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Drinking games are
game A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (suc ...
s which involve the consumption of
alcoholic beverage An alcoholic beverage (also called an alcoholic drink, adult beverage, or a drink) is a drink that contains ethanol, a type of Alcohol (chemistry), alcohol that acts Alcohol (drug), as a drug and is produced by Ethanol fermentation, fermentat ...
s and often enduring the subsequent
intoxication Intoxication — or poisoning, especially by an alcoholic or narcotic substance — may refer to: * Substance intoxication: ** Alcohol intoxication ** LSD intoxication ** Toxidrome ** Tobacco intoxication ** Cannabis intoxication ** Cocaine in ...
resulting from them. Evidence of the existence of drinking games dates back to antiquity. Drinking games have been banned at some institutions, particularly colleges and universities.Jillian Swords. ''The Appalachian''
"New alcohol policy bans drinking games"
September 18, 2007.


History


Ancient Greece

Kottabos is one of the earliest known drinking games from
ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cu ...
, dated to the 5th to 4th centuries BC. Players would use dregs (remnants of what was left in their cup) to hit targets across the room with their wine. Often, there were special prizes and penalties for one's performance in the game.


Ancient China

Drinking games were enjoyed in ancient
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
, usually incorporating the use of
dice Dice (singular die or dice) are small, throwable objects with marked sides that can rest in multiple positions. They are used for generating random values, commonly as part of tabletop games, including dice games, board games, role-playing ...
or verbal exchange of riddles. During the
Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
(618-907), the Chinese used a
silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...
canister where written lots could be drawn that designated which player had to drink and specifically how much; for example, from 1, 5, 7, or 10 measures of drink that the youngest player, or the last player to join the game, or the most talkative player, or the host, or the player with the greatest
alcohol Alcohol most commonly refers to: * Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom * Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks Alcohol may also refer to: Chemicals * Ethanol, one of sev ...
tolerance, etc. had to drink. There were even drinking game
referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other tit ...
officials, including a 'registrar of the rules' who knew all the rules to the game, a 'registrar of the horn' who tossed a silver flag down on calling out second offenses, and a 'governor' who decided one's third call of offense. These referees were used mainly for maintaining order (as drinking games often became rowdy) and for reviewing faults that could be punished with a player drinking a penalty cup. If a guest was considered a 'coward' for dropping out of the game, he could be branded as a 'deserter' and not invited back to further drinking bouts. There was another game where little puppets and dolls dressed as western foreigners with blue eyes (
Iranian peoples The Iranian peoples or Iranic peoples are a diverse grouping of Indo-European peoples who are identified by their usage of the Iranian languages and other cultural similarities. The Proto-Iranians are believed to have emerged as a separate ...
) were set up and when one fell over, the person it pointed to had to empty his cup of wine.


Germany

Drinking games in 19th century Germany included
Bierskat Bierlachs, also Bierskat, Bierscat, Lachs or Beer Skat, is a variant of Germany's national card game, Skat, in which the winner is the first to score a fixed number of points. It is predominantly played for beer in pubs and restaurants. Name ...
, Elfern, Rammes and Quodlibet, as well as ''Schlauch'' and ''Laubober'' which may well be the same game as
Grasobern Grasobern, Grasoberl, Grasoberln, Graseberla, Grünobern, Lauboberl or Laubobern is a card game that was once commonly played in Old Bavaria, especially in the old counties of Bad Aibling and Rosenheim, and is still popular in eastern Bavaria, es ...
. But the "crown of all drinking games" was one with an ancient and distinctive name: Cerevis. One feature of the game was that everything went under a different name from normal. So the cards (''Karten'') were called 'spoons' (''Löffel''), the Sevens were 'Septembers' and the Aces were the 'Juveniles' (''junge Leichtsinn''). A player who used the normal names was penalised. Everytime a card was played, it was supposed to be accompanied by humorous words, so if a Jack or
Unter Unter (German, 'under', 'below' or 'among') may refer to: * Unter (playing card), the Jack card in German and Swiss-suited playing cards * Unter Null, stage name of Erica Dunham, an American musician See also * * Über (disambiguation), the a ...
was played, the player might say something like "my merry ''Unterkasser''" (''Lustig mein Unterkasser'') or "long live my ''Unterkasser''" (''Vivat mein Unterkasser''). If his opponent beat it, he might say "hang the ''Unterkasser''" (''Hängt den Unterkasser''). The loser had to chalk up a figure such as a swallow, a wheel or a pair of scissors depending on the number of minus points gained and was only allowed to erase them once he had drunk the associated amount of beer. Silver wager cups, originally used during 16th century German wedding feasts, are used in dexterity drinking games. Players fill both the large cup and the smaller cup that swings beneath it, and must drink from the former without spilling the latter.


