New Year's Eve party games that get you to midnight
The best New Year's Eve party games look back at the year you have just had and forward to the next one: a resolution swap, a quiz about your own group's year, guess the year, and a prediction envelope you open next December, spaced out so the big finish lands at midnight.
Players4 to 30Time9pm to midnightNeedsPaper, pens, a bowlAgesEvery age, with a kids' midnight option
New Year's Eve has a problem no other party has. It has a fixed ending three hours away, and the middle tends to sag. Everyone is fed by ten, the television is showing something nobody chose, and by half eleven half the room is on their phones waiting for the countdown.
The fix is a loose running order with a game in each slot. Below are fourteen that work at home, with adults, children or a crowd, followed by a timetable from 9pm to midnight, a year in review quiz you fill in about your own lot, and fifteen New Year trivia questions with the answers.
Plan the evening backwards from twelve
Most party games can be played at any hour. New Year games should be arranged around the clock, because the whole night is building to one moment and the best material is the year itself.
Put the gentle, mingling games early while people are still arriving and eating. Put the competitive quiz in the middle when the room has settled and needs a push. Keep the quiet, slightly soppy games, the resolutions and the predictions, for the last half hour, so the countdown arrives on a high rather than interrupting something.
If there are children who will not make midnight, give them their own. When it is midnight in Dubai it is 8pm in the UK, and midnight in Paris or Berlin arrives at 11pm here, so a small child can do a full countdown, party poppers and all, and still be in bed at a sensible hour.
Fourteen games for the last night of the year
Every game here needs nothing beyond paper, pens and the odd household object. Timings are for a group of about ten.
01
Resolution swap
Players4 or moreTimeSet up at 9pm, reveal at 11.30pmNeedsSlips of paper, a bowl
As people arrive, each guest writes a resolution for somebody else in the room, names who it is for, and drops it in the bowl unsigned. In the last half hour the host reads them out one by one and the room guesses who wrote each one. The person it was written for decides whether they accept.
Tip: Ban anything about weight or money. The best ones are specific and harmless: "answer the family group chat within a week".
02
The year in review quiz
PlayersTeams of 2 to 5Time30 to 40 minutesNeedsThe question list below, pens, answer sheets
The host fills in the template questions further down this page with details from your own group's year: who moved house, who got the worst sunburn, which film the house watched twice. Teams answer on paper, swap sheets to mark, and the host settles disputes.
Tip: Ask two or three guests for material in advance, privately. The host should not be the only one who knows what happened in March.
03
Guess the year
PlayersAny number, in teamsTime15 minutesNeedsA phone for music, a list of years
The host picks a year and reads three clues about it: a number one single, a news story and something that happened to a person in the room. Teams write down the year. Exact answers score three points, within two years scores one.
Tip: This is the best game for mixed ages, because grandparents own the 1970s and teenagers own everything after 2015.
04
Who said it this year
Players6 or more adultsTime15 minutesNeedsQuotes gathered beforehand
Before the party the host collects ten or so memorable lines from the year, from the group chat, a family holiday or a notorious dinner. Read each one out and teams write down who said it. Reveal the answer with the date it was said.
Tip: Get permission for anything borderline. A quote that made one person laugh in July can land very differently in December.
05
Two truths and a lie, year edition
Players4 to 12Time20 minutesNeedsNothing
Each player tells the room three things that happened to them this year. Two are true and one is invented. Everyone votes on the lie, and the storyteller scores a point for every person they fooled.
Tip: The best lies are boring. Nobody suspects "I got a new kettle in April".
06
Headline charades
Players6 or more, two teamsTime20 minutesNeedsSlips of paper, a timer
Write the year's big news stories, films, songs and a few events from your own group on slips. Teams take turns acting them out in silence against a one minute timer. Anything about the group scores double.
Tip: Keep a pile of easier slips aside for younger players, and let them pick from that pile.
07
Who am I, this year
Players5 or moreTime15 minutesNeedsSticky notes, a pen
Each player has a sticky note on their forehead naming someone who was in the news this year, or somebody in the room. They ask yes or no questions in turn until they work out who they are.
Tip: Put one of the guests on a note. Watching someone ask "am I annoying?" and get a unanimous yes is worth the whole game.
08
Prediction envelope
PlayersEverybodyTime15 minutesNeedsPaper, one large envelope
Everyone writes five predictions for next year: one about themselves, one about somebody else in the room, one about the world, one about the family or friendship group and one wild card. Seal them in an envelope with the date on the front, and open it at the same party next year.
