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Lawn games like cornhole and Frisbee never get old, and even a classic like tag, which doesn’t require any equipment, can make for an unforgettable afternoon. But if you’re thinking of introducing something a little different during your next barbecue, we have some ideas. From the Swedish game Kubb to the delightful Pindaloo, here are 12 offbeat backyard games to try this season.
1. Kubb; $48
The ultimate goal of the Swedish game Kubb (which rhymes with tube) is to topple the king—the red-topped block in the center of the pitch. But if you do that before knocking down all of your opponents’ other blocks (a.k.a. kubbs), it’s an automatic loss. There are very specific rules about how to toss the batons, how to set up the kubbs, and in what order everything needs to be done, which makes this a great game for people who love structure.
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2. Rollors; $50
Not into tossing batons? Try Rollors, a game which involves rolling chunky wooden discs at a pyramidal goal post. Points are awarded each round to the team with the closest disc to the goal. But it takes some luck to win, too: Each side of the disc bears a different number, and you’re given points based on whichever side is facing upward when the disc lands.
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3. Flickin’ Chicken; $20
Flickin’ Chicken is like golf, but with rubber chickens. One person flings the target disc as far as they can, and then everyone takes turns trying to get their rubber chicken to land on it. Your score for the round is the number of tries it takes you to accomplish that, and the player with the lowest score at the end of nine rounds is the winner.
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4. Tipsy Toss; $43
In Tipsy Toss, each team has a bottle balanced on top of a post, and the other team flings a disc to try to knock it off. You can keep the other team from scoring by catching the disc and the bottle before they hit the ground.
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5. Kickit; $18
Kickit is basically a cross between badminton and hacky sack: It’s a shuttlecock made to be kicked. Master tricks by yourself so you can wow everyone during your next game of no-hands badminton.
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6. Rotating Target Shooting Set; $50
This set comes with two air-powered blasters, two dozen soft foam balls, and an electric windmill that can keep kids (and adults) of all ages entertained indefinitely. Feel free to use your own Nerf guns or forgo weaponry entirely; hands work just as well for launching balls into the nets.
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7. The Floor is Lava; $17
The slip-resistant foam “stepping stones” you’ll get in this game are sturdy enough to be used outside, which would technically make this more of a “The Ground is Lava” situation. A spinner determines which color is safe to stand on for each round, and cards with directives like “Stand on 1 leg” and “Do a squat” test your coordination.
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8. Inflatable Kick Darts; $145
This Velcro-like inflatable dart board comes with four special kickballs that stick to it, as well as an air pump; you fill the bottom of the board with water so it will stay in place even when the most powerful kicker in your neighborhood takes their turn.
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9. Jumbo ‘4 in a Row’ Game; $230
These days, you can buy a jumbo version of many popular tabletop games, from Jenga to checkers. Giantville’s 3.5-foot-tall take on Hasbro’s classic Connect 4 is a great option for people who prefer counting and planning to kicking and throwing.
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10. Popdarts Board Edition; $150
Broker a compromise between cornhole lovers and darts lovers by introducing Popdarts at your next party. The official rules use cancellation scoring, in which one team’s points cancel out the other’s after each round; for example, if you score four points and the other team scores six, your four points cancel out four of theirs, and their tally for the round is two.
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11. Holes in Tarp Game; $26
The possibilities for this hole-ridden tarp are endless. Your group can work together to maneuver all eight balls (or some smaller number) from one end of the tarp to the other without any falling through a hole or off a side; or you can split into teams and try to tank each other’s balls while keeping yours from falling. You can also focus on getting certain colored balls to fall into certain holes; or you can come up with your own game.
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12. Pindaloo; $30
Pindaloo has the same appeal as yo-yos and other simple solo games: The ball comes out one end of the curved tube, and you try to catch it in the other end. If you feel like the solitary nature of the activity might seem dull after a while, we recommend buying two Pindaloo sets and matching off against an opponent to see who can keep theirs going the longest. Once you and your friends get really good, you could even organize a relay race in which participants have to keep their ball in motion as they walk to each hand-off spot.
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This article was originally published on www.mentalfloss.com as 12 Offbeat Lawn Games to Try This Summer.
