Tired of Beer Pong? So Are We

Conversation has run out, glasses are full up… we’ve all been at a pre-drinks that totally sucks. 

If you decide to take matters into your own hands by announcing a drinking game to get the vibe going, chances are you’ll be met by a party pooper or two who think that games are for children (if you’re that person, you should try loosening up).

A sure-fire way to win over the haters is to present them with an offer they can’t refuse: the elusive, unknown drinking game that oozes maturity and mystery – unlike the games you’ve been playing since you were fifteen and stealing alcohol from your parent’s liquor cabinet. 

We’ve got you covered. This list of four quirky drinking games promises to make you the life and soul of the party in no time. 

(And no, we’re not talking about ‘beer pong’.)

1. Saboteur

The premise of this one is pretty simple: everyone gets a secret challenge to perform over the course of the evening. If they fail to do it, the group decides on a forfeit for them, which is probably going to be something drink-related.

It requires a bit of admin from the host, namely writing a load of weird and wonderful tasks on scraps of paper to assign to each guest on arrival. But the effort is worth the reward – watching your mates embark on an evening of slightly weird (but not weird enough to be 100% sure it’s not just their normal self) behaviour is top notch entertainment, especially if you figure out their challenge but refuse to call them out on it to prolong their embarrassment.

If your challenge gets found out, you also forfeit. Simple, huh?

Not quite. Don’t be too quick to guess – the game livens up when people act weirdly to fool others into thinking whatever they’re doing is the challenge on their card. If you guess someone’s challenge incorrectly, that’s a forfeit for you. 

Shots anyone?

2. Profile Patrol

Again, this requires prep but it’s worth every second, trust us. 

Again, this requires prep but it’s worth every second, trust us. 

In advance of your night out, assign one person the role of ‘profile patroller’. Their job is to go on everyone in the group’s newsfeeds – be that Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram – and find a series of old posts that are the perfect mix of humiliating and hilarious. Kind of evil, right?

When everyone’s arrived and the drinks are flowing, the profile patroller will present the group with a bowl full of the old newsfeed posts. The group then takes it in turns selecting the cringey quote of their choice.

When they’ve chosen their victim, the person whose turn it is will read out the contents of their piece of paper so the group can try to guess the author. 

If you hear something that sounds suspiciously like 2012 you, don’t let on, whatever you do. If the person guessing gets it wrong, it’s a forfeit for them. If they figure you out, you’re the one taking a drink (with a hefty dose of cringe).

3. Straight Face

This one requires a pen and paper but no prep, making it perfect for whipping out spontaneously. It works best when everyone’s a few drinks in, so wait until people are starting to feel it before you make the move. 

It’s not difficult to get your head around, tipsy or not: the group is assigned into pairs, who have five minutes to go away and write down a series of sentences that are guaranteed to make their partner crack up laughing..  

After writing time is up, everyone gathers in a group and goes round, pair by pair, taking it in turns to read out a funny sentence to their partner, who sits opposite them with their mouth filled with drink.

As gross as it might sound, you want to make your partner laugh and spit their drink all over you.

Don’t worry, if you sit far away enough, you probably won’t get soaked. 

If you fail to make them laugh then you have to do a drink-related forfeit. So go hard or go home. If you pair up with a mate who you know like the back of your hand, outrageous secrets should be flowing in no time.

4. Drunk Jenga

This is a great ice-breaker if you have a group who don’t know each other well.

Again, it requires some prep, but don’t be put off by that – if you’re a creative type with an hour or so on your hands, you can make yourself some 10/10 entertainment that will last for a lifetime (or at least until you grow out of it). 

Grab an ordinary jenga set (you can buy these second-hand on eBay for a fraction of the price), and with some permanent markers, doodle challenges and drinking dares on as many of the blocks as you see fit.

Make them as tame or outrageous as you think your guests will enjoy. When you take it in turns to pull out the blocks, whatever is written down is the forfeit the player has to do. If they make a mess of things and topple the tower then they get the ultimate forfeit: downing the ‘king cult’ – a hideous concoction of as much or as little of everyone in the group’s drink of choice. 

There you have it, four quirky drinking games that are a bit more off-piste than beer pong or flip cup.

Go wild, these games are as crazy as you want to make them. Or don’t, and get the trusty set of cards out again if you fancy. Whatever floats your boat.