Party Games29 August 20265 min read

Virtual Dare Ideas: 50 Dares That Work on a Video Call

Fifty dares for truth or dare over video call: things done on camera, screen and phone dares, and the ones that send people off to fetch something.

Türkçe oku

Short answer

Virtual dares work differently from in-person ones because the dare has to be visible on camera — most physical dares that land at a table simply disappear on a call. Three kinds work: things done in front of the camera, things shared from a phone or screen, and dares that send someone to fetch an object from their own home. Turn order needs one person tracking it, because on a video call nobody can tell whose turn it is. This piece has 50 dares across those three groups. Short answer: never give a dare the camera can't see, and put one person in charge of the order.

Why virtual dares need writing differently

Most dares that work at a table fail on a video call. The reason is simple: if the camera can't see it, it doesn't exist for the game. "Go outside and knock on a neighbour's door" leaves everyone else staring at an empty chair.

The second difference is turn order. Around a table, eye contact tells everyone whose turn it is. On a call it doesn't. Without one person tracking the order, the same two people end up talking and everyone else becomes an audience.

The third is lag. Anything done simultaneously — singing together, clapping on cue — falls apart over a connection. Dares taken one at a time run far cleaner online.

01The dare has to be visible on camera.
02One moderator holds the order and calls names out loud.
03Choose sequential dares over simultaneous ones.
04Keep dares under 30 seconds; waiting feels longer on a screen.
05A refused dare gets swapped, never escalated.

Dares to do on camera

The basic group. No preparation, and everyone sees it at the same time.

01Keep a straight face for 20 seconds without turning the camera off.
02Impersonate someone on the call and let the group guess who.
03Speak only in a whisper for one minute.
04Sing a line and let the group finish it.
05Close your eyes and describe the room behind you.
06Pick an accent and keep it until your next turn.
07Tell a story where every sentence starts with "and then".
08Give everyone on screen a one-word adjective.
09Hold your most serious face for 15 seconds.
10Act out a film title with no words.
11Add an animal noise to the end of every sentence.
12Speak only in questions for one minute.
13Describe your day backwards, from now to this morning.
14Draw something and hold it up without explaining it.
15Invent a slogan for this group and say it out loud.

Screen and phone dares

The group that only exists online. These have no equivalent around a table, which is exactly why they carry a virtual game.

01Share the last photo in your camera roll and explain it.
02Play 10 seconds of a random song from your library.
03Name the third person in your call history.
04Read out the most recent note in your notes app.
05Share your screen and explain every open tab.
06Show whatever has been sitting in your shopping basket.
07Let the group pick your profile picture for one round.
08Say how long your last phone call lasted.
09Find and show the oldest photo on your phone.
10Show the first three emoji your keyboard suggests.
11Open your screen time report and name the top app.
12Text a friend something random and read the reply out.
13Show your alarm list and justify every time on it.
14Who started your most recent call, you or them?
15Name the last file in your downloads folder.

Fetch-something dares

The best-performing group online. Because everyone is in their own home, these are impossible in a face-to-face game.

01Fetch something yellow from the kitchen in 30 seconds.
02Bring the oldest object you own and tell its story.
03Open the fridge and list everything in it.
04Find something that isn't yours and say whose it is.
05Bring your favourite mug and explain why it's that one.
06Open a book and read the first line on page 47.
07Find something in a drawer that has no purpose.
08Name the oldest thing you're currently wearing.
09Show the strangest gift in your home.
10Fetch a plant — do you know what it's called?
11Take one item out of your wallet and hold it up.
12Turn the camera on the messiest corner of your room.
13Explain something hanging on your wall.
14Gather every charging cable you own and count them.
15Bring a book you abandoned and say why you stopped.

Dares that turn into conversation

In calls of three or four, physical dares run out fast. This group opens conversation instead and keeps a small call going much longer.

01Describe everyone on this call in one word.
02When did you last defend someone who never found out?
03Who here have you gone longest without talking to?
04Who in this group are you most curious about?
05Is there something you've wanted to say on this call and haven't?

Three things that ruin an online game

Remote games usually fail on structure, not on the dare list. The same three problems come up on every call.

The first is microphones: with everyone unmuted, the person doing the dare can't be heard. The second is unclear turn order. The third is length — a game that takes 20 minutes at a table stretches to 40 on a screen, and attention goes with it.

01Everyone except the person on their turn stays muted.
02One person tracks the order and calls each name aloud.
03Keep the whole game under 30 minutes.
04Someone who drops out shouldn't lose their turn.
05Keep dares short; waiting is heavier on a screen.

When the dares run out

Written lists all hit the same wall: past the twentieth dare, whoever is reading the list is out of the game, and the remaining dares either repeat or don't suit the group.

A ready-made deck holds the order and the level for you, and with screen sharing it sits in one place everyone can see. Best Liar Wins suits people who like bluffing, The Gossip Pot is built for rounds where a group talks about each other, and Lose-Lose forces a choice between two bad options.

Frequently asked questions

How do you play truth or dare on a video call?

One person moderates, tracks the order and calls names. Whoever is up picks truth or dare. The one real difference is that the dare must be visible on camera, or everyone else is watching nothing. Without a moderator, online rounds collapse into a two-person conversation within minutes.

How many people should be on the call?

Three to eight. Past eight, the wait between turns gets long enough that people drift into another tab. For a bigger group, split into two rooms to keep the pace.

What happens when someone refuses a dare?

Swap it, don't escalate it. Piling a harder dare on top of a refused one goes wrong faster online, because nobody can step out of the room to smooth it over. Say the pass rule out loud at the start.

How does lag affect the game?

It breaks anything simultaneous — group singing or clapping on cue arrives as noise. Sequential dares are unaffected, which is why online lists are built from turn-by-turn dares.

Phone or laptop?

A laptop shows everyone at once, which suits group games. A phone wins on fetch-something dares because the camera travels with you. Mixed groups manage fine with both.

Card sets mentioned in this post

Best Liar Wins

The card gives the topic, you tell the story, the group guesses true or false. A 100-card party game.

The Gossip Pot

Starts with light banter, ends in heavy confessions. 100 gossip cards for close friend groups.