Suppose your idea of a good night in with friends is more than simply sitting around drinking. In that case, you’re probably like me. You always look for exciting ways to liven up the evening and keep everyone entertained.

And that’s where the Buffalo drinking game comes into its own.

If you want extreme laughter, absurd challenges, and plenty of drinks, buckle up because you’re in for a rollercoaster of booze-fueled fun and frolics.

The great thing about this game is that there are no lengthy rules, and just about anyone can get involved (providing they’re old enough to drink, of course.) So, there’s no need to worry about talking everyone through a tedious instruction manual before you can play. Just pour your drinks and play!

What You’ll Need to Play The Buffalo Drinking Game?

Now here’s the best bit, it won’t cost you an arm and a leg on expensive equipment to play this game. You probably already have the items you need in your pantry or drinks cabinet.

First, of course, you’ll need to get the drink of your choice and ensure you have enough to keep the drinks flowing. The last thing you want is for your party to run dry; it’ll do nothing for your hosting reputation.

Secondly, have some cups handy. It would help if you had enough cups for each player to have one each. I suggest making sure they’re all the same size. If you don’t trust your tipsy tribe with your family glassware, you can get some pretty cool plastic tableware these days. I recently bought these colored plastic cups for an outdoor game night. They had lids for spillages and saved on the washing up, double whammy!

Lastly, you’ll need a good group of pals up for a laugh, like a booze-up, and enjoy a bit of friendly competition.

There you have it; you’re ready to play!

How to Play Buffalo Drinking Game?

As I mentioned earlier, there’s not much strategy or rules involved with Buffalo, so this will take little time. It’s different from a game of Poker which can take hours to learn. Plus, it means you don’t have to start boring your friends with long guidelines when all they want to do is get the party started.

Still, just so you’re clear, I’ve put together a short step-by-step guide to make it even easier to follow:

1. Pick Your Hand

Assign your dominant hand. It can’t be changed mid-game; no swapping is allowed, and if you get caught using your strongest hand, there’ll be consequences. Also, if you’re ambidextrous, you can only pick one hand.

2. Double Fisting

Double-fisting is a rule, meaning you may use your dominant hand only if you’re holding two drinks simultaneously.

3. Call Out Buffalo

Throughout the game, you’ll need to monitor your fellow players closely. As soon as you spot somebody holding a beer in their dominant hand, you need to call out “Buffalo!” with as much passion and energy as you can, in other words, real loud. The idea is to make everyone else jump and catch people off-guard.

4. Chug or Penalize

There can be two outcomes when someone has called out Buffalo. Ideally, the rule breaker needs to try and chug the rest of their beer before another player spots the culprit and yells out Buffalo again, in which case, the caller must now chug their drink. So either way, at least one person needs to finish their drink.