Games to Play When Bored

One real-life game at a time, with its steps: for you alone, two of you or a group.

Games to Play When Bored

  1. The One-Letter Menu1. Choose a letter. 2. Plan a whole meal in which every dish and drink starts with it: pasta, peas, pears and pineapple juice. 3. You need a main dish, two sides, a dessert and a drink. 4. Then try a letter that sounds impossible, such as K or V. Players: 1. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
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How it works

These games to play when you're bored need no download and almost nothing to hand: your head, a pen and paper, a deck of cards or a few dice. Each press picks one game and shows its steps.

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Games to play when bored at home, in a car or outside

After the first press, a box under the button sorts the list by who is here: Just me, Two of us or Three or more. Its last entry, More filters, adds what is to hand (Nothing at all, Pen and paper, A deck of cards, Dice), the minutes you have, and the place. Every game works at home, and In a car or a waiting room or Outside keeps the ones that travel.

Or read the whole list

All the games are printed under the tool in five groups, from Alone and in your head to Get up and move, each with its players, time and props.

Tips
  • A deck of cards, three dice, a pen and paper cover nearly all of the card and dice group.

Questions and answers

Are these online games?

No. Every game here is played in real life: in your head, on paper, with cards or dice, by talking or by moving around. Nothing is downloaded and nothing runs in a browser.

How do I get random games to play when bored?

Press the button. Each press picks one game at random from the list and shows its steps, players, minutes and props. Press again if that one does not suit.

What are good games to play with friends when bored?

Three Things, One Link; Count to Twenty, Nobody Leads; and A Tale in Ten Words, Name the Story need nothing but the group. With a deck of cards, try Sevens: Build the Four Rows or Draft From the Table, Longest Run Wins.

Which games to play without technology need nothing at all?

Choose Nothing at all under More filters. That keeps the games with no props of any kind: most of those to play alone, such as Backward From 100 by Sevens, most talking games and a few that get you moving.

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All 100 games

Alone and in your head 20

  • Add the Digits Down to One 1. Find any long number: a phone number, a serial number on a box, a house number. 2. Add its digits together. If the answer has two digits, add those too. 3. Keep going until a single digit is left. 4. Race yourself: three numbers in under a minute. Players: 1. Time: 4 min. Props: none.
  • Alphabet Hunt Without Leaving Your Seat 1. Look around the room for something that starts with A, then B, then C. 2. You may only use things you can see from where you sit. 3. Skip a letter only after a slow count of ten. 4. Count your skips at Z, and try to beat that number in the next room. Players: 1. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • Backward From 100 by Sevens 1. Start at 100 and subtract 7 in your head: 93, 86, 79. 2. Keep going until you pass zero. 3. If you lose your place, start again from 100. 4. Next time go down by sixes or nines, or time yourself against a clock. Players: 1. Time: 4 min. Props: none.
Show all 100 games (97 more)

