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Watch for Exploding Kittens and Flying Burritos :: Family Game Night Ideas
Gone are the days of Candyland and Chutes and Ladders in my house, and I couldn’t be happier about it. Now that my kids are older, family game night has become much more exciting.
If your family hasn’t made this a tradition yet or if you’re looking to take things up a notch, here are some games to consider:
Exploding Kittens (ages 7 and up):
This one is a fan favorite in my house, and despite the name, no kittens are actually harmed. Exploding Kittens is all about strategy, and unless you want to lose, your strategy needs to be to annihilate the competition. To do this, you must play various action cards that will force others into drawing the Exploding Kitten card.
Reading the rules for this game can be a little overwhelming because it’s rather unique. The best way to teach the game to kids and adults is to watch the brief instructional video.
Throw Throw Burrito (ages 7 and up):
Throw Throw Burrito is made by the creators of Exploding Kittens, so it’s also filled with quirky rules and funny cards. I sort of have a love/hate relationship with Throw Throw Burrito. Part of it is collecting cards in sets of three through a very fast-paced card exchange. I can handle that part. The other part is like dodgeball, but with foam burritos. Living in a house with all males, this is where I meet my demise.
The Worst Case Scenario (ages 10 and up):
I’m honestly surprised by how much we love this game. One player, the “victim,” draws cards depicting scenarios like “Hiccups for a Year,” “House Falls into a Sinkhole,” or “Chug a Gallon of Rotten Milk,” and secretly rates them from 1 to 5 based on how terrible they would be. Other players try to guess the rating and earn points for accurate guesses. The Worst Case Scenario sparks lively discussions and reveals which family members think alike.
Poker:
Not just for casinos, poker is a timeless game that can teach skills like patience and risk assessment…plus it’s a lot of fun! I first taught my kids to play poker when we were stuck in the Denver airport waiting for a delayed flight. Without much else to do, I purchased a deck of cards from the gift shop and traded in a dollar for two rolls of pennies. Now we have a set of chips to play with, but I know of many parents and grandparents who keep a jar of pennies handy just for the occasion.
What Do You Meme?:
If your family has a sense of humor and can appreciate the occasional potty joke, What do you Meme is sure to have everyone laughing. Players caption popular meme photos with cards from their hand, and the judge (who chose the photo) picks the funniest caption to earn points. Parents of smaller kids may want to screen through the caption cards to pull out ones they may not be comfortable discussing with small kids or purchase the family edition of the game. Both games are lots of fun!
