When it comes to White Elephant – or whatever you call it in your neck of the woods – there’s no shortage of ways to play. As the gift exchange continues to be a staple of Christmas parties year after year, new spins on this ultra-popular holiday activity are constantly popping up. Some rules variations are elaborate and require things like special Bingo cards, while others are downright simple.
The quirky variation I’m about to talk about definitely fits into the simple category. In fact, it involves melding White Elephant with a game you’re probably familiar with from your grade school days.
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Yep, I’m talking about a Rock Paper Scissors gift exchange. In this quirky game, players can steal presents just as in standard White Elephant – but they have to beat another player at Rock Paper Scissors to do so. Read on to learn how this small change makes a big difference in how your gift exchange plays out.
Rock Paper Scissors
For anyone who may not be familiar with Rock Paper Scissors, it’s a game where players hold one hand flat with palm facing up and strike their fist on it in unison three times. On the third strike, players reveal one of three hand signals – Rock (fist), Paper (palm down), or Scissors (index and middle finger pointed out). Rock beats Scissors, Scissors beats Paper, and Paper beats Rock. If both players reveal the same hand signal, repeat until there is a winner.
Two things have always been appealing about Rock Paper Scissors: 1) it requires no extra props, and 2) most people either know about it already or can catch on quickly. Of course, those same two qualities also make it an easy addition to White Elephant.
The other nifty thing about incorporating Rock Paper Scissors into a gift exchange is that it puts a natural limit on how much swapping can happen each round. You don’t need extra rules to keep the stealing in check (and your turns from dragging on). As soon as someone fails at a challenge, the turn is over.
Rock Paper Scissors Gift Exchange Rules
If you’re already familiar with White Elephant, by now you probably already know exactly how Rock Paper Scissors fits in. Nevertheless, here are the rules spelled out.
1. Each player brings one wrapped gift of a specified value.
The gift price should be communicated in advance on the invitation or signup sheet.
2. Draw names to see who goes first. The first player selects a gift from the pile and unwraps it.
Make sure everyone can see!
3. On each following turn, players can select a wrapped gift from the pile OR attempt to steal an unwrapped present from someone else by beating them at Rock Paper Scissors. If the challenge fails, they must select and open a gift from the pile.*
If someone has their gift stolen, they have the same options – choose a fresh gift from the pile or attempt to steal from someone else. Players cannot challenge someone who has already done Rock Paper Scissors this turn.
4. Once everyone has had a turn, the first player gets their chance to steal a gift. On this turn, there are no limits on stealing – players can challenge anyone to Rock Paper Scissors.
The final turn ends when someone decides to stand pat or fails a challenge.
* An alternative rule gives the player who was challenged the option to swap for the challenger’s gift after they have opened it.
Printable Rules
Having a printout of the rules on hand is always recommended. Here’s a PDF file you can use – just click here or on the preview image below.
As this article shows, you don’t need a lot of complicated rules or extra props to add new life to your holiday gift exchange. Now, who wants to try a Rock Paper Scissors gift swap? Let’s see a show of hands!
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