the Zoom meeting, and it’s time to start the games:
- Click on Share Screen
- Select Screen and click Share
Whenever you’re finished with the game, click on Stop Share and Zoom will no longer show your screen to the other participants (the meeting will carry on).
The Best Trivia Games to Play Online with Friends
Knowing how to share your screen on Zoom to play a trivia game with friends is just the first technical step. Finding the game that everyone wants to play is another task in itself.
Below is a list of games we recommend to play with your family and friends on online trivia nights.
1. Jackbox
Jackbox is a game streaming service that became popular during the pandemic as people were forced to connect online. It allows multiple players to join the same game and has a variety of different types of games you can play.
One of the games is the popular Trivia Murder Party, which pits competitors against each other to see who can survive the longest. Get a question wrong and your character suffers the ultimate fate. The twist is that even characters who have died can still compete because everyone faces off in the end challenge.
You can download Jackbox for multiple devices and have it running in the background while sharing your screen through Zoom.
2. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
The popular game from the early noughties made its transition to the online trivia world. Now, you and all your friends can gather to see who will be the ultimate millionaire.
You can play this trivia game absolutely free, but you will have to come up with some rules for the whole group before playing. Originally a single-player game, you’ll need to slightly adapt the game in order for everyone to be able to play.
A popular way to use it is to state the questions aloud and all the multiple-choice answers. Whoever answers correctly gets the corresponding number of points. Play a few rounds and whoever has the most points wins.
3. Settlers of Catan
Another popular game that has been revived from its original board game is Settlers of Catan. The rejuvenated online version allows multiple people to play and by sharing your screen on Zoom, you can host a game night anytime.
Settlers of Catan is an online board game in which players build civilizations on an island. Players inhabit the island and collect natural resources such as wheat, wool, lumber, and ore. Different combinations of these resources are worth different points; whoever has the most points at the end of the game wins.
It’s a great way to connect with friends over a game that takes longer to play out. This can be nice for long connections with your friends and family while still having something to do.
4. Queendom
If you want a place where you can hypothetically never run out of online trivia games, Queendom is the place for you. You can share their vaults of quizzes, polls, and tests to see which of your friends knows the most.
Their trivia section has a large selection of categories and subcategories to choose from, so you can find a game that matches the personality of your group. You can even host personality quizzes on Queendom.
5. Family Feud Online
One of the classic game shows throughout the years is still just as enjoyable when played online. Teams can get together and play each other to see who will be the last ones standing.
This popular game surveys a small group of people ahead of time on common questions like what do you brush your teeth with. Contestants then guess the most popular answers, like a toothbrush or your fingers.
It’s a great way to get the family together on Zoom and have a good laugh while playing trivia.
6. TriviaMaker
Sometimes playing someone else’s trivia games just isn’t enough. Newer gaming platforms like Trivia Maker allow you to create your own trivia game for everyone to enjoy.
You can make the quiz about anything, from your favorite shows or movies to what your best friend loves to eat. The fun is in creating highly specialized questions and answers that only the people playing the game would know. The only thing they are missing is being able to create music trivia games.
You’ll get a link once you’re done creating your quiz, and you can send it to all your friends and family. The gaming platform will host the game, so you don’t have to do anything other than sit back and enjoy.
Playing Trivia Games Online Using Zoom
Hosting trivia games on Zoom with your friends is easy as long as you know how to share your screen and have discussed the details ahead of time.
And who knows, your trivia knowledge might even earn you some money if you play in the right places.