Alone and in your head, continued

  • Backward Spelling Ladder, Five Letters Up 1. Pick a word of five letters and spell it backward in your head, without writing. 2. Got it? Move up to six letters, then seven. 3. Use words you can see on signs, books or boxes. 4. Your score is the longest word you spell backward without a mistake. Players: 1. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • Call It Before It Passes 1. Sit at a window, or anywhere people and cars go by. 2. Make three predictions for the next five minutes: a red car, a dog, someone in a hat. 3. Score a point for each one that comes true. 4. Make harder predictions each round, such as two bicycles in a row. Players: 1. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Clock Digits Must Total Ten 1. Read the digits of the time on any clock, such as 3:47. 2. Using each digit once, with plus, minus, times and divide, try to make exactly 10. 3. At 2:35, 2 plus 3 plus 5 works. At 3:47 nothing does, so wait for the minute to change. 4. When the minute changes you get a new puzzle. Count how many you solve in ten minutes. Players: 1. Time: 10 min. Props: a clock that shows the minutes.
  • Draw Your Home From Above, No Peeking 1. Sit where you cannot see the rest of your home. 2. Draw its floor plan from memory: every room, every door and every window. 3. Mark where the beds, the sinks and the biggest table stand. 4. Walk around with the drawing and count what you missed. Next time, draw a friend's home or your school. Players: 1. Time: 10 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Fifteen Rhymes, Counted on Your Fingers 1. Pick a short word, such as cat, light or day. 2. Find fifteen real words that rhyme with it, counting on your fingers. 3. Names do not count. 4. Stuck before fifteen? Change one letter of your word and start a new list. Players: 1. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • How Many Words Inside One Long Word 1. Find a long word on a sign or a box, such as refrigerator. 2. In your head, make smaller words from its letters: fire, rare, great. 3. A letter may be used only as often as it appears. 4. Twenty words is a strong score. A word of five letters or more counts as two. Players: 1. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • One Object, Twenty Jobs 1. Pick up one ordinary thing: a paper clip, a spoon, a sock. 2. Think of twenty things it could be used for, sensible or silly. 3. It may be any size in your imagination. 4. Tell your three best ideas to the next person who walks in. Players: 1. Time: 6 min. Props: none.
  • The One-Letter Menu 1. Choose a letter. 2. Plan a whole meal in which every dish and drink starts with it: pasta, peas, pears and pineapple juice. 3. You need a main dish, two sides, a dessert and a drink. 4. Then try a letter that sounds impossible, such as K or V. Players: 1. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • Opposite Signs 1. Read any sign, label or book title you can see. 2. In your head, replace every word you can with its opposite: "Wet Floor" becomes "Dry Ceiling". 3. Say the new sign under your breath with a straight face. 4. Collect five good ones to tell someone later. Players: 1. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • Other-Hand Five Minutes 1. For the next five minutes, do everything with the hand you do not write with. 2. Open a door, turn a page, pick up a cup, scratch your nose. 3. Every time the usual hand sneaks in, count one slip. 4. Fewer than five slips is impressive. Finish by signing your name with the other hand. Players: 1. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • Rename the Room 1. Choose ten things around you. 2. Invent a brand-new word for each, such as "flumper" for a cushion. 3. Walk your eyes around the room and say all ten new names in order. 4. Close your eyes and see how many you still remember after one minute. Players: 1. Time: 6 min. Props: none.
  • Same Backward as Forward 1. Think of words that read the same in both directions, such as noon, level and racecar. 2. Count them on your fingers. 3. Ten is good and fifteen is excellent. 4. Bonus round: a number on a clock that reads the same both ways, such as 12:21. Players: 1. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • Solo Animal Chain, Beat Your Longest Run 1. Think of an animal. The next animal must start with the last letter of that one: tiger, rabbit, turtle. 2. No animal may be used twice. 3. Count the links until you are stuck for a slow count of ten. 4. Remember your record, then try foods or towns. Players: 1. Time: 6 min. Props: none.
  • Tap Every Five Seconds, No Peeking 1. Watch a clock with a second hand and tap your knee every five seconds for half a minute to learn the beat. 2. Look away and keep tapping. 3. After twelve taps, look back. A perfect score lands exactly one minute later. 4. Count how many seconds off you were, and try again. Players: 1. Time: 4 min. Props: a clock that shows seconds.
  • Three Objects in Sight, One Invented Plot 1. Pick the first three things your eyes land on. 2. Make up a story in your head where all three matter to the plot. 3. Give it a beginning, a problem and an ending. 4. Tell it to somebody later, or pick three new things and write the sequel. Players: 1. Time: 6 min. Props: none.
  • Twenty Things, Eyes Closed 1. Study the room for one minute. 2. Close your eyes and name twenty things in it, pointing to where each one is. 3. Open your eyes and check your pointing. 4. Harder version: name them in order, going around the walls from the door. Players: 1. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • Whispered Animal Alphabet 1. Go through the alphabet and name one animal for each letter. 2. Say them under your breath so that you cannot cheat. 3. X is free: any animal with an x in it will do. 4. Count how many letters beat you, then try countries, foods or names. Players: 1. Time: 8 min. Props: none.