Tip: Put the envelope somewhere with the Christmas decorations, so it comes out of the loft at the right time.
09
Kids' midnight countdown
PlayersChildren and any adult willingTime10 minutes, at 8pm or 11pmNeedsParty poppers, a clock or a countdown video
Pick a country that reaches midnight before bedtime, such as the United Arab Emirates at 8pm UK time or France at 11pm. Do the full countdown, the cheering and the party poppers at that time, then the little ones go to bed having seen in a real new year somewhere in the world.
Tip: Tell them which country they celebrated with and find it on a map in the morning.
10
Balloon hour tasks
PlayersFamilies with childrenTimeRuns all eveningNeedsBalloons, slips of paper
Before the party write a task on a slip for each hour, such as "everyone does their best dance move" or "tell the funniest thing that happened to you this year", and put one inside each balloon. On the hour, a child pops the next balloon and the room does what it says.
Tip: Label each balloon with its time in marker pen, or the children will pop all of them at 7.05pm.
11
Minute to midnight challenges
PlayersAny number, in pairs or teamsTime20 minutesNeedsPlastic cups, biscuits, a timer
Run a string of sixty second challenges. Stack twelve plastic cups into a pyramid and back. Move a biscuit from your forehead to your mouth without using your hands. Keep a balloon in the air using only your breath. Each win scores a point for the team.
Tip: Put this straight after food, when people need to move before they fall asleep.
12
Finish the lyric
PlayersTeams of any sizeTime15 minutesNeedsA phone and a speaker
Play the opening of songs from the year, or from any year the room loves, and stop the music just before a well known line. The first team to sing the next line correctly scores. End the round on "Auld Lang Syne" and ask for the second verse, which almost nobody knows.
Tip: Alternate between songs the teenagers know and songs the grandparents know, so both halves of every team get a turn.
13
Leave it in the old year
PlayersEverybodyTime10 minutesNeedsPaper, a shredder or a recycling bin
Each person writes down one thing they are happy to leave behind this year, from a bad habit to a broken boiler. Nobody has to share, though many will. Everything goes through the shredder, or is torn up, together at about quarter to twelve.
Tip: This is the one quiet moment of the night. Do not score it.
14
Countdown bingo
PlayersAny numberTimeRuns until midnightNeedsPrinted or hand-drawn bingo cards
Make cards with things likely to happen before midnight: someone says "where did the year go", a firework goes off early, somebody spills a drink, the TV presenter says "what a year". Players cross them off as they happen, and the first full line wins before the countdown.
Tip: Include a few that only happen in your house. Every family has an uncle who explains the time zones.
A running order from 9pm to midnight
Times are UK. Shuffle the games to suit your group, but keep the quiz in the middle and the quiet games for the last half hour.
Time
What happens
Why it goes here
9.00pm
Arrivals, drinks, resolution swap slips handed out, bingo cards on the table
Something to do with your hands while the room fills up
9.30pm
Guess the year, in teams
Sorts people into teams and mixes the ages early
10.00pm
Food, with Who am I running at the table
A game you can play while eating
10.30pm
The year in review quiz
The main event, while energy is still high
11.00pm
Midnight in Paris: kids' countdown, then minute to midnight challenges
Gets everyone moving after food and marks a real new year for the children
11.30pm
Resolution swap reveal, then the prediction envelope
Winds down to the sentimental end of the night
11.45pm
Leave it in the old year, final scores read out
Settles the winner before anyone has to pay attention to the clock
11.58pm
Glasses charged, television on for the chimes
Two spare minutes for the person who is always in the kitchen
12.00am
Countdown, Auld Lang Syne, winners announced
Ends the game and the year at the same moment
The year in review quiz: 30 questions to fill in yourself
30 questions
These are templates. Swap the brackets for your own group, and only the host needs to know the answers. Choose the fifteen or twenty that fit your year best.
1
Who in this room travelled furthest from home this year, and where to?
2
Which month did [name] start the hobby they have already given up?
3
What was the most watched show in this house this year?
4
Who moved house, changed job or started a new school this year?
5
How many photos are on [name]'s phone from this year?
Closest guess wins. Check the phone on the spot.
6
What did [name] get for their birthday that they actually use?
7
Which song did [name] play the most, according to their music app?
8
Who got the worst sunburn of the summer, and where?
9
What was the best meal anyone at this table ate this year?
10
Who had the most dramatic haircut change?
11
Which appliance broke first this year?
12
What was the name of the pet, plant or car that joined the family this year?
13
Who went to the most concerts, matches or shows?
14
What was the most expensive thing [name] lost this year?
