Valentine’s Day games have a bad reputation: most lists are either for a class of first-graders or full of cards you would not play in front of friends. This list is in between. Every game below works with nothing adult, and they are sorted by who you are playing with.
Pick by who is playing
| Who | Best games | Time |
|---|---|---|
| A couple at home | Couples quiz, truth or dare, memory lane | 60 to 90 min in all |
| Friends at a party | Matching pairs, heart charades, love song humming | 45 to 60 min in all |
| A family or a class | Candy heart jar, heart hunt, heart charades | 30 to 45 min in all |
Games for two
1. The couples quiz
Each of you writes ten questions about yourself on paper: “What was my first job?”, “What would I order at a new restaurant?”, “Which song do I skip every time?”. Swap and answer. One point per right answer; the wrong ones start the best conversations.
2. Truth or dare for two
Take turns picking a truth or a dare. Agree that either of you can pass any card without explaining, and start mild. A sample of the cards in our couples pack:
A sample of the couples pack
Pro10 cards from the Pro couples pack in the app, written for two people who are together. Personal, never sexual.
- What was your first impression of me?
- What is the most attractive thing I do without realizing it?
- What is a small date idea you have never told me about?
- What did you almost say on our first date but did not?
- When did you feel most nervous around me?
- Give me three honest compliments in a row.
- Make up a secret handshake with me.
- Send me a sweet text right now, even though I am right here.
- Say your best romantic movie line to me.
- Guess my favorite snack, song and color. Miss one and I pick your next dare.
90 more cards in the Just Us Two pack in the app
Ground rules and a heat level system: truth or dare for couples.
3. Memory lane
Take turns naming a moment from your time together, in order from the beginning: the first message, the first trip, the first argument you laugh about now. Whoever cannot think of the next one within 30 seconds gives a compliment and the other continues.
4. Best of five, with a stake
Four in a row or dots and boxes, best of five. Agree on the stake before the first game: breakfast in bed, the next movie choice, or the dishes for a week.
5. This or that, the two of us
Ask each other two choices about your life together and answer at the same time: “Our first date again or our best trip again?”, “A quiet night in or a night out?”. Talk about every mismatch.
Games for a party with friends
6. Matching pairs
Write famous pairs on cards and cut each in half: salt and pepper, peanut butter and jelly, socks and shoes, thunder and lightning. Tape one half to each guest’s back. Guests ask each other yes or no questions to find out what they are, then find their match. It is a perfect first game because it makes everyone talk to everyone.
7. Heart charades
Charades with a Valentine’s theme: two teams, one minute per actor. Words to start with: “a box of chocolates”, “a first date”, “a love letter”, “Cupid”, “a bouquet of roses”, “a slow dance”, “a broken heart”, “a marriage proposal”, “a picnic”, “holding hands”. General rules and more words: charades.
8. Love song humming
Teams take turns: one player hums a love song, mouth closed, for 20 seconds while their team names it. Nobody has to sing, which keeps it easy for shy guests.
9. Imposter, love edition
Everyone gets the same secret word except the imposter, who only sees the category. Use Valentine’s words (“chocolate”, “roses”, “candlelight”) mixed with ordinary ones so it stays hard. Needs 4 or more. How to play imposter.
Games for a family or a class
10. Candy heart guessing jar
Fill a jar with candy hearts and let everyone write down a guess. The closest guess wins the jar. Count them before the party, out loud, with the kids.
11. Heart hunt
Hide 30 paper hearts around a room, each with a number from 1 to 3. Kids hunt for five minutes; the highest total wins. Put a few hearts at adult eye level so the youngest get help from grown-ups.
12. Draw a valentine
Each player draws a valentine card for the person on their left in three minutes, without showing it. Then everyone guesses who drew which card. It works from age 4 to 94. For a scored drawing game, try draw and guess.
Tips for a Valentine’s game night
- For a couples party, mix couples up into different teams for the team games.
- Keep prizes small and silly: a single rose, the last chocolate.
- If someone at a party is single, the friend games above work just as well; the couples games are best kept for two.
More for two: date night games at home and games to play with your boyfriend or girlfriend.