Two-player pencil and paper games 20

  • Achi on a Board You Draw 1. Draw a square with a cross and both diagonals through it, which gives nine points. Each player needs four small markers, such as coins of two kinds. 2. Take turns placing a marker on an empty point. 3. When all eight are down, take turns sliding one marker along a line to the empty point next to it. 4. Three of your markers in a row wins. Players: 2. Time: 6 min. Props: paper, a pen and eight small markers.
  • Blocked Squares: Last Mark Wins 1. Draw a grid of 6 by 6 squares. 2. On your turn, put your mark in any free square. 3. All the squares touching it, corners included, are now blocked for both players. Shade them lightly. 4. The last player able to place a mark wins. Players: 2. Time: 5 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Chomp: Avoid the Poisoned Square 1. Draw a rectangle of squares, 4 by 5 to start, and shade the top left square. That one is poisoned. 2. On your turn choose any square that is left. Cross it out, together with every square below it and to its right. 3. Take turns. 4. Whoever has to take the poisoned square loses. Players: 2. Time: 4 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Close the Triangle 1. Scatter twenty dots over a sheet. 2. Take turns joining two dots with a straight line that crosses no other line and passes through no dot. 3. Finish a triangle with nothing inside it and you write your initial in it and go again. 4. When no line can be added, most triangles wins. Players: 2 to 3. Time: 10 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Col, the Map-Coloring Game 1. Scribble one big shape and divide it into about fifteen regions with wavy lines. 2. Each player has a color, or one shades and the other draws stripes. 3. On your turn, fill in one empty region. It may not share an edge with a region of your own color. 4. The first player with no legal move loses. Players: 2. Time: 8 min. Props: paper and two colored pens.
  • Count to 21, Do Not Write the Last Number 1. Write 1 at the top of a sheet. 2. Take turns writing the next one, two or three numbers in order. 3. Whoever is forced to write 21 loses. 4. Play best of five, and work out which numbers you want to land on. Players: 2. Time: 4 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Domineering With Dominoes You Draw 1. Draw a grid of 6 by 6 squares. 2. One player may only cover two squares side by side. The other may only cover two squares one above the other. 3. Take turns shading one such pair of empty squares. 4. The first player who cannot fit a pair loses. Players: 2. Time: 6 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Fewest Lines Drawing Duel 1. One player secretly picks an object and says how many straight lines they need to draw it, such as "a house in nine". 2. The other may underbid: "I can draw a house in seven." 3. The lowest bidder draws with exactly that many lines. 4. If a third person, or an honest opponent, can name the drawing, the bidder scores a point. Players: 2 to 4. Time: 10 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Hidden Word Duel, Count the Shared Letters 1. Each player secretly writes down a five-letter word. 2. Take turns guessing any five-letter word. 3. The other player answers with a number: how many letters of the guess are in the secret word, in any position. 4. Keep notes and cross off letters that cannot be in it. The first to name the other word wins. Players: 2. Time: 15 min. Props: paper and two pens.
  • Join the Number Pairs, No Crossing 1. Scatter the numbers 1 to 6 over a sheet, each written twice, far apart. 2. Take turns joining a number to its twin with any winding line. 3. A line may not cross another line or pass through a number. 4. The player who joins the last pair that can be joined wins. Clever early lines wall the other player in. Players: 2. Time: 6 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Kayles: One Pin or Two Neighbors 1. Draw a row of twelve short strokes. They are the bowling pins. 2. On your turn, cross out one pin, or two pins that stand side by side. 3. Two pins with a crossed-out pin between them are no longer neighbors. 4. Whoever crosses out the last pin wins. Try a row of fifteen next. Players: 2. Time: 4 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Knight Moves, Last Jump Wins 1. Draw a grid of 5 by 5 squares and put a dot in one corner. 2. Take turns moving the dot like a chess knight: two squares one way and one square to the side. 3. Cross out every square the dot leaves. It may never land on a crossed square. 4. The player who cannot move loses. Players: 2. Time: 5 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Notakto: Both Players Draw X 1. Draw three tic-tac-toe boards side by side. 2. Take turns writing an X in any empty square of any board. 3. A board with three X in a row is dead, and nobody may play on it again. 4. The player who completes three in a row on the last live board loses. Players: 2. Time: 5 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Order and Chaos on a 6 by 6 Grid 1. Draw a grid of 6 by 6 squares. One player is Order and the other is Chaos. 2. Order goes first. On a turn, a player writes an X or an O, whichever they like, in any empty square. 3. Order wins by making five of the same letter in a row, across, down or diagonally. 4. Chaos wins if the grid fills up with no line of five. Players: 2. Time: 10 min. Props: paper and a pen.
  • Paper Soccer on Grid Paper 1. On squared paper, draw a field 8 squares wide and 10 long, with a goal two squares wide at each end. Mark the ball on the center point. 2. Take turns drawing a line from the ball to a neighboring grid point, straight or diagonal. The ball is now there. 3. You may not draw along a line that already exists, the edge of the field included. 4. If the ball lands on a point that already has a line, it bounces and you move again. Move the ball into the other goal to win. Players: 2. Time: 15 min. Props: squared paper and a pen.
  • Pencil-Flick Golf 1. Draw a golf hole across a whole sheet: a tee, a winding fairway, a pond, a green and a small cup. 2. Stand your pencil on its point at the tee, press one fingertip on the top and push until it skids, leaving a line. 3. The ball is where the line ends. A line that crosses the pond costs one extra stroke. 4. Fewest flicks into the cup wins. Draw nine holes for a full round. Players: 1 to 4. Time: 15 min. Props: paper and a pencil.
  • Racetrack: Dot Cars on Grid Paper 1. Draw a looping track a few squares wide, with a start line. Each car is a dot on the line. 2. Your first move goes to any neighboring grid point. 3. After that, repeat your last move exactly, same squares across and same squares up, to find a target point. Then choose that point or any of its eight neighbors. 4. So a car speeds up and slows down one square at a time. Leave the track and you crash. First across the line after one lap wins. Players: 2 to 4. Time: 20 min. Props: squared paper and a pen each.
  • Swap Mazes, Race to the Middle 1. Each player has three minutes to draw a maze with one way in and a star in the middle. 2. Swap sheets. 3. On go, solve the other maze with a pen line that never crosses a wall. 4. First to the star wins the race. Then judge which maze was the harder one. Players: 2 to 4. Time: 10 min. Props: paper and a pen each.
  • Ten Random Dots, One Picture 1. Each player marks ten dots anywhere on a sheet without thinking, then swaps sheets. 2. In three minutes, turn the dots you were given into one picture. 3. Every dot must be used as part of a line or a shape. 4. Show both pictures. If someone else is around, they judge, and otherwise each player names the best detail in the other drawing. Players: 2 to 4. Time: 6 min. Props: paper and a pen each.
  • Vowel or Consonant? Build the Longest Word 1. Take turns calling "vowel" or "consonant" nine times while the other writes down any letter of that kind. 2. Both players get one minute to write the longest word they can from those nine letters. 3. Each letter may be used once. 4. The longer real word scores its length. Play five rounds. Players: 2 to 4. Time: 12 min. Props: paper and a pen each.

