Gamifying the Mixer: Mechanics That Force Interaction

Author: The Pepur Team
Category: Event Engineering
Reading Time: 5 min

"Icebreakers" are a war crime.
If you ask a room full of adults to "go around the circle and say an interesting fact about yourself," you are not a host. You are a hostage negotiator. Everyone hates you. They are not listening to the facts; they are panicking about what they are going to say.

To get people talking, you do not need forced conversation. You need mechanics. You need a game design that makes interaction the path of least resistance.

1. The Name Tag Hack

Name tags are useful but boring. "Hello, I'm Dave, I work in Accounting."
Great. Conversation over.

Change the prompt.
Write the prompt on the name tag.
"Hello, I'm Dave, and my Unpopular Opinion is..."
"Hello, I'm Sarah, and The Hill I Will Die On is..."

Now, when you walk up to Dave, you don't ask "What do you do?" You look at his chest and say, "Wait, you think Die Hard is a bad movie? Explain yourself."
Conflict starts conversation. Agreement ends it.

2. The "Quest" System

Give people a job. Purpose eliminates social anxiety.

• The Photographer: Give someone a disposable camera (or a polaroid). Their job is to document the night. This gives them a license to approach anyone.
• The DJ: Put an iPad out. Tell people they can queue one song.
• The Bartender: Do not hire a bartender. Set up a DIY station. "Here is gin, here is tonic, here are limes. Figure it out."
  Standing around a table trying to figure out how to squeeze a lime is a bonding experience.

3. The "Metagame"

Introduce a rule that runs in the background of the party.

• The Sticker Game: Give everyone 5 stickers. If someone says the word "work," you get to put a sticker on them. The person with the most stickers at the end loses (or wins a shameful prize).
  Effect: It stops people from talking about their boring jobs.
• The Secret Mission: (Pepur can automate this). Every guest gets a text on arrival with a secret mission. "High five someone wearing blue." "Get someone to recommend a book."
  Effect: It turns the room into a playground.

Summary

Don't force people to talk. Give them an excuse to talk.
Design the environment so that not interacting is harder than interacting. And burn your list of "fun facts."

A Few Questions You Were Probably Going To Google

Q: Are games childish?
A: Yes. That is the point. Children make friends easily. Adults are guarded and cynical. If you can trick adults into acting like children, they might actually have fun.

Q: What if people refuse to play?
A: Don't force it. These are opt-in mechanics. If someone wants to stand in the corner and scowl, let them. They serve as a useful landmark.

Q: What is the best prize for a party game?
A: Consumables. A bottle of wine. A bag of fancy coffee. Or something terrible, like a DVD of Cats. High stakes or low stakes, never medium stakes.