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can I come to your party? we find out which games are best now we’ve outgrown jelly and ice cream words dani lurie, photos desiree mcclellan Grey clouds are getting cosy with the sky and chilly winds are upturning umbrellas as they please. We could curse the weather for its seasonal failings, but it’s a lot more enjoyable to make our own fun when we’re trapped indoors on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Was there anything like party games when you were a child to leave you on the floor in heaps of helpless giggles? I wondered if party games would be as much fun now that we’re older, stiffer and like our dignity a little more than we used to. When staging these games, you’re going to want your party-goers to be excitable and full of giddy energy. The best way to do this is to ensure they have access to a steady supply of sugar and E numbers. Bring on the sweets, chocolates and concentrated fruit juice. Now that we’re grown-ups, we can have as much as we like.
pass the parcel
duck, duck, goose
Remember that game? Everybody sits in a circle and passes the parcel until the music stops. The lucky so-and-so who has it in their hands at the time opens a layer and keeps whatever goodies fall out.
Remember that game? One player walks around a circle, tapping each person on the head with the word ‘duck.’ When they say ‘goose’ instead, the tagged person leaps to their feet to catch their tap-happy adversary before they return to their spot in the circle.
You will need: A newspaper, sticky tape, a music device and an array of little toys and sweets to smuggle inside.
You will need: Plenty of floor and plenty of friends. Knowledge of waterfowl is optional.
This is a great game to start your party with because it is the perfect sugar delivery system: open a layer and sweets fall out. Making the parcel seems to be an art unto itself, a delicate negotiation of form and content (see how much can you fit into that thing before you run out of newspaper). For prizes, I’d raided my local £1 shop for bubbles, stickers and glitter pens. The pièce de résistance at the centre was a Yu-Gi-Oh! pencil case. The game was a hit and, just like when we were kids, everybody got a turn.
Don’t be fooled by the silly name, this game is a master class in strategy so fierce it would make Sun Tzu blush. The key is to lure your fellow players into a false sense of security and then strike when they least expect it. It also helps if you tag the slowest person, which would explain why I remained ‘it’ for most of the game. Getting to our feet was an unexpected challenge: we don’t sit cross-legged on the floor much these days.
10/10. The best thing to happen to the broadsheet since the paper hat.
8/10. It’s a quacker, if your joints can take it.
balloon stomp
pin the tail on the donkey
Remember that game? Everybody has a balloon tied to one foot and the aim is to pop the other players’ balloons before they can get yours.
Remember that game? A player is blindfolded, spun around and let loose to attach a disembodied tail to the rear end of a donkey.
You will need: Balloons, string and a good sense of balance.
You will need: A blindfold, a picture of a donkey, a paper tail and something to stick it on with.
Balloon Stomp is the Battle Royale of party games. It’s a no-holdsbarred torrent of flying legs and squeaking latex. Uneasy alliances are formed and broken as players gang up to get rid of their rivals’ balloons one by one. You soon realise that the key is to play the defensive as well as the offensive, and the more time your balloon spends in the air, the less likely it is to be stomped on. The result is a ridiculous-looking scene of people chasing each other in circles by hopping on one leg, occasionally bringing it back to earth to launch their attack. So good we had to play another round. 10/10. Top of the pops.
This is at least as much fun to watch as it is to play. Perhaps even more, because you get to look on, chanting ‘hotter’ or ‘colder’ with the warm glow of knowledge, while the player has to deal with temporary blindness, disorientation and the prospect of putting a hand on something icky. It’s harder than it looks, too. Even though I drew the donkey myself, when it came to my turn I completely missed the mark and pinned the tail to its torso like it was a barnyard mutant. 8/10. Like trying not to laugh with drink in your mouth, it’s better as a spectator sport.