Talking games for a group 20

  • A Tale in Ten Words, Name the Story 1. One player thinks of a story everyone in the group knows: a fairy tale, a nursery story, something read at school. 2. They retell it in exactly ten words, counting on their fingers, with no names from the story. 3. The others call out which story it is. 4. The first right answer tells the next tale. If nobody gets it, the teller may add five more words. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • The A to Z Story, a Sentence Each 1. The first player starts a story with a sentence that begins with A. 2. The next sentence must begin with B, the next with C, and so on around the group. 3. Five seconds to start your sentence, or you lose a life. 4. Reach Z together with lives to spare. X may start with "Excited" or "Exactly". Players: 2 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Backward Sentence, First to Turn It Around 1. One player thinks of a short sentence and says its words in reverse order: "lunch my ate dog the". 2. The first listener to say the sentence the right way around scores a point. 3. Start with five words and add a word each round. 4. A speaker who muddles the order hands the turn to the left. Players: 3 to 8. Time: 6 min. Props: none.
  • Count to Twenty, Nobody Leads 1. Everyone looks at the floor. 2. Anyone may say "one", then anyone "two", and so on, with no signals and no pattern. 3. If two people speak at once, the count goes back to one. 4. Reach twenty as a group. Harder: eyes closed. Players: 3 to 12. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • The Narrator Points, You Make the Noise 1. One player is the narrator and tells a story, slowly. 2. Everyone else makes the sounds: the door, the rain, the dog, the footsteps. 3. The narrator may stop at any moment and point at one person, who must add the next sound alone. 4. Change narrators after two minutes. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • One Word Changed: Say the Sentence Twice 1. One player says a sentence of about ten words, slowly, such as "The gray cat slept on the warm kitchen windowsill all morning." 2. They say it again with exactly one word changed. 3. The first listener to name both the old word and the new one scores a point. 4. The scorer speaks next. Make the sentences longer, or change two words at once. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 6 min. Props: none.
  • One-Minute Charades, Team Against the Clock 1. Split into two teams. One actor gets a thing to act out with no words and no sounds. 2. The team shouts guesses. Each right guess scores, and the actor gets a new one at once. 3. After one minute the other team plays. 4. Three rounds each, and the higher total wins. Players: 4 to 12. Time: 15 min. Props: a list of things to act.
  • Predict the Show of Hands 1. One player asks a harmless question that has a show of hands for an answer, such as "Who ate cereal today?" 2. Before any hand moves, everyone says how many hands they expect, the asker included. 3. Hands up. Count them. 4. An exact prediction scores a point. The asker changes after every question. Players: 3 or more. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • Rather This or That? Defend the Smaller Camp 1. One player asks a would you rather question with two fair choices. 2. Everyone answers at once on the count of three. 3. Anyone in the smaller camp gets ten seconds to defend the choice. 4. A player who changes sides after hearing the defense gives the speaker a point. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Rhyme Circle on the Beat 1. Everyone pats knees twice and claps once, over and over. 2. On a clap, the starter says a word, such as bee. 3. On each following clap, the next player says a word that rhymes with it. 4. Miss the beat or repeat a word and you start a new rhyme. Speed up as you improve. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 6 min. Props: none.
  • The Sentence That Grows by One Word 1. The first player says one word. 2. The next repeats it and adds a word, and so on, so that the sentence grows and still makes sense. 3. A word may go at the start, the end or the middle. 4. Forget a word or break the sentence and you are out. How long can it get? Players: 2 to 8. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • Silly Debate, a Coin Picks Your Side 1. Choose a harmless question, such as whether cereal is a soup. 2. Two players flip a coin for sides, so nobody gets to argue what they really think. 3. Each speaks for thirty seconds. 4. The listeners vote by pointing, and the winner stays on against a new challenger. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: a coin.
  • Spoken Categories Around the Circle 1. Pick a letter and a category, such as an animal, a food or something in this room. 2. Go around the circle. Each player has three seconds to say an answer that fits and starts with the letter. 3. No answer may be repeated. A player who stalls takes a strike. 4. When someone stalls, change the category and keep the letter. Three strikes and you judge the next round. Players: 3 to 8. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Straight Face: Say It Without Smiling 1. Players sit in a circle. 2. The first turns to a neighbor and says, as seriously as possible, "I am a very serious potato." 3. The neighbor must answer, "Yes, you are a very serious potato," and then say it to the next player. 4. Anyone who smiles or laughs is out. The last straight face wins. Players: 3 to 12. Time: 6 min. Props: none.
  • Swap the Secret Verb for Banana 1. One player thinks of something people do, such as swim, yawn or whistle. 2. The others ask questions with the word banana in place of the verb: "Can you banana indoors?" "Do dogs banana?" 3. The thinker answers yes, no or sometimes. 4. Whoever names the verb thinks of the next one. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • This or That, Step to a Side 1. One player calls two choices and points left for one and right for the other: beach or mountains, cat or dog. 2. Everyone steps to a side at once. 3. The caller asks one person on each side for a reason, in a sentence. 4. Pass the calling job on after five pairs. Players: 3 or more. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • Three Kind Clues, Name the Person 1. One player thinks of somebody everyone in the group knows: a friend, a teacher, a relative. 2. They give three clues, and every clue must be something kind and true. 3. The others each get one guess. 4. A right guess after the first clue scores three, after the second two, and after the third one. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • Three Things, One Link 1. One player thinks of three things that share something, such as a zebra, a crosswalk and a piano. 2. They say the three things and nothing else. 3. The others call out what links them. Here it is black and white stripes or keys. 4. Any link the thinker accepts as true scores, even if it is not the one they had in mind. The first to score thinks next. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • Trivia Showdown, the Reader Rotates 1. One player reads a trivia question to the rest. 2. The first right answer scores a point. 3. The reader passes the questions to the left after every five. 4. Everyone has read once? The highest score wins. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 15 min. Props: a list of trivia questions.
  • Twenty Asks, the Group Already Knows 1. One player leaves the room, or covers both ears. 2. The others agree on a thing, a place or an animal. 3. The guesser comes back and asks yes-or-no questions, one player at a time. 4. Everyone knows the answer except the one asking. Twenty questions, then swap. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: none.

