Party Games That Spice Up Your House Drinks Night
A house party where everyone gets together to drink at a friend’s place.
You gather with close friends, catching up on recent events, sharing happy and sad stories, venting about this and that—the conversation never seems to end, right?
But sometimes, it suddenly feels like time has stopped…
At times like that, how about playing a quick game to change up the mood?
In this article, we’ll introduce some lively games that are perfect for house parties.
They’re all games that are fun and exciting even with a small group, so give them a try!
Top 10 Party Games to Liven Up Your At-Home Drinking Session
Majority Game
The Majority Game, which has even been released as a card game.
It’s a game where you see whether your answer is in the majority or the minority; if your answer is in the majority, that’s the “majority” and it’s considered correct.
There’s also a similar game called the “Ultimate Choice Game.” Since this is for a home drinking party, it might be fun for each person to come up with spontaneous questions like “What’s your favorite onigiri filling?” or “Which baseball team do you root for?” If the group is small, you could even keep going until everyone’s answers match.
Mansion Game
The Mansion Game starts with the chant, “Mansion Game, Mansion Game, Man, sion, Game!” Players sit side by side or in a circle and assign room numbers: 101 to one person, 102 to the next, and so on.
Then someone calls out something like “From 101 to 104,” naming another player’s room number.
The named person must immediately continue, for example, “From 104 to 102,” and the chain goes on.
Anyone who makes a mistake moves up to the next floor, and the room numbers change to 201, 202, etc.
As it goes on longer, the shifting room numbers cause confusion, making it a tricky rhythm game.
Pin Pon Pan Game
This “Ping-Pong-Pan Game” turns a comedy routine by the duo JaruJaru from the 2017 M-1 Grand Prix into a game as-is.
It’s based on the familiar school PA chime melody, “ping-pon-pan-pooon.” In the game, the melody sometimes has more or fewer notes than the normal chime—like “ping-pon-pan-poon-peeeen,” “ping-pon,” “ping-pon-pan,” or just “peeeen”—and you have to deliver a fitting retort to match it.
It’s a game that tests your quick wit and reflexes as you distinguish the chime pattern and fire off the correct comeback.
First Impressions Game
A first-impressions game where everyone answers at the same time to the question “Who here is the most ◯◯?” The person who gets the most votes is considered to match that impression, based on their appearance and personality.
You can come up with questions on the spot in turn.
You can write names on paper and reveal them all at once, or everyone can point to their choice.
Let’s ask fun prompts like “Who seems like a mama’s boy?”, “Who looks most likely to be popular?”, or “Who seems well-brought-up?” It’s a communication game you can enjoy even with people you’ve just met or don’t know well.
UNONEW!
Let me introduce the classic and popular card game UNO.
Shuffle the cards well and deal seven cards to each player.
Place the remaining cards in the center as the draw pile.
Then flip over the top card to start the discard pile.
Players take turns playing cards from their hands, and the first player to play all their cards wins.
You can play a card if it matches the number, color, or symbol.
If you can’t play, draw from the pile to add to your hand.
Bottle flipNEW!
Fill an empty plastic bottle with an appropriate amount of water and close the cap.
Throw it by hand, make it do a full rotation in midair, and if it lands neatly, you’ve succeeded at the “bottle flip” challenge.
If you make it a team competition, a good rule is that the team that gets everyone to succeed consecutively the fastest wins.
Consecutive attempts can be quite tense, but the joy when you succeed is exceptional.
Even teammates meeting for the first time will feel like high-fiving.
It’s a recommended game when you have some time to spare.
Kaki no Tane Mountain CollapseNEW!
Arrange some Kaki no Tane (spicy rice crackers) on a plate and stand a single chopstick upright in the center.
When it’s your turn, eat one piece of Kaki no Tane.
Repeat this, and whoever knocks over the chopstick loses.
You can safely eat from the outer edge, or you can raise the tension by eating pieces closer to the center.
If you’re okay with spicy flavors, the rules are simple—just eat! It’s a relaxing game to play while snacking, and it’s likely to spark fun conversation.