Here is our list of the best Halloween virtual team building ideas, games, & activities.
Halloween virtual team building ideas are games and activities remote employees can enjoy throughout the Halloween season on platforms like Zoom, Skype, and WebEx. Examples include Mysteries, Investigations, Ghost Hunting, Pumpkin Decorating, and Storytelling. The purpose of these activities is to bring employees closer together and promote team building while the participants enjoy the holiday. Such activities and games allow remote workers worldwide to collaborate and include all team members, and celebrate differences.
These ideas are online versions of Halloween team building activities that you can try during a virtual Halloween party or a hybrid Halloween party.
This list includes:
- Halloween virtual team building games
- Halloween virtual team building activities
- Halloween virtual team building events
Here we go!
List of Halloween virtual team building ideas
You can throw a spooky Zoom meeting for your remote team to scare up some Halloween fun for the office. Here are some great Halloween virtual team building ideas that teams can do online.
1. Virtual Murder Mystery
Planning a murder mystery party around Halloween is a great idea. This fun activity combines the spooky theme of Halloween with the curious nature of the game. In the murder mystery, participants can put their detective skills to the test and collaborate in groups to encourage team building.
In this game, actors will present the story’s scenario to players. Participants will listen carefully to the plot and work in groups to discuss and investigate the murder. The core concept of a murder mystery game is to put critical thinking skills to use and investigate the case to find the culprit’s identity.
Also, as you will be planning a murder mystery for Halloween, you can incorporate a spooky theme to make the activity more interesting for your remote team.
While you can plan a murder mystery yourself, opting for a premade one is a great option. Professionals design the games, and gamemasters guide participants through the story. For this, Murder In Ancient Egypt is the best murder mystery game. The crime scene revolves around a based-on-a-true-story murder. Team members will look for clues in the crime scene to uncover the culprit. Also, the hosts will organize the game and help participants throughout the murder mystery.
These virtual murder mystery games promote teamwork and critical thinking among distant members through cooperative problem-solving.
Learn more about Virtual Murder Mystery.
2. Virtual Halloween Persona Game
A persona game is among the best Halloween virtual team building games that bolster this event’s mysterious and curious nature.
Before the game starts:
- Ask each participant to assume a character’s identity.
- The character can be a movie star, a superhero, or a villain. It is better to consider a spooky character, like a horror movie character or a villain, to make it match the Halloween theme.
- Each member will then prepare a quirky message demonstrating their chosen character’s characteristics.
- Have participants email their messages to the whole group a day before the game.
Here is how to play:
- On the day of the activity, all members will join a Zoom call, and nobody will know who is which character.
- Each participant will take their turn, come in front of the camera, and say their secret message. The audience can ask questions to guess their coworker’s secret identities.
You can also plan this as a group activity in which each member of one team will act like a character, and the other team will collectively decide on an answer. The fun of this game is in keeping the hints mysterious so coworkers can take time to guess. The group that guesses the most correct answers wins!
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3. Escape Dracula’s Castle
Escape Dracula’s Castle is a puzzle-based online Halloween experience for teams. The activity combines elements of virtual escape rooms and social deduction games to create a challenging, timed competition. Teammates must solve a series of tricky puzzles in under an hour and identify the members of their teams who have been turned into vampires and are secretly sabotaging the group’s efforts to escape. Along the way, an engaging expert host gives clues and drops in real historical facts about Dracula and his castle.
Learn more about Escape Dracula’s Castle.
4. Virtual Crime Scene Investigation
A Virtual Crime Scene Investigation is a fun and exciting game that challenges players to solve puzzles. You can choose an engaging premade game or create your own mystery.
Here is how to play:
- Invite all participants to a video call.
- Once all members are on board, form teams.
- Teams will examine a crime scene, find hints, and find the perpetrator.
- Players will also explore the perpetrators’ methods and motives.
As a host, you will monitor each team and see if they need help. Ultimately, the team that correctly identifies the criminal first wins.
