Games two people can play on one screen
Local two-player games on a single device split into two shapes. Simultaneous games divide the screen and both people play at once, usually holding opposite ends of the phone. Turn-based games pass the device back and forth. The first needs a screen big enough to be fair, the second works on anything.
Simultaneous or pass-and-play
- Immediate and competitive
- Good for short sessions
- Needs a large screen to be fair
- Both players must be present
- Works on any screen size
- Suits thinking games
- No awkward hand positions
- Can be paused indefinitely
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Games that work on one device
Pass-and-play word game on one device, which is how it was originally meant to be played. Works on any screen and suits two people who are not in a hurry.
Not two-player, included for one reason: taking turns at the same board is how a lot of people actually share a phone on a journey.
Turn-based enough that passing the phone works, and interesting enough that the other person watches while you play.
Among Us supports local network play, so two phones on the same WiFi work with no internet. Not one screen, but the closest thing to a party game on Android.
Stickman Party. Dozens of minigames for two to four players on one screen, and the easiest one to hand across a table.
Drive Ahead. Two players, one phone, a car each and a head to protect. Chaotic and very funny.
Carrom Pool. Local two-player mode passes the phone between turns, like the board game.
Chess with a two-player mode on one device and adjustable board orientation.
Chess.com includes pass-and-play against someone next to you, plus lessons for whoever loses.
Ludo King. Local play for up to four on one phone, which is how most people play it.
Dominoes with a local mode, quick to learn for anyone who has not played.
When you have a tablet instead
A tablet transforms this category. Ten inches split down the middle gives each player more space than a phone gives one, and games that are cramped on a phone become properly playable.
Pass and play on one phone, turn by turn, which is the oldest two-person format there is and still the least fiddly.
Two devices, one match, no local mode needed. Included because head-to-head on the same sofa is what people actually do with it.
- Turn off rotation lock Split-screen games usually want landscape and will fight a locked portrait orientation.
- Turn on Do Not Disturb A notification banner lands on one player's half of the screen and decides the round.
- Clean the screen first Two people, one surface. It matters more than you would think.
- Set a session limit if children are involved One phone and two players is a queueing argument waiting to happen.
Two phones, no internet
If you both have a phone, local multiplayer over WiFi or Bluetooth is a better experience than sharing one screen, and it works with no connection to the outside world. Games that support a local network match will find each other automatically when both devices are on the same WiFi, including a phone's own hotspot.
That hotspot trick is worth remembering: it needs no internet, only that both phones join the same network, which turns a car journey or a campsite into a viable place to play.
Pass-and-play works on any phone. Split-screen wants a tablet. Two devices on one hotspot beats both.
Frequently asked questions
Do both players need the game installed?
For one-device play, no. For local network play, yes, and usually at the same version.
Does local multiplayer use mobile data?
No, if it runs over WiFi or a hotspot. Some games still check in for advertising, which does.
Is a phone big enough for split screen?
For simple reaction games, just about. For anything needing accuracy, a tablet makes the difference.
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