Indoor games for team building are a fantastic, surprisingly effective way to boost morale, improve communication, and strengthen bonds within your team, all without leaving the office or your dedicated remote meeting space. These activities foster collaboration, problem-solving, and a good dose of laughter, leading to a more cohesive and productive unit.
Feeling like your team’s connection is a little… Wilted? Just like a neglected plant, without regular attention, even the most promising team can lose its vibrancy. Sometimes, the daily grind can make us feel disconnected, like solo houseplants on separate windowsills. But building strong relationships and a sense of shared purpose doesn’t have to be complicated or boring. In fact, it can be incredibly fun and rewarding!
You might be thinking, “How can games truly help my team?” Well, just as the right light and water help a seedling grow, the right activities can help your team blossom. We’re going to explore a variety of indoor games designed to bring out the best in your colleagues, spark creativity, and improve how you all work together. Get ready to discover simple yet powerful ways to cultivate teamwork and create a more engaged, happy team environment. We’ll cover everything from quick icebreakers to more involved challenges, so let’s dig in!
Why Invest in Indoor Team Building Games?
Think of team building as essential nourishment for your team’s growth. Just as a gardener provides the right soil, sunlight, and water for their plants to thrive, a team needs various elements to flourish. Indoor games are a powerful way to provide this nourishment, especially when face-to-face interaction might be limited or when you need to inject some fresh energy into team dynamics.
Strong teams aren’t just productive; they are also resilient, adaptable, and enjoyable places to work. When team members know and trust each other, they are more likely to communicate openly, offer support, and collaborate effectively. This creates a positive feedback loop where everyone feels valued and motivated.
Indoor games offer a unique opportunity to:
- Boost Morale: A shared laugh or a fun challenge can significantly lift spirits and reduce workplace stress.
- Enhance Communication: Many games require clear instructions, active listening, and collaborative problem-solving, directly improving communication skills.
- Foster Problem-Solving Skills: Creative games encourage out-of-the-box thinking and collective strategizing.
- Improve Camaraderie: Working together towards a common, often lighthearted, goal builds trust and strengthens relationships between colleagues.
- Increase Engagement: Fun activities can break monotonous routines and reignite enthusiasm for work.
- Develop Leadership Skills: Some games naturally allow individuals to step up and take initiative.
- Integrate New Members: Games are a relaxed way for new hires to get to know their colleagues and feel welcomed.
These benefits translate directly into a more harmonious and efficient work environment, much like a well-tended garden that yields beautiful results. Let’s explore some fantastic indoor games that can help you cultivate these outcomes.
Quick & Easy Icebreakers (Under 15 Minutes)
These short, engaging activities are perfect for starting a meeting, breaking the ice with new team members, or simply injecting a moment of fun into the workday. They require minimal preparation and can be done almost anywhere.
Two Truths and a Lie
This classic icebreaker gets everyone talking and learning surprising things about each other. It encourages active listening and a bit of playful deception!
- Each person thinks of three “facts” about themselves: two that are true and one that is a lie.
- Taking turns, each person shares their three statements.
- The rest of the team votes or discusses which statement they believe is the lie.
- After everyone has guessed, the person reveals the lie.
Why it works: It’s low-pressure, encourages creativity, and reveals personal anecdotes that can spark further conversation.
Human Bingo
A twist on the traditional bingo, this game requires participants to mingle and find colleagues who match certain criteria.
Preparation: Create bingo cards with squares containing phrases like “Speaks more than two languages,” “Has visited more than 5 countries,” “Can play a musical instrument,” “Is left-handed,” “Has a pet cat,” “Drank coffee this morning,” etc. Ensure there’s a good mix of common and slightly less common traits.
- Give each person a bingo card and a pen.
- The goal is to find a colleague who matches a square and have them sign that square. Each colleague can only sign one square per card.
- The first person to get a line (or full card, depending on time) shouts “Bingo!” and wins a small prize.
Why it works: It gets people moving and talking to colleagues they might not interact with daily. It requires active engagement and learning about others.
Desert Island Survival
This scenario-based game prompts creative thinking and teamwork in a hypothetical crisis.
- Divide participants into small groups (3-5 people).
