17 Drinking Games for Just 2 Players

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Face off against a single person in these drinking duels

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IN THIS ARTICLE

1 Higher/Lower

2 Never Have I Ever

3 Truth or Dare or Drink

4 Two Truths and a Lie

5 Flip Cup

6 Speed Facts

7 Quarters

8 I’m Going On a Picnic

9 Drunk Bullshit

10 Mind Meld

11 Beer Duel

12 Battle Shots

13 Match

14 Pinky McDrinky

15 Caps

16 Flip, Sip, or Post

17 Movie-Watching Drinking Games

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Co-authored by Laura Bilotta and Luke Smith, MFA

Last Updated: January 22, 2025 Fact Checked

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Having a night in with your bestie and a bottle of booze? A two-person drinking game is just what you need to bring the party home, even when the guest list is super short. We’ll show you how to play 17 fun, frantic, silly, and downright daring drinking games for just 2 players.

Steps

1

Higher/Lower

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1. 
   Play a simple drinking game with a deck of cards. Shuffle a deck of cards and place it face-down on a table. Flip over the first card, then take turns guessing whether the next card will be higher or lower than the last. If you guess wrong, you drink!

   • A similar game is Red/Black, where players take turns guessing if the next card is red or black. If you’re wrong, drink. If you get 3 in a row correct, make a new rule, like, “Neither of us can say the word ‘beer,’ or we both drink.”
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2

Never Have I Ever

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1. 
   Add some alcohol to this classic party game. You probably already know how to play Never Have I Ever, and the drinking game is almost identical. The first person says something that they’ve never done, and the other player has to drink if they have done that thing.

   • Playing with 2 people lets you spill some more secrets, if you have a close relationship. Try prompts like, “Never have I ever stolen anything,” or, “Never have I ever drunk-dialed an ex.”

3

Truth or Dare or Drink

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1. 
   Play Truth or Dare with a boozy twist. Take Truth or Dare to the next level by adding an option to drink if you don’t want to tell a truth or perform a dare. It’s a simple way to raise the stakes and make the game even more audacious as it progresses.

   • If you’re drinking with a romantic partner, dating Coach Laura Bilotta says to “focus on fun and playful dares rather than embarrassing or risky ones.”
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4

Two Truths and a Lie

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1. 
   Take a drink if the other player guesses your lie. To play Two Truths and a lie, one player makes 3 statements about themself (where they were born, what they’ve done in their life, etc). The other tries to guess the lie, and if they’re right, the first player takes a drink.

   • Take turns making up statements and guessing the lie, and play until you’ve both learned something new and exciting about each other.

5

Flip Cup

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1. 
   Play the frantic cup-flipping game with just two. To play Flip Cup, fill 2 plastic cups with beer. On the count of 3, race to chug your beer, then place the cup upside-down over the edge of a table. Use your finger to flick it upwards, trying to land it right-side up. If your opponent beats you, drink!

   • Play multiple rounds and keep track of your wins and losses.
   • Or, add to the challenge by setting up competing rows of cups that you must race to flip before your opponent.
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6

Speed Facts

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1. 
   Test how much you know your friend with a fast-paced game. Pour out 6 shots and hand 3 to your opponent. Then, take turns saying things about each other that you know to be true. You get 3 seconds each turn to come up with a factoid, and if you run out of time or your factoid about the other player is wrong, drink a shot.

   • The first player to drink all 3 shots loses!

7

Quarters

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1. 
   Bounce quarters off a table into a shot glass. Place an empty shot glass on a table. Then, take turns trying to bounce a quarter off the table into the shot glass. If you make it, the other person drinks, and you take another turn. If you miss, your turn ends.
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8

I’m Going On a Picnic

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1. 
   Test your powers of memorization. Start by saying, “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing…” At the end, say a single item you’ll bring, like apples. The other player then repeats the phrase, plus your item, plus a new item. Take turns going back and forth like this, adding an item each time. Whoever messes up the list has to drink.

   • For example, a turn might look like, “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing apples, pears, and sandwiches.” Then the other player says, “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing apples, pears, sandwiches, and juice.”