Here are some of the virtual crime scene investigation games for your team:
These Halloween-themed crime investigation games will keep your Zoom Halloween party guests entertained and involved.
Here are more virtual crime scene investigation games.
5. Zombie
Zombie is a game that encourages players to be present minded while reflecting on silly everyday errors. To play Zombie, you will list some common mistakes.
Here are some examples:
- You left your cell phone at a shop or restaurant and realized it after reaching home.
- You misjudged a new coworker.
- You set your alarm for p.m. instead of a.m. when you have to wake up in the morning.
- You did not eat dinner out because your stomach was full, but then you were hungry late at night.
After stating each blunder, let your staff members admit to engaging in any of the listed mindless behaviors.
Most employees will have committed at least one, so you should limit the time frame to the past six months. If the player has committed any mistake, tag them with “gets bitten,” and tell them to stop sharing their video as a gesture of being eliminated from the game. The last survivor will win the game.
6. Virtual Halloween Scavenger Hunt
There are several ways to put a spooky spin on traditional remote team building games, such as undertaking a Halloween-themed scavenger hunt.
Here is how you can plan a virtual scavenger hunt for your remote team:
- Prepare a list of Halloween-themed items, like a jack-o’-lantern, spooky hat, or broom. You can also include Halloween decorations, like fake spider webs.
- Invite participants to a video call.
- When all players are online, start the game by naming the items from the prepared list.
- As soon as you name the item, participants will rush to find it in their house.
- The player who finds the item and shows it on the camera first will get a point.
This is a great way to encourage the team to decorate their houses for the holiday.
Check out more virtual scavenger hunts.
7. Ghost Hunt in the Haunted Mansion
Ghost Hunt in the Haunted Mansion is the best virtual ghost-hunting game for Halloween. This Halloween-themed competition engages your team in a battle of wits. Team members must work together to solve clues, decipher codes, and complete puzzles to hunt the ghosts. Ghosts will wander around the mansion, and your team acts as ghost hunters who must investigate and catch these specters. Employees will get different codes, puzzles, and clues to determine the ghosts’ origin.
However, any player can become a ghost if they do not figure out the secret of the spirits in time. Therefore, each team must ensure they complete the hunt in time. The team that discovers the ghosts first wins.
This virtual ghost-hunting game lasts for 90 minutes, and the hosts boost the morale of the participants and help them find clues so they do not turn into ghosts.
Learn more about Ghost Hunt in the Haunted Mansion.
8. Escape Rooms
Virtual escape rooms are a great way to liven up your online Halloween party. These online quests put your group to the test by requiring you to collaborate to complete objectives.
You can run virtual escape rooms for your team using Zoom and other platforms. Teams compete in these events by solving puzzles and riddles within a set time limit to escape the room. There are many virtual team building Halloween-themed escape room games available online.
With escape rooms growing in popularity, incorporating one into your event will help your virtual Halloween party stay on trend.
Check out online escape rooms.
9. Virtual Halloween Team Bingo
Virtual Halloween Team Bingo is a fun activity that helps colleagues socialize and stay in the Halloween mood through a fun and friendly activity.
In this game, you will distribute random Halloween-themed prompt cards to your staff through an online generator. The cards can be related to activities and celebrations for Halloween. Each coworker will mark a tick on the box that fulfills their criteria.
Here is a template you can use:
Get Just the Bingo Card
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The player who completes a row will say “Bingo” and get a reward.
10. Ultimate Halloween Game Show
Ultimate Halloween Game Show is a virtual tournament for teams. This option is ideal for teams who want to get competitive with their Halloween celebration.
The highlights:
- 90 minutes
- Led by a high-energy host
- Players face off in teams
- Classic game show games with Halloween twists
- Themed in-game graphics and effects
Learn more about Ultimate Halloween Game Show.
11. Virtual Halloween Costume Contest
Costumes improve any Halloween party, including digital ones. To get everyone in on the festive spirit, have them join the video call dressed for the occasion. However, it is best to establish a dress code that lets employees know they must maintain a professional demeanor during the holiday season.
