Exciting games for New Year’s Eve

The year 2022 is coming to an end and there are only a few days left until we can welcome the year 2023. We HeidelBAERs also like to celebrate New Year’s Eve and preferably with our great games, of course.

If you don’t know what to play on New Year’s Eve, here are a few suggestions from us. You’re sure to find a suitable retailer in your area: https://heidelbaer.de/eu/buy-eu/flagship-stores-central-europe-eu/

Animal Poker is the beastly good card game about the not-so-fair rise and fall in modern working life. The game is played over several rounds and is ideal for larger groups of 4-8 people. At the beginning of the game, each person takes on a role in the company, which comes with corresponding advantages or disadvantages. At the top is the boss, at the bottom is the trainee, who is in charge of dealing the cards. After each round, the roles can switch, so use your skills wisely, because in the end you want to be at the top.

 

Go in search of the secret character in the Similo series. 12 character cards are laid out and only one person knows which is the character they are looking for. Over four rounds, that person then lays out cards that represent either a commonality or a difference. So the rest of the team then has to eliminate more characters round by round until, in the end, the choice is between two characters.

The abstract game is quickly clarified and quickly played. After each round, you can swap who has to explain and who has to guess. The special feature of the game series is that all games can be easily combined with each other and increase the fun of the game even more. The most recent titles in the Wizarding World series are Similo Harry Potter and Similo: Phantastische Tierwesen.

Codenames won the title of Game of the Year in 2016 and has been very popular ever since. In the game, 25 terms are on display, and you play in two teams. Each team has one person who knows which terms belong to which team. In each round, you have to name a word that describes as many terms from your own team as possible. To make it clear how many terms this clue refers to, a number is also named. The team whose turn it is may then choose as many terms as the number that was announced.

In addition to the classic Codenames, there is Codenames Pictures, a variant with pictures and  Codenames Duet, a variant that can be played in pairs.  Meanwhile, there is also a variant with extra large cards, so that the terms are easier to read – especially if you play with many at a large table: Codenames XXL.

You like pantomime? Then you’ll love Draw the Line. You’ll be given a term to draw on your tableau. You do this by connecting different symbols. Then it’s a matter of representing these symbols so that the rest of the team can recognize the symbols and draw the drawing. Finally, it is a matter of guessing the term.

All teams play at the same time, so you have to hurry. In longer straight lines you can skip symbols, but then you run the risk that the person does not immediately recognize the symbol. Turbulent fun for 4–8 people. You can also play the game with more people by combining several games.

Ja, Herr und Meister is a game of excuses and improvisation with a fantasy theme. The party game is available in a green and a red edition (both in German). Both editions can be played separately, but can also be combined without any problems and then offer even more variety.

In Ja, Herr und Meister, you must answer to your master for your failure. The goal is to invent a believable and funny story and to dismiss the blame from your shoulders. Try to immerse yourself in the role and play hand cards at the right moment to avoid attracting the evil eye of the master.

In Match 5 you have to connect terms in a creative way and thus collect points. Before the game, you roll 5 dice and then place them on the matching theme boards. Now you have to connect these 5 terms with one or more words in each combination. After 3 minutes, the round ends, and you distribute points. You get 1 point for each valid term, and 2 points for a valid term that was also written down by other people. So with similarities, you get the victory. Match 5 is for 2-8 people aged 10 and up.

Pictomania is the party game for those who can not draw. In each round there are 21 terms that come into question for the drawings. You play without teams and all at the same time – so hectic and a bit of chaos are guaranteed. The drawing does not have to be a work of art, it is only important that the term is recognized at the end. If you manage to get by with just a few strokes, this is even an advantage, because you can then guess the drawings of the others earlier.

You get points when you have recognized the drawing of the others and your drawing has also been guessed. Speed and accuracy are thus rewarded. Pictomania is a creative game for 3–6 people aged 8 and up.

Fish & Katzis a family game for 2-6 people aged 6 and up.  The game by Benjamin Leung lasts about 20 minutes and involves knitted cat paws to try to grab the most valuable fish. You only get the fish if no one else has put the paw on the fish as well. So you not only have to see which fish you want to collect, but also try to estimate the actions of the other people.