Bad Bite
14–30 players 10–15 min Minimal materials
Bad Bite is a hilarious and challenging team game that tests your agility, coordination, and teamwork. You split into two teams and use only your mouth to pick up and hold onto…
92 games
Games Under 15 Minutes
Games that start and finish inside a quarter of an hour, including the explaining.
These are the ones that fit into something else — a gap between sessions, the last part of a meeting, the wait for a bus, a group that has arrived early. They are also the right choice for a group that is skeptical about the whole idea, because a short game that works buys you permission to run a longer one.
Short does not mean thin. Several of these produce more conversation than games three times the length, because the constraint forces them to get to the point.
One practical note: a game listed at ten minutes takes longer than ten minutes the first time you run it. Budget for the explaining separately from the playing, and if you have fifteen minutes total, pick something from the shorter end.
Ordered with the quickest and simplest first.
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Ball tunnel
7+ players 10–15 min Minimal materials
Participants are divided into groups, placed in rows and with their legs spread. The first in line throws the ball between the legs of the other teammates to the last one, who r…
Bat and Moth
8–20 players 10–15 min Blindfold
The group forms a tight safety circle. Inside it, one blindfolded player is the bat and two or three players are moths. The bat hunts by echolocation: every time the bat calls "…
Black Magic
6–20 players 10–15 min Small household objects to point at
A two-person trick disguised as mind-reading. The "psychic" leaves the room while the group picks any object in sight. On returning, their secret partner points to objects one b…
Blindfolded Challenge
10+ players 10–15 min Blindfolds, String
One member of the team removes their blindfold and directs their blindfolded teammates to perform various tasks. These tasks can include arranging themselves into a specific ord…
Blindfolded Obstacle Course
10–20 players 10–15 min Minimal materials
"Blindfolded Obstacle Course" is a thrilling team-based game where participants navigate a traditional obstacle course, but with a twist: one member of each team is blindfolded.…
Broom
3+ players 10–15 min Minimal materials
The participants form a circle, each with brooms standing in reverse (the top of the stick placed on the ground). The participants must move to the next place by releasing their…
Bunny Bunny
6–20 players 10–15 min No equipment needed
A gloriously silly focus game. The player who is "it" makes bunny paws and chants "bunny bunny bunny bunny" before throwing the bunny — a two-handed point — to anyone in the cir…
Count to Ten
2–20 players 10–15 min No equipment needed
Players take turns counting up, starting with 1. Each player says either one or two numbers. If you say 10 then you are eliminated. Restart the count at 1. Continue until only o…
Dots and Boxes
10–20 players 10–15 min Paper, Pens or pencils
Start with a large, even grid of dots. Players take turns drawing a line from one dot to a horizontally or vertically adjacent dot. Count one point to players who complete a box…
Down by the Banks
5–15 players 10–15 min No equipment needed
Sit in a circle, each player's right hand resting palm-up on their neighbor's left palm. As the group chants the traditional rhyme — "Down by the banks of the hanky panky…" — ea…
Drip, Drip, Drop
6–20 players 10–15 min Cup for water
The hot-weather version of Duck, Duck, Goose. Everyone sits in a circle. The player who is "it" walks around the outside with a cup of water, dripping a small splash on each hea…
Evolution (Egg, Chicken, Dinosaur)
8+ players 10–15 min No equipment needed
Everyone starts as an egg, waddling in a crouch. Find another egg and play rock-paper-scissors: the winner evolves into a chicken (strut and flap), the loser stays an egg. Chick…
Fortunately, Unfortunately
4–20 players 10–15 min No equipment needed
The group tells one story, alternating a single rule: sentences must begin "Fortunately…" and "Unfortunately…" in strict turns. "Fortunately, Maria won a free cruise. Unfortunat…
Guess Who
2–30 players 10–15 min No equipment needed
Each guest has a name of a person, animal or object taped to their forehead or back. Each person gets to ask 20 questions of various guests to figure out who he is.
Helicopter
5–15 players 10–15 min Long rope, Soft beanbag (optional, tied to rope end)
Players form a circle around one person holding a long rope (or a rope with a soft beanbag tied to the end). The center player spins, sweeping the rope around the circle at ankl…
Hi Ha Hu
10+ players 10–15 min No equipment needed
Everyone stands in a circle. First player says "HI" and with joined palms waves from the top of the head down towards someone. That person then says "HA" and does the same movem…
Hula Hoop Pass
8–30 players 10–15 min Hula hoop
The group joins hands in a circle with one hula hoop hanging on someone's arm. Without anyone letting go of their neighbors' hands, the hoop must travel the whole way around the…
Human Ring Toss
6–20 players 10–15 min Minimal materials
You'll need several hula hoops or pool floats for this fun challenge. Divide your players into partners and have them stand at least six feet apart. Each partner will try to "ri…
Hwishu
4–20 players 10–15 min Minimal materials
A ball game similar to cricket in concept where you have two teams, 'X' represents one team and the dots 'C' are the opposition. It can be played by an even number of players fr…
Limbo
2+ players 10–15 min No equipment needed
Players take turns trying to limbo under a bar without touching it or falling over.
Monkey in the Middle
3–8 players 10–15 min Ball
Two or more players pass a ball to each other while the "monkey" in the middle tries to intercept it. If the monkey touches the ball — in the air or on a bounce — the player who…
Mummy Wrap
6+ players 10–15 min Toilet paper rolls
Teams of two or three get two rolls of toilet paper and three minutes. One teammate stands as the mummy while the others wrap them head to toe — face uncovered — as completely a…
Opposites
6–30 players 10–15 min No equipment needed
The goal of this game is for guests to do the opposite of what they are told. When you say, "put your right foot out," they put their left foot out. When you say, "look up," the…
Orange Pass
8+ players 10–15 min Orange (or small ball)
Teams line up shoulder to shoulder. The first player tucks an orange under their chin, and it must travel down the whole line passed only from neck to neck — no hands allowed at…
Packing Peanut Tower
4–20 players 10–15 min Minimal materials
Divide your group into even teams. Designate an area for each team to use to build their tower. Provide each team with an even distribution of supplies - packing peanuts and too…
Pin the Tail on the Donkey
4–20 players 10–15 min Donkey poster, Tail cutouts, Blindfold, Tape
Tape a large donkey poster to the wall. Each player in turn is blindfolded, gently spun three times, then pointed toward the wall to pin (or tape) their numbered tail where they…
Reach an Object on a Pole
10+ players 10–15 min No equipment needed
Place an object — a flag, a beanbag, a hat — on top of a tall pole or hang it well out of reach. Each team must work out how to retrieve it using only themselves and whatever ma…
Shadow Tag
4+ players 10–15 min No equipment needed
A no-contact tag variant for sunny days. Instead of touching other players, the person who is "it" tags someone by stepping on their shadow and calling their name. Because nobod…
Stacking Balloon Cups
14–20 players 10–15 min Minimal materials
Prepare 5 to 10 plastic cups and place them in a row on the table. The player will then be given an uninflated balloon. Your task is to inflate the balloon INSIDE the plastic cu…