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It’s hard to find time for family game night ideas. But once in a blue moon, we get a “free night”.  …What’s a free night?

The most cherished nights of the year. No one in our family has practices, rehearsals, or meetings.

It’s easy to go to separate corners on these nights, but because of busy schedules, it’s important to spend quality time as a family.

But, what game night activities can we do together, that (hopefully) won’t end in a mess or a fight? We’ve found great family game night ideas for YOU!

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Family Game Night Ideas:

Bring your Family Together

Gone are the days of hours-long Monopoly marathons & our kids playing with boxes.

Luckily, there are fun game night ideas for every age!

If your family wants to go out for family dinner too, check out these places where kids eat free in KC! And bookmark our Guide to Indoor Play Places too.

Family Game Night Ideas for All Ages

Here are fun games for the entire family!

1. Pie in the Face:  Ever wanted to smush a vat of whipped cream on the face of a loved one?  This game does exactly allows you to do that without getting your hands dirty.  The game is different every time.  The first time we played, a kid got hit with a pie on the very first turn.  It can be messy, but the laughs will abound.
2. Throw Throw Burrito: The kids are going to love this, it’s the World’s First Dodgeball Card Game. It’s EXTREME AND OUTDOORS – Players are to collect matching sets of cards faster than their opponents while simultaneously dodging, ducking, and throwing inflated airborne burritos.
3. Brain Freeze: Get to know your family even better. The fastest answer always wins, you just never know what those kiddos will say! This is a fun one, it’s fast-paced and an action group game. You will laugh at the hilarious answers your friends and family are shouting.
4. Beat That!: The bonkers battle of challenges, this great for all ages, includes 160 challenges, and they claim belly-busting laughter is included!
5. Speak Out/ Mouthful: This game will have you rolling on the ground laughing. Try to guess each card with a ridiculous mouthpiece in your mouth. It is hilarious & your family will spend hours playing.
6. Hedbanz: This is one of our family’s ultimate favorites. If you give hints to the little kids, even they will enjoy trying to guess the item attached to their heads.
7. Skillmatics Guess in 10 by Animal Planet: This one’s a QUICK game of smart questions for kids and adults alike. Players ask up to 10 questions to guess the animal on the Game Card! Is it a carnivore? Is it a domestic animal? Does it live in groups? Think hard, ask intelligent questions, and be the first player to win 7 Game Cards. 
8. Charades: This version is geared toward families. Act out each thing while trying not to crack up. This is sure to be one of your favorite family game night activities.
9. Would you Rather: Enjoy over 365 different questions for hours and hours of family fun. The whole family will enjoy choosing between 2 scenarios…which would you rather do?
10. Balloon Tennis: This fun game, easy to put together yourself, will keep everyone busy and full of laughs. Blow up a few balloons and grab some ping pong paddles, fly swatters, or whatever you have handy to use as your tennis rackets and have at it. Keep score, don’t let them all hit the floor, and whatever you do enjoy with the family.
11. Indoor Bowling: Clear the living room floor and set up your own lane for a night of bowling. Grab a plastic set or set up plastic bottles in a triangle. This one is numbered so it’s easy to get the littlest ones to learn numbers while you play.
12. Jenga: This classic game requires a lot of patience and a steady hand. The best part about Jenga is you can play with two people or the whole family.
13. Picture Words Bingo: This game is a classic and in this version, the kiddos learn language skills by matching words to pictures. Even the littlest ones can participate and win! Make game time easier for the littles by using pictures or sight words.
14. Do You Really Know Your Family:  Laugh and learn new things about each other with this fun card game, and create forever memories as you see who really knows the family best. Perfect for all ages.
15. Light Up Corn Hole: This classic game has really taken off in the last few years. This version is extra fun because it lights up! The kids will love playing in the backyard after dark. Cornhole is another fun game that requires skill and is a whole lot of fun. Partner off with another member of the family and go against each other tossing bean bags into the hole. The person to get their bean bag in the hole first wins.
16. Knock it Out!: Grab a tennis ball and put it in a pair of nylons and put it on your head. Try to knock over water bottles placed on the floor. Whoever knocks over the most in one minute, wins!  
17. Nerf Game Night: Bring out the Nerf guns! Create targets and obstacles around the house, aim your Nerf gun, and fire away! If the weather is nice, move the party outside
18. Paper Plane Contest: There are so many different types of paper airplanes to make. Get creative and see whose airplane can fly the farthest! 
19. Indoor Hopscotch: Just like the good ol’ days, make a game of hopscotch and see who can make it all the way through.
20. Three Truths and a Lie: While lying is not something we promote, but Three Truths and Lie is just too fun! See if you can stump your family.
21. Heads Up: Have a smartphone and love games like taboo and charades? This app is a great game to play at home or when you are waiting around for hours to get on a plane. Download the app and pick through the free decks or purchase special themed ones.

Family Game Night Ideas for Younger Kids

1. Chutes & Ladders: You can’t go wrong with this classic.  The rules are simple and the gameplay is fairly quick. Ages 3 & up.
2. Moustache Smash. This twist on the classic matching game assigns everyone a wand with a mustache, and you have to pick up facial hair that matches either the shape or the color of the one on your wand.  Just be careful nobody’s hands get smashed in the process, especially when the free for all “mustache smash” card is played. This one says ages 6 & up, but we think even younger would be able to play and enjoy.
3. Hoot Owl Hoot is a game that requires no reading, encourages teamwork, and has the bonus feature of everyone being s winner if the task is completed successfully. Ages 4 & up.
4. The “Cat in the Hat, I Can Do That”  is a fun game that will keep the kids entertained, and will get them up and moving.  While there is some reading involved, the pictures on the instruction cards give the kids context clues and can help them figure out what they are supposed to do. Ages 4 & up.
5. Pass the Pig: This fun dice game requires little skill and only one die. Each player takes a chance to roll the die. The first one to 100 wins! The only catch is if you roll a one, you lose all your points and your turn.