9

Drunk Bullshit

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1. 
   Add alcohol to the popular bluffing card game. You probably played Bullshit when you were younger. In it, players take turns laying off cards from their hands in ascending order, announcing the card and how many of it they’re laying off each turn, racing to get rid of all their cards.

   • The other player can call “bullshit” if they think you’re lying about your cards, like if you said you’re playing 3 aces, but they hold 2 of the aces themselves.
   • If you get caught in a bullshit call, drink. If you call bullshit but your opponent was telling the truth, you drink.
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10

Mind Meld

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1. 
   Guess what each other is thinking to test your friendship. On the count of 3, both players say a random word. Then, count to 3 again, and this time try to guess a word that connects the first two. If your second guesses don’t match, you both drink.

   • For example, on the first round you might say “green” and your friend says, “car.” The next round, you both might guess “traffic light” as the word(s) that connect them.

11

Beer Duel

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1. 
   Have a wild-west showdown with beer cans. You and your friend both place a beer in your off-hand pockets. Take 3 paces forward and turn to face each other. On the count of 3, shout, “Draw!” then race to chug your beers and throw the empty can at your opponent. The first to hit their opponent with their can wins.

   • Go for a toss or gentle throw, rather than a brutal pitch. We’re all friends here, right?
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12

Battle Shots

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1. 
   Play Battleship with shots of liquor instead of boats. Draw two 7x7 grids on large pieces of paper, and label the rows and columns A-G and 1-7, respectively. Both players placed 6 shots on their grid. Then just play Battleship as usual, calling out coordinates. If the other player guesses the coordinates of one of your shots, drink it.

   • The first to make the other player drink all their shots wins.

13

Match

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1. 
   Mix cards and dice in an exciting game of chance and speed. Both players have their own shuffled deck of cards. Roll 2 dice, and as soon as they settle, race through your deck to produce a card that matches the total number on the dice. Whoever is slower has to drink.

   • Use queens as 11 and kings as 12. All other cards are face value. Discard the jokers, aces, and jacks.
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14

Pinky McDrinky

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1. 
   Take a chance on this tense dice game. Players take turns rolling 3 dice—2 white dice, and 1 pink die (or any unique color). Roll the pink die first, then both players roll 1 of the white dice. If your white die matches the number on the pink die, the other player drinks.

   • If there are no matches, roll again!

15

Caps

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1. 
   Play beer pong without the Ping Pong ball. Set up 2 cups of beer on either side of a table and take turns tossing a bottle cap (or just a regular Ping Pong ball) into your opponent’s cup. If you land it, your opponent has one chance to shoot their own cap into your cup. If they miss, they drink.

   • If they make it, the shots cancel each other out, and it’s their turn.
   • Or go the full mile and play beer pong with a full fleet of cups.
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16

Flip, Sip, or Post

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1. 
   Subject each other to a little public embarrassment. Start by flipping a coin and having your friend guess if it’s heads or tails. If they’re right, your turn ends and they flip the coin. If they’re wrong, flip it again, and let them guess again.

   • This time, if they’re right, they must answer a single question truthfully, then it’s their turn to flip. Otherwise, flip the coin again.
   • If they’re right on the third flip, they take a shot. If they’re wrong, they must post something embarrassing to social media, like “I like the smell of old underwear.” Decide beforehand what either of you will post if you lose.
   • Relinquish the coin and let them flip, putting yourself to the test!

17

Movie-Watching Drinking Games

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1. 
   Turn on a movie and drink whenever something iconic happens. Boot up your favorite film or TV show, then think of some famous lines or events, make a list of them, and take a sip anytime they happen.

   • For example, you might take a drink any time a certain character makes their signature expression, or does something they shouldn’t.
   • See our Twilight and The Lord of the Rings drinking game guides for some examples.
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Warnings

• Please drink responsibly, and never operate a vehicle when you've been drinking. The CDC recommends that men have no more than 2 drinks (1 beer, 3 fl oz (89 mL) of liquor, or 10 fl oz (300 mL) of wine) in a day, and women have no more than 1 drink in a day.
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