No Prep Birthday Party Games: 20 With Nothing To Buy Or Print

Every party reaches a point where the plan has run out and there's still forty minutes left. This is the list for that moment.

Nothing here needs buying, printing, hiding or laminating. The most complicated item is a pen.

Absolutely nothing needed - kids

• Sleeping lions, Simon says and What's the time, Mr Wolf?
• Stuck in the mud, tig variations, and hide and seek or sardines.
• The whisper game around a circle, and the memory chain: 'I went to the shop and bought...'
• Animal noises - everyone gets an animal whispered, find your match with your eyes shut.
• Freeze dance with any phone, or clapping rhythms to copy if there's no music.

Absolutely nothing needed - adults

• Two truths and a lie, most likely to, and would you rather.
• The film game: name an actor, name a film they were in, name another actor in it, keep going.
• Fortunately, unfortunately - a story told one sentence at a time.
• Contact, the word-guessing game where two people have to think of the same word.
• Twenty questions, and the question game where you can only ever reply with a question.

One pen and some paper

• Consequences, boxes, hangman and Battleships.
• The name game - tear paper into strips, everyone writes three names, put them in a bowl.
• Pictionary on the back of an envelope.
• A quick quiz where every guest writes three questions.
• Categories: pick a letter, list a country, a food, a band and an animal that start with it.

Shop birthday cards

How to write it so it lands

• Learn three of these properly so you can start one without thinking.
• Calm game after loud game, always.
• Stop each game while it's still going well - the ending is what people remember.

Where to shop next

• Birthdays hub
• Adult birthday party games
• Milestone birthday party games
• Teen and tween birthday party games
• Toddler party games (2-4s)
• Games for a party with 4-6 guests
• Games for a small house or flat
• Games for a hall or garden hire
• Games for a party where parents stay
• Games for a birthday meal at a table
• Kids' party games by age
• Charades word lists
• Board games hub
• Birthday party ideas
• Free feel good tools
• Shop birthday cards
• Birthday badges & party pins
• How to make a balloon arch
• Photo booth prop ideas
• Party bag ideas for adults
• How much helium do you need for balloons?
• Birthday cards for kids
• Pin badges
• All guides

Frequently asked questions

What party games need no equipment at all?

Sleeping lions, Simon says, sardines, wink murder, two truths and a lie, most likely to, the film game and contact. All you need is people and a room.

What can you play with just a pen and paper?

Consequences, the name game, Pictionary, categories, boxes, hangman and Battleships. Tearing up one sheet of A4 gives you enough slips for the name game, which is the best party game there is.

How do you fill an unexpected gap at a party?

Start something with three people near the food rather than announcing a game to the room. Two truths and a lie or the film game spreads outwards on its own within a couple of minutes.

What's the best last-minute game for children?

Sleeping lions if they need calming and stuck in the mud if they need burning off. Both are understood in one sentence and need nothing at all.

Do you sell party games or party supplies?

We make greeting cards, art prints and pin badges in the UK - the games here are simply what we'd suggest to a friend, and they need little or nothing to run. The cards on this page are ours.