Online Gaming for Couples?

psuedo_samurai asks: "My longtime girlfriend recently had to move to complete her studies at a University, which is nowhere near where I live. Talking on the phone is quickly becoming old, as I'm a typical guy and hate being on the phone longer than 3 minutes, but I try. So I was thinking - I like games, she likes to talk, why not combine the two? So are there any online games suggested for couples using a headset? I can't see Counter-Strike or Rainbow Six working, but I was thinking maybe DDR Ultramix on Xbox Live? How about PC titles with headset support? Any suggestions?"

Comments

PSO

[zenintrude]

I've found that a lot of girls really like the communication and character outfitting aspects of Phantasy Star Online. Back in the days of the Dreamcast, my sister would lord over my copy for hours on end.

Whether they prefer typing (GCN) or voice (XB) communication is pretty much the only difference in the versions.

Dude, you are SOOOO wrong.

[imadork]

So I was thinking - I like games, she likes to talk, why not combine the two?

Unless she likes games too, this doesn't stand a chance in hell of working out well for you. You are trying to use logic -- guy logic -- to deal with women. The sooner you learn how futile this is, the better it is for you.

Re:Dude, you are SOOOO wrong.

[Anonymous Coward]

He didn't say she hated games, either - I know in a relationship sometimes you do things together, you know, compromise.

If my boyfriend lived far away and he wanted to play and talk it would be a nice enough compromise, as long as he really TALKED.

Just because we have ovaries doesn't mean we go EW ICKY GAMES OH POOP.

Teamspeak or Roger Wilco

[Kleedrac2]

Hey man,

The only problem is the games she'll enjoy probably won't have voice comm right out of the box. But if you used Teamspeak or Roger Wilco you'd have your voice channel open no matter what games your playing! I'd reccommend Gunbound as my gf spends more time playing it than I do!! It's essentially a free, online only, Worms/Scorched Earth clone but when you win a match you get gold which can be spent on new gear for your avatar! Wait till she sees some of the dresses she can buy! Anywho ... hope this helps man, and good luck!

Kleedrac

Star wars galaxies

[dkode]

A friend of mine plays Star Wars galaxies online with his wife. They have a club setup where she can dance for visitors and he usually listens to the band playing. They have full conversations/arguments online in front of other people visiting their club.

It's the most interaction between people I have seen in an online game before.

Although you have to pay the monthly gaming fee which I think is in the range of $15/month.

Try an MMORPG

[pocketfullofshells]

I know several couples that play MMORPGS together, and even a few that met and married because of them. I played everquest but my wife never got into it. Now that I've started playing Star Wars Galaxies, she plays more than I do. The only problem is getting two fast computers and two accounts for the game so we can play at the same time. If your wanting some quality time together, I'd suggest playing an MMORPG and use something like Team-speak or Ventrilo...

Game for you...

[Andrewkov]

Try Microsoft Hearts ... it comes with Windows plus it is the only game I've seen a female play for more than 5 minutes.

Maybe try a social MMOG

[spyrochaete]

I've been beta testing an MMOG called There for several months and it is a much more sociable experience than almost any other MMOG out there. All the "leveling up" is performed by talking, organizing events, and riding vehicles. No killing, no NPCs. Really it's just glorified IRC but with one fewer degree of separation because you and your friends have a lifelike customizeable avatar. Sexist stereotyping is beneath us all so I'll just say that the game has paintball guns, a variety of wheeled, flying, and riding vehicles, and lots and lots of shopping and outfits for whomever might enjoy such activities.

Gaming and conversation...

[hlygrail]

Get some boom/headset mics for you and your SO and fire up one of the free voice engines, like TeamSpeak or Roger Wilco for voice chat (in or out of games). I've used TeamSpeak with excellent results while playing Unreal Tournament and other games, as well as just for conversing with distant family members on a semi-regular basis. (Free is good!)

For gaming, you have a chuckwagon full of choices. Unreal Tournament, Star Wars: Jedi Knight - Jedi Academy and Need for Speed: Underground top my recent list of multi-player games for raw fun and enjoyment with minimal commitment level (and I sense a commitment issue from the OP anyway!). Then of course, there's the obligatory mentions of The Sims, Everquest, Age of Mythology and Civilization III (find your own URLs for those), if you're into that kind of gaming (these require a higher commitment level).

If you two are more cerebral in your gaming, go hunt down a board game called Settlers of Catan and its offspring (Seafarers of Catan, et. al.) and play that with some friends next time you two are together. Once you get hooked on the board game -- and you will -- start playing it online. There's a nefarious, somewhat-underground (not after /. gets wind of it!) online client called Sea3D that works pretty darn well (Win32 only, sorry -- but if this is a problem, use the Java client instead), and is terribly enjoyable for raw strategy and board game fun, although it can sometimes be difficult to get players to join hosted games (there doesn't seem to be a LARGE community of Sea3D users yet). If you host your own games and have people you know join in, this is a non-issue.

