There may be music, conversation, lights and a whole host of other things to jazz up a gathering. But there’s something sweetly old-fashioned about a drinking game. You don’t need any fancy props or expensive gadgets—just booze, partners and a will to compete. Drinking games are the best ways to kill time and build an atmosphere at your party or any gathering-big or small. But just in case you haven’t given them a shot yet, here The Week brings to you a few of the best that will help you get things started.
For when you want to test your wit under the -uh- influence
The Name Game
The Name Game can be played anywhere at any time. It requires no props, just alcohol and basic spelling ability.
Someone begins the game by saying the first and last name of someone famous. The next person says the name of a famous person whose name begins with the first letter of the last name of the previous famous person.
This is how it goes. For example: if someone says “Donald Trump”, the next player could say “Priyanka Chopra.” The following player could say “Adele.”
The drinking happens when a player can’t immediately rattle off a name. Let’s give them five seconds. You can either pass on the challenge to the next person or make the player continue to drink until he comes up with a name. Trust us, it’s trickier than it sounds.
Ping Pong Pang
Start in a circle with one person saying “ping” then, going clockwise, the person to their left must say “pong.” Then, the next person says “pang” but after this third turn, the one who said pang can point to any random person in the circle, who must then say “ping,” and so on it goes. If somebody screws up, they drink. Needless to say, the challenge becomes trickier as the number of drinks adds on.
Model Alexandra Rodriguez heats up Miami as she displays her si...
Buzz
This is a simple game, but you do need to pay attention. Basic elementary school level math skills are required.
Each player takes a turn counting. First player says “one,” next “two” and so on. Whenever a player says a number divisible by five, that player must say “buzz” instead of the number. So it goes, 1,2,3,4,buzz,6,7,8,9,buzz.
If that player does not say “buzz,” she drinks. If a player mistakenly says “buzz,” she drinks. The challenge is to see how high a number the game will reach. Urban legend says one group once reached 1200.
For when you want to play a game of chance
‘F’ the Dealer
‘F’ the dealer is another card-based game that begins with a player holding the deck and asking the person to their left what the top card in the deck is. If the guess is wrong, the dealer then says higher or lower and the player guesses again. If the second guess is wrong as well than we have a penalty.
The guesser must drink the difference between the card they guessed and the card they drew. Thus it might be more convenient (merciful) to use shots for this game. If the guess is correct though, it’s the dealer who has to take the shot. After three rounds without a correct guess, the dealer passes the deck to the person to their left and the game begins again.
Flip, Sip or Strip
For this game, you will need a coin and willingness to take a risk. Flip, Sip or Strip definitely ups the ante and the stakes for any player.
Each player takes turns flipping a coin and calling heads or tails in the air. If you guess correctly, pass the coin to your right. If you guess wrong, you must pass the coin to your left and either remove one article of clothing or take a shot.
Already thinking that you can get away with just drinking instead of stripping down to your skivvies? Well, not so fast because there is this one rule: choosing the same option two times in a row is not allowed.
Russian Beer Roulette
We have all heard of beer pong, but that’s obviously not the only game you can play with the drink. Imagine a nice summer afternoon when you have a decent number of folks gathered around at your house, Russian Beer Roulette might be just the thing to get the party going.
It’s a thrilling, though admittedly a messy game so you might want to take it outside. Players gather cans of beer on a table. One player takes a beer and shakes it vigorously.
Then the beers are shuffled until no one knows which one is the shaken one. The beer cans are all passed down and around the group. You can either put on a timer or even play some music (like in the musical chair). When the music stops, everybody must open his/her beer can at the same time. The loser not only gets sprayed with beer but also has to down a pint or two.
For when the point of the gathering is simple: get a good buzz
Dirty Pint
Everyone puts some of his/her drink into a communal pint glass. Flip a coin and call it. If you’re wrong, down the dirty pint. This game is a lot more fun when you are having cocktails. The dirty pint tends to taste a lot more interesting then. You might also want to practice your coin flipping skills.
Roxanne
This game can actually be played with any song but The Police’s Roxanne is the classic. Simply listen to Roxanne and make a pact with your friends to drink every time you hear the word during the three minutes 13 seconds of that single. Again, the rules of the game can be applied to any song.
