26 Exciting Minute to Win It Games to Play Online with Virtual Teams

Would you believe me when I say that Minute to Win it Games are as fun and creative as other party games? Imagine how many games you can fit in when they’re all under a minute!

Virtual Minute to Win it games for adults are short, simple, and entertaining with a time limit of 60 seconds that you can play with your employees online and have a great time.

Say goodbye to long, tiring, and time-consuming team-building events and grab your remote staff (and your stopwatch) for a fun-filled session of online Minute to Win it games. Here are 26 exciting Minute to Win it virtual games to play online with your virtual teams!

1. What is a Minute to Win it game and how to play it?

Virtual Minute to Win it games are inspired by NBC’s game show Minute to Win it where contestants have one minute each to complete a maximum number of tasks to win a cash prize. These games are simple, challenging, and enjoyable at the same time.

Contestants can complete the task using household or party items available at their homes and move on to the next challenge upon winning the same. Scores are allotted accordingly, and the individual/ team with the highest score in the end wins.

The 1 Minute online games can be played in three styles:

Individually: A participant completes the task as they race against time.
Groups: A group of 2/3/4 participants (could be decided accordingly) compete against each other to complete the same task. This could run on a rotation basis for each game.
Teams: A participant can be selected from each team to compete head-to-head in the games. Depending on the game, contestants can play a relay-style as well, i.e, a participant takes over the task as the previous one completes it and moves out. The first team to finish all the tasks wins the game.

2. What are the benefits of playing Virtual Minute to Win it games?

Virtual Minute to Win it game sessions are a gateway for remote teams to get to know each other outside of work meetings and calls. They are covid friendly Minute to Win it online games as they can be played virtually, at home.

Minute to Win it online games act as an ice breaker between remote employees. It encourages team building by involving everyone uniformly. The best part of these games are that they’re brief, so noone can complain of it taking up too much time! This means that you can also play as many of them as you want to keep things interesting!

Minute to win it online games can be started by you, or anyone on your remote team at anytime- be it during an office party, happy hour, retirement or even a virtual baby shower thrown for an expectant colleague! You just need to make sure that any props or items are things that people already have lying around in their homes, or which they can arrange to get before the game begins.

3. How do you make a Virtual Minute to Win it game?

3.1 Send an invite:

Set a date for the Minute to Win it virtual games session and send the calendar invites to all the employees and ask them to RSVP to get a confirmed number for the games. You could also email a quirky digital invite using Canva and mention the date and time for the session. Include a catchy line to grab their attention, like “See you on the flippity flip!”.

3.2 Make a list of supplies:

Ensure that you plan your covid friendly Minute to Win it online games which require supplies that are usually available in everyone’s house, or could be purchased easily. Make a list of the items and send it across to the employees in advance, so that they could arrange for it. Some of the common items are blindfolds, ping pong balls, paper cups (avoid plastic, go green), chopsticks, cotton balls, popsicle sticks, strings, balloons, biscuits, tic-tacs, and of course, a timer or a stopwatch which is accessible on everyone’s smartphones.

3.3 Select a video conferencing platform:

Choose a suitable video conferencing platform that can accommodate a large number of participants and has no constraints on the duration of the session. A platform with engaging features like reactions, chat, etc. such as Zoom, Google Meet, Teams can add to the fun. Recording the session is optional, in case you would like to have a ‘third-umpire’ situation to check the video and confirm which team wins the games.

3.4 Divide participants into teams:

Plan how each game would like to be played out - either individually or in teams. Divide the participants randomly on the spot into teams for fair play. Have a briefing session on how each game is to be played, and show video tutorials if necessary. Ask the employees to come up with cool names for their teams. I’ll go first - ‘Here for the fries’.

3.5 Scoring process:

Have a scoreboard ready with the virtual Minute to Win it games for adults listed vertically and the team names horizontally. Assign a score depending on the time taken to complete. For example, a team that finishes first wins 5 points, second place wins 3, third place wins 1. Teams that take more than a minute or fail to complete the task get 0 points. The team to have scored the highest points in the end, wins. You could probably mute or unmute other participants to avoid cheering during the games to let the players focus.

