Holiday Parties are happening just about every night we aren’t shopping or wrapping gifts these days. They can be quite fun and joyous or boring and just a bunch of people sitting around sipping drinks and asking how things have been since the last holiday party. A popular form of entertainment at holiday parties are gift swaps where someone sets a limit and everyone brings in a gift at or below that price point and they are exchanged at random.
If you are stuck without an idea for a gift swap or would rather not talk about how you still hate your job and would rather be home in pajamas then these games are for you. All of these games are for 5 or more players and are a great way to liven things up.
Codenames
Ages 14+ for original, but ages vary depending on the edition. 2+ Players. 15 Min Playtime.
Created by Vlaada Chvátil, the original Codenames won the prestigious Spiel des Jahres, considered by many to be the top tabletop award in the world. Since then Codenames has sold millions of copies and released many editions including Codename Pictures, Codenames Disney, Codenames Marvel, Codenames Duet, and many more. In Codenames, a grid of twenty-five cards is laid out on the table, each with a single word on it. Two players are then chosen to be Codemasters. Their job is to have their team be the first to select all of the cards for their team. The Codemasters must do this by giving a one-word clue followed by a number. This number represents how many words in the grid they believe pertain to that clue. For instance, a Codemaster could say “Space, 3.” This means they believe “Space” is a worthy clue for three cards. These cards could say planet, rocket, or even field because it has a lot of space. It is the job of the other teammates to decipher what the Codemaster's clues mean. The games are quick and with so many double-sided code cards, and variations of what cards are chosen for your team each edition has infinite replay value and is a great way to promote discussion.
Mysterium
Ages 10+. 2-7 players. 42 Min Playtime.
If you love the idea of deciphering, but want a little more of a storyline or are into things a bit more spooky Mysterium is the game for you. Mysterium is a cooperative board game where one player is chosen to be the silent ghost, while all the other plays play as psychics trying to decipher the ghosts clues to solve the ghost’s murder. The ghost randomly chooses a suspect, weapon, and location for the murder for each of the other players then similar to Codenames needs to give clues to them. This time though the ghost is silent and their clues are cards randomly drawn from a large deck of ones featuring illustrations. The ghost silently gives one card to each of the other players. Then because this game is co-op ( I mean, we al want to solve the mystery of our ghost friend) all the players discuss what they think the ghost meant. Could it be the color, or a single object, or is there a flower and the murderer is a gardener. Who knows? Only the ghost until they reveal whether you are right or wrong with simple knocks. Mysterium is a lot of fun with high-quality materials and a large deck full of fun and sometimes humorous pictures. Everyone talks throughout besides the ghost who can not wait until after the game to burst out with how close people were or what they were going for with a certain card.
The Resistance
Ages 13+. 5-10 Players. 30 Min Playtime.
The Resistance is a social deduction game in which you and your team are trying to complete missions in order to bring down a corrupt government. The catch is you aren’t sure who is actually on your team. There are spies in your group trying to make you fail your missions and bring down your resistance. Every round players are chosen by a team leader to go on a mission in hopes of completing it. After a few rounds if the necessary amount of missions are not competed the spies win, and if they are successfully completed The Resistance wins. There can be multiple spies so it’s your job to choose the correct people for each mission, and try not to make yourself look suspicious. This game can go quickly and has a lot of intrigue giving it immediate replay value as each side tries to read the other.
Wits + Wagers Party Edition
Ages 8+. 4+ Players. 25 Min+ Playtime.
Wits and Wagers is an award-winning party game series featuring various editions, but here we will concentrate on the party edition. Not only does it allow for more people to play, the simplified rules make it more accessible to a much larger audience. Wits and Wagers is a trivia game where you don’t need to know all the answers you can rely on everyone else in the party. You get a question and write your answers down and put it down on the table and make bets on who is right. The answers don’t even have to be 100% correct they just have to be the closest. The questions are fun and interesting and cover a wide range of categories. This is a trivia game that takes the pressure off being right all the time and allows you to just have fun and place your bets.
Bananagrams
Ages 7+. 1-8 Players. 30 min Playtime.
If you want to share some local flavor then Bananagrams is the game for you. This small family-run company is headquartered right here in Rhode Island and has developed multiple games. Bananagrams is such a success it has spawned other editions including Wild Tiles, a Party Edition, Duel!, and is available in 16 different languages. Here we will focus on the original version. Bananagrams is a word-based game where every player gathers a number of letter tiles that are flipped over so you can’t see what they are. The rest of the tiles are left in the middle of the table. When the game begins everyone flips their letters over and creates a crossword using all of their letters. When someone has successfully used all of their tiles everyone adds one more letter from the middle of the table. This is repeated until there are fewer tiles in the middle than the number of players. The winner’s crossword is reviewed and they are either eliminated or declared Top Banana! This game is great for those who love word puzzles and of course has the bonus of being local.
Any of these games are great for gifts, gift swaps, or for playing at holiday parties. If you would like more board game suggestions check out this article (5 Board Games to Get You Through Any Storm). If you have any questions or any other game suggestions let us know.
Have a Wonderful and Entertaining Holiday
