Whether you like Charades, I Spy, Two Truths and a Lie, or something else entirely, these campfire games will keep your family and friends entertained for hours on end.
After careful deliberation, we’ve narrowed down this article to the Top 11 Campfire Games to Play. Let’s get straight into it.
Classic Campfire Games To Play While It’s Still Light
When you go camping, it’s a good idea to get there early so that you can set up your campsite while the sun is still out.
When this is done- and the kids are starting to get restless- it’s time for some campfire games. These are some of the best games to play before the sun goes down.
Charades
A bonafide classic, this is a campfire game that has withstood the test of time.
For those who don’t know, charades involves one person acting in total silence; no word or other sound may be uttered. Split your party into two teams and nominate one person from a team to go first. They will have to act out a topic of their choosing in complete silence. Topics such as famous films and books are a good starting point.
The teammates must then try and guess what their teammate is trying to act out. Usually, a time limit will be set to create a sense of urgency.
Take turns, and have a laugh. This game will have you all in stitches, as you try to guess just what on earth everyone is supposed to be.
I Spy
“I spy with my little eye something beginning with T!”
The rules of I Spy are simple. You must spy something, and give only one clue until everyone has had a guess what it is.
If they all fail to accurately guess your object, you may give them a small clue.
The object must be in the line of sight of all players. You will receive one point for getting it right and three points if no one correctly guesses what your object is within a set time limit.
Classic Campfire Games To Play
These are some of the top campfire games to play as it starts to get dark, and the fire is roaring.
All of these classic campfire games will have your family enthralled as your campfire burns throughout the night!
Two Truths and a Lie
Two Truths and a Lie is a game where someone does their best to come up with three claims: Two true, and one false.
It works best when every claim is so outlandish that no one can tell which one is the lie.
You must then vote as a group to decide. The winner is whoever can fool the group- and if they succeed, they keep going until they lose the winning spot.
A game of quick thinking and keeping a straight face.
Chubby Bunny
Hope you didn’t forget your marshmallows!
Delicious and soft, they’re not just good for toasting and eating but can be stuffed into your mouth for other (hilarious) reasons as well.
Whoever out of your family can hold the most marshmallows in their mouth while still clearly enunciating the phrase “chubby bunny” wins this simple game.
Hilarity ensues when the marshmallows can no longer be held in place and suddenly erupt from an overstuffed mouth.
Memory
Test the memory skills of your campfire crew by going on a verbal treasure hunt.
The first person says something along the lines of, “I am going on a treasure hunt and, I’m bringing my treasure map!”
The next person would say, “I am going on a treasure hunt and am bringing my treasure map and my hiking boots!” and so on.
Pretty soon, the list gets quite difficult to remember as you each take turns adding one more item to the list. The loser is the person who cannot continue to correctly recite the entire sentence correctly.
Telephone
A classic game that always ends in raucous laughter. The first player of Telephone must whisper a short (5-6 word) sentence in the next player’s ear.
This message will then be whispered along the line of players until the very end.
The sillier the initial message, the funnier the end result.
By the time the message has reached the end of the “telephone line”, the last person has the great honor of announcing out load what they thought they heard over the “phone”.
This game generally results in a very funny and confusing message as it usually gets scrambled along the way.
Scary Campfire Games To Play Once It Gets Dark!
So far, we’ve looked at some great games.
But were any of them that scary?
We all know that a campfire isn’t complete without playing frightening games and swapping scary stories.
Not to worry. We’ve provided a few thrilling games below to give both young and old a cheerful fright, as you huddle around the campfire and outlast the night.
Ghost In The Graveyard
This game is not for the faint of heart, but it is incredibly fun, and will have all players at some point screaming with fear and delight.
It works like this:
One person is designated the ghost in the graveyard and must disappear into the surrounding woods while everyone else counts to one hundred.
As soon as the countdown is up, they must disperse on a midnight ghost hunt! The finder of the ghost becomes the ghost for the next round.
For safety reasons, it’s best to lay down some ground rules to ensure people don’t wander off too far. A good rule of thumb is to always have the campfire in sight so you can always find your way back.
A fun and scary game of side and seek.
Swapping Scary Stories
This is a time-honored tradition amongst campers of all ages.
Whoever knows the old stories, or can make up a great new one, tells it to everyone around the campfire.
The purpose of this is to frighten and entertain; as terrifying as your story may be, no one will be able to look away!
More of an activity than a competition, this can still be made into a game by seeing who can narrate the scariest tale!
Wink Murder
To play this game, select a Godfather.
Everyone but the Godfather bows their heads and closes their eyes, while the Godfather taps one person on the shoulder. This person is the assassin.
Then- everyone put their heads up!
When the assassin winks at you, you must die dramatically, without revealing who killed you. The winner is whoever can guess the murderer- without being killed themselves, of course.
Spotlight
Spotlight is like Ghost In The Graveyard- but backwards.
One person is given the spotlight and is given the task of searching for the others- who by now are running and hiding in the darkness!
A higher-stakes version of hide-and-seek, Spotlight is a true nighttime classic. Playing this on a camping trip will surely become a cherished memory for everyone involved!
Summary
There are campfire games for all ages and flavors, and the top 11 campfire games that we’ve included in this article truly do have something for everybody.
Want to test your memory or your acting skills?
How about telling the scariest story, or chasing your friends and family around the moonlit woods?
Perhaps you have the slyest wink, and want to take everyone out!
No matter what your interests are, these campfire games to play will keep your entire group entertained around the campfire throughout the whole night!
