first year tossing
When we were the big kids in school we used to hang around in the dinner hall in the first break and balance a plate on the edge of a table.
We then threw unsuspecting small first years into the table. The winner was the one to smash the plate.
This started off with throwing first years bags at the table but it sort of evolved....as it does!
(taff, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:56, Reply)

Pig of the Week...
...is a popular one in my local boozer.

Someone picks out the roughest looking bride in the 'Hatches, matches, dispatches' section of one of the local papers(there's 3 if you count the crappy free ones).

The gathered clientle then take it in turns to guess who's been awarded the coveted title.
Winner gets to pick the next week's 'winner' of the award.

The fact that I have has as yet to win after 2 years of drinking in the pub possibly says something about my taste in women but I'm not sure what.

'Spot the case conference' is another one.
I work on a regional burns unit and a lot of our patients have 'challenging' social problems(ie alcoholism, crappy housing, suspected child abuse, psychaitric illness,ec).
The object of the game is to guess how many EXTRA days that patient will stay on the unit whilst their social issues are resolved

And 'percentage sweepstake' is another one, when a patient is referred to us the the referring hospital will then 'guesstimate' the percentage of body surface area skin loss. We then open a book on what the actual skin loss will be once we've seen the burn, everyone chips in some nominal prize(ie boiled sweet, 20p, freebie pen, etc) and winner scoops the pot.

I haven't even mentioned 'name that turd' or 'buzzer tennis' yet either...
( Amorous Badger NAKED BEA ARTHUR PHOTOS 4U, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:55, Reply)

The penis game (mark 2)
You have to take turns to post on b3ta about how you used to play the penis game (or some variation of it). First one to get called a cranberry loses.

(Oh, and for my entry the version we used to play was the when Harry met Sally drinking game. Essentially orgasm noises instead of saying penis, and drink forfeits instead of detention)
(ethorad, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:45, Reply)

Shopping for Others
Find the following things in a shop:
1) An abandoned or ignored trolley/basket
2) The most expensive/useless/embarresing thing in the aisle

OPut the thing in the trolley/basket (it has to be someo0ne elses obviously, don't do it like my mate and put it in your own, the clue is in the title) and then hang around that person until they get to the checkout and watch their face as they unload their trolley onto the belt and find the very expensive thing...its funny!
(P-nut Obsessive Compulsive Green Day Disorder..., Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:42, Reply)

three is a magic number
I was watching tv with the missus and some flatmates and having partaken in rather large quantities of jamaica's finest (no not rum or ginger cake) we were chuffed to hear De La Soul's classic "Three Is A Magic Number" on the advert for BBCThree.

Suddenly I spied something through the haze, so I shouted "Aha, there's 3 books on that shelf". Needless to say everyone soon got the gist and started yelling out groups of three things in the room.

"There's three fag-ends in the ash tray"
"There's 3 darts on the dart board" etc.

The full song allows for 3 mins 16 secs of "Three Spotting", and if you play it once you'll never be able to hear the song without slyly glancing around for threes. Classic
(idlemind, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:40, Reply)

Dinosaur Game
My gurlfriend is always thinking about the best place to hide should a flesh-eating dinosaur lumber into view.

It works for bears too.
( Frank Boff - wandering like a lost soul, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:38, Reply)

The Kylie (Minogue) Game
Rules of Play:

1) Enter your local music emporium; failing this HMV will do...
2) Find the 'Dance' section. This is important kidz, 'cause everyone knows just how Happy Hardcore Kylie tracks really are ;)
3) Each player must now take a CD off the rack at random and read the tracklisting. Should Kylie turn up, the player wins. Otherwise, the next player takes his/her turn at picking.
4) If after five choices each no Kylie is spotted - you aren't playing properly ;) and the game is officially tied.


Top Tips:
* Try and look for CDs with enticing artists on the cover such as Justin Timberlake.

* Play 'Best of Three' amongst the big High-street chains.

* There are certain CD compilations that just scream "I have Kylie on Me!"; they tend to have bright coloured sleeves and "NOW" in the title (eg Now Dance 40, Now Dance 41, etc)

* Avert your gaze whilst another person takes their turn to avoid giving away the CD you've spotted with great Kylie potential...