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can I come to your party? we find out which games are best now we’ve outgrown jelly and ice cream words dani lurie, photos desiree mcclellan Grey clouds are getting cosy with the sky and chilly winds are upturning umbrellas as they please. We could curse the weather for its seasonal failings, but it’s a lot more enjoyable to make our own fun when we’re trapped indoors on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Was there anything like party games when you were a child to leave you on the floor in heaps of helpless giggles? I wondered if party games would be as much fun now that we’re older, stiffer and like our dignity a little more than we used to. When staging these games, you’re going to want your party-goers to be excitable and full of giddy energy. The best way to do this is to ensure they have access to a steady supply of sugar and E numbers. Bring on the sweets, chocolates and concentrated fruit juice. Now that we’re grown-ups, we can have as much as we like.
pass the parcel
duck, duck, goose
Remember that game? Everybody sits in a circle and passes the parcel until the music stops. The lucky so-and-so who has it in their hands at the time opens a layer and keeps whatever goodies fall out.
Remember that game? One player walks around a circle, tapping each person on the head with the word ‘duck.’ When they say ‘goose’ instead, the tagged person leaps to their feet to catch their tap-happy adversary before they return to their spot in the circle.
You will need: A newspaper, sticky tape, a music device and an array of little toys and sweets to smuggle inside.
You will need: Plenty of floor and plenty of friends. Knowledge of waterfowl is optional.
This is a great game to start your party with because it is the perfect sugar delivery system: open a layer and sweets fall out. Making the parcel seems to be an art unto itself, a delicate negotiation of form and content (see how much can you fit into that thing before you run out of newspaper). For prizes, I’d raided my local £1 shop for bubbles, stickers and glitter pens. The pièce de résistance at the centre was a Yu-Gi-Oh! pencil case. The game was a hit and, just like when we were kids, everybody got a turn.
Don’t be fooled by the silly name, this game is a master class in strategy so fierce it would make Sun Tzu blush. The key is to lure your fellow players into a false sense of security and then strike when they least expect it. It also helps if you tag the slowest person, which would explain why I remained ‘it’ for most of the game. Getting to our feet was an unexpected challenge: we don’t sit cross-legged on the floor much these days.
10/10. The best thing to happen to the broadsheet since the paper hat.
8/10. It’s a quacker, if your joints can take it.
balloon stomp
pin the tail on the donkey
Remember that game? Everybody has a balloon tied to one foot and the aim is to pop the other players’ balloons before they can get yours.
Remember that game? A player is blindfolded, spun around and let loose to attach a disembodied tail to the rear end of a donkey.
You will need: Balloons, string and a good sense of balance.
You will need: A blindfold, a picture of a donkey, a paper tail and something to stick it on with.
Balloon Stomp is the Battle Royale of party games. It’s a no-holdsbarred torrent of flying legs and squeaking latex. Uneasy alliances are formed and broken as players gang up to get rid of their rivals’ balloons one by one. You soon realise that the key is to play the defensive as well as the offensive, and the more time your balloon spends in the air, the less likely it is to be stomped on. The result is a ridiculous-looking scene of people chasing each other in circles by hopping on one leg, occasionally bringing it back to earth to launch their attack. So good we had to play another round. 10/10. Top of the pops.
This is at least as much fun to watch as it is to play. Perhaps even more, because you get to look on, chanting ‘hotter’ or ‘colder’ with the warm glow of knowledge, while the player has to deal with temporary blindness, disorientation and the prospect of putting a hand on something icky. It’s harder than it looks, too. Even though I drew the donkey myself, when it came to my turn I completely missed the mark and pinned the tail to its torso like it was a barnyard mutant. 8/10. Like trying not to laugh with drink in your mouth, it’s better as a spectator sport.
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bobbing for apples
musical chairs
Remember that game? Players have to pick an apple out of a tub of water using nothing but their mouths.
Remember that game? Everybody marches around an ever-decreasing number of chairs until the music stops, and whoever can’t scramble onto one is out of the game.
You will need: a large water tub, apples and at least one towel. It’s harder than you’d think. Apples are round, shiny, buoyant things, and exceedingly slippery. Their stalks can easily be chomped down on so we de-stalked those bad boys after an initial confidence-boosting beginners round. I conceded defeat soon after: my strategy of gingerly nudging the fruit around the tub was only successful in getting water up my nose. Other players had better luck when they discovered the unfortunate trick to the game: you have to stick your entire head in. “Focus on one apple and chase it to the very bottom,” said one soaked tester as he mopped his face with a tea towel. 2/10. If you ask me to submerge my head in a bucket of water, I’m going to need a better incentive than fruit.
the doughnut game Remember that game? Players line up with their hands behind their backs and race to eat doughnuts off a string.