3.6 Digital rewards:

Include digital rewards or rewards that can be emailed to make the event more attractive and induce healthy competition. Rewards like software subscriptions, meal coupons, Amazon vouchers, or even a day off for the whole team! Make sure you include the rewards in the invite or keep it as a surprise to hype the session.

4. 26 Exciting Minute to Win It Online Games to Play with Adults:

For each of these games, ensure that you are setting the timer (or a stopwatch depending on the game) and communicating the time clearly to the participants. Have an on-screen timer if possible or show your phone’s timer once it has started and stopped. Keep a record of the timestamps for scoring purposes.

4.1 Face the cookie

Players place a cookie on their foreheads. When the timer begins, they have to use only their facial muscles to move the cookie into their mouths. No hands allowed!

4.2 Cup Tower

Each player has to form a 10-cup or a 15-cup pyramid and then stack it back. When the timer begins, start forming the pyramid from the stack of cups by placing one cup after the other, and place it into a stack once it’s done. Make it more challenging by asking them to use one hand only. If a cup falls, the player has to start over.

4.3 Toss ‘em!

Place a cup on the table, in front of the laptop or computer. Players stand 5 steps away from the cup (make sure they are visible) and toss tic tacs or anything tiny (like M&Ms) into the cup from their spot. Whoever tosses the most tic tacs in the cup in under a minute, wins.

4.4 Peck like a bird

Place 10 toffees/ candies on the table in a horizontal line. When the stopwatch starts, the player has to use only their mouth (no hands allowed) to eat the candies one by one from the table. Whoever finishes the fastest, wins.

4.5 Keys to success

Place a chopstick and 5 keys with a key ring attached (preferably without any keychains) in a horizontal line on the table. As the timer begins, players have to put the chopstick in their mouth, and using only their mouth, they must place the keys onto the stick through the key ring one by one.

4.6 Don’t blow it

Place two cups on one side of the room on the floor like a goal post. When the stopwatch starts, players must kneel down (hands crossed behind the back) on the other end of the room and blow a paper ball in between the two cups. Whoever reaches the goal first, wins.

4.7 Roll with it

Place ten cups in a horizontal line on one end of the table. When the timer begins, players must stand on the other end and roll candies or tic tacs and aim to knock the cups off the table.

4.8 Sort the cards

Place a shuffled deck of cards in the middle of the floor and create four corners around the deck about 3 feet away and place a tissue on each corner. When the timer begins, the player must sit in the middle and sort the cards according to the symbol (heart, diamond, club, spade) and place them on the tissue in the four corners. Joker cards can be excluded. Whoever finishes the sorting first, wins.

4.9 Penny for your thoughts

Place two cups on one side of the table like a goal post. When the timer begins, players must stand on the other end of the table and roll a penny across into the goal post. Whoever scores the maximum goals, wins. Brownie points for wearing a football jersey while playing the game.

4.10 Cup Flip

Place 5 cups filled with water in a horizontal line on the table. When the timer starts, players must drink the water from the cup and flip it upright from the edge of the table, and continue the process with each cup until all cups are standing straight.

4.11 Doodle Head

Players must place a paper plate on top of their heads. When the timer begins, they’ll be given an object to draw. Whosoever’s drawing is close to the object’s image, wins.

4.12 Nose Dive

Players must apply vaseline or lip balms on their noses. Place two bowls on the table - one filled with cotton balls, and the other empty. When the timer begins, players must transfer the cotton balls from one bowl to the other using only their nose (hands crossed behind).

4.13 Hanky Panky

Place a full tissue box on the table. When the timer begins, the player must pull out all the tissues one by one until the box is empty. The fastest player to do so wins.

4.14 Bounce it in

Place 5 cups in a horizontal line on one end of the table. When the timer starts, players must stand on the other end and bounce ping pong balls into the cups. Teams can decide the number of balls to throw into the cups accordingly.

4.15 Backflip

Players must balance two pencils on the back of their hand, throw them in the air and grab them with the same hand. There will be 6 rounds with two pencils added in each round. If a player drops a pencil(s), they are disqualified.

4.16 Glass Road

Place 5 glasses upside down in a vertical line (with a little gap) on the table and a sixth open glass at the end of the line. Players must blow a ping pong ball from the first glass into the sixth glass. The first/ fastest one to put three balls in wins.

