Ride the Bus

This is a great game when there are only two or three people wanting to play a game and drink before they go out for the night. This is also a good game because all you need is cards and beer so you don’t need to find anything special around the apartment. This game is also linked into another drinking card game, so once you learn this one, you can play another game called Irish poker which I will discuss in my next post. This is a simple game that requires no skill or talent, just using common sense.
To play: each round there will always be one person who is the dealer and one person who is “riding the bus” the dealer deals out 9 cards all face up on the table. Four cards parallel to four more cards, and one card in the middle of the two. It will look like a bus with the rows and the driver in the middle. The person who is not dealing starts at one of the two ends and is trying to make it up to the front of the bus then to the back on the other side to get off –of the bus. On every card you can guess high, low, red or black, whichever works best for the odds (For example if the card on the table is a 4 of spades the person would most likely guess higher). The dealer flips over the card from the top of the pile that’s not on the table. If they get it right the person moves up the row onto the second card. This continues until you guess wrong. If a card is guessed wrong, you drink as many seconds as how many cards you had right until then, so you could drink up to 8 seconds then to start from the beginning again. The game is won once the person goes through up and down the rows and gets off the bus. Then the roles switch and the dealer becomes the rider and rider becomes the dealer. If a person goes through the whole deck without getting off the bus all cards are shuffled and starts over again. It is a fun game for two that can lead to drinking a big in a short amount of time.

Beer Dye

Beer Dye is a game that is different than your ordinary drinking games. This is more for the truly competitive people who have good hand eye coordination. There can only be four people playing at one. This game requires things that most games do not usually call for. You need: a long table, open space, string, tape, dice, 4 big plastic cups and beer. You will most likely want to play this game with beer because randomly throughout the game you may have to chug your whole drink. There are a some variations in some of the small details, but its all pretty much the same. To set up the table is best at the length around your knees when standing so putting it on top of a table usually works pretty well. The string goes across the middle of the table in the air a foot or two below the ceiling, use the tape to hold it up. Two of the big plastic cups go in the corner of the table full of beer.
There are two players to a side, one player starts by throwing the dye UNDERhand OVER the string and bouncing it on the opponent’s side of the table. Any throws that are under the line do not count and result in the loss of a turn.
The game is played to seven. You score points by having the dye bounce your opponent’s side of the table and your opponents not catch it before it hits the floor. If the dye hits the floor before caught it is one point. If you make it into either plastic cup its worth two points, and both team members have to finish their drink. Winners must win by two. If a thrown dye bounces off the table and hits the side of the plastic cup the dye is dead, and no points are awarded even if the dye hits the floor. If a player throws the dye and it doesn’t hit the table BOTH members must drink. It is usually played where a player has five total drinks to finish the cup before it has to be gone, unless a player “sinks” it into the cup before that. It is more of an active game for smaller amounts of people, but a different game.

Quarters

Quarters is another fun game to play when you have people over. This is an easy game to play because you don’t need any unique materials to play. Other than people and beer/mixed drinks all you need is a couple quarters and a couple shot glasses. Plastic shot glasses are usually better than glass because this game can get very intense which leads to shattered shot glasses which is no fun for anyone. Its also best played around a table where everyone can stand around. You generally need around five or six people for this game to keep moving and be fun, with this you only need two quarters and two shot glasses. Extra quarters are recommended because they will fall on the floor and other things. More people require more shot glasses and quarters, but for right now well stick to the simple way.
How to shoot: the best way to shoot is to hold a quarter flat with your thumb and pointer finger around 3-4 inches away from the shot glass. You want to gently bounce the quarter off the surface so it bounces once and then into the shot glass. It takes a couple tries to get used to it, you’ll get used to it.
The game starts with the two shot glasses at opposite sides of the table. The two people start shooting at their own glass at the same time. If a person makes it on their first shot, they can send the shot glass to anyone, EXCEPT FOR THE PERSON WITH THE SHOT GLASS. It’s best to send it to a person to the very right or left of the shot glass to try and make people drink. If you make it on the 2nd or 100th shot, you pass the shot glass to the person right to the left of you.
When to drink: There are many variations to this part of the game, but this is the easiest way for learners, also the best way to keep the game moving constantly. When two people have shot glasses right next to each other and person on the RIGHT makes it before the person on the LEFT, and passes them by touching their opponents shot glass and passes the shot glass to the next person without a shot glass. The person who was passed has to stop shooting, take a drink, and start shooting again to try and get the new person to the left. This is a fun, intense game that can last for hours.