Card and dice games 20

  • Accordion Solitaire 1. Deal cards face up in one long row, one at a time. 2. A card may be moved onto the card just to its left, or onto the third card to its left, if the two match in suit or in rank. 3. A pile moves as one, judged by its top card. 4. Close the gaps as you go. 5. Squeeze the whole deck into a single pile to win. Ending with five piles or fewer is already good. Players: 1. Time: 10 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Aces Up: Four Piles, Only the Aces Stay 1. Deal four cards face up in a row. 2. If two or more of the top cards share a suit, discard all but the highest of that suit. Aces are high. 3. A top card may be moved into an empty space. Then check the suits again. 4. When nothing more can go, deal four more cards, one onto each pile, and carry on with the top cards. 5. When the deck runs out, count the cards left on the table. Only the four aces left is a win. Players: 1. Time: 6 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Call the Roll That Brings a Six 1. Each player says how many rolls it will take for one die to show a six. No two players may say the same number. 2. Roll the die, counting aloud, until a six comes up. 3. The closest call scores a point. 4. Play five rounds. Alone, write a guess before each round and keep a list of the real counts. Players: 1 to 6. Time: 6 min. Props: one die, paper and a pen.
  • Count Along, Dodge the Match 1. Hold a shuffled deck face down. 2. Turn the cards one at a time while counting aloud: ace, two, three, up to king, then around again. 3. If the card you turn is the rank you just said, you lose and start over. 4. Get through all 52 cards without a match to win. A win is rare. Players: 1. Time: 4 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Draft From the Table, Longest Run Wins 1. Deal five cards for each player face up in the middle of the table. 2. Take turns picking one card to keep, until none is left. 3. Each player lays out their longest run: cards in number order with no gaps, in any suits. An ace is low. 4. The longest run wins the round. On a tie, the run that ends on the higher card wins. Play three rounds. Players: 2 to 4. Time: 6 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Flip Two and Add 1. Take out the face cards and split the rest of the deck between two players, face down. 2. On three, both flip their top card. 3. The first to call the sum of the two cards wins both. 4. A tie leaves the cards in the middle for the next winner. Whoever holds more cards when the piles run out wins. Players: 2. Time: 6 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Golf Solitaire, Seven Columns 1. Deal seven columns of five face-up cards, overlapping, and turn one more card to start a single pile. 2. Move the bottom card of any column onto the pile if it is one rank higher or one lower, whatever the suit. 3. Nothing may be played on a king. 4. When you are stuck, turn the next stock card onto the pile. 5. Your score is the number of cards left in the columns. As in golf, lower is better. Players: 1. Time: 6 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Klondike, the Seven-Pile Solitaire 1. Deal seven piles in a row: one card, then two, up to seven, with only the top card of each face up. The rest is the stock. 2. Move cards between piles to build downward in alternating colors, such as a red 6 on a black 7, and turn up any card you uncover. 3. Aces go above the row, and each is built up in its suit to the king. 4. An empty pile may only be filled with a king. 5. Turn stock cards when you are stuck. You win if all four suits are built. Players: 1. Time: 15 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Memorize Ten Cards in a Row 1. Deal ten cards face up in a row and study them for one minute. 2. Turn them all face down. 3. Point at each card in turn, name it, then flip it to check. 4. Score a point for each right card. At ten out of ten, deal twelve. Players: 1 to 4. Time: 5 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Name My Card in Six Questions 1. One player draws a card from a shuffled deck and looks at it in secret. 