- Present a scenario: “Your team is stranded on a desert island. You can only bring 5 items from a list of 15 (e.g., a book, a solar-powered radio, a fishing net, a first-aid kit, a tarp, a compass, a box of matches, a knife, a water purification tablet, a mirror, a deck of cards, etc.).”
- Each group must discuss and agree on the 5 most essential items for survival.
- Groups then present their choices and justify their decisions.
Why it works: It encourages negotiation, consensus-building, and prioritization. It reveals how different people approach problem-solving.
Common Ground
A simple yet effective way to find unifying elements within a group.
- Divide participants into groups of 3-5.
- Give them 5-10 minutes to find as many things as they have in common (besides work-related things). Examples: hobbies, favorite foods, travel destinations, types of music, etc.
- Each group shares their list. The group with the longest or most unique list of commonalities wins.
Why it works: It highlights shared interests, fostering a sense of connection and reminding people that they have more in common than they might think.
Collaborative Problem-Solving Games
These activities are designed to challenge teams to work together, strategize, and overcome obstacles as a unit. They often require a bit more time and preparation but yield significant rewards in terms of improved teamwork and communication.
The Marshmallow Challenge
A well-known but highly effective exercise in rapid prototyping and collaboration, made famous by Tom Wujec. It illustrates the importance of iteration and understanding assumptions.
Materials: Per team: 20 sticks of uncooked spaghetti, 1 yard of tape, 1 yard of string, 1 marshmallow, measuring tape.
- Divide participants into small teams (3-4 people).
- Explain the challenge: “Using only the materials provided, build the tallest freestanding structure that can support the marshmallow on top.”
- Teams have 18 minutes to build.
- Measure the height of successful structures from the table surface to the top of the marshmallow. The tallest structure wins.
Key Learnings: This challenge highlights how teams tend to jump to a solution without much planning, the assumptions they make, and the power of “tasting” their design early and often.
Escape Room (Virtual or DIY)
Escape rooms are immersive experiences where teams must solve a series of puzzles and riddles to “escape” a themed room within a set time limit. They are excellent for testing communication, critical thinking, and pressure management.
For Virtual Escape Rooms: Many companies offer online versions that can be played via video conferencing. Check out resources like Escape The Room for inspiration or to book a session.
For DIY Escape Rooms: You can create a simpler version within your office space. Hide clues, riddles, and locks that lead participants to the next step. For example, a riddle might lead to a specific file cabinet, where a combination lock needs a code found in a team meeting agenda document.
- Choose a theme and create a narrative.
- Design a series of puzzles: word scrambles, cryptograms, logic grids, observation challenges.
- Link the puzzles sequentially so solving one reveals the next step or clue.
- Set a time limit (e.g., 60 minutes).
- Teams work together to solve all puzzles and “escape.”
Why it works: Strong emphasis on collaboration, diverse skill utilization (logical thinking, observation, pattern recognition), and communication under pressure.
Scavenger Hunt
A classic activity that encourages exploration, teamwork, and problem-solving, adaptable to any environment.
Preparation: Design a list of items, clues, or tasks that teams need to find or complete. This can be done within the office, a building, or even virtually using online resources.
- Divide into teams.
- Provide each team with the same list of challenges.
- Examples of challenges:
- Find an object that represents “collaboration” and take a photo of your team with it.
- Solve a riddle that leads to a specific location or person.
- Find the first published date of a major company milestone.
- Record a short video of your team performing a specific task (e.g., synchronised jumping).
- Set a time limit.
- Teams report back with their findings or completed tasks. Points are awarded for speed, accuracy, and creativity.
Why it works: Encourages strategic thinking, delegation, and communication. It’s adaptable to learning about the company or its products too.
Blind Drawing
This simple game highlights the importance of clear communication and active listening.
Materials: Paper, pens or pencils.
- Divide participants into pairs, sitting back-to-back.
- One person is the “describer,” the other is the “artist.”
- Give the artist a piece of paper and a pen. Give the describer a simple image or object (e.g., a house with a sun, a cat sitting on a mat, a tree with a bird).
- The describer must verbally instruct the artist on how to draw the image, without using any identifying words (e.g., “draw a square,” not “draw a house”).
- The artist can only ask clarifying questions.
- After a set time (e.g., 5 minutes), compare the artist’s drawing to the original image.
- Pairs can then switch roles.
