[For University Students] A Roundup of Fun Games and Recreational Activities
We’re introducing recommended games and recreational activities for college students!
We’ve gathered a variety of options—from exciting activities perfect for club or seminar retreats and welcome/farewell parties, to simple games for small groups, and large-scale recreation suited for spacious venues like school grounds.
There are plenty of activities you can enjoy indoors too, so no need to worry about the weather on the day!
These can be used across many event scenarios, so feel free to use them as a reference.
Let’s play some classic recreational activities and trending games, and have a great time together!
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[For University Students] A Collection of Exciting Games and Recreational Activities (11–20)
Picture shiritori
It’s a game of picture shiritori that really puts your drawing skills to the test.
You draw a picture, show it to the next person, then they draw a picture that continues the shiritori chain from what they think your picture represents, and pass it on—repeating this process.
Of course, you must not explain anything with words.
You have to convey what you drew using only the picture so the next person can understand it and continue the chain.
Perfect Match Game
This is the “Nanto Pittari Game,” where you play by asking questions to get as close as possible to a target number.
Choose one person from the opposing team and ask a question related to numbers.
Add their answer to your team’s total, and the team that gets closer to the target number wins.
However, if you exceed the target number, you’re out.
The larger the target number, the harder the questions become.
Up-Down-Left-Right Game
A game where people split into readers and challengers: whenever the characters for “up, down, left, right” appear in the text, the challenger must turn to that direction.
Sounds easy, right? Don’t underestimate it.
You’re not actually looking at the characters, which makes it surprisingly hard.
Of course, '上下左右' can appear as place names or in both on'yomi and kun'yomi readings.
Can you face the correct direction every time?
Introducing someone else
In settings where many people are meeting for the first time, this “introducing others” activity is highly recommended.
Unlike self-introductions where you talk about yourself, here you introduce someone else to everyone.
The method is: first, pair up, and ask each other about your profiles—hometowns, hobbies, and so on.
Then, present what you learned to the rest of the group as if giving a short presentation.
Since you’ll be talking during the preparation stage, communication happens naturally, and because you’re introduced more objectively than in a self-introduction, others can present you to the group in a more appealing way.
Signaling Game
Do you know the “Traffic Signal Game”? To put it simply, it’s a word game where you quickly answer with something that matches the color that’s called out.
For example, if the caller says “red, green, yellow,” you might respond rhythmically with “apple, spinach, banana.” It’s okay if colors or answers repeat.
It’s also fun to tweak the rules as you play—like adding “no repeating the same item in a row” or limiting it to categories such as “foods.”
One-minute self-introduction
It’s a game where you practice how to structure a self-introduction in a short amount of time and how to deliver it to the other person.
By efficiently organizing your self-promotion, it can serve as a benchmark for your pitch and be useful in the future for things like interview preparation.
Through repetition, you can improve your technique—for example, learning which words to choose so your persona and strengths are clearly conveyed.
You can even make it more fun as a game by specifying in advance the items you won’t include in your self-promotion—such as weaknesses or embarrassing stories—and having players create texts that incorporate those constraints.
[For University Students] A Collection of Exciting Games and Recreational Activities (21–30)
Spy Tag
Heart-pounding excitement! Let’s play “Spy Tag”! It’s best to play inside a building that’s a bit larger than usual compared to regular tag.
And unlike ordinary tag, the real thrill comes from the presence of a spy.
The spy’s job is to secretly tell the tagger where everyone is hiding.
No one knows who the spy—chosen by drawing lots—actually is.