2. The others take turns asking questions that have yes or no for an answer: Is it red? Is it higher than 7? Is it a face card? 3. After six questions in all, each guesser names one card. 4. A right guess scores a point. If nobody is right, the holder scores. Then the deck moves to the left. Players: 2 to 6. Time: 8 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Penalty Shootout With Two Hidden Dice 1. One player is the shooter and the other the keeper. Each hides one die behind a cupped hand. 2. Both secretly turn their die to 1, 2 or 3: left, middle or right. The shooter picks where the ball goes, and the keeper picks where to dive. 3. Lift the hands together. The same number is a save, and anything else is a goal. 4. Take five shots, then swap roles. Most goals wins. On a tie, take one shot each until one scores and the other does not. Players: 2. Time: 5 min. Props: two dice.
  • Pyramid: Pairs That Make Thirteen 1. Deal 28 cards face up in a pyramid of seven overlapping rows, one card at the top and seven at the bottom. 2. Remove two uncovered cards that add up to 13. A jack counts 11 and a queen 12. 3. A king counts 13 and comes off on its own. 4. Turn cards from the stock one at a time to pair with an uncovered card. 5. Clear the whole pyramid to win. Players: 1. Time: 8 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Red or Black, Ten Calls in a Row 1. Shuffle a deck and hold it face down. 2. Before you turn each card, say "red" or "black" out loud. 3. Count how many you call right out of ten. 4. Five is what luck gives. Keep track of the colors that have gone, and see whether your score climbs as the deck runs down. Players: 1 to 4. Time: 5 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Sevens: Build the Four Rows 1. Deal out the whole deck among three to eight players. 2. The first player lays a seven. After that, each player in turn adds one card to the table. 3. It must be another seven, which starts a new row, or the next card up or down in suit beside a card already there. 4. A player with nothing to play passes. 5. The first to run out of cards wins. Players: 3 to 8. Time: 15 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Sort the Deck Against the Clock 1. Shuffle a deck well and start a timer. 2. Sort it into four suits, each running ace to king. 3. Stop the timer when the last card is down. 4. Shuffle and try to beat your time, or race a friend who has a second deck. Players: 1 or 2. Time: 5 min. Props: a deck of cards and a timer.
  • Sum Bingo on a Scrap of Paper 1. Each player writes any five numbers from 2 to 12 on a scrap of paper. Repeats are allowed. 2. Take turns rolling two dice and calling the total. 3. Anyone who has that number crosses off one copy of it. 4. The first to cross off all five wins. Before the rematch, think about which totals come up most. Players: 2 to 8. Time: 8 min. Props: two dice, paper and a pen each.
  • Ten-Card Matching Chain 1. Deal yourself ten cards face up. 2. Arrange them in one line so that every card matches the card before it in suit or in rank. 3. Count the longest chain you can make and set aside the cards that would not fit. 4. Ten out of ten is a perfect deal. With a friend, each take ten cards and compare chains. Players: 1 or 2. Time: 5 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Thirteen in a Row, One Goes Missing 1. Lay out the thirteen cards of one suit face up, in any mixed order. 2. One player studies the row for twenty seconds, then looks away. 3. The other removes one card and slides the rest together. 4. The first player has ten seconds to name the missing card. Swap roles, and after a few rounds remove two cards at once. Players: 2. Time: 6 min. Props: a deck of cards.
  • Three Dice, Largest Three-Digit Number 1. Each player rolls three dice at once. 2. Arrange your own dice in a row to make the biggest three-digit number you can: 2, 6 and 4 make 642. 3. The biggest number wins the round and a point. 4. Play to five points. For younger players, use two dice. Players: 2 to 6. Time: 5 min. Props: three dice.
  • Two Dice Pick the Square, Four in a Row 1. Draw a grid of 6 by 6 squares, and number the columns and the rows 1 to 6. 2. On your turn, roll two dice. One die names the column and the other the row, and you choose which is which. 3. Put your mark in that square if it is free. If both squares are taken, you miss the turn. 4. The first player with four marks in a row, across, down or diagonally, wins. Players: 2 to 3. Time: 10 min. Props: two dice, paper and a pen.

