Entertainment ideas for year-end and New Year parties: games everyone can enjoy together
Are you struggling to decide on entertainment to liven up your year-end or New Year’s party? Bingo and karaoke are classics, but having games that make everyone smile can really boost the energy of the event.
If the rules are simple, easy to prepare, and anyone can join right away, it keeps things light for everyone.
In this article, we’ve gathered a wealth of ideas—from acts that instantly lift the mood to a wide variety of games that work regardless of group size.
You’ll find everything from show-stopping performances to conversation-sparking mind games and energizing activities that get people moving—plenty of variety to keep everyone engaged!
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Entertainment acts for year-end and New Year parties: Group-boosting game ideas (111–120)
A Blues Brothers performance
With a parody of the movie The Blues Brothers, you can turn your year-end and New Year parties into a fun space.
Just having a duo in suits and ties, sunglasses, and hats appear immediately conveys that they’re the Blues Brothers, so preparation is easy.
If there’s a noticeable difference in height and build, you can more faithfully recreate the original look.
Since the work has strong musical elements, it’s also perfect for situations where you want to perform songs.
Don’t forget the comedy aspect either—consider introducing the songs through a bit of acting, and pay attention to the choreography during the numbers as well.
Chugging a Coke with Mentos in it
When you drop Mentos into cola, it causes a foaming eruption… Do that phenomenon as a party trick! You can do it by holding Mentos in your mouth or by dropping them into a cola bottle.
For the actual performance, prepare a blue tarp or a kiddie pool so it’s okay if the area gets messy.
Be sure to rehearse in advance—like in the bathroom—to see what happens before doing it for real.
Fast-drinking showdown with baby bottles!
First, choose two participants.
Prepare one baby bottle for each person and pour in a drink.
Recommended options include milk, strawberry milk, coffee milk, or Calpis.
The amount can be equal or you can give a handicap—either is fine.
If the participants wear aprons with cute bear designs, it’s sure to hype things up even more! At the starting signal, they drink the beverage from the baby bottle.
The first person to finish the drink in their bottle wins! The sight of someone wearing an apron and drinking from a baby bottle is very cute, and striking a cool pose with one hand on the hip while going all-out in a serious match looks even cooler than just pretending to be a baby.
Tongue Twister Contest
prepared in advancetongue twisterIt’s a game where the person who can say it quickly and accurately wins. Examples: “Osteoporosis lawsuit victory,” “The customer next door is a customer who often eats persimmons,” and so on.
Couldn’t find the link to the app “Tongue Twisters! If You Flub, It’s Punishment Lite.”
[Android app]Hayakoto [Tongue Twister Training]Chugging a carbonated soda
This is a bit that Hiking Walking often does: chug a carbonated drink and name every station on the Yamanote Line.
All you need is a single bottle of soda.
It’s simple, and you can make it more fun by customizing what you list.
For example, at the office you could do “name all the male employees in the △△ department,” or list all the names of people you like—anything you can rattle off in one go works well.
There’s a standard punchline where you can’t finish and it ends quickly, so it’s great as an opening gag for New Year’s or year-end parties.
Intuitive Tasting
This is a game where you guess what you’re eating while blindfolded and with your nose pinched.
Participants cover their eyes with an eye mask, pinch their noses with a clothespin, and sit in a chair.
The host puts food into the participants’ mouths with a spoon, and the participants use texture and taste to the fullest to figure out what’s in their mouths.
The only thing you can trust is your sense of taste!
Group gymnastics
The more people you have, the flashier group gymnastics becomes.
Many of you probably performed it at school sports festivals in elementary or junior high.
Now that we’re adults, there are routines we can finally take on.
Practice thoroughly and wow the crowd! Just be careful not to get injured, and make sure to warm up properly.
If it’s a gathering of people around the same age, incorporating nostalgic J‑pop is recommended.
That way, you’ll probably have plenty of memories to reminisce about afterward.
