In work environments that might often be tense, the office party game can be a brilliant touch. Indeed office games are great for creating a relaxed atmosphere where individuals can interact outside of their work roles. This ultimately means improved communication and a better working environment for everyone.
However, when party planning, it is important to know when to introduce party game. In the context of icebreakers for a new team, for example, they are perfect! More importantly, it is essential to gauge the office culture and ensure games are inclusive and suitable for everyone involved. Therefore, before anything is set in stone, it is a great idea to check in with HR to make sure the plans are appropriate!
In any case, investing effort into making the games memorable is important! When you do this, you create an enjoyable environment for your employees and colleagues. And more relaxation means stronger team cohesion, which in turn means better productivity.
It’s just sound math.
Remember, with careful and thoughtful planning, you too can create memorable office party games. Just be sure to diversify the activities enough that they cater to a range of preferences. A themed-activity or costume contest here, some customized gifts there, and voila! Your office party is on.
Here are some example of great office party games to get you going.
Guess the Owner
This is a top of the line choice for an office party game. It’s simple yet endlessly engaging. To play “Guess the Owner,” ask each employee to bring an item from home – or their work desk. Anything that reflects a hobby or experience unique to them. Collect these items and set them out in a display area. Then, employees should take turns guessing who the owner are.
This game has several benefits for co-workers and colleagues. For one, it promotes team bonding by encouraging colleagues to learn more about each other’s interests and backgrounds. This goes such a long way to foster a sense of meaningful connection within the workplace.
Scavenger Hunt
A scavenger hunt is an exciting party game that involves individuals searching for specific clues or items within a designated area. This designated area could be within the office or even outside, and might involve teams instead of individuals.
The goal is a lively game perfect from promoting camaraderie among your employees. It isn’t that complicated to organize either. You’ll just need to create a list of items or tasks that participants must find or complete.
Wink Murder
“Wink Murder” is a social deduction game where one person secretly becomes the murderer by winking at other participants to “kill” them. This, while the other “surviving” players try to identify the murderer without being winked at. The game typically requires a group of players and a space where everyone can sit or stand in a circle to facilitate interaction.
The game biggest value lies in enhancing observation skills, intuition and communication among co-workers. It encourages participants to be attentive and observant, as they try to identify the murderer based on subtle cues.
Bingo
This is a classic office party game that involves players marking off numbers on a card as they’re called out randomly. Each player has a card with numbers arranged in a grid pattern, and a caller picks numbers at random as the players to mark off their cards. The goal is to complete a row, column or specific pattern on the card and shout “Bingo!” to win.
All you need to play are Bingo cards for each participant, numbered balls and markers for players to mark off numbers on their cards. It’s a simple and enjoyable way to encourage participation and engagement during office gatherings.
White Elephant
The White Elephant is a gift exchange game popular at office parties. Participants bring wrapped gifts and take turns selecting a gift or stealing one. The game involves a mix of strategy and chance, as players decide whether to take a new gift or steal one that’s already been chosen.
The White Elephant is great as an office party game because of how well it fosters a sense of excitement and anticipation during the exchanges. It encourages interaction among colleagues as they strategize and negotiate to get the gifts they desire.
Karaoke
In many ways, the ultimate office party game. With karaoke, participants take turns singing songs using a karaoke machine. Each participant selects a song and performs it with the lyrics displayed on a screen, while others enjoy and cheer on the performances. What you need here is a karaoke system, a designated area and people willing to sing without fear.
Karaoke is immensely popular because, for one, they are wildly entertaining. In an office party, they encourage employees to enjoy themselves in a relaxed setting, thus a sense of camaraderie among employees.
Ugly Sweater Contest
The Ugly Sweater Contest is a popular office party game where participants wear intentionally tacky, over-the-top holiday sweaters. The goal being to showcase the most outrageous or creatively ugly sweater possible. Often, participants vote on the ugliest sweater, and winners receive prizes
To host an Ugly Sweater Contest, participants need only to come wearing their chosen ugly holiday sweaters. What better way to bring laughter, creativity and a sense of shared fun to the office party?
Mad Libs
This is a word game where players fill in the blanks in a story with different words – nouns, verbs, etc. – without knowing the context of the story beforehand. The game typically involves one person prompting others for specific types of words to complete the story. Afterwards, they then read the completed, often hilarious, story aloud.