Get up and move 20

  • Around the Chair Before the Coin Stops 1. Set a chair two steps from a table. 2. Spin a coin on its edge on the table with a flick of finger and thumb. 3. Walk fast around the chair and back, as many laps as you can, before the coin lies flat. 4. A lap counts only if you touch the table while the coin still moves. Most laps wins. Players: 1 to 4. Time: 5 min. Props: a coin, a table and a chair.
  • Clap and Catch, One More Clap Each Time 1. Roll a pair of socks into a ball. 2. Throw it straight up, clap once and catch it. 3. Next throw, clap twice. Then three times. 4. A drop ends your run. Your score is the most claps you fit in before a clean catch. Players: 1 to 6. Time: 5 min. Props: a pair of rolled socks.
  • Copy the Walk 1. Players line up behind a leader. 2. The leader crosses the room with an invented walk: giant steps, a wobble, a spin every third step. 3. Everyone copies it exactly, one after another. 4. The leader names the best copy, and that player leads next. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 6 min. Props: none.
  • Cross-Legged Up and Down, Arms Folded 1. Stand on a carpet or a lawn with your arms crossed over your chest. 2. Cross your ankles, sit down cross-legged and stand up again without uncrossing your arms. 3. Count how many times you manage it in one minute. 4. With a friend, go at the same time. A hand on the floor takes one off your count. Players: 1 to 6. Time: 4 min. Props: a timer.
  • Cushion Stepping Stones, Fewest Cushions 1. Ask first, then clear a path across the room. 2. Cross from one wall to the other stepping only on cushions. 3. Start with six cushions. Each time you make it, take one away. 4. You may pick up the cushion behind you and place it in front. What is the fewest you can cross with? Players: 1 to 4. Time: 10 min. Props: a few cushions.
  • Five Spots, One Wastebasket 1. Crumple five sheets of scrap paper into balls. 2. Mark five shooting spots around a wastebasket, each a little farther away. 3. Shoot one ball from each spot. 4. A basket from spot one scores 1, and from spot five scores 5. Fifteen is a perfect round. Players: 1 to 6. Time: 6 min. Props: scrap paper and a wastebasket.
  • Five-Station Furniture Course 1. Ask first. Then build a course with five stations: crawl under a table, step over a row of shoes, circle a chair twice, balance along a line and touch the far wall. 2. Walk it once slowly to check that nothing wobbles. 3. Run it against a timer. 4. Each player gets two tries, and the best time counts. Put everything back afterward. Players: 1 to 6. Time: 15 min. Props: furniture already in the room and a timer.
  • Flip the Bottle to Stand, Count Your Run 1. Fill a plastic bottle about one third full of water and close the cap tightly. 2. Hold it by the neck and flip it once in the air, so that it lands standing up on a table or the floor. 3. Count your landings in a row. 4. Take turns with a friend, ten flips each. Most landings wins. Players: 1 to 6. Time: 6 min. Props: a plastic bottle with a little water.
  • Jump the Line in a Pattern, Thirty Seconds 1. Lay a strip of tape or a shoelace on the floor. 2. Jump with both feet in this pattern: over, back, over, then a half turn in the air. 3. Count the patterns you finish in thirty seconds. A foot on the line does not count. 4. Invent a harder pattern and teach it to someone. Players: 1 to 6. Time: 4 min. Props: tape or a shoelace and a timer.
  • Last Across Wins, No Stopping 1. Mark a start and a finish about five big steps apart. 2. On go, everyone walks as slowly as they can, but never stops moving. 3. A judge calls out anyone who freezes or steps backward. 4. The last player across the finish line wins. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • One-Foot Lap of the House 1. Agree on a route through the rooms and back to the start, with no stairs. 2. Hop the whole route on one foot. 3. You may switch feet only at a doorway. 4. A foot that touches down between doorways costs five seconds. Fastest lap wins. Players: 1 to 4. Time: 6 min. Props: a timer.
