9 unusual family games to play this festive season

Well, if you're scratching your head trying to think of something fun to play with your family and reignite that festive cheer then look no further.

Here are the best games to play with your family this year:

Secret snatch

(Image  - Unsplash)

A cracker of a game for everyone in your household - each person must grab their most unwanted present or buy the most random item (normally with a price limit of £5). 

You all wrap the items secretly, so no one knows who is gifting it. 

All of the presents go into the middle of the table alongside a hat filled with each player's name. 

As names are drawn out of the hat, each player gets to choose an item to unwrap. 

Round one:

The first player unwraps their present and as no one else has unwrapped anything they must stick with their gift. 

Round two: 

The next player is able to 'snatch' someone else's unwrapped gift if they prefer it. 

If your gift gets snatched, you receive the snatchers unwanted gift.

You can then stick with that present or snatch someone else's - however, a gift can only be snatched once per round. 

After each snatch round another name from the hat is drawn and the snatching perseus until the final round.

No gifts can be swapped after the game has ended. 

Cards Against Humanity

Potentially the most controversial card game in the world, Cards Against Humanity really shows the players true colours. 

The self-proclaimed 'party game for horrible people' is simple to follow: one player asks a question from a black card, and everyone else answers with their funniest white card.

The funniest answer wins that round - judged by the person who asked the question. 

But beware - the answers are unforgivable. 

Throw Throw Burrito

This ingenious game is claimed to be the world's first dodgeball card game. 

You have to try and collect matching sets of cards faster than your opponents while simultaneously ducking, dodging, and throwing squishy airborne burritos. 

The cards you collect earn points, but getting hit by flying burritos loses them. 

Ideal for the whole family this is a game that really gets the energy back into the room. 

You can buy the game on Amazon for £24.99.

Confident? 

This cracking party game asks questions like 'how fast can a kangaroo hop?'.

You don't need to guess the exact answer, rather you guess a range - the smaller the range, the more points you score.

Similar to the hit TV show - 5 Gold Rings where contestants must guess a range to win money. 

Confident? challenges you to go small and win big as your confidence grows. 

Available for £19.99 on Amazon.

Catan

This unique exploration game has won multiple awards due to the clever trading, strategy and tactical skills needed to win. 

After a long voyage of great deprivation you have finally arrived in Catan, but other fearless explorers have also made it to the shores. 

The aim of the game is to trade and build your way to supremacy on Catan.

Some resources are in abundance but some resources are scarce - do you have the metal it takes to win?

Ibble Dibble

This hilarious (and free) game is strictly for grown-ups and has gained prominence recently after being featured in The Crown. 

To play you simply need a cork, some matches or a lighter and your household.

Key terminology: An 'ibble dibble' is a player and a 'dibble ibble' is a black mark on your face made with the blackened cork. 

Everytime someone hesitates, stutters or ruins the flow of the game they must get a dibble ibble. 

When ibble-dibbles are ready to play, they should grab their drinks and gather in a circle so that every person is visible.

Someone then numbers the ibble dibbles (players), at this point it is important to make a mental note of everyone's numbers. 

Someone starts the game by calling out another player, for example player one to player three - which goes like this: "One ibble dibble with zero ibble dibbles calls three dibble ibble with zero dibble ibbles".

In this case, number one called on number three, which means it's number three's turn to go next.

As the game progresses and people get dibble ibbles it becomes harder to keep track and if you make a mistake you must give yourself a dibble ibble.

No one wins this light-hearted game, you just play until you're too intoxicated or have had enough. 

Consequences

A hilarious game for all ages, consequences is a story game that simply requires paper and pens but ends with rip-roaring results.

Each player starts with a piece of paper and a pen, each round the players must write an answer on the paper and fold the paper over so it's hidden.

The players then pass the papers around.

The rounds: 

1. Boys name
2. Girls name
3. Where they met
4. What he was wearing
5. What she was wearing
6. He said
7. She said
8. The consequence was
    

At the end you take it in turns to read out each of the side-splitting stories. 

Qwirkle

Qwirkle consists of 108 wooden blocks with six different shapes in six different colors.

The game is relatively similar to scrabble, but with shapes and colours rather than words.

There is no board, players simply use an available flat surface.

How to play:

Players begin the game with six blocks. The start player places their matching blocks  (color or shape but not both) on the table.

Thereafter, a player adds blocks adjacent to at least one previously played block. 

Players score one point for each block played plus all blocks adjacent.

The player then refills their hand to six blocks.

The game ends when the draw bag is empty and one player has used all of their remaining blocks, earning a six point bonus.

The player with the highest score wins.

Qwirkle is available on Amazon for £22.99.

Don't be a Dik Dik

A hilarious pairs game for adults who love naughtiness and a bit of a giggle.

Don't be a Dik Dik is available online for £8.

The nature themed cards include creatures such as the tufted titmouse, cockatoo and sticky willy - all genuine animals.

The player who ends the game with the dik dik in their cards loses. 

What's your favourite game to play with your family? Let us know in the comments.