What is it?
It is a set of online games (4 at the moment) which can be played in person with a central screen (like a TV) or remotely via video chat with screen sharing. In short, there is a host screen which shows most of the game’s activity. Players join via their own device like a phone/tablet/laptop and use that as a controller. It’s playable in 9 languages and doesn’t require any downloads. Most games revolve around being creative in some shape or form. None of the games require fast reflexes and can be played by just about anyone. The host screen can be a browser, a Chromecast) or an Amazon Fire Stick (Amazon app store: https://www.amazon.com/Gametje-GAMETJE/dp/B0D8T2TVBB/). One of my goals was to make it easy to get started with minimal downloads/setup.
Why did I create it?
I've been a player of Jackbox games myself for 10+ years but I always found their support for other languages a bit lacking. I also found the fragmentation between app stores a bit frustrating and needing to buy a new pack each year. I own their games on PC and PS4 but I can’t share a “license” between them. I designed Gametje with these issues in mind. It is playable in multiple languages with more being added regularly (feel free to request one). You can play it from any device with a web browser. There is no need to install it via Steam or a game console. All games are available in one place with no “packs” to buy.
What’s up with the name?
I have been living in the Netherlands for some years and part of my original motivation stems from wanting to give my friends here a game to play in their native language. It's way easier to be witty/funny in your mother tongue after all! Because of that, I wanted to incorporate something Dutch into the site's name. The suffix ‘tje’ is one of the diminutive endings in Dutch and is meant to soften a word or make it "smaller". Game + tje = Gametje, or a little game. I have been informed by native Dutch speakers that it should have been ‘Gamepje’ to be "correct" but I liked the way Gametje sounded better.
Where can I try it?
You can try it out as a guest without signing up in order to get a feel for the games. Clicking into each game gives a short explanation and a small example of the gameplay. After creating a game, you can join from another browser window or device. You can also add AI players if you want to try it out on your own or you can organize a game in the discord channel: https://discord.gg/pgvBcJDH with other Hacker News users (You just need to be able to share the host screen). If you sign up for an account, you can opt-in as an alpha tester and see the new games as they are developed (There is one hidden behind the alpha flag at the moment). It’ll also keep track of all your previous games and make sure not to duplicate content.
What am I looking for?
I am interested in feedback about the whole concept and also the gameplay. Is it fun? What could be improved? UI design isn’t my forte so I’m aware the main site is a bit plain but the core functionality and gameplay are there.
Hopefully the provider I am using to host the backend will hold up. Happy to share the more technical details as well for those that are interested. Thanks!