Happy Christmas! FUN Family Games that Don’t Cost a Thing
I know I included this topic last year but many of you have asked me about the Empire game and how to play it because you’ve forgotten so I’m including the rules again plus an added extra -The Blanket Game (don’t judge me) as it’s hilarious (if you like that sort of thing). Enjoy!
The Empire Game: You ideally need at least 8 people to take part. Each person must write the name of someone well-known on a piece of paper and put it into a hat. The youngest person (who can read) usually gets the pleasure of reading all the names out. It’s at this point that you need to stop watching ‘Only Fools and Horses’ and listen up. You also need to attempt to remember all the names read out (almost impossible, especially after several glasses of wine) and don’t let other people distract you, they’ll soon regret chatting about how moist the turkey was during this crucial part of the game.
Once all the names have been read out, the person to the left of the nominated name-reader goes first. They must try and guess who wrote down which name. They get one guess. If they guess correctly, the person they asked, comes over to their ‘Empire’. These two then get another chance to ask someone else. If they’re correct, THAT person comes over to their Empire too and so it continues. If they are WRONG, the person they asked then gets control of the game and gets to ask someone else who they might be. By the end you normally have a couple of Empires and one person left on their own whose name no-one can remember! (that’s the name they put into the hat, not their actual name but having said that, this is also wholly possible!!) No idea whether I’ve explained that clearly (please feel free to email me with any questions) but give it a go, you won’t regret it and it’s something that everyone from 9 to 90 can join in with.
Once all the names have been read out, the person to the left of the nominated name-reader goes first. They must try and guess who wrote down which name. They get one guess. If they guess correctly, the person they asked, comes over to their ‘Empire’. These two then get another chance to ask someone else. If they’re correct, THAT person comes over to their Empire too and so it continues. If they are WRONG, the person they asked then gets control of the game and gets to ask someone else who they might be. By the end you normally have a couple of Empires and one person left on their own whose name no-one can remember! (that’s the name they put into the hat, not their actual name but having said that, this is also wholly possible!!) No idea whether I’ve explained that clearly (please feel free to email me with any questions) but give it a go, you won’t regret it and it’s something that everyone from 9 to 90 can join in with.
The Blanket Game: It’s simple. You just need a very large blanket or sheet that you can’t see through and a sofa to hide behind! Split into groups of 3 or 4 then take it in turns to be the 'hiding' group (the other groups need to leave the room). The idea is for the other groups to guess how many people are under the blanket when they come back into the room so you need to be inventive and you can use props such as side tables, cushions, whatever is available that might fox your opponents! Those in the group not nominated to be under the blanket need to hide (quietly) behind a sofa so that they don't give away any clues to the opponents. We usually have about 3 rounds to decipher a winner. Make sure you know your group pretty well as you're about to spend some time in a confined space/compromising position with them.
Merry Christmas!!