Types


Endurance

The simplest drinking games are endurance games in which players compete to out-drink one another. Players take turns taking shots, and the last person standing is the winner. Some games have rules involving the "cascade", "fountain", or "waterfall", which encourages each player to drink constantly from their cup so long as the player before him does not stop drinking. Such games can also favor speed over quantity, in which players race to drink a case of beer the fastest. Often drinking large amounts will be combined with a stylistic element or an abnormal method of drinking, as with the
boot of beer Beer glassware comprise vessels made of glass, designed or commonly used for serving and drinking beer. Styles of glassware vary in accord with national or regional traditions; legal or customary requirements regarding serving measures and fill ...
, yard of ale, or a
keg stand A keg stand is a drinking activity where the participant does a handstand on a keg of beer and attempts to drink as much as possible at once or to drink for as long as possible. Other people will help hold up the drinker's legs, and will hold th ...
. Tolerance games are simply about seeing which player can last the longest. It can be as simple as two people matching each other drink for drink until one of the participants "passes out". Power hour and its variant,
centurion A centurion (; la, centurio , . la, centuriones, label=none; grc-gre, κεντυρίων, kentyríōn, or ) was a position in the Roman army during classical antiquity, nominally the commander of a century (), a military unit of around 80 ...
, fall under this category.


Speed

Many pub or bar games involve competitive drinking for speed. Examples of such drinking games are Edward Fortyhands,
boat races A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size, shape, cargo or passenger capacity, or its ability to carry boats. Small boats are typically found on inl ...
, beer bonging, shotgunning, flippy cup (a team-based speed game), and yard. Some say that the most important skill to improving speed is to relax and take fewer but larger gulps. There are a variety of individual tactics to accomplishing this, such as bending the knees in anticipation, or when drinking from a
plastic cup A plastic cup is a cup made out of plastic, commonly used as a container to hold beverages. Some are reusable while others are intended for a single use followed by recycling or disposal. Disposable plastic cups are often used for gatherings ...
, squeezing the sides of the cup to form a more perfect funnel. Athletic races involving alcohol including the
beer mile A beer mile is a drinking race combining running and speed drinking. Typically, the race takes place on a standard 400-metre or 1/4-mile running track. The race begins at the mile run, 1-mile starting line with the consumption of a beer, follow ...
, which consists of a mile run with a can of beer consumed before each of the four laps. A variant is known in German speaking countries as '' Bierkastenlauf'' (beer crate running) where a team of two carries a crate of beer along a route of several kilometers and must consume all of the bottles prior to crossing the finish line.


Skill

Some party and pub games focus on the performance of a particular act of skill, rather than on either the amount a participant drinks or the speed with which they do so. Examples include beer pong, quarters, chandeliers (also known as gauchoball, rage cage, stack cup), caps, polish horseshoes, pong,
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...
, and beer darts. Pub golf involves
orienteering Orienteering is a group of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain whilst moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a ...
and pub crawling together. A unique drinking game is made in the tavern Oepfelchammer in Zürich, Switzerland. It is called "Balkenprobe" and one has therefore to climb up a beam at the ceiling and move to another beam and then to drink a glass of wine with the head hanging down.


Thinking

Thinking games rely on the players' powers of observation, recollection, logic and articulation. Numerous types of thinking games exist, including Think or Drink, 21,
beer checkers Beer checkers (also known as shotglass checkers, shot glass checkers or beercheckers) is a two player drinking game. A variant of normal checkers (or draughts), it is played on a standard checkerboard (or chess board), using shot glasses of beer ...
, bizz buzz, buffalo, saved by the bell, bullshit, tourettes, matchboxes, never have I ever,
roman numerals Roman numerals are a numeral system that originated in ancient Rome and remained the usual way of writing numbers throughout Europe well into the Late Middle Ages. Numbers are written with combinations of letters from the Latin alphabet, ...
, fuzzy duck, pennying, wine games, and Zoom Schwartz Profigliano.
Trivia Trivia is information and data that are considered to be of little value. It can be contrasted with general knowledge and common sense. Latin Etymology The ancient Romans used the word ''triviae'' to describe where one road split or forke ...
games, such as
Trivial Pursuit ''Trivial Pursuit'' is a board game in which winning is determined by a player's ability to answer trivia and popular culture questions. Players move their pieces around a board, the squares they land on determining the subject of a question ...
, are sometimes played as drinking games.