15
Which film did the house watch more than once?
16
Who sent the most messages in the group chat?
17
What is [name]'s most used emoji this year?
18
On which holiday did the most go wrong, and what was it?
19
Who read the most books, and what was the best one?
20
Which new word or phrase did the youngest person here pick up this year?
21
Who took up running, and how long did it last?
22
What was the worst weather anyone got caught in this year?
23
Which celebrity did [name] claim to have seen in real life?
24
What was the most useless thing anyone bought this year?
25
Who won the most arguments this year, by general agreement?
26
What did [name] cook for the first time, and was it edible?
27
Which team, band or show did [name] get obsessed with this year?
28
Who fell asleep somewhere they definitely should not have?
29
What was the best news anyone in this room had this year?
30
Which resolution from last New Year did anyone actually keep?
Fifteen New Year's Eve trivia questions, with answers
15 questions
For a general knowledge round, or for the family who would rather not relive their year. Answers are under each question.
Which country is among the first in the world to see in the New Year?
Kiribati, whose Line Islands sit fourteen hours ahead of the UK.
Which places are among the last to see in the New Year?
American Samoa and Niue, eleven hours behind the UK.
Which poet wrote down the words of Auld Lang Syne?
Robert Burns, in 1788, working from an older Scottish song.
What does "auld lang syne" roughly mean?
"Old long since", or for old times' sake.
What is the Scottish name for New Year's Eve?
Hogmanay.
In the tradition of first-footing, who should ideally be the first person through the door after midnight?
A tall, dark-haired man, traditionally bringing coal, salt, shortbread or whisky.
How many grapes do people in Spain eat at midnight?
Twelve, one on each chime of the clock.
In which city does a ball drop in Times Square at midnight?
New York. The first drop was at the end of 1907.
Until 1752, on what date did the legal year begin in England?
25 March.
Which two-faced Roman god gives January its name?
Janus.
Big Ben is the name of which: the clock, the tower or the bell?
The bell. The tower has been called the Elizabeth Tower since 2012.
Which city's orchestra plays a world famous New Year's Day concert of Strauss waltzes?
Vienna, with the Vienna Philharmonic.
In Denmark, what do people throw at their friends' front doors on New Year's Eve?
Old plates and crockery. A big pile means you have a lot of friends.
What colour do many people in Brazil wear on New Year's Eve for peace and luck?
White.
In Italy, which colour of underwear is supposed to bring luck in the new year?
Red.
Quizriella
Skip the homework and let the guests write it
The year in review quiz is the best game on this page, and also the one that needs the most work, because somebody has to know what everyone else got up to. Quizriella hands that job to the guests. Share one code, and each person secretly writes a few questions about the others on their own phone before the party.
On the night it plays as a presenter-led game show on the television: hot seats, a wheel of dares, breaking news bulletins about whoever is in last place, double points late on, and a podium you can time for just before the countdown.
Guests join in a browser, nothing to install
The host sees the questions for the first time with everyone else
Resolution swap, guess the year, two truths and a lie about the year, headline charades and a prediction envelope all work in a living room with nothing more than paper and pens. A quiz about your own group's year makes a good centrepiece at about half ten. Save the quieter games for the last half hour.
Who said it this year, built from quotes out of the group chat, is the one adults remember. Two truths and a lie, a year in review quiz and countdown bingo also suit an adult crowd. Keep anything cheeky affectionate, because the year is still fresh for everyone.
Split the room into teams of four or five early in the evening and keep the same teams all night, so every game adds to one running score. Games that play in parallel, like quizzes, charades and bingo, work far better with twenty people than games where one person takes a turn at a time.
Count down with a country that reaches midnight earlier. Midnight in Dubai is 8pm in the UK and midnight in Paris is 11pm, so children can do the full countdown with party poppers and still go to bed on time. Balloon hour tasks keep them busy until then.
A round about your own family's year, a guess the year round that plays to both grandparents and teenagers, and a short round of New Year trivia such as twelve grapes in Spain and Hogmanay in Scotland. Twenty to thirty questions is enough, with the final round worth double.
Start something gentle as people arrive, around 9pm, and run the main quiz between 10.30 and 11pm. That leaves the last half hour for resolutions, predictions and the final scores, so the countdown is not competing with a game that is only half finished.
Quizriella is built for it. Each guest writes questions about the others on their own phone, and it turns them into a game show with teams, dares and a podium that plays on the television. A whole show is free with simple avatars.
Send the code to the group chat on Boxing Day, let everybody write questions about everyone else's year, and play it as a game show that ends on the podium just before the countdown.
