Everyone loves a good drinking game.

They’re practically ingrained in American culture.

To be honest, it seems that America is completely obsessed with the idea of drinking games.

We basically have an entire movie genre of college comedies that show at least one scene of a bunch of kids at a wild frat party playing a round or ten of beer pong (Animal House, anyone?).

If you were ever a college kid, or even if you weren’t, you’ve probably been to a kegger, played some beer pong, and who knows, maybe you’ve even done a keg stand.

But, ultimately, beer-drinking games are so popular in the U.S. because they are fun.

And, because they all involve some degree of drunken tomfoolery, they’re usually pretty uncomplicated. There’s no sitting around trying to figure out the directions – there’s just drinking beer and having fun.

So, whether you’re a college kid, a grown-up trying to relive those college days, or just a normal person trying to have fun with friends, there is a drinking game out there for you to try.

To give you some ideas of what to play, here are a few of some of the best games involving drinking beer (or other alcoholic beverages, for that matter).

So, What Makes These the Best Drinking Games?

Well, for one, they’re super easy.

Like we said, no drinking game should be so complicated that you can’t figure out how to play it. The last thing anyone wants to do is try to figure out the rules to Blackjack poker three beers in.

Now, we don’t necessarily mean that the games themselves aren’t complex and layered – but learning how to play them is relatively simple.

The best drinking games also involve some degree of physical activity – which gets harder to do the more and more you drink, of course. That’s half the fun.

Or, they involve some degree of mental activity, because again, it gets harder as the night goes on and as you consume more PBR.

But these are just minute details.

We really just picked these games because we know that they are fun. We can’t promise every game here will be your cup of tea (or, should we say, your Solo Cup of beer), but there is at least one on here that you have already played and liked, or will find out that you like.

So don’t overthink it. Just drink your beer and play the games.

THE 5 BEST DRINKING GAMES TO PLAY AT YOUR UPCOMING PARTY

Get ready for some beer-fueled fun.

These games will take your party – large or small – to awhole new level.  Whether you’re incollege or you’re 65, these games will knock your socks off.

These are some of our favorite beer-drinking games and we’repretty darn sure you’ll love them too.

After all, what better way to celebrate the weekend thanbeer, games, and friends?

1. Hammerschlagen

If you have never played perhaps the most fun drinking game ever, we are here to completely change your life.

You’re welcome.

You’ve maybe heard this game referred to as “Stump” at a frat party, but the real name is as German as its origins. The name means, “to hit with a hammer.” So, yes you will be drinking while using a hammer. But it’s okay – trust us.

To play, you need a tree stump, a hammer, nails and – of course – beer. To set up, each player must hammer a nail half way into the stump so it can stand on its own without falling out. Once every player has a stable nail, it’s time to play.

Each player takes a turn throwing the hammer into the air, catching it, and then hammering an opponent’s nail into the stump – all in one very fast motion sequence.

If the player successfully hammers an opponent’s nail all the way into the stump, the opponent must drink. If sparks fly from the nail when the hammer strikes it, then everybody drinks. And finally, if the player doing the striking misses, then he or she must drink.

You may have played the game with other specific details or nuances, but this is the general idea of Hammerschlagen.

As long as you are flipping a hammer into the air, catching and swinging it, then you are doing it right. The fun is all in the hammer. You’ll be amazed to find out how much entertainment a common household tool and a little beer can provide.

Just don’t get so drunk that you throw the hammer and hit yourself in the face.

2. FLIP CUP

So, simple, but so fun, Flip Cup is a great team beer-drinking game if you’re looking to create some healthy, drunken rivalries between your party guests. And chances are, you’ve played this game before.

Two teams of an equal number of players stand on opposite sides of a table, directly facing their opponents. In front of each player is a plastic cup filled with a set amount of beer.

The first member of each team drinks the entirety of their beer, places the cup back on the edge of the table, and attempts to flip the cup either by flicking or lifting the bottom of the cup until it lands face-down onto the table – with one hand.

Once that player has successfully flipped his or her cup, the next player down the line goes, and so on. Each player can take as many tries as needed to flip his or her cup – but speed is absolutely key to winning this game.

Whichever team finishes drinking and flipping all of their cups wins!

