The conventional dating world has become practically non-existent over the last year, but don’t worry! We have compiled our six best games for online dates – just in time for Valentine’s Day – that you can try from the comfort of your gaming chair.
2020 and 2021 are pretty determined to kill off romance as we know it. With public spaces closed for the foreseeable future in most countries, being able to take that special someone literally anywhere has become an impossible quest in itself.
While Pokemon Go has come up with a week-long, fun-filled Valentine’s Event it’s limited to, well, Pokemon fans.
So, if you’re not too into your Pikachu, we’ve got a list of awesome titles that are perfect for you and your crush to try out. Or, alternatively, for you to vet whether or not that person on your online dating app is quite who they say they are – but the first is more romantic!
Best Valentine’s Day games for couples
Portal 2
If your crush hasn’t heard of Valve’s Portal series then you really need reconsider your life choices, but if you’re feeling charitable then Portal 2 is definitely one of the best games for couples.
Available on Steam, the title perfectly balances humor alongside fiendishly difficult puzzles. The game’s co-op mode offers an ever-changing array of challenges make it both entertaining as well as difficult.
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In order to weave your way through the Aperture laboratory, you’ll have to work as a team coordinating your blue and orange portals to ensure that you don’t end up falling to your doom.
Plus, there’s cake involved so that’s a nice little date night treat, right?
Animal Crossing
On the very opposite end of the spectrum, we have Animal Crossing, the game that literally everyone had back in the Nintendo DS days. With the title made a resurgence back in 2020 with New Horizons on the Switch, fans everywhere decided that it was the perfect tool to escape from our perplexing world.
So what better date night game than the adorable adventure game? Featuring some of the gaming sphere’s cutest characters in a cartoon realm designed to be user-friendly, you and that special someone can escape to your own little island for a slice of tranquility.
If you fancy being a little more active though you can catch some bugs together, chill in each other’s homes or go on a fishing date. Hopefully, you catch some rainbow trouts instead of some old boots though…
League of Legends
League of Legends might strike you as a strange one on this list, but the bottom lane of Summoner’s Rift has become Runeterra’s prime romantic location. It’s also available for free on PC and runs smoothly on low-level machines, making it perfect for everyone.
If you fancy a walk through the lush terrain of the Rift you can partner up as ADC and Support in the bot lane, where you’ve got a whole host of dynamic characters to choose from. Teamwork is key, so make sure you’re ready to work together to shatter some turrets and blow up the enemy nexus.
If you’re feeling extra romantic, though, suggest to your partner to run Xayah and Rakan or Senna and Lucian. LoL’s resident couples have unique voice lines that, if you direct them at your partner, will make them blush.
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Who said esports couldn’t be romantic?! Just make sure you mute the chatbox before you go into a game.
Stardew Valley
If you’re looking for a slightly less explosive title, Stardew Valley is the one for you. Available across a whole range of platforms, it’s not too difficult to get your hands on.
At its core, the game revolves around farming, planting crops and managing your own little patch of happiness. However, there’s a lot more to the title than originally meets the eye. The multiplayer feature allows players to group up as three and interact, whether that’s fighting monsters or just hanging out.
Another aspect of the game is the relationship-building mechanic though, so if you’re looking to get a little more serious but can’t quite make it happen due to the current situation, then you can work towards blossoming together amid the quaint hills of the Valley.
Second Life
Fancy going to a concert? Going shopping? Or even just hitting the clubs? These are all things that the modern world prohibits us from doing at the moment, but the virtual world of Second Life doesn’t have all that red tape to wade through.
Available across Windows and Mac, the title is a massive open world with no active objective. It literally is an alternative life where you can do as you please. Once you and your partner have created your avatars you can start exploring together.
You can channel your inner Autumn Ashdene (pictured above) and take a cute walk in the snow, or head to a bar for a more traditional date night. Not a fan of either of those? No problem. Second Life literally has every activity you’d ever want, all you have to do is look.
In a world where normality seems a long way off, sometimes it’s nice to taste it again.
Valorant Spike Rush
Yes, I hear your question marks. Valorant is one of the best games for couples? Really? Riot Games PC exclusive shooter hardly seems the title for a chill dating session, but there’s method in my madness (maybe).
While dodging bullets and rapid-paced rounds might not be everyone’s couple of tea, Spike Rush is a great introduction to the Valorant universe. The lightning-fast game mode is full to the brim with fun power-ups, tactical challenges and team-centric gameplay.
Sure your aim is to blow up the area which hardly seems romantic, but Future Earth can be the perfect place to lay the foundations for a second date. Why am I so sure? Well, let’s just say I have Valorant to thank for my own little slice of happiness.
So that’s it for our list of games to try out with your special someone. Of course, there’s a whole host of games that we haven’t included, but what matters here isn’t the exact game you play. After all, as long as you’re having fun and staying safe, then that’s what’s important.