* In times of Kylie Crisis, you may subsitute her for another pop-act; Justin Timberlake is another chart friendly muppet that often appears on Dance Albums...
(damndirtyape, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:36, Reply)

My brother and I
invented a game simply called 'Milk'. It involves milk. You wait until the other is drinking milk and then you make then laugh. The outcome is usually milk through the nostrils which is pretty fucking horrible. It was first invented whilst driving down the M1 in a van. When we got back to the yard the other staff asked who had been sick all down the side doors.
( DrPoppers Touched by his noodly appendage, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:31, Reply)

My two friends Ben and Ben
and myself we wandering across Hampstead heath (no not in *that* way) in the morning after a party a few years ago. It was in our trippy not-slept haze we spontaneously invented the game "Dog Chicken".

The rules are simple - walk towards dogs and their owners out for a recreational stroll and keep your path unerring until either you or the canine 'chicken out' and change course. Whoever chickens out first loses.

It sure kept us occupied until we got to the Spaniards Arms and for some reason decided to continue drinking....
( LittlePixel, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:30, Reply)

Well...
there's the hilariously amusing 'crack as many joints as possible' game. Most people can only manage the knuckles- the current champion can do every finger in three different ways, their elbows, neck, spine, ankles, and toes.
Shoe Theft Auto is a personal favourite. Steal as many shoes from other people's feet as possible before they gang up and maul you.
The tomato game- perform a series of totally stupid gestures, and fold your arms at the end. Then challenge people to copy you. Nobody ever notices the arm folding, so you end up with huge groups of people screaming abuse at you because you say they're doing it wrong.
(Magical Miffin, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:25, Reply)

The Game Of Hair
Much like The Game Of Life, only with much more hair. Actually, it's best if you pretend you never heard that.
Anyway, during the last week, myself and my friends have made up this brilliant game where we take turns picking a single hair from the head of any girl that might be sitting in front of us in the bus. Each person participating must try to pull a loose hair from her head without her noticing. Bonus points are awarded for split-ends. If somebody fails to grab the hair, or if she notices, you miss a go. The game goes on for 10 hilarity-filled turns. At the end, we tally up the hairs, and the person with the most hairs wins! Then we count all of the hairs we've plucked, for great justice, naturally. Unfortunately, said girl may hate you because of this, but it's genuinely funny.
(Banjo-Fella, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:23, Reply)

Sag Mal
Roughly translating as "Speaking time", Sag Mal was the title of shitty little tests we got in high school when we were in first year German. During a particularly uninteresting test, a mate and i decided to invent a game named after the tests.

To play sag mal you will need an unfeasibly sharp pencil and telepathy. The person wielding the pencil must think of a number between 1 and 10. This has to be a whole number, as if its a fraction, it becomes too hard and painful. The other person has to guess the number. If the guess is wrong, the guessee is stabbed in the thigh with the pencil with a shout of "Sag Mal!"

When a guess is correctly made, the pencil is resharpened and roles are swapped. Spookily, over time you become scarily accurate at this...
(Rushy, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:22, Reply)

a great mini bus game
was, when said minibus was stopped at traffic lights, everyone gets out, runs round the bus and has to get back on before the lights turn green and they get left behind
( Citizen Cavy Admires your passion for conformity, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:19, Reply)

I've played a weird obsessive game since I was about 5
when I'm in a car or a train. I imagine lines drawn between things I'm passing (lamp posts on either side of the road, rail gantries etc) and lift my toes as we go over each line.

So as not to trip on the imaginary bumps, obviously.

This is probably very good exercise. But it is strange and a little shameful to admit to.
( littlebean, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:19, Reply)

me and mrs littlebean
used to play "he did well, she did well", where you sit outside a coffee shop looking for passing couples where one is good looking and the other is grotesquely ugly

It's very boring when you play it in France though. It's just, "He did well. He did well. He did well."

