These Pinoy parlor games can add a whole lot of laughter to your parties

Pinoy parlor games are a good thing to incorporate if you’re planning any type of party or gathering. For people who grew up in the Philippines, these games are staples that—for better or worse—have been engraved into their childhoods.

While we have the typical games like musical chairs and bring me, there’s much more fun and laughter to be found in the games that are so typically Pinoy. A lot of these games involve props that you probably already have lying around your house. Some of them aren’t necessarily invented in the Philippines, but they’re often played in most gatherings like birthdays, baptisms, weddings, and even company team buildings.

The more fun and interesting games require a team effort, so it’s perfect for large groups who are extremely competitive.

Polvoron challenge

The rules of the game are simple. You eat a piece of polvoron and the fastest one to whistle cleanly and loudly wins. Just be warned, there’ll probably be stray pieces of polvoron and some spit flying around.

Longest breath

Longest breath is another easy game that’s basically who can say the phrase longest. For birthdays, it’s usually “Happy birthday,” then say the person’s name. It gets funnier the more out of breath the contestants become.

Newspaper dance

Newspaper dance is another popular Pinoy party game. The rules are to grab a partner and dance to the music, but when the music stops, the pair has to comfortably stand on the newspaper. The paper has to be folded every round, so people have to be creative on how to fit. Queue the carrying, falling, and laughing.

Pinoy henyo

Pinoy henyo is a guessing game that literally translates to “Filipino genius.” Two teams compete against each other trying to score the highest number of points.

The game is played with two members from one team paired up, with one trying to guess what the word is by asking leading questions (like is it an animal, person, thing, etc.), and the other helping them figure it out by saying yes or no. It can get really fun if you incorporate inside jokes.

Calamansi relay

Calamansi relay can be played with as few as two teams of at least three, or more teams with more people. The more the merrier, though. The game is set up with most of the team members in a line, and they have to carry a spoon in their mouth with a calamansi on the curved end.

Each member has to successfully balance the calamansi while making a journey around the obstacle set a few feet away. When they get back to the starting point, they have to pass the calamansi on to the spoon of the person next in line. If you drop the calamansi, you have to start again.

If you don’t have a calamansi at home, you can use something of a similar size, like a marble.

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Talong at itlog game

This game is for more mature audiences since there’s a lot of thrusting involved. The mechanics are similar to the calamansi relay, but this time, the contestants have an eggplant tied to a long string that wraps around their waist and they have to get an egg around the obstacle and back to the starting line for the next person in line.

You can’t use your hands for this Pinoy parlor game, only your hips. So yes, that’s where the thrusting comes in.

Queue “Hips Don’t Lie” by Shakira.

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