Bored at home this weekend? You can play the popular card game 'Cards Against Humanity' with your friends online for free

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Bored at home this weekend? You can play the popular card game 'Cards Against Humanity' with your friends online for free
  • A couple of websites offer free versions of "Cards Against Humanity" that you can play with your friends online.
  • The games allows everyone to remotely see the game, while your individual hand is kept private.
  • The games work best when hosting an audio or video call with friends while playing.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

If you're looking for a way to virtually hang out with your friends over the weekend while social distancing, you can always try playing the popular card game "Cards Against Humanity."

A couple of websites offer free versions of the game that you can play online with your friends. The virtual card table website Playingcards.io supports up to six players per game, while the site All Bad Cards says up to 50 people can participate in each game. Both websites allow you to create a virtual room with your friends via a shareable link where everyone can see the game in real time while keeping their individual hands private.

If you're not familiar, "Cards Against Humanity" is an adult card game in which one player picks a question card, and the others submit their funniest answers by choosing a card from their hand. As the game's name implies, the answers are usually crude — it's almost like a twisted take on the Mattel card game "Apples to Apples."

While Playingcards.io's free virtual version of "Cards Against Humanity" is a worthwhile alternative to playing in person, it can get a little confusing. I'd strongly recommend hosting a group phone or video call with the other players to make the coordination easier.

All Bad Cards is simpler and more straightforward, but it's still probably more fun to play over video chat with your friends so that you can all react to the cards.

Here's a look at how to play.

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When all white cards have been submitted, you'll be able to see the judge cycle through the choices before picking the winning card.

When all white cards have been submitted, you'll be able to see the judge cycle through the choices before picking the winning card.
Jake Lauer

And that's all there is to it! Go play at Allbad.cards or Playingcards.io.

When it's your turn to play a card, you'll see the black question card near the top of the screen above your answer cards. Players get 10 cards in their hand.

When it's your turn to play a card, you'll see the black question card near the top of the screen above your answer cards. Players get 10 cards in their hand.
Jake Lauer
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All players will then be able to see who won the round. Click "Start the next round" when you're ready.

All players will then be able to see who won the round. Click "Start the next round" when you're ready.
Jake Lauer

Then, choose the winning card.

Then, choose the winning card.
Jake Lauer
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After all players have submitted their cards, you'll see a button that says "Show me the cards!" which lets you cycle through the submissions.

After all players have submitted their cards, you'll see a button that says "Show me the cards!" which lets you cycle through the submissions.
Jake Lauer

Once you start the round, you'll have to wait for players to pick their cards. You'll see a tiny circle next to each player's name, which indicates they're still choosing.

Once you start the round, you'll have to wait for players to pick their cards. You'll see a tiny circle next to each player's name, which indicates they're still choosing.
Jake Lauer
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Here's what it looks like when it's your turn. Click "Start the round!" when you're ready to begin, or "Skip card" to get a new card.

Here's what it looks like when it's your turn. Click "Start the round!" when you're ready to begin, or "Skip card" to get a new card.
Jake Lauer

Before starting the game, you can also scroll down to choose how many rounds you want to play in a game and add a link to a video chat.

Before starting the game, you can also scroll down to choose how many rounds you want to play in a game and add a link to a video chat.
Jake Lauer
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Now, here's how All Bad Cards works.

Now, here's how All Bad Cards works.
Jake Lauer

First, navigate to the All Bad Cards website and press the "New Game" button. Enter your name when prompted.

Here's a breakdown of what the game layout will look like.

Here's a breakdown of what the game layout will look like.
Playingcards.io

The layout can be a little confusing for those who haven't played before, so here's a quick breakdown of how the virtual version of the game works.

To start, click and drag answer cards from the draw pile shown in the image above to your hand at the bottom of the screen.

The judge for this round should click on a black card from the question card pile located near the top of the game layout, as shown above. Click the card once to turn it over.

At this point, all participating players will be able to see what the question is for this round. All players except the judge should click and drag a card from their hand and drop it into one of the slots in the section labeled "Answer cards in play" above.

When all players have submitted their cards, the judge can select the winner by clicking and dragging a card from the "Answer cards in play" area and placing it in the slot next to the question card. Or, if you're already talking with your friends over the phone or on video chat, you can simply read the winning card out loud.

The winner should take the black question card for that round and place it in the slot next to his or her name. This is how you keep track of who has the most points throughout the game.

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I'd also recommend clicking the bar icon near the bottom of the screen while in edit mode and choosing a game piece widget to put next to the judge.

I'd also recommend clicking the bar icon near the bottom of the screen while in edit mode and choosing a game piece widget to put next to the judge.
Playingcards.io

This makes it a lot easier to keep track of whose turn it is throughout the game.

Now you're ready to play!

Before playing, click on the icon that looks like a briefcase in the top left corner to edit your names.

Before playing, click on the icon that looks like a briefcase in the top left corner to edit your names.
Playingcards.io
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Click "Start Game" and share the game link with your friends.

Click "Start Game" and share the game link with your friends.
Playingcards.io

Once you start the game, the website will display a link that you can share with friends who want to join.

Let's start with Playingcards.io. On your laptop or desktop computer, navigate to Playingcards.io.

Let's start with Playingcards.io. On your laptop or desktop computer, navigate to Playingcards.io.
Playingcards.io

Head over to the website and click on "Cards Against Humanity."

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First, set up a group audio or video call with your friends.

First, set up a group audio or video call with your friends.
Lisa Eadicicco/Business Insider

This game is best played while talking to your friends so that you can make sure you're on the same page regarding whose turn it is and who won the round. There are ways to signal these things in the game, but it'll definitely be easier over the phone.

Any conference calling system will work; both websites allow all players to see the game at once, there's no need to share your screen with others.

Here's a guide to getting started with conducting a video call on Google Hangouts.