What makes a good family game
Birthdays, holidays and visits to the grandparents bring together people who rarely play together. The ten-year-old wants speed, your aunt wants to keep chatting, and grandpa does not want to learn rules for ten minutes. Good family games share three traits: the rules fit in two sentences, a round is over quickly, and luck or fun counts at least as much as skill.
It also helps when nobody is out for long. Games where you spend most of the time watching are frustrating for kids and boring for adults.
Grandparents play in the browser
At family gatherings, the biggest hurdle is often the tech, not the game. With Gather, nobody has to install an app or create an account. The TV shows a QR code, grandma points her phone camera at it, and the game opens in her browser. It's easiest if her phone is on the same Wi-Fi as the Apple TV, iPad or Mac running the game.
Take two minutes at the start to connect the grandparents' phones to your Wi-Fi before you begin. Anyone without a smartphone can simply team up with someone: one watches the TV and calls the shots, the other taps. That is often the nicest way to play anyway.
Games that bridge generations
Quiz Night is a natural fit for mixed groups. You pick the categories and the number of questions before starting, so choose topics where more than one age group has a chance. The phone shows only four big, colored answer buttons, which needs no explanation.
Sketch Round guarantees laughs, because bad drawings are part of the fun. The artist picks one of three words and the drawing appears live on the TV. To guess, you type your answer on your phone, so kids who are not yet confident writers can team up with an adult.
Crazy Mau will feel familiar to anyone who has played a shedding card game. Nobody needs to shuffle, and your phone keeps your hand private. Thirty-One is another well-known card game, for up to nine people.
For the kids: movement and quick rounds
Corner Chaos is usually the kids' favorite. You hold your phone sideways and steer it like a wheel, with gas and brake as on-screen buttons. Up to six can race, and computer drivers fill the empty spots. On Apple TV, game controllers can join too.
Five Dice is great for kids who are learning to add and for grandparents who love dice games. Your dice appear on your phone, and you tap to hold them. For two players, say a grandchild and grandpa, try Four in a Row or Sea Battle, both of which work without a TV.
A plan for the afternoon
Start with a round of Quiz Night while everyone is still at the table. Follow with Sketch Round for the whole family. When the kids get restless, run a couple of Corner Chaos races while the adults watch and cheer. Finish with a calm round of Crazy Mau or Thirty-One for whoever still wants to play.
Letter Hunt works once everyone can write. For games with secret roles like Village at Night, decide for yourselves whether it suits your youngest: players get eliminated there and then have to watch in silence.