Kill time while waiting or stuck in traffic! A roundup of games four people can play
Want to make the most of your waiting time or downtime? That’s the perfect moment to start a party game that four people can enjoy together! You don’t need any special equipment, and you can jump right in—these games are more thrilling and suspenseful than you’d expect, and they’re sure to bring out smiles.
The ways to have fun are endless, and with a bit of creativity, every game becomes exciting.
Spend a joy-filled time with family and friends!
- Games you can play in the car! Fun activities to liven up drives and traffic jams
- Games and activities everyone can enjoy together. A collection of fun play ideas.
- Brain-teasing game roundup
- [Simple Games] Recommended Indoor Recreational Activities for Adults
- Perfect for killing time! A roundup of games for three people to enjoy
- [For University Students] A Roundup of Fun Games and Recreational Activities
- Exciting! Multiplayer games everyone can play. Time-killing app games
- [Play Right Away!] Exciting Recreation Games Recommended for Elementary School Students
- [For Adults] Fun recreational games. Perfect for short breaks too!
- Fun activities for junior high school students. Recreation games.
- Recommended games and activities for five people
- Recommended for upper elementary grades! Exciting indoor recreation and games
- A collection of personality quizzes perfect for killing time
Simple party games without tools (1–10)
Arithmetic game with both hands
This is a game where you show the answer to a given equation using both hands.
For example, if someone says “What’s 5 + 1?”, you make 6 with your fingers.
You can raise three fingers on each hand, or five on one hand and one on the other—either is fine.
You’re free to choose, but syncing the answer that pops into your head with your hands is trickier than it seems.
That’s exactly why it gets exciting.
The rules are simple, so it’s great for kids to practice arithmetic.
The person giving the problems should come up with equations whose answers are 10 or less!
Finger Smash
A great game to kill time: “Yubi-suma” (Finger Guess).
Many of you may have played it back in school.
You don’t need any equipment and the rules are simple, so anyone can jump right in.
First, make a fist with both hands and press your knuckles together.
Decide the order, and starting with player 1, call “Yubi-suma” and then say a number.
At that moment, all players either raise their thumb(s) or keep them down.
You can raise just one thumb, both, or none.
If the number called matches the total number of thumbs raised, the caller puts one hand down.
The first player to put both hands down wins! Give it a try.
The “whoever says 30 loses” game
A simple game you can play to kill time with nothing on hand: the “Lose if you say 30” game.
Each player can count up to three numbers on their turn, and the person who says 30 loses.
If you’ve never played it, it probably sounds very easy, but once you try it, you’ll see it’s an interesting game that requires strategy and calculation!
Simple party games without equipment (11–20)
Personality test
A classic way to kill time, yet a chance to objectively see sides of yourself you didn’t know about: personality quizzes.
There are plenty of them in books and online, so pick one that fits the occasion and have fun! You might discover a different side of yourself than usual.
Question game
This is a question game where one person answers and the other three take turns asking questions.
You think of a person, and the others ask yes-or-no questions about that person to guess who you’re thinking of.
It’s quite a fun game, but you have to use your head to ask good questions, so it’s surprisingly deep.
after-the-fact rock-paper-scissors
Post-hoc rock-paper-scissors: normally this is a forbidden way to play, but in this game it’s actually allowed! However, you must lose.
With the chant “Jan-ken pon, pon,” on the second “pon,” throw a hand that loses to the first hand.
It’s surprisingly tricky, especially if you speed up the tempo, making it a great brain-training game!
Rhythm 4
This is a signature game that used to be played on the popular variety show Gakkō e Ikō! Some people may also know it as Rhythm 4 or Minori-ka Rhythm 4.
The game starts with the phrase, “To the rhythm starting from XX.” The first player says another player’s name and a number from 1 to 4, and the chosen player then says their own name the specified number of times.
This repeats in turn.
However, you also have to perform hand choreography to a four-beat rhythm.
The rules are simple, but speaking while keeping the rhythm and doing the moves is surprisingly tricky—and it really gets everyone excited once you try it! Since it requires no props or prior preparation, feel free to give it a go anytime.
