New Year party games that get everyone excited: a fun collection of ideas from classics to DIY

Hanafuda

[Hanafuda Game Introduction] Here's how to play Hana-awase. A traditional Japanese game we’re proud of. Enjoy timeless, thrilling strategy across the ages. Watch this video to learn how to play Hana-awase and start playing right away!

Hanafuda, a type of karuta unique to Japan.

Using a set of 48 cards adorned with seasonal flowers, you can enjoy various ways to play.

The most common are Koi-Koi for two players and Hana-awase for three players.

Compared to karuta or playing cards, it’s a bit more complex and has many rules to learn, so New Year’s—when you can spend relaxed time with family—is the perfect chance to teach your children or grandchildren how to play! Why not enjoy this traditional Japanese game while relaxing in a warm room?

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yuri

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beanbags

How to juggle three beanbags

Juggling beanbags, often seen in street performances, were once made by sewing fabric and filling them with adzuki or soybeans.

Because children would naturally sit in seiza and maintain good posture while playing, the game was traditionally passed down from grandmothers to granddaughters as a pastime that naturally taught both sewing skills and etiquette.

Ponkotsu Paint with Everyone

[Board Game Review] “Everyone’s Ponkotsu Paint” – A drawing game where you communicate using only straight lines and perfect circles

Recommended for people who love drawing! Let me introduce a New Year’s party board game called “PonKotsu Paint for Everyone.” The rules are very simple: you draw a picture based on a prompt, and everyone guesses what it is.

There’s a rule that you can only use circles and straight lines to draw.

You’re not allowed to use ovals or curves.

You also can’t watch others while they’re drawing, so wait until everyone is finished.

The player who used the fewest total lines shows their drawing to the guessers first, so figuring out how to draw with as few lines as possible is part of the strategy.

Give it a try over the New Year holidays!

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kepiko

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menko (a traditional Japanese card-and-coin-flipping game)

menko (a traditional Japanese card-and-coin-flipping game)

It’s a simple game where you slap one menko down onto those lined up on the ground, and if you flip one over, you win.

You don’t see it much these days, but trying it again after a long time might feel fresh and fun, don’t you think? Back in the day, many menko featured figures admired by boys—baseball players, sumo wrestlers, and movie stars—and now there are people who collect them as a hobby.

kite flying

New Year’s fun! Great for indoors too ♪ Instant kite-flying

Kite flying is a pastime that dates back to the Edo period and has spread not only as a New Year’s activity but also as a sport, such as with sport kites.

There are various theories as to why it became firmly associated with New Year’s play, but it seems to carry a meaning well-suited to the start of the year: sending one’s wishes up to the heavens.

Sugoroku

New Year! NIJISANJI Sugoroku Tournament

Sugoroku is one of the New Year’s games that has long been loved in Japan.

It is said to have become established as a New Year’s pastime because, in the Edo period, it was used as a test of luck to decide who would get ahead in that year.

The rules are simple and easy to understand—you just roll the dice and move your piece the number of spaces shown—so it’s appealing because everyone from adults to children can enjoy it together.

Another highlight of sugoroku is that you can write whatever instructions you like in the squares and have fun with them.

Try making your own family-original sugoroku and enjoy it together!

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yuri

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Battledore and shuttlecock

[New Year] A serious battledore-and-shuttlecock showdown with hagoita! [Hilarious] Play Battledore

Hanetsuki is a game played using hagoita paddles—it’s like a Japanese-style badminton.

The shuttlecock used in hanetsuki traditionally contains the seed of a plant called mukuroji (soapberry).

Because the kanji for mukuroji literally mean “a child does not fall ill,” there is a folk belief that it brings good health and wards off misfortune.

It’s considered an auspicious game, perfect for the New Year.