[Simple Games] Recommended Indoor Recreational Activities for Adults
When a large group gathers indoors and you think, “Let’s do something fun!”, do you ever find yourselves surprisingly stuck for ideas? In this article, we introduce simple games that are perfect for getting everyone excited, including team battles and cooperative play.
From games that require almost no props to ones you can play easily with everyday items, we’ve gathered activities ideal for indoor recreation.
Games that you progress through by cooperating naturally spark conversation and deepen relationships! There are also slightly brain-teasing games that adults will especially enjoy, so be sure to give them a try together.
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Team-based and Co-op Games (41–50)
Eigo-dake
Let me introduce Eigodarke, a card game that gets lively as you communicate.
The questioner draws one card from the deck and explains the Japanese word on the card using only English.
Be careful of the NG (forbidden) words while you explain.
The people answering may ask questions.
Even if you’re not confident in English, the key is to string together words to get your meaning across.
When someone gets the answer right, both the questioner and the correct guesser earn 1 point.
The first person to reach 5 points wins! It’s a fun game that will make the questioner want to slip into Japanese without thinking.
Imitation shiritori
Participants face each other and stand on one leg.
Decide the order with rock-paper-scissors or similar, and the first person starts the word chain game (shiritori).
The basic rule of linking words stays the same, but after saying a word, you have to do an impression that matches it.
For example, if you say “gorilla,” you might pound your chest with your fists.
Everyone else copies the impression, and the shiritori continues.
It might sound easy, but you must stay on one leg the entire time.
If you lose your balance or can’t continue the word chain, you lose.
Improv Acting Showdown
Decide on three elements—the setup, the punchline, and the constraint rules—tell the performers, and start the game! Since it’s all improvised, you can’t practice beforehand or agree on the flow with the group.
In other words, it’s a pretty challenging game where you have to reach the punchline while sticking to the setup and constraints, all without knowing how the others will play it.
Even the person who came up with the setup and punchline doesn’t know how things will unfold, so it’s a thrilling, exciting experience! Who knows—an unexpected masterpiece might be born!
late hand in rock-paper-scissors
A normal rock-paper-scissors game is too easy! In that case, try playing “after-the-fact rock-paper-scissors.” The leader plays as usual by saying “Jan-ken-pon” and showing rock, paper, or scissors.
The participants must then respond after seeing it and beat that hand.
Because you have to instantly recognize what the leader showed and choose the winning hand, it’s trickier than it sounds.
A few people will slip up and lose or end in a tie.
Try turning it into a knockout format or speeding it up to increase the difficulty and have fun!
Lip-sync song guessing game
The lip-sync song guessing game is something even people who love listening to music but aren’t confident singing can enjoy, and it works well at workplaces or schools.
The presenter picks a song, then lip-syncs it—paying close attention to intonation and rhythm—without making any sound.
The guessers carefully watch the presenter’s mouth and facial expressions to figure out what song it is.
At first, it’s best to choose familiar songs that everyone knows.
Once everyone gets the hang of it, you can make the game more exciting by shortening the sung sections or speeding up the delivery.
Beef Tongue Game
The brain-teasing Gyutan game is perfect for group play, where focus and memory are key.
Players sit in a circle and say “Gyu” out loud, then on the “tan” part, they clap without speaking.
Pay extra attention because the final “tan” comes in succession.
After one round, move to the second, third, and so on, increasing the number of final “tan” claps by one each time.
As the rounds progress, the number of “tan” claps increases, so remember the count and try not to make mistakes.
Once you get used to it, picking up the tempo can make it even more exciting.
Clapping game in turns
Introducing a simple team game where rhythm, focus, and coordination are key: the “Clap-in-Order Game.” Participants form a circle and, starting from the first person, each claps once in sequence.
You can time how long it takes until the last member claps and enjoy competing against other teams, but the essence of this game is not just speed.
To keep the rhythm of the claps flowing, it’s important to attune your breathing and sense your teammates’ movements.
Even within the competitive aspect, it’s packed with elements that enhance teamwork, making it ideal for team building.
It requires no equipment, is easy for anyone to enjoy, and offers surprising depth as a recreational activity.
Supersonic Diner
Let me introduce Sonicspeed Diner, a game where speed decides the winner.
This is a card game themed around Chinese cuisine.
Using ingredient cards, stack them onto the box placed in the center to complete the names of Chinese dishes.
There’s no turn order—anyone who can play a card plays it right away.
Keep a steady rhythm by saying the words on the cards as you lay them down to complete the dishes.
The first player to run out of cards wins.
It’s a game that can liven up even short breaks.
Tongue Twister Showdown
When it comes to games that get everyone excited without using any props, tongue-twister battles are a classic.
Gather a variety of fun tongue twisters and face off.
You can present one prompt at a time and decide rankings each round, or set multiple prompts with different difficulty levels and see who lasts the longest.
It’s a good idea to write the prompts on a whiteboard.
Since tongue twisters are tough at first glance, consider adding practice time and other tweaks so everyone can enjoy the game.
Lateral thinking quiz game: Umigame no Soup
A lateral thinking quiz game where you brainstorm freely from the quiz prompt to arrive at the answer.
In ordinary quizzes, you often derive answers based on common sense, preconceptions, or established notions.
In a lateral thinking quiz game, the solver asks questions about the presented problem.
The quizmaster responds using only three options: “Yes,” “No,” or “Irrelevant.” Using the questions and these three types of replies, you deduce the answer.
The solver must think carefully about what to ask.
Another characteristic is that the answers are often things you can’t infer directly from the problem statement.
Come up with various ideas and solutions to figure out the answer.