Of course, the more beer you have, the harder it gets to flip your cup (or who know, maybe beer gives you special cup-flipping powers).

3. DRUNK ARTISTS

So, this game is basically just Pictionary™ – but with beer.

And if you are bad at drawing, then we are sorry to say that you will probably leave the most drunk of everyone.

Players take turns being the timer and being the artist, just like in the classic drawing game you have probably played many times with your family.

By the way – you can either use the actual board game for this or just do as follows:

The timer whispers a word to the chosen artist and starts the timer. The artist then has to draw a representation of that word while the rest of the players make guesses as to what the word is.

After someone makes a correct guess, the timer checks to see nhow many seconds have passed. The artist has to take a drink for every 20 seconds that went by before someone made a correct guess.

And, if you want to add an extra layer to it, the artist has to take a shot if no one can figure out what he or she drew.

We aren’t really sure if there’s actually a winner to this game. To some, it might be the person who had to drink the least. But you may also consider yourself the true winner if you drank the most beer.

So, it doesn’t really matter who wins. It’s just a super fun excuse to drink while you draw.

4. BEER PONG

We are putting beer pong on this list, of course. How could we not?

This game is classic and practically a rite of passage for American college kids. But it’s for anyone – not just college students.

Now you either need a real Ping-Pong table, or just a long table for this game, as you probably know. You of course also need Ping-Pong balls and a bunch of 16-ounce plastic cups.

Then, you will need to set up 10 cups in a triangle formation at each end of the table, and fill up each cup with a couple ounces of beer.

Beer pong is great because it can either be played solo or on teams of two. No matter how many people stand at each end of the table, the goal is to toss a ball into one of the opposing team’s cups.

If you toss the ball without bouncing it onto the table, the opposite team can’t make any move to prevent the ball from landing in a cup. But if your ball does bounce onto the table, the other team can swat your ball away to prevent it landing in one of their cups.

If your ball lands in one of the opposing team’s cups, then a member of that team has to drink the contents of the cup. The team that clears the opposing team’s cups is the winner.

5. KING’S CUP

The last game on our list has a lot of details – but bear with us because it’s super fun. It seems complicated, but it’s actually super easy. It’s also very customizable so you can make up rules for each card, as you’ll understand in a second.

First, take a deck of cards with the Jokers removed and spread into a circle on a table. In the center of the circle place an empty cup.

Now, it’s time to play. Each player draws a card on his or her turn. Each card has a rule assigned to it that must be followed when that card is drawn. Here are some rules you can follow, or you can make up your own:

Ace: Everyone must drink until the player that drew the card stops drinking.

Two: Tell any other player that he or she must drink.

Three: The player that drew the card must drink.

Four: All female players must drink.

Five: All male players must drink.

Six: Everyone must raise his or her hand. The last person to do so has to drink.

Seven: Everyone must touch the ground. The last person to do so has to drink.

Eight: The player selects another player who must drink every time they do. This lasts until someone new draws an eight.

Nine: The player says a word. Going around the room, each player has to say a word that rhymes with it and the person who fails to do so must drink.

Ten: Play the “Never Have I Ever” game. The player says something they’ve never done, and the people who have done the thing the player has never done must take a drink.

Jack: The player makes a rule that must be followed for the rest of the game.

Queen: Wild card! Make up a unique rule for the queen card.

King: The player pours half of his or her drink into the center cup. The person who draws the last king in the deck must drink the contents of the center cup!

This game also doesn’t really have a winner – but it does kind of have a loser. And that is the person who has to drink the hodge-podge mix of all sorts of different beers or other drinks in the center cup.

Regardless, this game is crazy silly and fun! It’s perfect for a mid-size gathering of friends and we definitely recommend you try it out.

LASTLY, HAVE FUN AND DRINK RESPONSIBLY!

Drinking games can be super fun. There’s nothing sillier than being kind of tipsy and trying to play these ridiculous games.

But, as we all know, it’s easy to drink WAY too much when playing a drinking game. And putting yourself in danger is anything but fun.

So, we do think you should give these games a try, but also be smart about it!

These games shouldn’t be the reason you get sick or don’t get home safely. This is all just about having a little dose of craziness with your best pals.