If you're side-stepping the guy-girl conversation thing, your best bet is probably one of the action games, like Unreal and its similar-engine spawn (anything based off the Quake2 or Quake3 engines). There's usually so much going on in a DeathMatch or Team DeathMatch, there isn't much time for deep chit-chat, but you can both probably come out feeling like you had a onversation.

[Note to Guys: this probably isn't going to lead to a long-term, deep relationship, mind you, but will suffice for temporary distance relationships. Chicks don't generally like games, and especially don't like the KINDS of games we guys like, so YMMV. Board games and strategy type stuff, though, are generally universally enjoyable, which is why I mentioned Catan (this is the original German site).]

Good luck!!

A Tale In The Desert (not a headset game)

[Metagnosis]

As others have said, there are tools such as TeakSpeak and Roger Wilco that will deal with the voice chat side of things.

But what game to play? I'd suggest A Tale In The Desert. It's nice because it has a very laid-back feel to it - there's no combat, and the emphasis is on long-term co-operation with your friends to further the development of your avatar (the web site, as well as the excellent fansites and wiki explain all this much better than I can).

It runs on Windows and Linux, and doesn't have to run full-screen, so it's great for leaving running in the background so that you can get some work done while your avatar is busy feeding the camels or waiting for papyrus to grow. The chat system is also pretty good, for those of is who don't want to inflict their irritating nasally voices on the rest of the world. :-)

These two are favs of my GF and me.

[supernaut]

These two are free, and socially interactive.

Gunbound: kinda like worms, but, online. There are some lamers, but, overall, it can be fun.

You can find info for gunbound at:

http://www.gunbound.net/

Then, there is fairyland. This is where her and I currently reside. Its a nice free MMORPG.

http://www.fairyland.com.my/

Enjoy.

Suggestions from a bona fide girl.

[Parmelia]

Well, as others have said, do make sure she's into this idea. But of course, she may be more interested if you've got some suggestions handy, so...

I find cooperative games are usually the best for couples gaming. Among my friends, RPGs are probably the most popular among the couples (including me and my boyfriend). Neverwinter nights, Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale, Dungeon Siege and plenty of others fit the bill nicely. They're especially good if the two are you aren't evenly matched, since any disparity is less noticeable and less frustrating.

I imagine warcraft would be fun, but it's a steep learning curve. I had a blast playing tower defense and stuff with friends, but I know as a casual player, i can't keep up with them in games that involve more and differing units 'cause I simply don't remember what they all do. Again, co-op is probably best -- certainly fosters more talking than trash talking. :)

I'll admit it, I've even played a good old text-based MUD with my current boyfriend, and I know a few people who've played those with their significant others. Maybe it's because it's all text, but it seems to foster more conversation than I had playing warcraft. Mind you, it's slow, text-based conversation, but it's still conversation!

Games that pause so you can chat are good. Turn-based games like civ are also good, so you've got time to think, play and talk.

Puzzle games go over well with my female friends, so it might be fun to explore that end of the spectrum. I don't know if you can have networked frozen bubble, but there's got to be some things along those lines.

DDR is a great idea, and as a bonus, works as an aerobic exercise program. :)

But finally, don't think of this as a way to avoid phone calls, more as a supplement so you can spend more time together. It'll probably just work out better that way.

if you really want to keep her - MOVE

[holy_smoke]

1. its a rare female that will hang around long distance for very long.

2. Stay away from the game idea, and drive your butt over to her often, before she gets bored.

3. Remember - females like for men to listen, understand, and laugh when appropriate. If you follow this principle, #2 can be rewarding ;-)

Re:Remember that girls are individuals too...

[insensitive claude]

I'll second the nomination for MMORPGs. Star Wars Galaxies has LOTS of couples on it.

Re:Good video chat software?

[glesga_kiss]

Does anyone know a video chat program that should automatically work with a NAT?

You need to run a gateway, H-232 IIRC. This runs on your firewall (assuming linux, this is /.) and acts as the port listener. Regular port numbers not the infuriatingly random IM ones, so you could host behind a NAT.

You both connect to it, most apps talk this protocol. Except MSN Messenger, hmmm typical. Allows IM & voice between you, and anyone else using it. I think this is essentially what the chat websites do, with an HTML front end. Now, this ain't something I've done, but I read something about it several years ago, when trying to do the same. I gave up, it was to chat with mainly local friends and not really neccessary.

Re:Good video chat software?

[PsykhoKiwi]

A few links which may be of use to you in finding information on this - in particular the last one. Most of them are academic related - for example if anyone is in university halls they can make use of the JANET MCUs and gatekeepers.

http://www.video.ja.net

The US equivalent:

http://commons.internet2.edu/

This link will probably be of most use:
http://commons.internet2.edu/h323/firewalls. html

For those interested in videoconferencing - you may like to join in on the megaconference where they get as many endpoints as possible to push videoconferencing to its limits:

http://www.megaconference.org./

And now a plug for my old videconferencing activities, although I haven't been involved at Manchester in over half a year:

http://www.mcc.ac.uk/mvss/