Game room games at home have given me thousands of hours of fun since childhood.
Darts, ping-pong, foosball, air hockey are my go-to’s.
Among my friends and family, they knew I was the game room king.
They all wanted me on their team in any of these games because they knew they’d win.
Beating me gave them a reason to celebrate because it was a big deal.
And whoever played against me instantly earned a fan club as everyone always rooted against me.
Game room games are a big deal to me, and I can get a little picky about what I consider a quality table tennis table or foosball table.
The home game room table or board you ultimately choose will depend on a few factors which I will cover in this post in each section.
However, if you want something that lasts, high-quality should matter to you and NOT all game room games are equal in that department.
*Read my recommendations on what to consider before choosing your game room games tables and boards.
Then choose the one (or ones) that will get the most use and enjoyment for both parties and get-togethers, and when it’s just for you and the family as some of these take up a lot of space.
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Top Game Room Ideas | Photo Credit- Pinterest
Here’s the game where I bust my opponent’s knuckles. (ha, ha, maybe I shouldn’t be proud of that).
My forehand slams send the plastic puck flying off the table (innocent passers-by consider yourselves warned).
The reason you might consider an air hockey table as the right choice of game room games is that anyone can play this- right away, with no skill level.
Unless small kids plan to play, get a full-sized table; otherwise, the goals will be too close together and thus the puck will ricochet back in your face before you can react or will go flying off the table practically every time. This becomes very boring, quickly.
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Whichever cousin or uncle became my teammate they could take the game off and we’d still win. It didn’t matter if I played goalie or attacker.
While everyone else had to spin their players, my quick and precise wrist-snap hits pounded the ball so fast and hard into the goal you couldn’t see the ball- only hear it bounce up and down inside.
Here again, quality matters for foosball tables. They will take a beating as you slam the poles against the frame as you play. Above all the quality plastic of the foosball figures matter. They WILL break no matter what- get extras.
Plus, the material of the inner walls matter, as the ball will ricochet differently based on what the table is made of. You do NOT want it to ricochet too fast or you lose all the challenge of learning how to play with skill and thus the game becomes a matter of luck.
The standard foosball table measures 30 inches wide by 60 (2.5 feet wide by 5 feet long) inches long and you must factor in the space around the table in order to play comfortably.
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Here is my favorite of all game room games because of the speed, action, and skill level required to play well.
Table tennis is not a game you can just pick up a paddle and play.
It takes time to learn how to play skillfully.
As a beginner, you could play and still have fun with foosball, air hockey, and many of the other game room games listed in this post, but not with ping-pong.
But once you become skilled enough to hit the ball back-and-forth on your opponent’s side, you will get addicted.
It can get as intense as a regular tennis match.
One thing to consider when choosing a ping-pong table, do NOT get an all-in-one table that can work as a pool table or other games (unless you have small kids). The ping-pong play just won’t be as fun because the surface won’t stay stable and the net most likely won’t be sturdy enough either.
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I admit that I haven’t played this one too much, but my apartment’s cybercafe has one.
Anyone can play, not a lot of skill level is required to at least have fun, but don’t underestimate how challenging it can get to do well.
What I like about this game is that you take turns (like darts). This gives you the challenge of trying to outdo your opponent after each turn.
I had to do more research on shuffleboard tables in order to make recommendations here.
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Ok, so here is another game that I don’t play much of.
But many people do.
You can host your own poker night and impress your guests with an actual poker table, instead of the kitchen table.
And if you haven’t yet started your Poker Night with your best buds, then maybe now’s the time, especially with a football playing in the background and each with a glass of whiskey in hand.
The draw of a poker table (or poker tabletop) is the felt playing surface, and the card and chip holders.
If you spent any time in the 80s then you know how cool adding a cocktail arcade machine would be to add to your collection of game room games.
Imagine playing Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Ms. Pac-Man, Galaga, Galaxian, Frogger and a slew of other retro video games with your kids or friends.
What makes this arcade game better than the ones I played in arcades and bowling alleys was that this one can play pretty much all of them.
I think one big downside of owning this would be the hours of binge playing while I sip on a cocktail resting next to my hand.
Here’s another one of my all-time favorite game room games.
It does take some skill to be any good, but there are dozens of dart games to choose from, and a game like 301 is a lot easier than Cricket.
I’ve had both regular dart boards and electronic.
The electronic one if safer and more fun as you the scoreboard keeps score and offers a variety of dart games.
Darts is a great game for parties as you can play in teams and enjoy talking, drinking, and watching sports games at the same time.
It also does not require much space, but you do need to stand 7 feet 9.25 inches away from the board.
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Yes, this is more for outdoors, but if you have enough space in your basement (you can also play in your garage), then you can play indoors during the winter while you watch football.
Or if the weather permits take the game outside during halftime.
Of course, indoors, you’re not likely to have enough space to place the two boards at the regulation distance of 27 feet apart (front-to-front), but you can make it work bringing them closer (or just use one board).
This is another one of the game room games that any age, and any skill level will enjoy.
Play in teams, one-on-one, or even practice on your own.
Get skee ball and feel like you’re at Dave and Buster’s or Chucky Cheese.
It doesn’t get any cooler for game room games than this one.
Great for all ages and definitely be the talk of the neighborhood if you have the space to place it.
I can think of very few arcade games that are more addictive than this one.
If you have space then arcade basketball is great for kids and adults alike.
Challenge your kids or friends to a game while you play side-by-side.
Do not expect it to be as good of quality as the ones you see at Dave and Buster’s or Chucky Cheese (game rooms here in the US), but all the ones I’ve seen get great reviews.
And I watched some of the customer videos uploaded to Amazon and they seemed to stay in place well as the customers played on them.
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