Then we had children. Now we just play, "Where's Thomas the Tank Engine? Where's the car keys? Where's that letter I was going to post? Where's my life gone?"


they're a blessing really.
( littlebean, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:15, Reply)

supermarket sweep
every time i go to the supermarket, i move things to places they really shouldn't be-the more bizarre combination the better. i.e. a packet of nappies in the frozen fish section.

i am actually quite addicted and even if i'm on my own its become a kind of obsessive compulsive thing...

but played it with mates too and points are awarded for style and placement- ultimate goal is to get something behind the glass at the deli counter but not managed it yet.
(muffty, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:02, Reply)

Squirrel fishing
Give this a go if you get the opportunity, it's ace.

Equipment required:
1)Big ball of string
2)Tracker bar or similar
3)Bread (for groundbaiting)
4)Casting point (3rd floor balcony of halls of residence was ours, has to be fairly high up)
5)Place where there are squirrels.

This time of year is ideal as they are all up and about looking for the nuts they've buried. Chuck a few bits of bread around to get 'em interested. Wrap a small piece of tracker bar in string (has to be well wrapped up). Make a lassoo type coil of string and cast off (further the better). Take in the slack. Slowly drag the tracker piece near the feeding squirrels, it's much tastier than the bread so they go for it. Don't let them get it until they are directly below you and there is not much slack on the string. Once you have a bite pull up on the string very gently until hey presto you've caught a squirrel! They hate letting go, we managed to lift one up to the first floor balcony. Brilliant. I'm kind of stretching the definition of impromptu, but all the items needed we happened to possess at the time of thinking it up. Hours of fun!
(mr pete, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 17:00, Reply)

nonoonon no no NO!
the point of the PENIS! game is that you have to yell it louder than th person before you. also works with TITS!
(Cheese Quiche - WARNING! This bus is 18 metres long!, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 16:56, Reply)

A friend and I went on a trip...
... round the country, to visit various friends at various universities.

We invented lots of games to make it more interesting, and here are two of my favourite:

1. When we stopped at traffic lights, if there was a passer-by near enough, we'd wind down the window as if to ask for directions and then say, 'got any crisps?'

People would walk away briskly looking bemused.

2. My boyfriend said in a moment of daftness, 'I want you to ring me every time you have a burger.'

So, we did. And we made a point of having lots of burgers too :)
( kitty_cat, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 16:32, Reply)

Not me but
My nephew and his friends play a game using their mobiles.

The caller rings the callee, the callee has to attempt to answer before the caller hangs up. As they are all on PAYG tariffs, the "winner" is the callee that manages to answer the caller, therefore making the caller pay for the call.

results in phones chirruping as the caller makes a split-second connection.

On a long journey back down the motorway a friend & I played the number plate game, except we only used the last 3 letters on the plate and it had to make a sense, not be 3 random words.

For example T345 RBD = Really Big Dinners.

Not very exciting, but I didn't have a stereo at the time.

Oh, and "Herbie hits no return" - hit the person next to you when you spot a "Herbie" style beetle - new ones don't count. The no return is important, so that you can't be hit back.
(ricky_darkholer is blonde on the inside, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 16:23, Reply)

Spot Jack!
If you see a man in a flat cap, the first to call 'Spot Jack" gets a point. It's two points for a 'Spot Jaques' (beret) and for a 'Spot Jock' (tartan flat cap)
( Olembe Refuses to write in this space, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 16:08, Reply)

I once worked...
...For a well-known burger chain with a yellow clown for a chairman. We invented several games to make the day more fun and keep the general public waiting longer for their 'food'.

1)Laps.
To be played between 12 and 2, Saturday lunchtime. You leave your till and walk off behind the milkshake machine and through the kitchen. Come back into the front part at the opposite end you left, tap your playing partner on the shoulder and take another lap. The aim is to walk as many laps as possible before someone catches you and marches you back out to your till or, heaven forbid, a customer manages to catch your eye and you're forced to serve them.

2) I Beg Your Pardon?
When working in a burger chain it is customary to have to yell out for food which has been given an abbreviated name. The punters have no idea what these names mean and tend not to listen. This mean you can shout out personal comments about the people you are serving without them noticing.
"Four Cheese, One Quarter, Enormous Jugs!"
"Taking your last Veg, I've got a crap haircut!"
You lost when someone said "I beg your pardon?"

