Card Games
20 date night & game night ideas that aren't dinner and a movie
A game gives an evening a shape — a reason to sit at the table instead of the sofa, and something to talk about that isn't work. Here's how to build a night around one.
Grouped by the kind of evening you're planning — pick a group and go down the list.
For a low-key night in
- Cook something neither of you has made before, then play a short card game while it's in the oven instead of scrolling your phones.
- Set a “no phones” hour and use a prompt-card game to fill the silence instead — it works better than it sounds.
- Trade five questions each from a card game like Intimacy before you even start cooking — it changes the whole conversation over dinner.
- Build a mini “tasting menu” night and use a card game as the between-course activity instead of TV.
- Light a candle, put your phones in another room, and just play one full round of something — no multitasking allowed.
For a group game night
- Start with something fast like Countdown Five Seconds to warm the group up before anything more involved.
- Run a tournament bracket with a roast-style game like Big Box Of Insults — knockout format keeps it moving.
- Assign a “host” each round who reads the cards — rotating it keeps everyone engaged instead of one person running the whole night.
- Mix two games back to back: one loud group game, then one quieter one, so the energy doesn't stay at a single pitch all night.
- Theme the snacks to the game — small, silly touches like this are what people actually remember afterward.
See our full best card games guide for specific picks by group size.
For date night out, reinvented
- Bring a travel-sized card game to a bar or restaurant — most pack flat and it beats another round of small talk.
- Turn a walk into a scavenger hunt you make up together on the spot — costs nothing, works anywhere.
- Book something neither of you has tried, then debrief it afterward over one round of a question-card game.
- Recreate your first date, loosely — same type of place, updated details, and note what's changed.
- End the night by naming a star together — it takes five minutes on a phone and gives the evening a keepsake, not just a memory.
For a spicier evening
- Pair a card game with a naughty gift — Steamy Intimate Game For Couples plus a Massage Love Kit makes a full evening on its own.
- Roll for it instead of choosing: a dice set like Kama Sutra Dice or the Date Night Wooden Dice Set takes the decision-making off the table.
- Set a theme for the night (a colour, a era, a mood) and let a naughty gift set the tone rather than picking everything individually.
- Do the “boring” parts first — dinner, dishes, phones away — so nothing rushes the part that's actually the point.
- Keep it low-pressure: not every naughty-gift evening needs an agenda. Half the point of a dice game is that neither of you has to plan it.
Shopping for the evening? See our card games guide and naughty (not toys) gifts guide for specific picks and prices.