Not every game night has a phone for everyone. Sometimes you are on a train with patchy signal, sometimes a younger cousin does not have a device, and sometimes it is just more fun to crowd around one screen. That is why Doozles has a Local mode: everybody plays on the same device, either by passing it around or by sharing the screen.
How local play works
Pick Multiplayer, then Local, on the Doozles home page and choose a game. You will be asked how many players there are and their names. After that:
- Turn-based games show a clear banner with whose turn it is. Make your move and hand the device to the next person.
- Games with secret choices, like Rock Paper Scissors, show a "pass the device" screen between turns, so the next player cannot see what the last player picked.
- Air Hockey splits the screen. Lay the phone or tablet flat between two players and each person uses their own half. Both can touch at the same time.
Once a local game has loaded, it does not need the internet. Everything runs on the device.
Which game for which moment?
Quick breaks (under five minutes)
- Tic Tac Toe: perfect for two people waiting for food. Switch who goes first every game.
- Rock Paper Scissors: best of five, done in a minute, great for settling who picks the movie.
- Air Hockey: two players, a tablet on the table, and a surprising amount of shouting.
Longer sessions (15 minutes or more)
- Ludo: two to four players, the classic. Passing one phone around actually makes it more social, because everyone watches every move.
- Snake and Ladder: ideal for younger children, since nobody needs strategy and anyone can win.
Thinking games
- Connect Four: deeper than it looks. Read our Connect Four guide for the odd-even row trick that wins more games.
Tips for a smooth game
- Pick a "table phone". Use the device with the biggest screen and the most battery, and put it in the middle so everyone can see.
- Turn up the brightness and lock the rotation, so the board does not flip when the phone is passed around.
- Agree on house rules first. Want sixes to give an extra turn in Snake and Ladder? Decide before the first roll.
- Rotate who starts. Doozles alternates the first player in two-player games, but in bigger groups let the youngest go first.
Local, online or bot?
- Use Local when everyone is in the same room and you want the social feel of a board game.
- Use Online rooms when friends are in different places, or when each person wants their own screen.
- Use vs Bot to practise alone.
All three use the same rules, so a strategy you learn against the bot works just as well against your family.