3)Point The New Smoked Glass Dome Covered CCTV Cameras Down So You Can Look Down Girl's Tops In The Summer.
Self explanatory really.
(castro, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 15:55, Reply)

We play "Dalek Sumo Wrestling"
In one of the computer rooms in my college, there is a really smooth floor and lots of wheelie chairs. so, the inevitable game of Dalek Sumo Wrestling takes place, whereas two people use the power of self propultion on the floor to knock the other person off the chair...

In fact, there is a game going on right now...
(ClockworkDespot, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 15:53, Reply)

The one and only
Myself and a mate would play this game whenever we were on the tube - or any journey for that matter - by the end of your journey you would have to pick a complete stranger and decide, based solely on their looks, whether you could shag/marry/put up with them etc. The trick was though, you could only pick one, and you weren't allowed to change your mind. Tricky when you've been holding out for a stunner to impress you mate and then find yourself near the end of your journey with only mingers around....still it beats the old shag Maggie Thatcher or Thora Hird dilemma questions eh?
(disco tiger, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 15:50, Reply)

One more
We were rowdy junior high kids. Another favorite pastime of ours was the "PENIS!" game. In which we'd all yell the word "penis" until we were caught by a teacher. There were some close calls in that one.
(Digitdean: Disappointing Fans Since 1989!, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 15:44, Reply)

tourist photo opportunity.
noticed a game whilst inter-railing a few years ago. random italians and frenchies would come and join in on our photos just as they were being taken. it turned out to be a lot of fun to do it to other people too. try sneaking up behind the subject and watching the wry smile of the person taking the picture...

in london this is fantastic when you have school groups or timid looking people, but the best variation of it by far was discovered in brazil, when my brother asked a random guy to take a photo of him and his girlfriend. said guy held camera for about a second before asking someone else to do it, and then joining in the picture for himself. this phenomenon was repeated until a decent crowd of complete strangers were posing for a photo, all surrounding my unsuspecting brother and girlfriend.
(andy hunter only responds to a series of clicks and whistles, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 15:15, Reply)

Hong Kong Banking Corporation Game
My ex and used to play a game of inventing what HSBC might stand for. The ruder the better.
(Stacker, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 15:12, Reply)

Cards
A game for 2 or more people, ideal for those all-too-common situations when you have agreed that playing a card game would be a good idea, but are unable to agree on which one.

Each player thinks of a card game, and asks the dealer for as many cards as are required for them to play that game. Players take turns to play one turn of their chosen game, sticking as closely as possible to the rules of that game. The game is won by the first player who manages to 'win' by the rules of whatever game they have chosen.

Strategy: Beginners tend to opt for the comedy option of Snap, which can indeed be particularly effective against players of Rummy who are required to place sets of cards down, but it is usually impossible for them to obtain all the cards and claim a 'win' first. Pontoon is often a good choice, since relatively few cards are required to reach 21, but there is the danger of going 'broke'. 5 Card Poker is also a strong choice (and bets are relatively safe if you are the only one gambling) but do not be reckless, many a good poker hand has lost to a player of gin rummy who has put down 2 'three of a kind's before you have given them their second opportunity to raise you. Hearts is a strong choice against Poker players, since you can take all 3 of their cards and give them 3 bad ones. Patience games are an interesting option, and can (with luck) win in a single turn, but this strategy can be thwarted by Snap players removing your cards, or by rummy players declaring themselves winners by virtue of having no cards left.
( Andy_R At the third stroke, the time will be precisely, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 15:10, Reply)

Scare the French schoolchildren
Another favourite for those living in places like Oxford or Winchester where there are many French schoolchildren on trips. When passing a group of said children, after the inevitable cocky French insult spoken by some stripy-clothed preteen with a bumbag, spin around suddenly and stare straight at them as if you understand what they said. Scares the shit out of them. Insulting them loudly in French earns bonus points.
(DoctorJ last upset some twat who doesn't like swearing on, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 15:06, Reply)

Make the goth smile
A good one to play in student towns. When confronted with some arsehole who thinks that wearing black and looking like your mother's just died makes them an individual, stare straight at them and smile broadly. If they can't suppress their natural inclination to smile back then you win. If not, you still win, because you are an infinitely superior person.
(DoctorJ last upset some twat who doesn't like swearing on, Tue 30 Mar 2004, 15:04, Reply)