4.17 Separation Anxiety

Place a bowl full of M&Ms in a bowl and multiple empty cups around it. When the timer begins, the player must separate the colors into the cups using one hand only.

4.18 Fetch that!

Make a list of household items that you can ask employees to fetch like chilli powder, a cushion, slipper, TV remote, a plant, a hairbrush, etc. When the timer begins, players must fetch the object as soon as the host announces the name. Whoever brings most of the items first, wins.

4.19 ABC Conversation

This is a group game. Players of the same team must keep up a conversation with words starting with alphabets in chronological order. For example, Alison, bring Christmas decorations early Friday and so on. No player must take more than 5 seconds to respond.

4.20 Keep it up

The player will be given two or more balloons. When the timer begins, they have to throw them up in the air and not let them fall to the ground. You could make it more exciting by asking them to use only one hand.

4.21 Tic Tac Tweezer

Place a bowl filled with tic tacs next to an empty bowl. When the timer starts, players must use a tweezer and transfer the tic tacs from one bowl to another. The one to have transferred the most tic tacs, wins.

4.22 Thread the Needle

Place a needle next to 5 thread strings. When the timer begins, players must attempt to thread most of the strings into the needle. For safety purposes, cover the pointy end of the needle with an eraser or tape.

4.23 Suck it up

Place a plate filled with M&Ms next to an empty plate. When the timer starts, players must use a straw to suck and pick up the candy and transfer it to the empty plate. The one to have transferred the most M&Ms wins.

4.24 Cup Balance

Players must balance a cup on their head from one end of the room to the other and form a 10-cup or 15-cup pyramid. If a cup falls midway, they have to pick it up and start from the starting point again. Whoever forms the pyramid first, wins.

4.25 Movin’ it up

Make a mark with a marker on one of the cups. Now, place this at the beginning of a stack of 40-50 cups. When the timer begins, players must restack the cup one by one till the marked cup is on top again. Whoever does it first, wins.

4.26 This Blows

Place 10 cups in a horizontal line on one end of the table. When the timer starts, players have to blow into a balloon and use the air to blow the cups off the table. Whoever knocks all the cups first, wins.

5. FAQs

5.1 How to score a Minute to Win it game online?

Here’s how to score a Minute to Win it game online-

Have a scoreboard ready with the games listed vertically and the team names horizontally. You could either use a pen and paper or use an excel sheet which would be helpful to share the screen and show the scores to the participants.
Assign a score depending on the time taken to complete. For example, a team that finishes first wins 5 points, second place wins 3, third place wins 1.
Teams that take more than a minute or fail to complete the task get 0 points.
The team to have scored the highest points in the end, wins.
You could probably mute or unmute other participants to avoid cheering during the games to let the players focus.

5.2 Which is the best platform to play Minute to Win it games online?

The best platform to play Minute to Win it games online is Zoom. It accommodates up to 100/500/1000 participants depending upon the subscription plan. There are no constraints on the duration of the meeting depending on the plan. There are a lot of engaging features like reactions, chat, etc. that can add to the fun. Recording the session is optional, it would help in having a ‘third-umpire’ scenario and know which team wins the games in close calls.

5.3 How do you play a Minute to Win it game online on Zoom?

Here’s how to play a minute to win it games online on Zoom-

Introduction:

Once all members join the call, the host could start off the session by explaining the general rules of the games and make sure that the timer is visible to everyone on the screen.

Camera and device positioning:

Send a reminder beforehand that the cameras shall remain on throughout the session, and that participants have to place their devices in such a manner that they are seen clearly along with the game props and the table used in some of the games.

Spotlight:

For all the games, the host can spotlight the participants playing the game for everyone to view easily. Zoom allows pinning of a maximum of 9 members. To spotlight a member, click on the participant’s video, and click on the option ‘Add Spotlight’ (Windows)/ or ‘Spotlight Video’ (Linux/ iOS/ Android).

Recording:

Record the Zoom call if necessary to use it post the session for scoring the teams. Choose an appropriate subscription plan to gain access to features like recording, audience engagement, chat, etc.