Your engagement party is a great way to relax, unwind and celebrate your engagement before you get too deep into planning your wedding. There’ll be lots of food, plenty of drinks and loads of laughs as you spend time with your loved ones.
For many of your family and friends, it could be the first time they’re meeting. Will it be awkward? What will they talk about? What if they don’t have anything in common?
A great way to break the ice, help your guests get to know each other, and show them how much the two of you are in love is with some party games. Games bring people together, introduce some fun and excitement to the night and help create wonderful memories.
In this post, we’re going to take a look at why you should consider having games at your engagement party, which engagement party games are the best and offer you 21 ideas to help you host a party no one will forget in a hurry.
For more great engagement party tips and ideas, read our guide to throwing an engagement party.
Should you have games at your engagement party?
Whether or not you have games at your engagement party is completely your choice, which can be influenced by several factors, including your:
- Theme
- Venue
- Budget
- Guest list
- Guests’ preferences
It also depends on your own preferences and the feel you want to go for at your party. If you’re looking to host a formal engagement party with a three-course meal, you might not have the time or space to play games. If you’re hosting your party at home or in a park and things are more informal, games are a fantastic way to entertain your guests.
Then again, there’s such a wide variety of games you can play at an engagement party, some games that would suit the most formal of parties.
Why have games at your engagement party?
If you’re on the fence about whether or not to have games at your engagement party, there are plenty of reasons why they can be a great idea. Below are just a few reasons why you should hop off the fence and go ahead with a few games.
- Introduces a brilliant icebreaker, particularly if there are guests who are coming together for the first time.
- Provides entertainment and gives guests of all ages something to do.
- Adds an extra level of personalisation to your engagement party.
- Ensures a fun and memorable party.
- Prevents any awkwardness or downtime.
- Introduces friendly competition.
- Encourages your guests to get involved.
What type of games should you have at an engagement party?
The games you choose for your engagement party should be quick and snappy, and offer all of your guests the opportunity to take part. They should be easy to understand and learn, and shouldn’t require too many complex props. The last thing you need is to spend ages explaining the rules, which could really dampen the mood.
If you’ve planned your engagement party to take part outside, like in your back garden or at the beach, make sure your games can be brought inside or you have a plan B. Volleyball is a lot of fun in the garden, but if it starts raining it might be rather tricky to bring it inside and play in the dining room.
Should you have prizes?
Prizes for the winners of your games can encourage your guests to get stuck in and try a little bit harder than they might otherwise. But, they’re not the be-all and end-all, so if you don’t want to or your budget doesn’t stretch that far, that’s fine too.
If you want to offer prizes, why not use them as your party favours? You could have a couple of bigger prizes for overall game winners, like a bottle of wine or a teddy bear, then smaller prizes for everyone else, like some sweets. That way, everyone still gets a little something to remember your engagement party by.
21 engagement party game ideas to inspire you
If you know you want to have games at your engagement party but you’re not sure where to start, we’re here to help. Here are 21 engagement party game ideas to give your guests the time of their lives. For more party inspiration, read our post on how to plan an engagement party.
1. Couples quiz
Put a list of questions together to test the couples in attendance. Ask progressively harder questions to see if you can trip up some of your overconfident guests. It’s a great game to play to keep the focus on you and your engagement.
2. Pictionary
All you need is some paper, a marker pen and a few teams. Except, instead of the usual Pictionary rules, make it all about weddings and getting married.
3. Trivia
It’s your night and lots of your loved ones will be there, so why not create a bunch of trivia questions all about you and your new fiance? See who from your friends and family truly knows you best.
4. Guess the year
We all have old photos hidden in the loft or sitting in albums on our social media accounts. Put a collage together and ask your guests to guess the year they were taken.
5. Karaoke
Definitely one for your guests who know how to hold a note, but a lot of fun to listen to your guests who perhaps have a little too much confidence in their abilities. Karaoke is brilliant fun if you have friends and family who don’t mind belting out a tune or two.
6. Ring hunt
Print out some gold rings and cut them out, then hide them around the venue and encourage your guests to find them. Whoever finds one wins a small prize! A great family game that gets the kids involved.
7. Ring toss
To keep it ring-themed, put some props together and throw gold rings over them. The harder or further away a target is, the more points they’re worth.
8. Photo booth
Photo booths are so much fun, and perfect if you’re holding your engagement party at a venue away from home. All it takes is a box of props and your guests will have a great time creating fun and fantastical photos.
9. Two truths and a lie
A hilarious ice breaker, each of your guests announces two things about themselves that are true and one that’s a lie, and your other guests are encouraged to identify the lie. You might find out some interesting things in the process!
10. Cocktail making
All it takes is a few spirits, some mixers, some sugar and some fruit to let your guests become mixologist sensations. See who can create the tastiest cocktail of the night, as well as the guest who will inevitably make a drink that no one wants to finish.
11. Cornhole
A game that’s becoming increasingly more popular but is super easy to pick up, as well as being quite addictive. Throw bean bags to a board and get them through the hole in the centre. A great game to play indoors or outside.
12. Newlywed game
A game that puts you in the hot seat. You and your fiance sit facing away from each other, and you each have a pen and paper. Your guests fire questions at you and you write down your answers, then share them to see if they line up. Another variation is the shoe game, where you hold two shoes (one yours, the other your fiance’s) and hold up the corresponding shoe depending on what the answer is.
13. The memory game
Ask everyone at the party to write down a memory of you. The funnier the better. Then, one by one, they’re read out and your guests have to guess who the memory belongs to.
14. Charades
A party classic, Charades is funny and can be played by everyone. Except at an engagement party, make sure all the movies, books and TV shows are wedding and romance related.
15. Jenga
Part-stressful, part-exhilarating, Jenga is a huge crowd-pleaser. Just make sure your guests play it with their glasses out of the way – you don’t want to spend all your time cleaning up spilled drinks whenever the tower of blocks comes crashing down.
16. Tie the knot
A little naughty so maybe not one for the kids, take a bowl of cherries and invite your guests to see if they can tie a knot in the stalk using only their tongues. It’s sure to get everyone laughing at each other’s skills.
17. Card games
All it takes is a pack of cards and there are a ton of possibilities. Poker, Bridge, Pontoon and even Snap for the kids. You could even use matches or sweets as currency for placing bets.
18. Casino games
If you’re going for a casino theme, you could hire a casino table and dealer to put on some proper Las Vegas-style games. All the fun and thrills of Vegas without the risk of losing all your money – which is perfect ahead of planning your wedding!
19. How many sweets in the jar
Fill a big jar with sweets and ask your guests to guess how many there are. To keep it romance related, they could be jelly lips or love hearts. Then whoever guesses the closest gets to keep the whole jar. Yum!
20. Guess the famous couple
Use emojis, photo mash-ups, anagrams or clues to represent famous couples, then ask your guests to guess and tally up the final score.
21. Don’t say ‘wedding’
Challenge every guest at your engagement party to not say the word ‘wedding’ – it’s a lot harder than you might expect because everyone wants to talk about it! If someone says it, they get a point on the board. Whoever says it the least wins.
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