Best Thanksgiving Family Games in 2023

• Thanksgiving is a special time of the year to gather with your family for delicious food and fun times
• Besides the traditional board games, you can also play party games on your phone for Thanksgiving Day
• Both iOS and Android offer plenty of fun family Thanksgiving games for free

Thanksgiving is fun as it is, but let’s face it, Thanksgiving downtime is real. You can entertain the guests with food and chit-chat for only so long, especially if there are kids. Thanksgiving party games are an excellent option to keep the fun alive and engage everyone in quality family time before the feast is ready. If you have family staying over, these games are also suitable for the day after Thanksgiving.

7 Best Thanksgiving Games to Play with the Family

Below, we’ve shared some great smartphone games for Thanksgiving party that you can play with everyone in the family.

And what’s the prize for winning? The loser does the dishes. 😉

1. Heads Up!

Available on iOS and Android

Looking for a classic smartphone party game for Thanksgiving? Heads Up! it is. In this smartphone game, one player has to hold the phone to their forehead. The phone screen displays a word or phrase, and everyone has to give the player clues about what’s on the screen.

If the player guesses the correct answer, they can tilt the phone down to produce the next clue. But if they’re unable to guess, they can tilt the phone up to pass and jump to the next clue.

At the end of the game, players can see the number of words/phrases they got right, and then it’s the next player’s turn.

2. Trivia Crack

Available on iOS and Android

If you’re someone who loves integrating knowledge with fun, Trivia Crack is the perfect game for you. It is a quiz game containing trivia questions about a wide variety of topics, including sports, arts, science, and more. Plus, it has several modes, like Triviatopics, Survival, and Triviathon.

This game is suitable for Thanksgiving because you can create your own quizzes besides taking the ones already available in the app. So, you can create quizzes about your family and see who knows others the most.

3. Reverse Charades

Available on iOS and Android

No family gathering is complete without a good old game of charades. But to put a technological twist on this traditional game, we have Reverse Charades that you can play on your smartphone. Since it is available on both iOS and Android, you can play it on your used iPhone 13 Pro Max or used Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G.

This game is exactly what it sounds like: charades but reversed. It means instead of a single person acting out clues for their team, a team acts out as many clues as a person can guess in 30, 60, or 90 seconds.

Warning: It will be LOUD and hilarious.

4. Just Dance Now

Available on iOS and Android

For families who enjoy tapping their feet and dancing to jolly tunes, Just Dance Now is the perfect Thanksgiving game to play on smartphones. This game is designed for smartphone users who don’t have access to video game consoles.

In this game, players have to mimic the dance moves of the on-screen character performing on a chosen song. The game has hundreds of licensed songs, including popular chart-toppers that players can dance to. You can dance alone in casual mode or have a dance-off with your family members in competitive mode. 

5. Uno!

Available on iOS and Android

One of the most well-known card games worldwide – Uno! is now available for us to play on our phones. This super-nostalgic card game isn’t only popular in the US but has players in more than 80 countries around the globe.

Although it doesn’t need explaining, the goal of Uno! is to get rid of maximum cards before other players to win. There are playing cards in four colors: red, blue, green, and yellow, having numbers from 0 to 9. Plus, three other types of cards are used in the game, including wild cards, number intersections, and color intersections.

6. Spaceteam

Available on iOS and Android

Spaceteam is a cross-platform game available for free on both iOS and Android. Since it is available on both Android and iOS, you can play it on your iPhone 12 Pro Max unlocked – one of the best iPhones for gaming.

Two to eight players can play Spaceteam simultaneously. Each player has to shout instructions at every other player while acting on instructions shouted by others.

Warning: Technobabble will be in full form. LOUD. Chaotic and undeniably hilarious.

7. Ticket to Ride

Available on iOS and Android

Ticket to Ride is one of the most beloved board games that comes to life in the digital world in app form. While it works fine on your smartphones, it is best played on an iPad or a tablet.

This is a multiplayer game where up to five players compete to build the longest railroad routes. Whoever builds the longest and largest number of railroad routes wins.

Final Thoughts

Family, food, and fun – that’s a foolproof recipe for a happy Thanksgiving. There are plenty of ways to have a successful Thanksgiving day, and smartphone games are an exciting way to kick things up a notch. You can download the games mentioned above on your new and used phones and have a great Turkey Day with the fam. Be it trivia or charades, all these Thanksgiving family games guarantee quality time with your loved ones.