You will need: One chair per person and a music player. This is a game to bring the competitive side out in the most laid-back of people. We had more than a few incidents of two players landing on the same chair and trying to nudge the other off with their derrière. After all, there will always be one chair fewer than there are players and in the end, like Highlander, there can only be one. 8/10. Ferocious four-legged fun.
twister Remember that game? You play it on the mat with rows of coloured spots. A spinner decides which hand or foot you must place on each particular colour. Entanglement ensues. You will need: A twister matt, a spinner and a degree of flexibility.
The game feels like a life-size version of Hungry Hippos: there are mouths opening and shutting all around you. It’s downright frightening: turn your head the wrong way and you could lose a nose. Hygiene concerns are also troubling. The savaged doughnuts soon start to fall apart and hit the floor, from where the eating continues. You also have to deal with the regret-filled aftermath of having consumed an entire ring of fried dough in about ninety seconds.
This was the only game on the list that required a licensed set of equipment, although a DIY version could be made fairly easily with the aid of coloured paints. I borrowed a friend’s old family set, only to discover that the spinner was missing. We wondered how we were going to play without one before somebody got their iPhone out. Twister spinner? There’s an app for that. I have such fond memories of playing this game when I was younger, but apparently the word is ‘younger’. Not only are our bodies bigger now, they‘re also heavier, stiffer and a greater challenge to gravity. The rounds didn’t last long, and most of us hit the ground voluntarily. I’d advise stretching beforehand.
6/10. I’d rather have a plate any day.
5/10. Curves in all the wrong places.
You will need: String, ring doughnuts and an appetite.
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bobbing for apples
musical chairs
Remember that game? Players have to pick an apple out of a tub of water using nothing but their mouths.
Remember that game? Everybody marches around an ever-decreasing number of chairs until the music stops, and whoever can’t scramble onto one is out of the game.
You will need: a large water tub, apples and at least one towel. It’s harder than you’d think. Apples are round, shiny, buoyant things, and exceedingly slippery. Their stalks can easily be chomped down on so we de-stalked those bad boys after an initial confidence-boosting beginners round. I conceded defeat soon after: my strategy of gingerly nudging the fruit around the tub was only successful in getting water up my nose. Other players had better luck when they discovered the unfortunate trick to the game: you have to stick your entire head in. “Focus on one apple and chase it to the very bottom,” said one soaked tester as he mopped his face with a tea towel. 2/10. If you ask me to submerge my head in a bucket of water, I’m going to need a better incentive than fruit.
the doughnut game Remember that game? Players line up with their hands behind their backs and race to eat doughnuts off a string.
You will need: One chair per person and a music player. This is a game to bring the competitive side out in the most laid-back of people. We had more than a few incidents of two players landing on the same chair and trying to nudge the other off with their derrière. After all, there will always be one chair fewer than there are players and in the end, like Highlander, there can only be one. 8/10. Ferocious four-legged fun.
twister Remember that game? You play it on the mat with rows of coloured spots. A spinner decides which hand or foot you must place on each particular colour. Entanglement ensues. You will need: A twister matt, a spinner and a degree of flexibility.
The game feels like a life-size version of Hungry Hippos: there are mouths opening and shutting all around you. It’s downright frightening: turn your head the wrong way and you could lose a nose. Hygiene concerns are also troubling. The savaged doughnuts soon start to fall apart and hit the floor, from where the eating continues. You also have to deal with the regret-filled aftermath of having consumed an entire ring of fried dough in about ninety seconds.
This was the only game on the list that required a licensed set of equipment, although a DIY version could be made fairly easily with the aid of coloured paints. I borrowed a friend’s old family set, only to discover that the spinner was missing. We wondered how we were going to play without one before somebody got their iPhone out. Twister spinner? There’s an app for that. I have such fond memories of playing this game when I was younger, but apparently the word is ‘younger’. Not only are our bodies bigger now, they‘re also heavier, stiffer and a greater challenge to gravity. The rounds didn’t last long, and most of us hit the ground voluntarily. I’d advise stretching beforehand.
6/10. I’d rather have a plate any day.
5/10. Curves in all the wrong places.
You will need: String, ring doughnuts and an appetite.
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