8 Great Reasons to Plan a Game Night!

I LOVE GAME NIGHT!! I really do believe that most people enjoy a game night. (This is not based on scientific research. It’s just a hunch.) Now that holiday season is upon us, this is a great opportunity to bring back or continue to enhance game night!

Why am I a firm believer in game night (or game day or game time)? Here are some reasons (acknowledging that there is some overlap, but that’s okay):

1: Playing a game provides a great opportunity to bond with family and friends.

Families can enjoy game nights with a wide range of family members and/or numbers of participants. Some games seem to transcend time and can be enjoyed with kids of all ages from elementary age through adulthood. They never become outdated. You may have Chutes and Ladders in your donation pile. Yahtzee and Clue can be enjoyed FOREVER! I still remember the pride I had when I taught my kids how to enjoy a nice game of murder. More than a decade later, we still enjoy playing Clue as a family. Uno is a classic card game that can still be enjoyed by a wide range of ages at once. This worked well when cousins were younger and the age differences seemed more prominent. Now, the game is more fierce and cut-throat, but it is still a great, fun game! The same holds true for Sorry! (I still remember playing “killer Sorry!” in medical school—the game was the same, but there was no mercy!)

You know that your children have hit a developmental milestone when they beat you heartily in a game that is not based on luck, and you are not letting them win. I love knowing that I have smart family members, but the “butt whooping” I get after some games of Boggle and Qwirkle, for example, can be exhausting. Nevertheless, we still love those games!

You can choose different games based on the amount of time you have available. Some games may be all night adventures such as Monopoly. One of our favorites, Mexican Train (I will talk more about this later), can be adjusted for the amount of time you have available. There are various card games available that take just 15-30 minutes per round.

Game night is a great way to spend time with friends without having to spend a fortune. You can relax at someone’s house, and snack and chat the whole time. Everyone interacts with each other, and there is usually a lot of laughter involved! One of our favorites is Mexican Train. My in-laws introduced it to my family many years ago, and we have since hooked several other friends on the game (to the point that they have purchased their own sets). Mexican Train nights are some of our most common evenings together. This is a dominoes game. This game has several “perks” that make it a great game for playing with family and friends. First of all, this game is played in rounds. You can decide from the beginning how long you want to play or set a limit to the number of rounds. Another nice aspect is that each round is its own separate entity. My family has played this on holidays where we play a few rounds, set it aside for lunch, play a few more rounds, watch a movie, and then finish the game. You don’t have to balance a board or worry about pieces moving out of place.

Some other games which are now available and fun for groups are those that involve everyone “choosing their favorite answers.” These games include Charty Party and Apples to Apples. Be aware that some of these games may have cards/topics which you may not want to use with your kids (even if they are older—you may just feel awkward).

Early during the pandemic, some good friends of mine set up virtual game nights that were a blast! Not all games would work this way, but they found some that did. One night was bingo night—our friends had the balls with all of the numbers and did the calling, and they sent out via email bingo cards in advance. We all connected on Zoom for game night! We also managed to have a small four person game night playing Word on the Street. As long as the camera was clearly aimed at the game board, it worked out well. To help even things out, each team consisted of one person from each side of the screen (ie my husband and I were never on the same team). We enjoyed it so much that we went out later and purchased our own copy of the game to play in the future!

With modern technology, there are some on-line games that allow people to play from different locations. Companies such as Jackbox Games offer on-line party games. I have only experienced those games once, but, I can remember lots of laughter!

2. You can do a low tech activity which does NOT involve a screen.

Imagine that! Go old school. Put down the technology and actually talk to and look at each other. Give your eyes a break from the screens.

3. You can to challenge your brain. As we get older, it becomes even more important to continue exercising our brains. Let’s do what we can to avoid cognitive decline.

There is certainly a range of games out there, some are based purely on luck, some require extensive strategy or knowledge, and a lot are somewhere in the middle. Exercise your brain in a fun way whether it involves trying to find patters, using logic, testing your word or number power, planning strategies, or getting creative. Boggle, Bananagrams, and Scrabble are fun word games. Set is a favorite card game of mine and involves looking for patterns. Try good old fashioned chess, checkers, or backgammon if you are part of a two person game night. Get creative playing Venns with Benefits. Test random (or not so random knowledge) with trivia games. Put those critical thinking skills to the test. Practice you observation, memory, problem solving, word building skills, and more.

4. As long as someone is willing to host, you can easily have a group of people who don’t know each other start to connect over a game. It gives us an opportunity to interact with a wide variety of people and build connections in a fun way.

You don’t need to have a specific reason for a party to play a part game. People will naturally bond if divided into two teams for games such as Guesstures. Other games that encourage team cooperation are Reverse Charades and Pictionary.

Laughter can also bring people together. Try games such as Monikers or Ransom Notes. People can be funny!

5. You can spend time connecting with one person in a low stress way.

There are a wide variety of two person games such as the classic Battleship or Mancala. Hive is a two person strategy game that has received good reviews. (I have never played this.) Enjoy spending quality time together one-on-one with a significant other, child, or friend. In this day and age, it is so important to nurture our connections and not take them for granted.

6. You can laugh!

Heaven knows that in this day and age, we all need to laugh. I know that I just mentioned it above, but it is so important that I feel it is worth repeating. The laughter may be triggered by the content of the game, how everyone interacts, crazy things that may happen during game play, and more. Make sure you start your play with the attitude of wanting to enjoy yourself. Winning is fun, but it isn’t everything when it comes to game night. Sometimes the funniest moments come from those flailing in a game. When you can embrace the chaos and doom, you can definitely bring a lot of fun to the game!

7. You can learn.

There are some games that exist for the purpose of helping you learn new information. You may not bring this game out for a party night, but if you and friends are needing to learn something, playing a game might be a helpful tool.

8. You can always find something new to try and/or stick with the classics and the tried-and-trues. The is no excuse to be bored. (Pun intended. : ) )

There are SO many game options out there nowadays. These may be board games, card games, dice games, and more. Pick up your old deck of cards and review a classic like gin rummy. Pull your childhood games out of the closet. Many of these are just as much fun now as when you were young. You and your friends can introduce each other to new games. Look on-line for game reviews and recommendations. When making plans, suggest a game night. There are so many benefits such as those mentioned above, but game night is not just a “task.” Game nights offer the opportunity to improve your well-being, but, during the process, you can simply enjoy having fun! (I introduced you to my enjoyment of game night several years ago with the game shown below. )

I included many of my favorite games in this post. Share your recommendations!