Tired of sitting around a table dealing cards on Saturday night? Do you get bored during the last-few-cups lull in beer pong? Take your spot-on throwing skills and rock your friends in Beer Ball, the game where the winners drink and the strategy changes depending on where you play it.

Play with glass bottles to take it up a notch. Photo by idgie. on Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons.

The Supplies:
One can of beer per person
A ping-pong ball
One beer pong table
An even number of people (no fewer than 2, no more than 6)

The Game:
Split the people playing into two teams. Each team takes one side of the table, placing their beers on the edge. Then each player takes turns throwing the ping pong ball at the can diagonal from them. If the ball hits the can, then the thrower begins to chug their beer until the other team can get the ball and place it back on the table. This continues until one team finishes all their beers, and is declared the winner of the round.

When you’ve drained your can, place it on your head like a crown– to signal that you are awesome, of course. If you finish your beer before your teammates, continue to take turns throwing at the other cans– when you hit one, one of your teammates drinks.

Try playing this game in all different types of rooms. The level of difficulty depends on the layout and size of the room, and on the presence of obstacles like couches and chairs.

Additional rules:
If your beer is knocked over, by you or by someone else, your penalty is starting with a new beer, so grab another. If the knocked over beer was less than half full, you chug what’s left and play until the new one is gone. If it was more than half full, set it aside and play with the new one. Then get revenge by throwing the ball when the other team is distracted or turned away, which is encouraged, not illegal.

Bonus Advanced Version:
For the big kids. If you want to mix it up or if you run out of beer in cans, try playing with glass bottles of beer. The glass bottles make the ping pong balls fly all over the place, meaning more chugging. The fast nature of the game also causes a lot of beer slamming, which inevitably leads to volcanoes of foam– an added danger. It is acceptable to drink off the foam after the ball has been returned to the table, but not cool to steal any extra beer to get ahead. For an additional twist, begin this version of the game by placing a bottle opener in the center of the table and scrambling to open your beers on one, two, three, go! First team to open all their beers starts.