Planning a Videogame-themed Birthday Party - Part 1

It’s almost the middle of March which means my birthday is almost here. I’m not completely sure how I feel about it now, birthdays used to be a lot more exciting because when I was young it would mean I was getting a new videogame, but now that I am older it is a lot more depressing — though I would still be super excited to get new games! In the past I was always planning elaborate retro videogame challenges and fun gaming events for all my friends to participate in, but with COVID the last couple of years this has not happened in quite some time. Plus as people get older and start their own families, and have previous other commitments like work, this gets a lot harder. 

I don’t have too much time before my big day since it’s on the 15th, but I figure I would share some ideas for you to plan a videogame-themed party for someone special, your children, or for yourself!

• Choose a theme: this doesn’t have to be only one game like the Minecraft party I had planned for my son earlier this year, but could be a broad topic like arcade or retro games. 

• Print off decorations that match the theme: Pinterest has a ton of different game-themed printouts that people have made for their parties that you can just download. Even if you don’t have a colour printer, or ink because it’s stupidly expensive, just print off colouring sheets and pick up some cheap crayons. Colouring is a method of stress relief so this is a win-win activity. Plus if you print off some extras you can have a colouring contest, or keep your guests entertained at the table when they are waiting for food or for their turn to play games.

• Decorate balloons with a permanent marker: can’t find balloons that match your theme? No problem, just make your own! I have used green balloons with a creeper face drawn on, or white balloons with Boo faces from the Super Mario games on them. It’s fun because you get to customise them all and draw different expressions on them. The drawings do not have to be perfect; the sillier they are the better. These balloons are also great for making a target shoot; when I did this I wrote different point values on each of the balloons and everyone would try to hit them with nerf guns. 

• Use plastic cups and ping-pong balls for a variation on the beer pong drinking game - in this game you try to bounce the ball and have it land into one of the cups. If successful you get the number of points listed in the cup or the token that is on the bottom. One year I kept plastic icing (frosting) containers and other cans from hot chocolate or coffee and created my own Mario pipes by wrapping green construction paper around them. The largest container had a Piranha Plant toy in it, where if you hit it you would lose points. If you don’t have a toy like that you could print off a picture of an enemy, make the pipe a different colour, or get creative and draw a design yourself. If drawing isn’t your forte, then something simple like putting a large X on it would work. I have also done this game with paper Minecraft blocks, or small gift bags, the options are endless!

Hope some of these ideas are useful for you. Next time I’ll try to give you ideas on other things for your party like food and drinks, invitation ideas, and planning videogame challenges. If you have any ideas that I have missed, or ones I should learn to make the next party I plan even better, be sure to let me know!