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‘Twas a few weeks before Christmas, and all through the house, were board games aplenty, no room for a mouse. The invites were sent, a festive games night, with family or friends, by candle’s faint light. Pray tell what’s the secret, of hosting a gaming soirée, come ye closer and listen, and I’ll tell you the way.
Right, that’s enough of that. Having just read over that cringemas cracker of an opener, I’m now tempted to uninvite myself to my own festive board gaming evening for shame. But ‘tis the season of good will and games after all, when families and friends come together to share in some festive fun around the table. Even if you already have a regular gaming group, the holiday period is a chance to tempt granny/ grandad/ insert name of uninitiated family member to transcend the trauma of the annual game of Monopoly. Which often feels like it lasts from one Christmas to the next. I admit, said trauma is usually my fault for insisting that everyone goes bankrupt before I can be officially declared the winner, but is that not the spirit of Christmas? A rich man laughing at the less fortunate around him as they wallow in abject poverty. Scrooge would be proud. Humbug!
I jest of course. Christmas is about the spirit of generosity, about being together with those you love most, and board games have a huge part to play in that if you let them. Christmas without games would be as unorthodox as Rudolph without an inflamed hooter or the Grinch without the bottomless misery. But what makes for a fun festive gaming gathering? Well, I’m here with a big sackful of ideas (can I say that!?) to stuff into your empty stockings so that your gaming night doesn’t turn into one big underdone turkey. Here we go ho ho….(sorry!)
Step into Christmas?
Whether you’re planning a gaming night pre-Christmas or are thinking about having a few family rounds on the evening of the big day, it’s worth considering just how much you want to lean into the theme of Christmas itself. Or not, as the case may be. Do you want your games to have some sort of Christmasy slant, with big fat jingling bells hanging off them or are you content just to focus on the ‘getting together with people you love’ angle and not get too bogged down in any festive faff? There are Christmas-themed party games like Santa Banter (which didn’t really click with us when we played it a few years back - about as much fun as reading aloud from a book of Christmas cracker jokes) or Christmas versions of classics. The Christmas edition of Patchwork comes to mind, which is mechanically the same game as the regular version but with bows, jazzy wrapping paper and shiny Christmas buttons and baubles on the pieces. It even comes with a Christmas cookie cutter if you suddenly feel the urge to bake half way through a game. If however, you’re a tabletop RPG buff and you and your group are into roleplaying as witches, wizards or other fantastical beings, there’s always the option of wrapping your broomstick/ staff/horns in tinsel and pumping some festive cheer into one of your December sessions - see that Big Bang Theory episode for a flavour of how this might play out if your DM is this way inclined.
On the flip side though, some may find themselves under constant bombardment from the rampant consumerism, radio ear worms and Mariah Carey by the time St Nick arrives. Some non-themed gaming time with your nearest and dearest might be what’s needed for a quasi Christmas detox, at least until the actual detox begins post New Year. The holiday season is perfect for dusting off tried and tested party games: word games like Just One, So Clover or Codenames or all out silly games like Exploding Kittens, Spaceteam or Throw Throw Burrito. Because what’s screaming “IT’S CHRISTMAS” more than throwing foam Mexican food at that one family member who’s been really pissing you off since Christmas morning? Fa la la la la, la la la laughs all round!
Know your crowd-mas!
Whether Christmas-themed or not, the games with which you choose to deck the halls of your holiday gaming soirée need to be chosen with your audience in mind. Are you sitting down with a group of hardened board gaming stalwarts who have journeyed distant lands together, defeated sleeping gods or built sleepy woodland settlements in their spare tabletop time while still being able to hold down a day job? Or are you aiming to coax your sceptical uncle to the table after Christmas lunch. That uncle who is notorious for announcing his lack of understanding/dislike for the simplest of games RIGHT AT THE VERY END of a game. Or that uncle who doesn’t like listening to rules explanations and then declares “this is too complicated” before even giving it a go, dragging your sceptical auntie and mum off the fence and firmly into his camp.
We’ve all been there, and it wouldn’t be Christmas without some of that trademark family frustration. Choice of which games to bring to the table and how light or heavy they are should be given very careful consideration when playing with family, I find. If you’re too ambitious, you’ve had it. It’s as simple as that. Go Scythe instead of Scattergories and your family might disown you, Christmas cheer be damned. Apart from anything else, you really don’t need the stress of sitting through something that saps every ounce of joy from the room. That’s what the King’s Christmas Day speech is for, after all.
Having said all of this, I’m not an advocate of dumbing down family gaming time. Sure, if there are kids involved, you may need to make a few concessions, but there is no reason why you can’t expose the wider family to the host of excellent ‘gateway games’ available out there. Those games that keep Cluedo firmly in the cupboard and offer a rich, non-mainstream gaming experience without risking the wrath of that annoying uncle. Quacks of Quedlinburg is the obvious choice - a simple concept, lovely presentation, a great catch-up mechanic for those that fall behind and the tension of blind drawing potion ingredients from a bag. All of this means granny won’t have had this much fun since the Beatles were number one in the charts. Oh, no wait…that was this year! What a world this is.
