[Craft] Handmade Ideas for The Game of Life [DIY]
Becoming ridiculously wealthy, getting hit by unbelievable misfortune, and riding the emotional rollercoaster of each dice roll—that’s the Game of Life.
Some of you have probably played it with friends or with family over New Year’s.
What’s fun is being able to simulate a life you could never imagine for yourself right now.
In this article, I’ve put together some ideas for making your own Game of Life!
It’s not just about playing—it’s about enjoying the fun of creating, too.
Perfect for spending time at home!
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[Craft] Handmade Ideas for The Game of Life [DIY]
Otaku Life Game
The “Otaku Life Game,” reportedly devised by a former idol, is a Life board game themed around fans who devote themselves (and their money) to their favorite idols or voice actors.
In a normal Life game, the winner is the person who reaches the goal with the most money or assets.
But in this Otaku Life Game, the winner is the person who has poured the most into their oshi—that is, the one with the smallest amount of money left or even the biggest debt.
Let’s come up with and create event spaces that fellow otaku can truly relate to!
Life Experience Story Game
This is a sugoroku-style game that progresses based on experiences from your life—called the Life Experience Game.
First, each player writes major events from their life or amusing, shareable anecdotes on sticky notes.
Next, the players arrange all the sticky notes in order; these become the spaces used on the game board.
To play, you spin a roulette, move your piece, and when you land on a space, the person who wrote that episode introduces it.
It’s a game that lets you learn about each other’s unknown stories—big incidents, turning points in life, and funny episodes from the past.
Boys Planet Life Game
This is a Game of Life themed around the Korean audition program “BOYS PLANET,” which produced ZEROBASEONE.
Players join the game as aspiring idols participating in the audition, and aim for the ultimate goal of debuting by going through tests, battles, and missions.
In the end, what you compete for isn’t money, but the number of fans.
Beyond “BOYS PLANET,” it sounds fun to create Game of Life versions themed around other audition programs too!
Pachinko Writer Life Game
The Pachinko Writer Life Game created by Sayaka, a pachinko writer, was even featured in a magazine.
In the game, players become pachinko writers and aim to reach the goal from the start.
There are tons of realistically conceived event spaces from a pachinko writer’s perspective—like deciding which magazine you’ll belong to, buying the computer you need as a writer, winning at pachinko, and more.
Be sure to use the original Pachinko Writer Life Game as a reference and come up with your own variety of events!
YouTuber Life Game
Here’s an idea to create a Game of Life themed around being a YouTuber.
Use construction paper or a sketchbook to draw the spaces from start to goal, and fill each space with YouTuber-style events.
For example: “Hit 10,000 subscribers,” “Channel gets banned,” “Get canceled over a prank video,” and so on—it’s fun to brainstorm lots of possibilities! Also, in the regular Game of Life you choose a profession, but in the YouTuber Life Game, it would be great to decide what kind of YouTuber you are—like a product-review YouTuber, a gaming YouTuber, or a prank/controversial YouTuber—and proceed with the game based on that.
In conclusion
I think many of the ideas incorporated things you love—like anime and idols—as motifs.
When making that kind of Game of Life, I recommend doing it with people who share your interests! While you’re creating it, the conversations will blossom, and that in itself becomes a fun time.
I hope you create a Game of Life that becomes a lasting memory!