Online play
Start a room for your friends, or join one with a code. Same table, any distance.
Online play needs an account. Sign in with Google to start or join a room.
They match the game’s current settings. The game’s own How to play page always shows the latest.
Live room or game over days?
| Mode | How it plays |
|---|---|
| Live | Everyone plays at the same time, with 90-second turns. |
| Over days | Everyone takes a turn when they can, with a deadline of 8, 12, 24 or 48 hours per turn. |
In a live room, everyone’s on at once, like the old Fridays. In a game over days, the room picks the deadline and you get a nudge when it’s your move. Take your turn on the bus, or right before bed. Its auctions always use sealed bids.
How do you start a room?
On Play online, under Start a room, choose Live or Over days and who can find it, then choose New room. Set up the players, board and house rules as for any game. The last step is Create room.
| Who can find it | Means |
|---|---|
| Invite only | Only people with your link or code. |
| Friends | Listed for your friends. Anyone else needs your link or code. |
| Anyone | Listed under public rooms for anyone to join. |
The host’s game settings also cover the seats, the turn deadline for a game over days, whether people can watch, and whether the game is rated. Only the host can change these.
Your plan sets how many live games and games over days you can be in at once. When you reach it, finish one to start another. Plans and pricing explains the limits.
How do you invite friends?
Send each friend a game invite: a link, a QR code or a 6-character room code. The invite works while the room waits in its lobby, 24 hours by default.
A friend with a code joins from Start a game, under Join a room, which takes the 6-character code, or the whole invite or Watch link. Play online has Join with a code too. If a code doesn’t work, the game says why:
| You see | What to do |
|---|---|
| No room has that code. | Check it and try again. |
| That room’s lobby has closed. | Ask for a new invite. |
| That room is full. | Ask the host for a seat. |
| That game has already started. | Ask the host for an invite to the next one, or for the Watch link to follow it. |
What happens in the lobby?
Everyone seated taps I’m ready. Start opens once everyone seated is ready, you need at least 2 seats filled, and the host starts the game.
The host can remove someone from the room, and their seat opens up. If the host leaves, the role passes to the next person seated. If nobody else is seated, leaving cancels the room and the invite stops working.
What if you miss a turn?
Miss a turn in either mode and the game plays it for you with safe moves. That counts as a strike. In a live room, 3 strikes in a row is a forfeit. Over days, 2 in a row is enough.
Each decision has its own timer. When one runs out:
| Time runs out on | What happens |
|---|---|
| Your turn | The game plays your turn with safe moves. That counts as a strike. |
| Buying a street | The deed goes to auction. That counts as a strike. |
| A bid | You pass. That counts as a strike. |
| A choice | The game makes the safe choice for you. That counts as a strike. |
| Raising money you owe | The game raises the money for you: buildings are sold first, then deeds are mortgaged. You’re bankrupt only if that still isn’t enough. Running out of time counts as a strike. |
| A trade offer | The offer closes. No strike for that. |
Connection lost? Your timer keeps running, so reconnect when you can.
How do sealed bids work?
Nobody sees your bid before the reveal, not even spectators. Your bid is sealed until everyone has bid or time runs out. Bids are revealed at the deadline, and if you haven’t bid by then, you pass, which counts as a strike.
How do you pause an online game?
Anyone at the table can ask, and everyone has to agree. Pausing a game covers the vote, starting again and the final call.
How does End by agreement work?
Anyone at the table can choose End by agreement to end the game now. If everyone agrees before the vote’s time runs out, the highest net worth wins. If not everyone agrees, or the vote runs out of time, the game goes on.
A rated game still counts toward ratings when it ends this way.
What happens if someone leaves?
Leaving an online game counts as a forfeit, paused or not. Their deeds go to auction, and the rest of the table plays on. Pausing a game has the details.
Can people watch?
Yes, when the host lets people watch. Spectators join with the Watch link, and your plan sets how many can watch a game you host. Spectators see the board, never anyone’s sealed bids, and chat is for the table.
How does chat work?
Say something to the table with typed messages, quick chat and emotes. If typed chat is off, quick chat and emotes still work. Choose Report message on any message that breaks the chat rules in the Terms.
How do rated games work?
A game can be rated when every seat is a person and it uses Official or Tournament rules. A forfeit in a rated game counts as a rated loss.
Your games count toward your rating either way. The leaderboard shows you only after you switch it on in your profile.
How does a game end?
One winner, one result card, one tap to rematch. When the host offers a rematch, choose Join rematch to take your seat again.
What if online play is busy?
If Rent Party says online play is full right now, your local games still work. If it says games over days are paused right now, live rooms still work.