Bingo has been around for a very long time and contrary to popular belief, it is not only reserved for our grandparents. Young and old should indulge in this game of chance as it can get quite competitive. And afterall, aren’t we after the competitive fun that games have to offer? Yet people are taking a long hard snooze when it comes to this excellent game. But as with anything, you need to keep it exciting to keep people interested. And here we offer a few ways to keep bingo interesting, with some bingo slang thrown in the mix.
Change your style of bingo
Yes, there are different styles of play, and that’s what’s intriguing. You don’t have to play the traditional bingo, where players must fill five squares in a row to win. Change things! You can award different and even silly prizes for the first person to cover a postage stamp on the board, or even a prize for the first person who covers all four corners of the bingo card. To go even further, you can reward the first person who covers their entire bingo card. Luckily, the internet has a range of templates to choose from, and with a range of gaming patterns like champagne, kites, and rail tracks too, you’ll be spoilt for choice.
Throw food into the mix
If you are playing with family or friends on a Tuesday, you can include tacos to ensure you have a full-on Taco Tuesday experience. Here you can also mix up the prizes by having players win the dish of the night. Another thing to consider is to make it extra competitive by solely playing for food. Imagine that? Will it end in a food fight? We wonder.
Themed bingo nights
Themes can take your average bingo game night straight into the party of the year – if that’s what you are after. Is it the holiday season? Find some cool holiday-themed bingo cards online, ask your guests to wear their ugly (we love them dearly) Christmas jerseys, and use green and red M&M’s as the bingo markers. Be sure to include holiday-themed prizes as well. An entire gammon? Well, maybe not that. And since Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, you and your partner add an extra bit of fun with heart-themed bingo.
Change your bingo cards
Another exciting thing you can do is change the five letters at the top of your bingo card. For example, replace the word bingo with any other five-letter word (again, theme it if possible); this is an easy change to make. You must ensure that the bingo callers are aware of the change. For example, if you use the word D-R-E-A-M, a simple change here is to tape cloud-like paper squares featuring the new letters at the top of your bingo cards. Then, use dream pictures as your bingo markers.
Play for money
While bingo is a game of luck, you can sweeten the deal by playing for money. Large or small sums that’s entirely up to you and the other players; this makes the game way more fun and interesting. It even brings out that all-important competitive side.
The human element
Improve things quite a bit with this interesting tip. Create your unique bingo cards by filling each square with a different characteristic. For instance, one box can say favourite food: pizza or a hobby: mountain biking. The idea here is for each player to mingle with others to find someone who has that very characteristic and then write their name in that box. Again, the first person to finish five rows wins!
Alternative prizes
Now here’s the real fun part. We are always playing for money, but why not replace that with ridiculous prizes such as a fluffy teddy bear or a bag of pretzels? Not only will this create a hilarious atmosphere, but it will also show the humour in just having plain old simple fun. And to make it involved, ask your players beforehand what they would give as a ridiculous prize. This way, everyone gets involved. You can also have a range of crazy prizes, then each time there is a winner, they need to draw one from a bag; this creates some extra excitement as the players have no idea what prizes are up for grabs.
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