Free party games for your TV and everyone's phone

Happy Light Arcade is the cosiest, most relaxing couch gaming platform. Open the screen on a TV or laptop, and everyone joins on their own phone, which becomes the controller. No app, no install, no cables, no account for the players. There are 49 games, from arcade fights to the Dutch card classics.

Why it is cosy

• Nothing to set up. A browser and a room code is the whole install, so game night starts in a minute.
• Camera games without hardware. Wave, punch and chop in front of a webcam or a phone. The video stays on the device that took it.
• Private by design. Your hand of cards lives on your own phone, so nobody reads it off the TV.
• Free for guests. Joining from a phone costs nothing, and games keep a leaderboard, tournaments and your own look.

How it works

1. Open arcade.happylight.io on the TV or a laptop and choose Open the screen.
2. Everyone else opens the same address on their phone and enters the four-letter code, or scans the QR code.
3. Pick a game and play. Your phone is the controller.

The 49 games

Move your body (4)

Play with your body, using a webcam or a phone as the camera: Squeaky Clean, Kiai!, Chop Chop Soup, Boxing Legends.

Arena brawls (11)

Brawls and battles for big groups: Snake Arena, Blast Radius, Stick Brawl, Mothlight, Fort Fall, Lone Arrow, Happy Wipe, Crater Clash, Scrap Rumble, Gridfire, Lagoon Lobbers.

Arcade classics (12)

Quick classics and party racers: Paddle Powers, Vertigo, Block Battles, Ninja Dash, Trap Dojo, Topple Town, Riff Riot, Bubble Bash, Dish Stack, A-Maze-ing, Fowl Play, Mic Drop.

Duels & sports (6)

One on one, or two on two: Riposte, Kick Off, Hoop Riot, Derby Dash, Sundown Draw, Sideways.

Co-op adventures (4)

Win together: Cinder Vault, Short Fuse, Crypt, Beacon.

Cards & tactics (12)

Card, dice and table games on your phone, including the Dutch favourites Pesten, Bussen, Juffen, Vijven and Duikboot: Pesten, Higher / Lower, Screw the Dealer, Bussen, Juffen, Duikboot, Vijven, Ship Attack, Kings, RummiTiles, Doodle Light, Roll Call.

Browse all games. Nederlands: partyspellen en kaartspellen online.

Questions

Is Happy Light Arcade free?

Yes to play: joining a room with your phone is free, with no account and no payment. The screen that hosts the room can ask for a one-time beta pass (you sign in once) when the beta pass is switched on; that never applies to the people joining.

Do I need to download an app?

No. Everything runs in the browser. The screen opens arcade.happylight.io on a TV or laptop, and each phone opens the same address and types the four-letter room code or scans the QR code.

How many people can play?

It depends on the game. Many take solo play with bots, a lot take two to four, and the biggest rooms have up to 12 players. Each game page shows its count.

Which devices and TVs work?

Any modern browser. Use a laptop plugged into the TV, or a TV or streaming stick with a browser, as the screen. Phones, keyboards and USB or Bluetooth game controllers are the controllers; each game says which it likes best. Not every TV model is tested.

Do the camera games send my video anywhere?

No. The body-tracking runs on the device that has the camera, and the picture never leaves it. A phone used as a camera sends the screen only a few body points (about 120 bytes, twenty times a second), not video.

What is the beta pass?

Hosting a room (opening the screen) can take a one-time beta pass that you get by signing in with a Happy Light account. Players who join with a phone never need one. Beta means the service has no uptime guarantee.