With Chinese New Year coming in hot, it’s time to prepare yourself for those day-long reunions and visits to relatives and friends. While dining and chatting are the typical activities to partake in at these gatherings, nothing says togetherness like engaging in fun games.
If you’ve been too busy decorating your home and preparing the food to think about what games to play, we’ve listed some of our top game choices for those CNY gatherings. The best part is that some of these games require things you likely already have in your home. Here are five games to play with your family and friends this CNY:
Mahjong
For many Chinese, Mahjong is a must-play during CNY reunions. The traditional Chinese game is played using tiles and in groups of 4. Unfortunately, it’s not the game for everyone because it involves complex strategies, mathematical abilities and a good understanding of Chinese characters. However, once you get a hold of the rules, it can quickly be a fun and exciting game. It’s no wonder the older generation can play Mahjong for hours at a time!
Board Games
Board games are always great for gatherings, but they get bonus points if they’re CNY-themed – like this special edition Chinese New Year Monopoly! You can play the classic Monopoly game – but with a Chinese twist! Here’s your chance to purchase shop lots, collect gifts, spin the Zodiac Wheel and show your generosity with Hongbao cards!
The best part is that Hype Malaysia has a special deal for our readers! Enjoy a 10% discount on all Monopoly items – including this Year Of The Snake Monopoly – at the Hasbro official store on Shopee Malaysia! Just use code HASBSNAKE, with a minimum purchase of RM100, to enjoy this special deal. Discount is only available from 6th January 2025 to 14th February 2025, so don’t miss out on this promo!
Big Two (Cho Tai Tee)
Any Chinese kid growing up in Malaysia will be familiar with this card game. Big Two, also known as “cho tai tee” is a popular card game played throughout Chinese communities worldwide. This traditional multiplayer game is played with a standard deck of 52 cards. The objective of this game is simple – get rid of all your cards by playing them in sets. Sets can be either pairs, triples, or runs of four or more cards in the same suit. The player who gets rid of all their cards first wins the round, and you can even up the stakes by including some harmless bets.
Chopsticks
Chances are, you’ve already got chopsticks in your house – so why not grab a couple more items and use them for a fun game? This game is perfect for the entire family, testing your dexterity as you race to transfer any small items – beans, cotton balls or marbles – from one container to another using chopsticks. You can even increase the difficulty by decreasing the size of the item you pick.
Ang Pow Exchange (Touch ‘n Go eWallet Money Packet)
While ang pow exchange is more a culture and tradition than a game, you can make it fun for your relatives. One way is to let them choose from varying amounts of lucky money and see who gets the most. Touch ‘n Go eWallet also makes it easier to play this game digitally with their Money Packet feature, which can set the amount randomly, so the odds are even higher!
