If the group all know each other
Go competitive. A tournament bracket for anything — a video game, ping-pong, cornhole, a card game — will run itself for an hour. Two-player heats mean nobody sits out for long.
Also reliable: a challenge list with points, where the challenges are absurd rather than difficult. Balance a can on your head for thirty seconds. Get three people to say your name in one minute.
If the group is mixed
Start with something that does not require confidence. Two Truths and a Lie works because everybody already knows how it goes. Would You Rather works because the answer is never wrong.
Avoid anything requiring a performance in front of the room until an hour in, when people have relaxed. Karaoke at the start of a party is a room full of people looking at their phones.
Free printables
Would You Rather, Two Truths and a Lie, Party Trivia and a Scavenger Hunt print on plain paper and need nothing else. Take them.