Indeed the value of playing Mad Libs at an office party is manifold. Mostly, its ability to promote creativity, collaboration and laughter among employees is what makes it perfect in this scenario.
Two Truths and a Lie
This is a great icebreaker game where participants take turns sharing three statements about themselves: two truths and one lie. The others in the group then have to guess which statement is the lie. To play this, you don’t need specific items really. Just participants willing to share interesting facts about themselves.
The game fosters storytelling and engagement among participants. It encourages sharing personal experiences in a fun and non-intrusive way, allowing colleagues to learn more about each other.
Baby Picture Guessing Game
With the Baby Picture Guessing game, employees anonymously bring in baby photos of themselves. Participants then try to match each baby photo to the correct colleague. It’s a lighthearted, nostalgic game that encourages interaction and sparks conversations among employees.
It isn’t that complicated to set up either! You’ll just need participants to bring in their baby photos, a method to display these photos and a system to match the photos to the correct colleagues.
Guess the Work Story
Guess the Work Story is a game where employees anonymously share work-related anecdotes or stories. Afterwards, others try to guess which colleague’s experience is being described. That’s it!
As an office party game, it creates a platform for employees to appreciate the diverse perspectives and experiences within the team. This ultimately helps strengthen workplace relationships and build a more cohesive team.
Pictionary
Pictionary is a drawing and guessing game where players take turns drawing a word or phrase without using words, as others guess what it is. To play, you’ll need a whiteboard, markers, a timer and a list of words or phrases to draw from.
Among so many other benefits, Pictionary helps improve visual communication skills and quick thinking among employees. This no doubt makes for better workplace dynamics and a positive environment.
Charades
Charades is a word-guessing game where players act out a word or phrase without speaking, while others try to guess what it is. It is a lively and engaging game, perfect for breaking down barriers and encouraging laughter and interaction among colleagues.
Charades also enhances non-verbal communication skills and encourages quick thinking. All of which make for a positive atmosphere and thus a better work environment. Overall, an inclusive and highly enjoyable game great for nurturing the bond among employees.
Trivia
Trivia is a game where participants answer questions on various topics. To play, you’ll need trivia questions, which can be on cards or presented by a host. You might also need buzzers or a way for participants to indicate their answers.
The trivia office game goes a long way to promote collaboration as teams work together to answer questions, showcasing different strengths and levels of expertise. Trivia are also great conversation starters as participants/co-workers engage in discussions about various topics.
Don’t Laugh
With “Don’t Laugh,” participants take turns trying to make others laugh without using words, just facial expressions and gestures. The goal is to keep a straight face while attempting to trigger laughter from others.
This is the perfect office game promoting an environment of laughter and interaction among work colleagues. A welcome break from whatever work-related stress they might be going through.
Foam Axe-Throwing
Foam Axe Throwing is a safe and fun adaptation of traditional axe throwing. It involves throwing foam axes at a target board. The foam axes have soft tips, making it a safe game suitable for office environments.
To play Foam Axe Throwing, you’ll need foam axes, a target board with marked scoring zones, as well as a safe space where employees can take turns throwing the axes.
In many ways, Foam Axe Throwing is a unique and enjoyable team-building activity. It encourages friendly competition, hand-eye coordination and precision, all which engendering a relaxed environment.
Ladder Ball
With the Ladder Ball game, players throw bolas (two balls connected by a string) at a ladder-like structure with three rungs. The goal is to wrap the bolas around the rungs to score points. Each rung has different point values, and the first player to reach a predetermined score wins.
This is a great way to promote teamwork and hand-eye coordination as players aim to wrap the bolas around the rungs. It is a fun and engaging outdoor game that provides a break from office routines for your employees.
Bean Bag Toss
Bean Bag Toss, also known as Cornhole, is a popular game where players throw bean bags at a raised platform with a hole in it. The goal is to land the bean bags on the platform or, ideally, through the hole to score points. To set this up, you’ll need a Bean Bag Toss set. No worries, they are easy to find.
This is a smart way to encourage teamwork among employees. It is an engaging outdoor activity that promotes social interaction, laughter and bonding among colleagues. What’s not to love?