Why it works: It forces participants to be extremely precise in their language and to listen carefully. It’s a fun way to show how easily misunderstandings can occur due to poor communication.
Creative & Fun Games
These games focus on sparking creativity, encouraging out-of-the-box thinking, and simply having a good time together. They often involve elements of storytelling, improv, or artistic expression.
Team Storytelling Relay
A collaborative storytelling game that builds on creativity and shared narrative building.
- One person starts a story with a single sentence.
- The next person adds another sentence, building on the previous one.
- Continue around the group, with each person adding a sentence to create a collaborative story.
- You can set a theme or a starting phrase to guide the story.
- Alternatively, give each person a prompt word or phrase they must incorporate into their sentence.
Why it works: Encourages active listening, quick thinking, and creative collaboration. It shows how individual contributions can build into a larger, coherent whole.
Improv Games (e.g., “Yes, And…”)
Improvisation games are fantastic for boosting spontaneity, confidence, and the ability to think on your feet. The “Yes, And…” rule is foundational.
Basic “Yes, And…” Exercise:
- In pairs or small groups, participants start a scene or a conversation with a statement.
- The next person must accept the premise with a “Yes” (or acknowledge it) and then add to it with “And…” introducing new information or moving the scene forward.
- Example: Person A: “Wow, this spaceship is really shaking!” Person B: “Yes, and I think we’re about to land on a planet made entirely of cheese!” Person A: “And that explains why the controls are all sticky!”
Other Improv Games:
- Freeze Tag: Two people start a scene. Anyone can yell “Freeze!” tap one of the players out, take their position, and start a new scene based on the frozen pose.
- Sound Ball: Stand in a circle. One person makes a sound and a physical action. The next person repeats the sound and action, adding their own, and so on.
Why it works: Develops quick thinking, adaptability, fearlessness, and the ability to build on others’ ideas without judgment. It’s invaluable for brainstorming and creative problem-solving.
Build a Brand/Product
This game challenges teams to exercise their marketing and creative muscles by conceptualizing and presenting a new product or brand.
Preparation: Provide teams with a random item (e.g., a rubber chicken, a paperclip, a silly hat) or a broad category (e.g., “a new breakfast cereal,” “an app for pet owners”).
- Divide into teams.
- Each team must invent a brand or product based on the prompt.
- They need to come up with:
- A catchy name
- A slogan
- A brief description of its benefits or features
- A target audience
- Teams present their ideas to the rest of the group. You can even have a vote for the most creative, funniest, or most likely to succeed.
Why it works: Encourages innovation, creativity, marketing thinking, and presentation skills. It’s a low-stakes way to practice pitching ideas.
Games for Remote & Hybrid Teams
Building team connection across distances requires intentionality. These games are specifically designed for virtual environments or to bridge the gap between in-office and remote colleagues.
Virtual Pictionary / Charades
Adaptations of these classic games work wonderfully online.
Preparation: Use online tools. For Pictionary, screen sharing with a drawing tool (like Sketch.io or even the whiteboard feature in Zoom/Teams) is essential. For Charades, participants can act out words directly on camera.
- Divide participants into teams.
- Use an online word generator or pre-selected lists.
- Pictionary: One person from a team draws a word while their teammates guess. The drawing is shared via screen share.
- Charades: One person acts out a word or phrase while their team guesses.
- Set time limits for guessing.
Why it works: High energy, visual, and fun. Requires quick recognition and communication. It’s a great way to break up screen fatigue.
Online Trivia
A highly engaging way to test knowledge, encourage friendly competition, and learn new things about your colleagues.
Preparation: Use dedicated trivia platforms or create your own quiz using tools like Kahoot!, Mentimeter (mentimeter.com), or even a shared Google Form. You can tailor questions to your company, industry, or general knowledge.
- Divide participants into teams (can be done via breakout rooms).
- Present questions one by one.
- Teams submit answers within a set time.
- Award points for correct answers and speed.
Why it works: Encourages collaboration within teams, taps into diverse knowledge bases, and provides a fun, competitive environment.
Virtual Escape Rooms
As mentioned before, these are particularly well-suited for remote teams. Many platforms are built specifically for online play, allowing groups to collaborate across different locations.
For a good example of a hosted virtual escape room experience, search for providers that
