GameNest

27 self-hosted LAN board, card, party, puzzle, and real-time games. Start one server, share one room code or QR code, and play from any browser on the same WiFi.

🚀 Live Demo — try it without installing.

简体中文 | English

GameNest is a lightweight open-source tabletop game room for family nights, dorm rooms, classrooms, offices, and small parties. One laptop or Android phone hosts the room, everyone else joins from a browser on the same local network, and the stack stays intentionally simple: Express 4, ws, and plain HTML/CSS/JavaScript.

Highlights

• 27 built-in games covering classic boards, party cards, poker, deduction, puzzle races, and real-time battles.
• Local-first multiplayer: no account system, no cloud dependency, just one host and one shared WiFi.
• Room code and QR-code joining for phones, tablets, and laptops.
• Waiting-room flow with player names, emoji avatars, ready state, seat swaps, bots, and per-game options.
• AI opponents for most turn-based games, useful for solo testing or small groups.
• Browser-first renderers with hidden-information views, legal-move hints, canvas boards, and lightweight animations.
• Optional Android host wrapper powered by nodejs-mobile, so the same project can run as a portable local server.

If GameNest saved your game night, please ⭐ it so others can find it.

Screenshots

GameNest runs as a shared LAN lobby, a QR-code waiting room, and browser-based game boards:

Mobile and join-flow previews:

Quick Start

Requires Node.js 18 or later.

npm install
npm start

Open the lobby on the host machine:

http://localhost:3000

Other phones, tablets, or laptops on the same WiFi can join with:

http://<host-ip>:3000

If port 3000 is still occupied on Windows:

taskkill /f /im node.exe

How It Works

1. Start GameNest on one computer or Android device.
2. Open the lobby and choose a game.
3. Create a room, then share the room code, host IP, or QR code.
4. In the waiting room, adjust seats, add bots, change avatars, and mark players ready.
5. Start the match and keep playing in the browser while state syncs over WebSocket.
6. If someone briefly leaves, they can return to the room from the lobby resume card.

Game Catalog

Category	Games
Classic board	Tic-Tac-Toe, Gomoku, Flight Chess, Chinese Chess, Chess, Checkers, Connect Four, Reversi, Go 9x9
Party cards	UNO, Exploding Kittens, Number Bomb, Old Maid, Draw & Guess, Truth or Dare
Deduction	Davinci Code, Liar's Bar
Poker	Dou Dizhu, Big Two, Texas Hold'em
Tabletop strategy	Rummikub, Monopoly
Brain racing	24 Game, Minesweeper Race, Sheep Tile
Real-time battle	Snake Battle, Suika Battle

Commands

npm start             # start the LAN server
npm test              # run regression tests
npm run check         # syntax-check project JavaScript
npm run test:monopoly # run focused Monopoly tests
npm run build:desktop # build Windows standalone exe

CI currently runs npm run check and npm test on GitHub Actions.

Platform Notes

Browser host

• Requires Node.js 18+
• HTTP and WebSocket share port 3000
• Best fit for laptops, desktops, classrooms, and home LAN play

Android host

The Android project wraps the same Node.js server with nodejs-mobile and a WebView.

cd android
.\copy-nodejs-project.ps1

Then open android/ in Android Studio and run the app. Full setup details live in android/SETUP.md.

Repository Layout

.
|-- server.js                 # Express + WebSocket server, rooms, routing, bots
|-- main.js                   # nodejs-mobile entry point for Android
|-- games/                    # game rules and state transitions
|-- bots/                     # AI move generators
|-- lang/                     # server-side text
|-- public/                   # browser lobby, game shell, renderers, styles, assets
|-- scripts/                  # smoke simulations and maintenance helpers
|-- tests/                    # node:test regression suites
|-- android/                  # Android Studio wrapper project
`-- docs/                     # architecture and release notes

More details:

• lang/ — server-side text packs
• public/js/lang/ — browser language packs
• public/js/game-catalog.js — built-in game metadata
• scripts/generate-cover-art.js — cover art generator
• docs/ARCHITECTURE.md explains the server, WebSocket, and renderer flow.
• CONTRIBUTING.md has the new-game checklist.
• docs/STORE_LISTING.md collects app-store copy and asset planning.

Contributing

Bug reports, rules fixes, AI improvements, renderer polish, and new games are welcome. Start with CONTRIBUTING.md.

License

Apache-2.0