Game Night Ideas for Elementary School Kids

1. Operation: Every generation loves the magic of the classic Operation game. Even kids who have mastered reading, writing, and arithmetic can always work on improving their motor skills.  There are small pieces, so skip this one if there are toddlers involved.
2. Uno Attack: This game has been updated and mechanized to shoot out random amounts of cards to players who are unfortunate enough to have to draw.  Fair warning.  Read the rules.  You’ve likely been playing it wrong your whole life.
3. Five Second Rule: This game will challenge your kiddos to be creative.  They have five seconds to come up with a random list of 3 things.  Be warned.  Kids say the darnedest things, especially under pressure.
4. Pictureka: Are your children terrible at finding things?  Well, be prepared to be amazed at all the things they manage to find in this game. They can’t find the left shoe which is clearly under the table.  But looking for a random cartoon drawing hidden amongst other random cartoon drawings, no problem?
5. Pictionary: Are your kid’s great drawers? It doesn’t matter with this game. Have fun with your family guessing each other’s drawings.
6. Treasure Hunt: Create a customized treasure hunt search for your family around the house! Add fun by picking tasks and that the family members must complete before moving on. 
7. Hide and Seek: Hide and seek is one of those games that can be played inside or outside. Test your hiding skills to see if your family can find you.
8. Life: We play Life on the Switch and everyone has a blast! Bring the classic game to a virtual platform for 4 players.
9. King of Tokyo: this board game was ranked #1 for 2024 on Amazon. This game is for ages 8+ and up to 6 players. This is a strategic game so it may be best played with an adult.
10. Exploding Kittens: This card game is great for ages 7+.
11. Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza: This game brings out the competitive edge for my kiddo. It is quick, fast paced a lot of fun.

Family Game Night Ideas for Older Kids

1. Apples to Apples: This game isn’t just a game comparison as the name suggests.  It’s more of a game of word association and trying to figure out how each player thinks.

2. Scene It!: Disney Edition! This trivia game features classic Disney TV and movies.  There are puzzles that use, movie clips, pixelated photos, and even identifying the actor based on a list of their works. This is also a fun party game. And check out their other version including Harry Potter, Friends, sports, and Nick Jr too.

3. Clue: There are electronic and even DVD versions of this “who done it?” classic, but nothing beats the original.  Add some fun by making everybody dress up like their character.  Okay, maybe that’s going too far for some of you, but not me. In my house, costumes are a bonus.

4. Card Games like Go Fish, Old Maid, Crazy 8’s, War, and more. These classics will always be loved by kids learning to play cards. 

5. Taboo: This fun game requires thinking outside the box and a little brain power. Once you are in two teams get ready to start guessing from a wide range of words.

6. Escape Room Games: One of the most popular things to do now comes in a take-home game form. You can find a variety of escape room games with fun themes online or you can create your own. The best part is you can make it as hard or as simple as you would like.

7. What Do You Meme?: This fun game has some of your family’s favorite memes! Similar to Cards Against Humanity, everyone gets a chance to make their meme the funniest by choosing the best phrase from their drawn cards. This game is great for older kids, teens, and adults. This one is a Spongebob-themed game so that makes it even more fun!

8. Spoons: My family loves this game. Grab a deck of cards and a handful of spoons (one less than the number of players). Set the spoons in a row between the players and a full deck of cards. Pass each player 4 cards. The dealer then draws one card and passes one to the left. The object is to get 4 of a kind before anyone else. Once you have 4 of a kind grab a spoon! If you don’t have 4 of a kind but someone else grabs a spoon, hurry and grab one. The one left out loses the game.
9. Chopped: If you feel comfortable with having dinner made for you, turn it into a game of Chopped! Select 4 ingredients from your kitchen and challenge them to make a delicious meal in 30 minutes.
10. Herd Mentality: This family game is great for those that enjoy strategy. It’s easy to learn and great for family game night.

Family Game Night Snack Ideas

Everybody loves to eat!

The last thing Mom should be doing is slaving over a hot stove, while the family enjoys family game night!

You want to stick with grab-and-go meals if you can.  Check out our favorite ideas.

1. Chicken Wings: Grab and Go at its finest.  These can be homemade or ordered in from a restaurant.
2. Mozzarella sticks: deep-fried cheese is not the healthiest option, but it might just be the most delicious.
3. Tacos: You can fit all the food groups into a handheld pocket.  Tacos are convenient and tasty at the same time.  These can be substituted with nachos.  All the same ingredients in bite-sized portions
4. Carrot/celery sticks and dip.  You have to have something healthy to balance out all of the other options.  Handfuls of grapes also work.

The point of game night is a family fun time, but there are a few rules that must be followed.

Family Game Night Rules

1. Everyone must participate.
2. No cheating. No sore losers.
3. No electronics!!

That last rule can be tough, especially for teens and parents.  But disconnecting from the outside world is a small price to pay for reconnecting with the people you love most.

I hope these games will give you some ideas for your next Family Game Night! We’ve also got some ideas for you to enhance your game night at home.

And if you’re looking for more family fun check out our Guide to Family Day Trips from KC. So many great options for fun and family time.

Don’t miss out on kids’ resources & things to do with our iFamilyKC Scoop, click below and sign up today to get our Weekend Planner sent straight to you each week.

We hope your next family game night is filled with fun and laughter.  🙂

From our family to yours, iFamilyKC.