Finding a youth group game that’s actually fun, easy to explain, and doesn’t require 45 minutes of setup can be harder than it should be.
So… we built some FREE youth group games.
You can pull them up, throw them on the screen at youth group, and start playing. No complicated setup or giant list of supplies.
You can check them all out at FreeYouthGroupGames.org, but I wanted to show you my favorite one first.
It’s called Crowd Pleaser.
Here’s how it works:
Students take out their phones and scan a QR code on the screen. You put up a multiple-choice question and everyone votes from their phone.
It could be something like:
Which fast food restaurant would most students choose?
- Chick-fil-A
- Taco Bell
- McDonald’s
- Raising Cane’s
Once everyone votes, each corner of the room represents one of the answers.
The students still in the game have to guess which answer they think was the most popular answer in the room and go stand in that corner.
Then you reveal the results.
Everyone standing in the most popular corner stays in. Everyone else is eliminated and sits down.
Then you go to the next round and do the whole thing again.
The part I really like is that even the students who have been eliminated keep voting.
So instead of getting knocked out and immediately checking out of the game, they’re still influencing what happens. The students who are still standing have to keep trying to predict what the entire room is going to choose.
You keep going until you’re down to your last student or last few students standing.
Give them some candy, a prize, a ridiculous trophy, or just bragging rights. 😂
Why it works so well for youth groups
One of the hardest parts of youth group games is getting everyone involved.
A lot of games naturally end up featuring the same handful of loud, outgoing students while everyone else watches.
Crowd Pleaser is different because everyone gets to participate from their phone, and the students who are still alive in the game are moving around the room trying to figure out what everyone else is thinking.
It also makes phones part of the game instead of something you’re constantly trying to get students to put away.
And once a student gets eliminated, they’re not completely done. Their vote still matters every round.
It’s simple, but it gets competitive really quickly.
You can make your own games too
You’re also able to build your own version and customize the questions for your youth group.
Honestly, this is where it can get really fun.
You could ask:
Who is most likely to survive a zombie apocalypse?
Then make the four answers your youth leaders.
Or:
What is Pastor Josh most likely doing at 11:00 PM?
Or build questions around inside jokes, your church, your city, things your students are talking about, or whatever you know will get a reaction.
The more specific you make it to your group, the better.
We built FreeYouthGroupGames.org because youth pastors already have enough to prepare every week.
Sometimes you just need a game you can pull up five minutes before youth group, put on the screen, and know it’s going to work.
So go try Crowd Pleaser, build your own game, and if you like it, send it to another youth pastor.
It’s FREE. 🙂
