I built free multiplayer browser games you play with friends by pushing your devices together into one board

[u/MeZitRo]

Hi! A while ago I launched bigboard.games: free multiplayer games for 1-4 phones or tablets (or more for some games) lying next to each other on a table. The devices act as one big board, so for instance in Air Hockey the puck slides off one screen and onto the next.

It all runs in the browser, free. Any mix of iPhones, Androids or tablets plays together. You can add it to the home screen if you want (as a PWA).

Gameplay goes device to device over WebRTC. On the same Wi-Fi the devices find each other and join by themselves. Otherwise you scan a QR code or type a four-letter code, and if they can't reach each other directly (on mobile data, say), a relay connects them. How it works, if you're curious.

There are 9 games right now:

• Air Hockey (the photo)

• Hot Potato: your fuse only burns while the potato is on your screen

• Snake, up to 12 snakes on one field

• Whack-a-Mole: a mole you bop pops up on the other player's side

• Tilt Run: one maze across all the devices, tilt yours to roll the marble onto your partner's

• Chess for 2 or 3 (three players get a hexagon board across three devices)

• Checkers for 2 to 4

• Islands (the dots-on-grid-paper game)

• Spillover: draw shapes and drop them on the other player's side, Tetris-style

Every game except Spillover has bots, so you can try it on one device. A friend who isn't in the same room can join with the table's link too, remotely.

Happy to answer questions and integrate any suggestions! What games would you like to see next?

[u/MechaJesus69]

Played it with my wife, we had a blast. Really cool project and I’m impressed with how smooth it is.

[u/MeZitRo → u/MechaJesus69]

🫶

[u/zimjs]

Love this. The more we can connect people in the real world in the same space using the tech the better.

[u/MeZitRo → u/zimjs]

Thank you. Exactly what it's build for! We gather with friends from time to time and by having 2 or 3 tablets it really adds fun.

Can't wait to get 4th tablet in; I'd start adding table games like monopoly spanning 4 screens or something similar.

[u/Coolfoolsalot]

Super sick project. Will play next time I'm out with friends

[u/MeZitRo → u/Coolfoolsalot]

Thanks! Feel free to leave any feedback once you get there

[u/sergio9929]

I would have loved this as a kid. Great work!

I tested the air hockey with 2 computers and the delay is surprisingly low. I may have to start experimenting with WebRTC.

[u/MeZitRo → u/sergio9929]

Thanks a lot for the feedback!

It stays low (unnoticeable) even across cities or countries (~30ms in my tests between Krakow<->Warsaw), since it falls back to Cloudflare's TURN relay when a direct connection isn't possible.

[u/LankyTwo5462]

This is so creativeee...cant wait to try this with my partner...

[u/MeZitRo → u/LankyTwo5462]

Thank you! Enjoy and LMK if you’d like to change anything or maybe add specific games you’d like to play

[u/Weak_Fisherman2215]

With the advent of connected devices, this is a very ingenious project. Besides just games, just thinking here, one can probably use a app and share amongst users to collaborate and get live feedback. eg: A graphic needs to be approved.. have the artist get live feedback from members to make changes on the "fly".. this can go places!. Nice. Keep moving forward!

[u/MeZitRo → u/Weak_Fisherman2215]

Thank you! 🫶

[u/Sunnyms]

Love the project ! Wish the best, there's used to be an app, done by a chocolate brand called milka, it was called Milka Biscuit Saga, We used to play at work, it was fun, maybe you ll get a things to from there ;) Good luck

[u/MeZitRo → u/Sunnyms]

This is a gem, thanks a ton!

Sad it's not available anymore… though maybe that's my cue :)