  • Palm Push, Feet Stay Put 1. Two players stand facing each other, feet together, about an arm's length apart, on a soft floor or a lawn. 2. Hold your palms up at chest height. You may only touch the other player's palms. 3. Push, or pull your hands away at the last moment so that the other player topples forward. 4. Whoever moves a foot first loses the point. First to five. Players: 2. Time: 4 min. Props: none.
  • Ruler Upright on Your Palm 1. Stand a ruler or a wooden spoon on end in the middle of your open palm. 2. Let go with the other hand and keep it upright by moving your palm under it. 3. Count the seconds until it falls. Watching the top end helps. 4. Then try one fingertip, or walk across the room while balancing. Players: 1 to 6. Time: 5 min. Props: a ruler or a wooden spoon.
  • Shoe Tower, Tallest Stack Standing 1. Collect every shoe by the door, with permission. 2. Build the tallest tower you can, one shoe at a time. 3. It must stand alone for a count of five. 4. Measure it against your own leg. With two players, build side by side and compare, then put every pair back. Players: 1 to 4. Time: 8 min. Props: the shoes by the door.
  • Sock Juggle With Your Feet 1. Roll a pair of socks into a tight ball. 2. Drop it onto your foot and tap it back up, again and again, without letting it reach the floor. 3. Count the taps. 4. Knees count too. Beat your record, or pass the sock to a friend after every three taps. Players: 1 to 4. Time: 5 min. Props: a pair of rolled socks.
  • Sock Slide Slalom 1. On a smooth floor with nothing to bump into, put on a pair of thick socks. 2. Set two shoes on the floor about three steps apart. 3. Slide, never run, in a figure eight around the two shoes. 4. Time three laps. A touched shoe adds two seconds. Players: 1 to 4. Time: 5 min. Props: thick socks, two shoes and a timer.
  • Ten Pencils by Toe 1. Scatter ten pencils on the floor and put a cup beside them. 2. Take off your shoes and socks. 3. Pick up the pencils with your toes, one at a time, and drop them in the cup. 4. Time yourself, then try the other foot. Players: 1 to 4. Time: 5 min. Props: ten pencils and a cup.
  • Three Steps a Turn Tag 1. Mark a space about ten steps across and choose one chaser. 2. Players move only on their own turn, in a set order: exactly three steps of any size, then freeze. 3. The chaser takes three steps too, and then may tag anyone within reach of an arm. 4. A tagged player is the new chaser. Stepping outside the space also makes you the chaser. Players: 2 to 6. Time: 6 min. Props: none.
  • Tightrope on a Floor Line 1. Find a straight line on the floor: a board edge, a row of tiles or a strip of tape. 2. Walk it heel to toe without stepping off. 3. Now walk it backward, then with a book on your head. 4. Score one point for forward, two for backward and three for the book. Players: 1 to 6. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • Wider River Jump With Two Towels 1. Lay two towels side by side on a carpet or a lawn with a small gap between them. The gap is the river. 2. Everyone jumps across from a standing start, both feet together. 3. After each round, pull the towels a hand's width farther apart. 4. Land in the river and you become the judge. The last player still jumping wins. Players: 1 to 6. Time: 6 min. Props: two towels.

How this list was compiled: Written by the Game Night Generator editors on 2026-10-03 for anyone with time to fill and no screen, in our own words. Minutes and player counts are our estimates. Games with our own descriptive names are our own versions and claim no history. Named traditional games were checked on 2026-10-03 against English Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ followed by the name): Order_and_Chaos, Notakto, Chomp, Col_(game), Domineering, Paper_soccer, Racetrack_(game), Achi_(game), Kayles, Klondike_(solitaire), Pyramid_(solitaire), Golf_(patience), Accordion_(card_game), Domino_(card_game) (played here as Sevens) and Aces_Up. The five-letter word duel was checked the same day against https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jotto. Licence: own work