Screw The Dealer

Screw the dealer is another good game that can be used for a large group of people. It’s best when the number doesn’t get over 8 people because then the game slows down and people lose interest. It is another game that’s bets played with beer, mixed drinks could be a bad idea, especially if you’re the dealer that ends up getting screwed in the end. All you need for this game is beer, a full deck of cards, and some sort of a table that can hold 13 cards laid out in a row.
The game starts with one person as the dealer and everyone else standing around the table. Another person in the group (not the dealer) chooses a card in the deck. At this time the dealer peeks carefully at the top card on the deck. The dealer has to be sure that no one can see the card because it is very easy to cheat if they can see it (which can be fun if you’re trying to screw over a friend). The dealer tells the person whether the card is higher or lower than the card that was selected. The guesser uses this information to pick a new card they think it could be. Its best to look at the table and try and play your odds as the game goes on. Every player gets two guesses unless they get it right on the first guess.
When to drink: If the guesser gets the first and second guess wrong they drink the difference in number of cards between there last guess and the actual card. For example if the dealers card was a 7 and the person’s second guess was a 4, they take 3 drinks. If a person guesses the card right on the first guess the dealer has to take 10 drinks. If guessed right on the second guess the dealer has to take 5 drinks. This can be a lot of drinking especially when it comes to the end of the deck where people can play their odds in the deck to make the dealer drink a lot. A fun game that is very easy to learn and teach.

Needle in the Haystack

This game I just learned this past weekend. It was a lot of fun. This game requires a good number of people, maybe around 5-9 so it’s not too small where the drinking becomes too much and not too many where the game gets real slow and boring. All you need for the game is a deck of cards make sure it’s a full deck), one big cup for the whole table, a bit of beer, and possibly a big pitcher to keep the game going. Nothing kills the quality of a game better than if its really slow and boring, people start becoming uninterested and leaving all together. The big cup is used for everyone at the table at the beginning of the game a person pours some beer into the cup. It is best played at a table where everyone can stand or sit around. To start the game one person (who ever owns the place, or who ever thought to start the game) picks one random card out of the deck. Say 4 of clubs for example. Once the card is chosen someone draws a card randomly out of the pile of cards in the middle of the table. From there it goes around the table to one person at a time drawing a single card out of the pile. As cards are drawn people can continue adding more beer to the central cup until they feel like there is enough beer in there. Once someone draws the chosen card (4 of clubs for this example) that person has to drink the middle cup. Once the cup is drank that person gets to choose the next card, poor as much beer in the cup at they think is necessary, and the game starts again with drawing new cards.

Beer Pong

This first game is my personal favorite. To play beer pong you need 4 people, 12 plastic cups (preferably Solo), at least two ping pong balls, a 7 foot table, and plenty of beer. The table should be about waste high, with two players at each side. Each side of the table gets 11 cups, 10 for the game being played, the 11th used for the water cup. Before each turn both balls are dipped into the water cup to clean them off. You set up the cups in one big triangle, with four cups closest to the edge of the table, then three, two, and then one in front. This last cup is closest to the opponents. The cups are generally filled up ¼ with beer. The goal is to try and throw the ping pong balls into your opponent’s cups, the first one to eliminate all your opponents’ cups wins. The cups are taken away as the balls are made into the cup. Balls thrown into the cups = one cup taken. You can try to bounce the ball into one of the cups, and if made two cups are taken away. Balls that are bounced can be swatted away, so it is complicated to bounce it into the cups. As the cups are taken away, each side is usually allowed two re-racks. This is done before the team shoots and benefits by placing all of the cups closer together. If each teammate makes their shot, the two cups are removed and they get the balls back to shoot again. If both teams miss, it is then up to the other team to shoot. When one team makes their opponents last cup the game is then over, the loser as to drink all remaining beer and the new opponent comes to the table to play the winner.
This is best played when there aren’t a lot of people around wanting to participate. However, it can be very fun to get a couple tables together and set up either a single or double elimination a tournament. You would get team names and set up brackets like the ones used for the NCAA tournament.

Games

Most blogs from here on out will be about different games to play to increase the party's atmosphere. Most of these games should be played with beer, preferably a light beer that can be consumed at a faster pace without filling your stomach. Hard alcohol such as mixed drinks can be used, however this could end badly because they are intended for beer. People may also drink heavy beers, however there is a good chance of getting sick because of all the liquid that is being consumed. Different atmospheres call for different games, but most games covered will result in consuming a bit of alcohol.

Guideline

For those of you who don’t know what this blog is about yet, it’s all about drinking. Drinking can be a very fun social activity, but having some more knowledge on the topic can turn an ok night into a great night. Adding certain drinks, music, and games into parties will increase everyone’s attitude to have more fun. Throughout all of my posts I will list some activities or games that will include consuming a lot of alcohol in a short amount of time. There is no need to feel like you have to drink as much as listed, just a guideline; but I cannot be held responsible for overconsumption of alcohol. I am trying to share interesting ideas to create more fun for all, but how much each individual drinks is on them with no pressure from me.

What to drink?

Depending on the occasion of the night should determine what alcohol should be bought for the nights activities. If it’s a formal event, there should be a full bar of drinks for people to choose. This gives each individual a free range of what s/he wants to drink. Separate parties for men and women should have limited choices available. Male parties should always include beer as well as some hard alcohol available for mixed drinks and shots. Parties for women should include a central theme that goes with the occasion of the party. Margaritas, Mojito’s, Mai Thais, Pina Coladas, and Daiquiris are a couple of ideas for fun drinks for female parties. Pregame parties should include either beer, or a hard alcohol such as Vodka or Whisky to take shots and make drinks. Beer is probably a better option most of the time because games are usually included and individuals drinking hard liquor may not make it out of the pregame party. Pretty much every party should include some kind of beer, and depending on the event should determine what other drinks are included.