Good games turn an ordinary dinner into a party colleagues talk about all year. Here are 20 games for corporate and New Year parties for adults: table games you can play seated, active games for the dance floor and team games for bonding. All of them are fun without being crude or awkward, so both the boss and the newcomer can join in.
1. Never have I ever. Players take turns naming something they have never done; anyone who has raises a hand. Whoever raises it most gives a toast. 2. Office charades. Act out “deadline”, “a meeting that could have been an email” or “holiday” without words.
3. Who said that? The host reads funny quotes from the year’s work chat and guests guess who wrote them. 4. Year ahead. Everyone draws a slip with a joke prophecy: “This year you will finally master the printer.”
5. Word association. The host says a word, the next person a related word, round the table at speed. Whoever hesitates does a forfeit. 6. Guess the colleague. Collect baby photos in advance and show them on screen. 7. Three-word carol. Each team gets three random words and five minutes to write a verse to a well-known tune.For more party planning guides, see how to plan a party.
Funny games work when everyone laughs together rather than at one person. Avoid tasks that involve undressing, speed drinking or jokes about appearance.
Job charades. Act out an accountant at year-end, a developer at stand-up or a courier in traffic.
Dubbing. Play a film clip on mute while two players improvise the dialogue.
Fashion show. In 5 minutes a team dresses a “model” in tape, napkins and tinsel, then struts the runway.
Celebrity interview. A blindfolded player answers questions as a celebrity whose name everyone else can see.
Blind artist. Draw a colleague’s portrait with eyes closed while the room guesses who it is.
Interpreter. One person tells a story in a made-up language and another “translates” it.
At a New Year office party, games with winter props and a look back at the year work best. Plan 5–7 games per evening and leave the rest for dancing and talking.
Secret Santa riddle. Before opening a present, the colleague guesses the giver from three clues.
Year in review awards. Categories such as “Deadline Saviour” or “King of Zoom Calls”, voted with stickers.
Human Christmas tree. A team has 2 minutes to decorate one player with tinsel, baubles and fairy lights.
Holiday charades. Act out a festive salad, a sparkler, the midnight chimes or “it’s the 31st and no presents yet”.
Paper snowball fight. Two teams throw napkin snowballs over a rope; the side with fewer on its half wins.
Predictions. Everyone writes a prediction for a random colleague, read out at the end of the night.
A classic table game: one hat holds questions, the other answers. The first player draws and reads a question, their neighbour draws an answer at random. The more absurd the match, the funnier.
Sample questions: “Do you like Mondays?”, “What do you do when the boss isn’t looking?”, “Do you sing in the shower?”, “Have you kept your New Year’s resolutions?”.
Sample answers: “Only after coffee”, “Only my cat knows”, “Every day, but I’ll never admit it”, “Who’s paying me for this?”, “That’s classified”.
Prepare 20–30 cards of each type for several rounds, and check that no combination could come out offensive.
For teams where not everyone enjoys active games, brain games are the safest format: people play in teams at their tables, and the rivalry holds attention for an hour or more.
Office quiz. 4–6 rounds of 6–8 questions: general knowledge, music, film, “company history”. Answers go on sheets and the host keeps the scoreboard.
Team trivia. Teams of 6, one minute to confer, players versus the room. Pick logic questions rather than dates.
Mafia. Works for 8–15 people. The host explains the roles briefly for beginners, and the first rounds can be played without elimination.
Murder mystery. Every guest gets a role and a secret, and the goal is to find the “killer”.
For a large group, split teams by department or badge colour so old friends and new colleagues mix.
Short unrehearsed skits are a favourite in teams with a few natural performers. The host hands out roles and lines on cards, and improvisation does the rest.
Fairy tale remix. A classic tale where the characters are departments: finance pulls the giant turnip, developers write code for it and HR organises a team-building day.
Meeting in 10 years. Players act as their future selves discussing company “news”.
TV interview. A reporter with a “microphone” asks colleagues about the year’s wins, and they may answer only with gestures.
Sound effects. One person reads a story while the team provides every sound: creaking doors, rain, barking.
Line from a hat. Two players act out a scene and must slip in a random line from a hat every 30 seconds.
Keep roles from mocking specific people: joke about processes and situations, not colleagues.
8. Dance relay. The host plays snippets of different styles, from waltz to hip-hop, and teams dance along. 9. Toilet-paper snowman. Teams have three minutes to turn a teammate into a snowman. 10. Balloon stomp. Tie a balloon to each ankle; pop other people’s while protecting your own.
11. Musical chairs — a classic that works at any age. 12. Karaoke battle. Departments compete, with managers as judges scoring showmanship rather than vocals. 13. Living pictures. Teams recreate famous paintings or film scenes while others guess.
6 more active games for adults
Active games are best after the main course, when guests have relaxed but aren’t tired yet. Clear 3–4 metres of floor and warn players to wear comfortable shoes.
Centipede. The team holds each other’s shoulders and runs an obstacle course without breaking the chain.
Kangaroo relay. Sack race or a ball held between the knees.
Bottle bowling. Plastic water bottles as pins and a ball.
Tug of war between departments — a classic that always draws a crowd.
Twister on a large mat for 4–6 players.
Balloon stomp. Balloons tied to ankles — pop the others’ and protect your own.
Music brings together even people who are shy about speaking in public. Build a playlist of hits from several decades so every generation recognises “their” songs.
Name that tune. The first 5–10 seconds of a track; teams hold up the title.
Finish the line. The music stops mid-chorus and whoever sings the next line correctly scores.
Department karaoke battle. Each department picks a song and performs; the room votes by applause.
Hum it. Hum the melody or tap it on glasses while the team guesses.