Nibbles: naughty or nice?
So far I’ve only touched on the games but there are a whole sleighful of other little extras to consider when planning a Christmas gaming evening. Candles? Fine for a scented slice of atmosphere. Music? Fine at the right volume. There’s nothing worse than trying to hear yourself think over some overplayed seasonal ditty. But I would say that if you’re going down the music route at this time of year, you have to go all in on the Christmas tunes. No death metal or moody adventure music, especially if you’re hoping to keep the fam engaged. Your DJing needs to be more Away in a Manger than Cradle of Filth. Although the late Christopher Lee’s heavy metal versions of well know Christmas songs (see Jingle Hell and Little Drummer boy) are sure to scratch that itch if you really need to and give everyone a laugh at the same time. Until your prudish auntie’s ears start bleeding that is.
A party wouldn’t be a party though without some nibbles, no matter what time of year it is. You can’t have your guests going hungry and Christmas is as good an excuse as any to get out the charcuterie board, smelly cheeses, crisps and frozen finger food. But beware: this is where that seasonal cheer can begin to wear a bit thin if you’re not careful. My best advice: since it’s a bit uncouth to insist your guests strap feeding bags to their faces at the gaming table, serve them their smorgasbord of deliciousness pre the games portion of the night or during a well-timed pause halfway through. The reason for this is twofold: firstly, your gaming group might be more careful, but do you really want your mum fingering your good copy of Settlers of Catan with greasy digits? ‘What’s this….CRUMBS ON MY MEEPLES?’ Save yourself the stress. And secondly, I personally cannot abide people crunching crisps loudly, sometimes with mouths agape whilst trying to read rules or think on my turn. Call me neurotic (go ahead, because I am), but this is one of my personal bugbears which I just can’t shake, Christmas or no Christmas. Always better to take action rather than risk becoming the Grinch in front of your guests. Would feeding bags really be such an imposition though?
Let’s close our ears to poor eating etiquette momentarily and return to one of the joys of the season: generosity and gift giving. The obvious consideration for your guests is whether to organise a games night Secret Santa or not. Set everyone a spending limit beforehand and use one of those online Secret Santa generators. Done. But it you want to try a variation on this, which is a bit more exciting but could leave you with fewer friends than at the start of the night, read on! The concept is this:
Set everyone a spending limit before the evening with the instruction of buying something that at least a few of the people attending might like.
Ask your guests to wrap their purchases and bring them along to your games night.
Have a “gift altar” set up where your guests can deposit their wrapped gifts upon arrival. The lure of what’s on offer is part of the excitement before you begin playing. Bedecking your altar with holly, candles or a sacrificial goat is optional. An easy wipe tablecloth is advisable.
Choose a short game, maybe 15-20 mins max from beginning to end. Love Letter, Exploding Kittens or Sushi Go would be perfect for this. Commit to playing the number of rounds equal to the number of wrapped gifts on your gift altar.
The winner at the end of round 1 is allowed to select one gift from the gift altar and unwrap it. This gift is then placed in front of the player that won it.
Begin round 2. The winner of round 2 gets to unwrap one of the remaining items on the gift altar. This is where things get interesting: this person can choose to keep their gift or switch it with the gift won in round 1. The winner of round 1 has no say in this whatsoever. If the winner of round 2 is the same person as the winner in round 1, then that person is the envy of the other players at this point, as they now have two gifts.
Repeat this cycle until all of the gifts have been unwrapped and allocated: winning, unwrapping, swapping or keeping. At the end of the final round, that’s it - whoever has a gift in front of them keeps it. This may mean that some people have multiple gifts and some people have none. Them’s the rules, innit! A lovely allegory for our world – some people have everything, some people have something and some people have the square root of nothing. Beautiful.
At this point, the spirit of Saint Nick can kick in and you can privately trade gifts or give something you have won to someone else, if you feel they might appreciate it more. Or not. You can always make more friends after all, and if playing with family, I’m sure they’ll forgive you. Eventually.
And there we have it. A festive recipe for games night hosting success. There is some joy to be had in the advice I’ve proffered but, I admit, also a fair sprinkling of Christmas humbuggery (can I say THAT!?). That’s life I’m afraid. Anyone who tells you Christmas is a time of wall-to-wall bliss is as deluded as anyone who thinks bread sauce is acceptable. No one needs a bread sauce apologist in their life. But it is a wonderful life, and games among friends and family at Christmas are an unquantifiable delight. Remember that no matter what happens, what you’re playing and who you’re playing it with, don’t lose sight of that Christmas spirit. It’s not about the winning; it’s about having a few laughs and a bit of fun. That’s what I keep telling myself each year, anyway. Merry Christmas and happy holidays when the time comes.