Top 10 Indoor Games

By Richard Diaz
Love of Sports Correspondent

(All indoor games are beer games in our book. Because of that, be sure to check out our sister site, The Love of Beer!)

It wasn’t too long ago we brought you a list of the Top 10 Playground Games.

The titles ranged from Teatherball and Dodgeball, to Wiffleball and Tag Out, not to mention the brilliant suggestions mentioned by our readers.

In addition to being games we all loved as children or adolescents, they all shared a common outdoor element. Be it during recess, before or after school, every single one of them was a game we played during whatever precious free time was available.

As the video game generation becomes bigger and bigger, the quick answer is probably Atari, Nintendo or Sega. When you remove those from the equation, what indoor activities were competitive, yet totally dumb time killers?

I’m talking about the games you played at home when it was raining, or in the hallways between classes. These are the ones you got into when the teacher was preoccupied, or maybe the ones you played with small wagers on the line.

TOP 10 INDOOR GAMES

10. Hot Lava

Definitely one from way back, but the goal is quite simple: just stay off the floor because it’s hot lava. This one had to be played at home, but depending on the rules, it could be quite a rough game. Think of the Royal Rumble in WWE, and you’ll immediately understand why the end result was bumps, bruises and timeout.

9. Duck, Duck, Goose

I know you’re thinking I’ve lost my mind with this one, but at the same time I doubt there’s anyone who hasn’t had a go at this fantastic children’s game. All you had to do was sit in a circle with a group of friends and choose one person to be the “picker.” That person walks around the circle, tapping each person while simultaneously calling out “duck” or “goose.” If you were tapped when “goose” was called, you had to chase the picker around the circle and catch him/her before he/she made it to the spot where you were previously sitting. Variations of the game included a person to trip up the “goose” or “picker,” generally depending on who was more popular.

8. Rock, Paper, Scissors

Depending on how bored you were, this could actually make for a somewhat entertaining tournament-style game. Silly as it sounds, the game can be quite competitive, especially if you’re playing for a 1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey, Jr. rookie card. Aside from that, it’s also a good substitution for flipping a coin to decide who gets the ball first.

7. Red Hands / Hot Hands / Slaps

Even though this one goes by three different names, it’s extremely simple to play. Player one (the slapper) holds his/her hands with the palms facing up, while player two (the slappee) hovers his/her hands directly above those of the other player, with the palms facing down. The slaptastic fun ensues from that point forward, as the slapper must slap one of the other player’s hands. If he/she missed, the roles were reversed, and there wasn’t a winner until someone gives up or cries in pain. Variations of this game include a time limit for the slap to take place, as well as a penalty for flinching, which was generally a free slap.

6. Thumb War / Arm-Wrestling

One-two-three-four, I declare a thumb war! Thumb war has to be considered an indoor classic. You’ve got the loop-around trick if your thumb happened to be long enough to hook around the opponents thumb, and of course you could try to bait them in if you were quick enough. As for arm wrestling, just pick up Sylvester Stallone’s Over the Top, and you’ll see why this is another indoor classic, albeit one that you probably played more as an adolescent.

5. Indoor Tag (any variation)

Tag is without a doubt one of the all-time greatest playground games. It’s no surprise variations of it evolved so it could be played indoors, especially in areas where rainy summer days were common. “Haunted House” was played in a darkened house, with the “it” person having to wear a bed sheet over them. This was especially fun - I mean dangerous - in two-story homes. “Rebels” is also played in a darkened home, but there’s no bed sheet involved, and instead of a single “it” person, there are two teams. From there, the ‘revolutionaries’ spread throughout the house, while the ‘ruling class’ counts. The goal is for the ‘rebels’ to reunite within a given time limit, all the while the ‘ruling class’ is searching for them. Flashlights were typically used during indoor tag, but I’ve been informed by younger kids that cell phone illumination is used in place of that archaic technology. ”Kick the Can” is another popular variation of this as well.

4. Indoor Action League (IAL)

This mammoth entry encompasses all of the major sports and definitely varies from one area to the next. In short, these were league’s created with the specific goal of seasons being played out indoors. Instead of a bat-and-ball, you could use lots of foil and your hand. Of course, NERF made this a lot simpler, but that really took the creativity and risk factor out of it. I’d be remiss to leave out indoor wrestling, because there was no greater fun than making fake championship belts and wrestling for them.

3. Pencil Fighting

There’s not much to explain with this one, because it’s really just two players going head-to-head until one of their pencils snaps in half. However, it was important to establish the rules beforehand, as the wily veteran might take advantage of naïve competition and whip out the almighty husky-size pencil. Again, you’d think there’s nothing to this, but strategy was important. You had to know how to bend-and-strike at the right point, while making sure not to weaken your weapon.

2. Bloody Knuckles

This one’s similar to “Slaps,” in that it involves two players striking one-another. However, in this case, knuckles are the weapons of choice, as well as the striking point. All you do is strike the opponents knuckles with your own. First one to quit or bleed loses. I realize it’s incredibly childish and barbaric, but then again, wasn’t that what childhood games were all about?

1. Paper Football / Finger Football / Flick Football

Its greatness lies within its simplicity. Take a sheet of paper, fold it into a tight, compact triangle and find a tabletop. From there, it’s a matter of strategic finger work. Flick too hard and you’re going over the edge. Flick too soft and you might be stuck with the ever-popular field goal attempt. Ah yes, there’s nothing quite like a “Flick Football” field goal attempt. If you were talented enough, the end result could be three points and a paper cut on your opponent’s forehead.

HONORABLE MENTION

Board Games have to be mentioned here, because they were definitely fun, indoor time-wasters. Who doesn’t remember “Risk,” “Hero Quest,” “Battleship,” and the all-time classics like “Monopoly,” “UNO” and “Life.” Unfortunately, there’s zero action beyond the board of play.

Hopefully you enjoyed this trip down memory lane. I realize many of these aren’t sports and don’t involve that much athleticism, but at that age who really cares?

OTHER TOP STORIES

--Top 10 All-Star Game Moments

--MLB’s Top 10 First Half Stories

--Top 10 College Drinking Games

--Top 10 Beers for that BIG DATE!!

--Baseball’s 50 Strangest Moments

--Sports All-Time Best Draft Classes

--Why We Love Joe DiMaggio’s Record

--The Huddle - College Football’s Summer Survival Guide

(Remember to check out our sister site, The Love of Beer!)