To take costumes to the next level, consider hosting a virtual costume contest. This competition is a great way to pump up the laughs.
You can judge based on the following categories and announce them ahead of time:
- Scariest
- Funniest
- Most Creative
- Most Detailed
- Best Homemade
Depending on the category you choose, participants will dress up accordingly and show their costumes over a video call.
Attendees can vote for their favorite costumes in each category. When voting is complete, the coworker with the best costume will win.
To simplify this activity, you can avoid specifying a category. Instead, you can just ask the participants to show themselves in their Halloween costumes and have the team vote for their favorite one.
Check out more virtual costume contest ideas.
12. Virtual Trick or Treat
One of the most exciting things about Halloween is virtual trick or treating. Remote workers can participate in Halloween festivities, including trick or treating, without worrying about strangers saying, “You are too old for this!”
Here is the lowdown on virtual trick or treating:
- Distribute digital rewards to gift givers, such as downloadable app credits, desktop backgrounds, and online gift cards.
- Have employees join a Zoom call.
- Prepare the gift givers by arming them with Halloween jokes, riddles, and questions.
- Ask your generous donors to only send treats to those who answer your trick-or-treat questions correctly.
These Halloween virtual team building activities promote communication among distant team members and give Halloween a contemporary spin.
13. Ghost Stories
Ghost stories enhance Halloween’s fun and excitement. Inviting your coworkers to share chilling tales of terror is a great way to liven up your virtual Halloween party.
You can read stories on CreepyPasta, which is a collection of horror stories written by different authors. You can also ask each participant to share their own ghost story over a video session. The story can be fictional or based on a real-life incident.
14. Virtual Pumpkin Decoration
Pumpkins and jack-o’-lanterns are a must at each Halloween celebration. One of the activities at your online Halloween party can be making a spooky gourd together.
You can also ask the participants to decorate a pumpkin beforehand and display their masterpieces over a video session. If you have more time, then you can ask the members to decorate the pumpkins during the video session and exchange their ideas. However, employees must come with all items needed for decorating their pumpkins.
Check out online pumpkin carving ideas.
15. Creepy Cookie Decoration
An exciting element of any celebration is cute treats decorated to look like spooky characters. Team members can enjoy decorating frightening cookies in real time over a video call.
You can also host a session for baking cookies. A host will guide staff members on how to bake and decorate the cookies, and coworkers will enjoy the yummy treats in the end.
16. Virtual Fortune Telling
The paranormal dominates the month of October. Therefore, enchanting your coworkers at your virtual Halloween party using online seances and digital fortune telling will make the Halloween virtual party even more festive.
On the Museum of Talking Boards website, you can use a virtual Ouija board, and Lotus Tarot offers free online tarot card readings. In addition, your team can explore numerous possibilities for divining your futures.
As a storytelling exercise, you can create personalized fortunes for teammates if you and your team prefer to avoid tampering with the unknowable.
Learn more about virtual Ouija boards.
17. Halloween Candy Goodie Bags
Halloween is synonymous with costumes and candy. To incorporate this into your event, you can create custom goodie bags and send Halloween treats to each team member before your virtual party.
Some examples of amusing Halloween-themed goodies to put in Halloween gift bags include:
- Spider rings
- Candy corn
- Vampire teeth
- Artificial bones
- Caramel apple suckers
- Chocolate
- Witch fingers
- Artificial lizards and insects
Personalizing gift bags is as simple as making your treat packages and sending them in the mail. Even though your group is made up of cutting-edge professionals, many are probably still kids at heart when it comes to sweets.
Conclusion
Most workplaces celebrate Halloween with enthusiasm. Therefore, virtual gatherings for Halloween should feel more like celebrations than regular get-togethers. You can get your remote workers involved and create an impression with your online Halloween event by adopting one of these Halloween virtual team building ideas. In addition, organizing enjoyable team activities and games facilitates group bonding and encourages employees to unwind.
Next, check out our lists of Halloween icebreakers and cozy fall activities.
