Pokémon Birthday Party Ideas: Games You Can Run With Almost Nothing

You can run a good Pokémon party with games that need nothing bought. All you need is a screen, a printer for a few sheets and any soft ball. The games below use the Pokémon facts on pokee.si, which come from the site's own data, and children do not need to be experts to join in.

The ideas are in a suggested order. Start with team picking, mix in the loud games, and end with the quiz.

1. Pick teams by type

Ask each child to choose a favourite type. There are 18 types in total, and the type guide lists them all. Small groups can use the classic triangle instead: Team Fire, Team Water and Team Grass. Fire beats Grass, Grass beats Water and Water beats Fire.

For a younger group, let each child pick one of the three Kanto starters: Bulbasaur is Grass/Poison, Charmander is Fire and Squirtle is Water.

If one type is crowded, remember that Water has the most Pokémon of any type, 154 counting dual types, and Ice has the fewest, 48.

2. Who's that Pokémon?

Open Guess the Pokémon on a screen everyone can see. It shows a silhouette, blur, pixels or a zoom, and the children shout the answer. No screen to share? Read out the category and height instead, and let them guess.

The hint column is the Pokémon's own category from its Pokédex page. Give it one hint at a time and let the room guess after each.

3. The type relay

Line each team up. The caller names an attacker type and a defender type, and the first child in line runs to the left side of the room if the attack is super effective, or to the right if it has no effect or is not very effective. Use these pairs, which come straight from the type chart.

Children who want the full picture can look at the type chart for kids. You can also hand out the printable type chart to each team as a cheat sheet.

4. The name-saying contest

Many Pokémon names are hard to say, and that makes a funny game. Read a respelling aloud, then play the clip so the children can compare. A point goes to whoever is closest. Capital letters mark the stressed part.

All of these are in the pronunciation guide. Adults get a point for trying. If you want a harder round, hard Pokémon names for parents sorts the trickiest names by pattern.

5. Pass the Poké Ball

Any ball will do. Play music while the children pass it round a circle, and when the music stops, whoever holds the ball answers a question. Here are six, with answers from the site's data.

1. How many types are there? Eighteen.
2. What type is Pikachu? Electric.
3. How many ways can Eevee evolve? Eight.
4. At what level does Magikarp become Gyarados? Level 20.
5. What happens when you use a Normal move on a Ghost type? Nothing, because Normal moves have no effect on Ghost.
6. Which three starters do you pick from in Kanto? Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle.

The full question bank is on the Pokémon quiz for kids page, which has 20 questions with an answer key.

6. Quiz and printables

Close with the quiz, split into teams, or let the children work through the quiz packs on a tablet. The printables page has three PDFs you can hand out or use as table activities: the type chart, 48 pronunciation cards with QR codes that play the name, and a stat maths sheet for ages 7 to 10.

If you want a quiet corner, Say the Name plays a name aloud and asks the child to find the Pokémon. Type Clash is a 60-second rush that fits a break between games.

Keep it flexible

A few things help any party. Keep each game short. Swap loud rounds with sit-down ones. Give every child a way to join in, even if they know few Pokémon. These are our suggestions, not rules.