Dance marathon. The style changes every 30 seconds: waltz, disco, folk, electro.
14. New Year quiz. Five rounds of six questions: the company, films, music, New Year traditions around the world and “guess from emojis”. 15. Build a tree. Teams build a Christmas tree from whatever is in the room: napkins, glasses, menus, scarves.
16. Sell the stapler. Each team gets an office item — a stapler or sticky notes — and three minutes to create a TV ad. 17. Murder mystery. Every guest gets a role and a secret goal, and together they solve the “crime” over the evening.
18. Secret Santa with a riddle. You only get your present after solving a riddle about yourself from the giver. 19. Photo scavenger hunt. A list of 15 shots — “everyone with the boss”, “a human pyramid”, “a 90s-style photo” — first team wins. 20. Awards of the year. Joke categories: “Always has a charger”, “Deadline King”, “Best coffee-machine small talk”. For toasts between games, see New Year and office party toasts.
Team building differs from party games in one way: the team only wins together. These tasks can be run in a banquet hall or outdoors without an agency.
Tallest tower. Spaghetti, tape, string and a marshmallow: 15 minutes to build the tallest freestanding structure.
Minefield. A blindfolded player crosses a field of paper-cup “mines” guided only by teammates’ voices.
Photo hunt. A list of 10 shots around the office or park, with 30 minutes to complete.
Flip the blanket. The whole team stands on a blanket and must flip it without touching the floor.
Code lock. A box with a combination lock, with the digits hidden in riddles handed to different people.
When the team works from different cities and countries, the party moves to Zoom, Google Meet or Teams. Online, keep rounds short and get everyone involved, or cameras start switching off.
Online quiz using a quiz service where people answer on their phones.
Show me. The host names a category — “something red”, “the oldest thing in your home” — and the first to show it on camera scores.
Background challenge. Players set a themed virtual background and others guess the film or place.
Group drawing on an online whiteboard: everyone adds a detail to the company’s holiday card.
Whose desk? Photos of workspaces collected in advance — who works here?
Send everyone a box of treats and party bits in advance so the online evening feels like a real celebration.
For International Women’s Day at work, skip “ladies’” games like who can peel potatoes fastest and choose games where colleagues feel noticed and respected.
Compliment relay. Going round the circle, each person gives a colleague a sincere work compliment: “thanks to you we managed to…”.
Baby photo guess. Colleagues’ childhood photos on screen.
Spring quiz. Questions about notable Ukrainian women, spring holidays and flowers.
Five-minute bouquet. Teams arrange a bouquet from ready flowers and ribbons; the judges pick the best and the winner takes it home.
The best way to end the day is flowers for every colleague. See ideas and messages in our article on Women’s Day greetings.
In a small team everyone knows each other, so games can be more personal. Two truths and a lie, “who knows their colleagues best”, making pizza or mocktails together, board games such as Dixit or Codenames and a short office quest all work well. No host is needed: rules take a minute to explain and everyone fits round one table.
Prizes for the winners
An office-party prize is above all a joke and a memory, not something valuable. Cheap but personal awards work well:
chocolate medals and “trophies” engraved with titles like “Deadline Master”;
certificates with funny categories to pin up by the desk;
an extra day off or a late start — the most coveted prize in any team;
small bouquets or potted plants for the desk;
number balloons for the year for a winners’ team photo.
The golden rule: nobody leaves empty-handed, so prepare a few consolation prizes.
Joke about work and events, never looks or private life
Alternate table games and active ones
Keep each game under ten minutes
Token prizes for every team
Provide soft drinks and arrange taxis
Flowers and gifts for colleagues
The end of the year is a good time to thank your team and partners: small boxed arrangements are easy to hand out after the party, and a large bouquet will brighten the festive table or the office reception.
Never have I ever, “Who said that?” with quotes from the work chat, speed word association, guessing colleagues from baby photos and joke predictions for the year.
How do you make an office party fun without a host?
Ask one or two colleagues to host, prepare a quiz and joke awards in advance, put on a playlist and set up a photo corner.
How many games do you need?
Six to eight per evening: three or four table games, two team games and one or two active ones, each under ten minutes.
Which games suit a small team?
A quiz, “Who said that?”, Secret Santa with riddles, a murder mystery and an awards ceremony work best for small teams.
What New Year table games work for adults?
Secret Santa riddles, year-in-review awards, holiday charades, predictions for colleagues and a winter-themed question-and-answer game.
What funny games suit an office party?
Job charades, live film dubbing, a tape-and-tinsel fashion show, blind portraits and a made-up-language interpreter. Avoid undressing tasks and jokes about appearance.
How do I run a question-and-answer game?
Prepare 20–30 question cards and 20–30 answer cards in two hats. One player reads a question, the next draws a random answer — the absurd pairings do the rest.
What games work at a virtual office party?
An online quiz on phones, “show me”, a virtual background challenge, a group drawing on an online whiteboard and “whose desk?” from workspace photos.
What prizes should winners get?
Chocolate medals, funny certificates, an extra day off, small bouquets or desk plants. Prepare consolation prizes too so nobody leaves empty-handed.
What active games work for adults?
Centipede obstacle course, kangaroo relay, bottle bowling, inter-department tug of war, Twister and balloon stomp. Schedule them after the main course.
What games work for an outdoor office party?
Water relays, frisbee golf, a treasure hunt with a map, games with a giant inflatable ball and a picnic cooking challenge.
Author: Maria Svitlovir
Graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Institute of Biology and Medicine (2001). BSc in Biology, MSc in Horticulture. Writes about plants, works at a garden centre selecting and repotting plants, and contributes to plant reference guides.
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