Games to Play Over Text: 30 Texting Games for Any Chat

The best games to play over text need nothing but a chat: 20 Questions, Would You Rather, Two Truths and a Lie, emoji riddles and one-line story chains work in any messenger, with one friend or a whole group. Below are 30 texting games sorted by who you are texting and how much time you have, with the rules for each in two lines, plus the games Telegram rolls for you right inside the chat.

Games to play over text at a glance

As of September 25, 2026:

What makes a good texting game?

A good texting game has rules you can explain in one message, turns that take seconds, and no need for both people to be online at the same time. That last point matters most: the games below still work when your friend answers an hour later. Games that need a timer or hidden information, such as Mafia, work over text too, but only with one player acting as the host.

Question games to play over text with a friend

Question games are the easiest place to start because the rules are the conversation.

1. 20 Questions. One of you thinks of a person, place or thing; the other gets 20 yes-or-no questions to guess it. Start with "Is it alive?" and narrow down.
2. Would You Rather. Send two options, both good or both awful, and your friend must pick one and say why. Then it is their turn to ask.
3. This or That. The fast version: send pairs ("beach or mountains", "call or text") and get one-word answers. Ten pairs take a minute.
4. Two Truths and a Lie. Send three statements about yourself; your friend guesses which one is false. The best lie is a boring one.
5. Never Have I Ever. Take turns saying something you have never done. Each of you keeps count of how many the other has done; five points loses.
6. Rate It 1–10. Send anything (pineapple on pizza, Mondays, a song) and get a score and one sentence of defence.
7. Hypotheticals. Open-ended what-ifs: "You win a free flight today, where to?" or "Which fictional world would you live in?". Slower, and better for long chats.
8. The 36 Questions. A set of questions from a 1997 study by psychologist Arthur Aron and colleagues, made famous by a 2015 New York Times essay. They get more personal as they go, so take them in order and answer each one both ways.

Word games you can play by text

Word games give a texting chat a winner, which keeps it going longer than questions do.

9. Ghost. Take turns adding one letter to a growing word. Whoever completes a real word of four letters or more loses the round; if you think the other player has no word in mind, challenge them.
10. Word Association. Answer each word with the first word it makes you think of. The first to repeat a word or take too long loses.
11. Alphabet Categories. Pick a category (animals, bands, foods) and take turns naming one per letter, A to Z. Stuck for a letter? You lose it.
12. Finish the Lyric. Send the first line of a song; your friend replies with the next one. Guess the song for a bonus point.
13. Hangman. Send underscores for each letter (_ _ _ _ _) and let your friend guess letters. Six wrong guesses and the round is yours.
14. Riddles. Take turns sending riddles; three wrong guesses and you give the answer. Keep a running score in the chat.

Emoji games to play over text

Emoji games are quick, visual and hard to take seriously, which is the point.

15. Guess the Movie. Spell a film, show or song in emojis only (🦁👑 is The Lion King); your friend has three tries.
16. Emoji Story. Tell a short story in five emojis and have your friend write the story they see. Then swap.
17. Emoji Mood. Describe your day in exactly three emojis; your friend guesses what happened. Surprisingly good for long-distance friends.

Story and photo games

18. One-Sentence Story. Write a story together, one sentence each. Rule of thumb: every sentence must add a problem or solve one.
19. Guess the Place. Send a zoomed-in photo of something around you; your friend guesses what or where it is.
20. Photo Scavenger Hunt. Send a list ("something blue, something older than you, a funny sign") and race to send a photo of each.

Board games you can play by text

Classic grid games work by text if you number the squares and each keep the board on your own screen.

21. Tic-tac-toe. Number the squares 1 to 9 and reply with a number. Send the updated board every few moves so nobody loses track.
22. Battleship. Each of you draws a 10×10 grid on paper and places ships; call shots by coordinate ("B7"). The full rules and ship sizes are in Battleship Rules.

What are good group chat games?

Good group chat games let everyone answer at once rather than wait for a turn. Polls help, because one tap counts as playing.

23. Superlatives. Post "Who is most likely to…" questions as polls with everyone's names as the options. Results start arguments, in a good way.
24. Quiz Night. Telegram's quiz polls have one correct answer and reveal it after you vote, so one person can run a 10-question trivia round in a group with no scorekeeping.
25. Caption This. Post a photo; everyone replies with a caption, and the photo's owner picks a winner by reacting.
26. Fastest Finger. The host posts a question with a short answer; the first correct reply scores. Good for sports or film trivia.
27. Emoji Telephone. One person sends an emoji sentence, the next translates it into words, the next back into emojis. Compare the start and the end.
28. Mafia by text. The host secretly messages each player their role, then runs night and day rounds in the group. It needs five or more players and one patient host.

What games does Telegram run inside a chat?

Telegram rolls six animated emojis for you: send a die, dart, basketball, football, bowling ball or slot machine on its own as a message and it plays out with a result both of you see. The value comes from Telegram's servers, so nobody can pick it, which makes them fair for a bet over who picks the film tonight.

29. Emoji dice duel. Each of you sends 🎲; the higher roll wins the round, best of five wins the duel. The die rolls 1 to 6.
30. Emoji sports night. Same idea with 🎯 darts, 🎳 bowling (both 1 to 6), 🏀 basketball or ⚽ football (1 to 5): five shots each, highest total wins.

More games that start inside Telegram, from turn-based bots to Mini App duels, are in Telegram Games for 2.

Try it in Telegram

Open Gift Club, claim your Sparks and play a Spark round before you stake anything.

Play Gift Club

In-app Stars can't be redeemed or withdrawn. 18+.

What if you want a real game, not a chat game?

When question games run dry, send a game both of you can play in the same chat. In Gift Club, a Mini App inside Telegram, you pick a game and send a challenge card to your friend; they tap Accept and you are in the same match. Five games work this way: Sea Battle, Ludo, Minefield, Dice Duel and Balloon Pump.

Every duel has a Spark mode that moves no Stars: each player spends one Spark, the free currency the daily streak pays, if they have one, and a player with none still plays. There is also a Stars mode, where both players stake the same amount. If a card can't be sent, the app shares a plain link instead, so it works in any chat.

Tips for keeping a texting game going

• Explain the rules in one message. If it takes two, pick a simpler game.
• Keep score in the chat. "3–2 to you" is a reason to reply.
• Let the loser choose the next game. It keeps things even.
• Stop while it is fun. A game you drop at 5–5 is one you pick up tomorrow.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best game to play over text?

For two people, Would You Rather and Two Truths and a Lie work almost every time: no setup, and every answer gives you something to ask back. For a group chat, Superlatives polls get the most people playing.

What games can you play over text with a crush?

Keep it light and personal: This or That, Would You Rather, Rate It 1–10 and Hypotheticals. The 36 Questions go deeper and suit someone you already know well.

What games can you play in a group chat?

Superlatives polls, a quiz-poll trivia night, Caption This, Fastest Finger and Emoji Telephone all let several people play at once. Mafia works too if one person hosts.

Can you play games in Telegram chats?

Yes. Send a die, dart, basketball, football, bowling ball or slot machine emoji on its own and Telegram plays it out with a random result. Quiz polls, game bots and Mini Apps add more, including two-player duels.

How do you play 20 Questions over text?

One player picks a person, place or thing. The other asks up to 20 yes-or-no questions, one per message, and wins by guessing it before the questions run out.