Card and dice

Drinking games involving cards include
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
,
horserace Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...
,
Kings Kings or King's may refer to: *Monarchs: The sovereign heads of states and/or nations, with the male being kings *One of several works known as the "Book of Kings": **The Books of Kings part of the Bible, divided into two parts **The ''Shahnameh'' ...
, liar's poker,
pyramid A pyramid (from el, πυραμίς ') is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single step at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilate ...
,
ring of fire The Ring of Fire (also known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, the Rim of Fire, the Girdle of Fire or the Circum-Pacific belt) is a region around much of the rim of the Pacific Ocean where many volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur. The Ring ...
,
toepen Toepen (/ˈtupə(n)/) is a trick-taking Dutch card game for three to eight players, and is often played as a drinking game. Typically the number of players is 4. Gameplay Every player is dealt 4 cards from a 32 card deck. The cards are played o ...
, ride the bus and black or red. Dice games include beer die,
dudo Dudo (Spanish for ''I doubt''), also known as Cacho, Pico, Perudo, Liar's Dice, Cachito or Dadinho is a popular dice game played in South America. It is a more specific version of a family of games collectively called Liar's Dice, which has ...
, kinito, liar's dice,
Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
, mia,
ship, captain, and crew Ship, Captain, and Crew (also referred to as Cap'n, Bos'n, Mate; Ship of Fools; Clickety Clack; 6-5-4 or Destroyer) is a drinking game played with five dice. The game can be played with as few as two people, but is usually played in a group of ...
, three man, and Triple Snakes.


Arts

Movie drinking games are played while watching a movie (sometimes a TV show or a sporting event) and have a set of rules for who drinks when and how much based on on-screen events and dialogue. The rules may be the same for all players, or alternatively players may each be assigned rules related to particular characters. The rules are designed so that rarer events require larger drinks. Rule sets for such games are usually arbitrary and local, although they are sometimes published by fan clubs. In reference to film, a popular game among young adults consists of printing out a mustache and taping it on the television screen. Every time the mustache fits appropriately to a person on the screen, one must drink the designated amount. Live drinking games such as Los Angeles-based "A Drinking Game" involve recreating films of the 80s in a "Rocky Horror" fashion, with gift bags, drinking cues, and costumed actors. A suggestion to "do six shots for SEAL Team 6" following every mention of
Osama bin Laden Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until his death in 2011. Ideologically a pan-Islamist, his group is designated ...
at the
2012 Democratic National Convention The 2012 Democratic National Convention was a gathering, held from September 3–6, 2012, at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, in which delegates of the Democratic Party nominated President Barack Obama and Vice Presi ...
necessitated a prominent disclaimer on the satire site that posted it, as the quantity of alcohol ingested would probably have been lethal. "Datsyuk Game" involves a Datsyuk highlight reel being played and contestants drink every time the word ''Datsyuk'' is mentioned. The ceremonial playing of the Russian national anthem before the game is another tradition. Music can also be used as a basis for drinking games. The song "Thunderstruck" by
AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and heavy metal, but the band calls it ...
is used in which a player begins drinking when the word thunder is sung and switches to the next player the next time it is sung. Sport related drinking games involve the participants each selecting a scenario of the game resulting in their drink being downed. Examples of this include participants each picking a footballer in a game while other versions require multiple players to be selected. Should a player score or be sent off, a drink must be taken. Another version requires a drink for every touch a player takes of the ball.


Hybrid games

Some drinking games can fall into multiple categories such as a Power hour which is a primarily an endurance-based game, but can also incorporate the arts if players are prompted to drink by a playlist that changes songs every 60 seconds. Similarly, Flip cup combines the skill of flipping cups with the speed of drinking quickly prior to flipping.


Mobile app games

Many drinking game apps (i.e
Boom PhonePicolo
an
Appyshot
have been launched on mobile devices, Android, iOS, and Windows Phone.


See also

*
Binge drinking Binge drinking, or heavy episodic drinking, is drinking alcoholic beverages with an intention of becoming intoxicated by heavy consumption of alcohol over a short period of time, but definitions ( see below) vary considerably. Binge drinking i ...
* Pregaming * List of drinking games * List of public house topics * '' Beerfest''


References


Literature

* _ (1862). ''Lese-Stübchen: Illustrirte Unterhaltungs-Blätter für Familie und Haus'', Vol. 3. Brünn. * Haupt, Richard (1877). ''Neues Bücher-Lexicon'', Part 13 A-K. Weigel, Leipzig.


External links

*
Large List of Movie Drinking Games
{{DEFAULTSORT:Drinking Game