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 ideas for year-end and New Year parties: Fun group games (21–30)
Blindfold Drink Perfect Chu-Chu!
It’s a game where you drink a predetermined amount of a beverage while blindfolded! Preparation is simple—you just need drinks, rubber bands, straws, and blindfolds.
First, select a few participants and prepare one drink per person.
Put a rubber band around each glass and hand them out to the participants.
Then, with their eyes covered, the participants drink, and the winner is the one whose drink level ends up closest to the rubber band line.
Even if you check beforehand “about this much is the target,” once you’re blindfolded it’s surprisingly hard, and it’s sure to turn into a heated battle!
TT Brothers
How about trying the signature bit “TT Brothers” by Chocolate Planet, the comedy duo that’s everywhere on TV? The TT Brothers are well-known among both kids and adults.
You look around your everyday surroundings, find a “T” anywhere you can, shout “T!”, spread your arms to make a T shape, and march in place while singing.
If you look, you’ll find T’s everywhere—even hidden in your coworkers’ clothing and gestures.
Hey hey, doctor
Let’s try “Hey Hey Doctor,” the bit by Shunshun Clinic P, who’s both a physician and a comedian! Even non-doctors can get it—it’s a collection of “doctor-life clichés” that will make you chuckle, all performed to a snappy melody with dance moves.
You could perfectly copy his doctor jokes, but how about giving it a twist with some in-house humor—do a “company-life clichés” version instead?
Impressions that are too subtle for anyone to get
A variety-show-style act that imitates things that are barely known or borderline obscure—like tiny everyday happenings, someone’s quirky habits, or minor sound effects.
For example, an impression of Hiromitsu Ochiai in his playing days hitting a perfect timely shot to left-center on a 2-strike, 1-ball count, or the launch sound of the only operating roller coaster at a nearly defunct rural amusement park.
In short, it’s a full-throttle, dead-serious, faithful recreation of things so minute that you might not even recognize the original.
Because the subjects are so hyper-specific, whether it resembles the original isn’t the point—the earnestness is what gets appreciated.
And even if the audience doesn’t react, you can always claim they just don’t know the original, which is easier on the psyche.
Recommended for those with a craftsman’s mindset.
Bubble Dance
In 2017, the dance club of Osaka Prefectural Tsubomioka High School performed the “Bubble Dance” to Yoko Oginome’s ‘Dancing Hero.’ It sparked a huge movement through video sites and social media.
If you have a large number of participants for your entertainment segment, definitely give it a try! The song has a great groove, so it’s sure to excite the crowd regardless of how skilled the dancers are.
Rather than obsessing over details, it’s best to dance boldly and energetically without feeling shy—turn up the energy and go for it.
Picture shiritori
Literally, you play shiritori with pictures instead of words. To keep the second player from having an advantage, either make it so only the first player knows which letter it starts with, or have the second player wear earplugs so they can’t hear at the start. It’s a game you can enjoy right up to the final answer reveal.
How to Play
- The first person draws a picture.
- The next person looks at the picture and draws something that starts with the final letter.
Repeat this in order.
End of the game
Pattern 1: Just like regular shiritori, if you draw a picture of a word that ends with “n,” the game ends. The person who drew that picture loses. Pattern 2: If the next person misinterprets the drawing and draws something that starts with a different initial letter, they also lose and the game ends. It’s nice that you can enjoy it regardless of the quality of the drawings.
Love Dance
The Koi Dance became a social phenomenon when the drama aired.
In the drama ‘We Married as a Job’ (Nigeru wa Haji da ga Yaku ni Tatsu), the cast danced to Gen Hoshino’s theme song ‘Koi’ during the ending.
It was frequently featured on TV, and practically everyone knows it, so it’s guaranteed to get the crowd excited!
wotagei
Wotagei is a performance that idol fans dedicate to idols at concerts and live shows.
Seeing your usually serious boss or coworkers swinging glow sticks without minding the sweat can look comical to some and rather stylish to others.
Especially when performed crisply by a group, it’s very beautiful—one could even say it approaches the realm of art.
Heart-Pounding New Year’s Gift Exchange
Prepare numbered tickets that correspond to the prizes you can get inside the New Year’s money envelopes, along with a description of the performance participants must do to win that prize.
Then hand out the envelopes to everyone, have them open them in turn, and let them perform! If you’re short on time, prepare plenty of “lucky” envelopes that allow people to receive a prize without performing.
Kanji of the Year
Prepare an enormous sheet of paper and an oversized brush, then swing the brush boldly with a spirited shout of “Eiya!” At a year-end party, write a single, definitive character that will get everyone excited—just like the annual “Kanji of the Year.” For a New Year’s gathering, it’s kakizome, the first calligraphy of the year.
It’s best to choose auspicious, uplifting words such as “mubyō sokusai” (good health and safety).