Ready to turn your next party into a game show extravaganza? This Let’s Make a Deal party game is the perfect way to hand out prizes while keeping your guests on the edge of their seats. Whether you’re hosting a Christmas bash, birthday celebration, or company party, get ready for some seriously entertaining “keep it or trade it” drama!
Why This Game Is a Total Hit
Forget about boring prize giveaways. This game transforms gift-giving into an event where your guests become contestants, facing thrilling choices between playing it safe or risking it all for something better. The best part? Everyone’s watching, cheering, and living vicariously through each nail-biting decision. It’s the perfect blend of suspense, laughter, and just the right amount of friendly chaos.
Best for: Christmas parties, company events, birthday parties, any gathering where you’re giving out prizes
Time to Play: 30-45 minutes (depending on group size)
Players: Works for any group size – just adjust your number of prizes accordingly
What You’ll Need
Here’s everything to create your own game show experience:
- Cash envelopes (15+ envelopes with varying amounts – we used $5 to $50)
- Gift cards taped to a poster board (varying values from $0.06 to $100)
- Double-sided tape for mounting gift cards
- Wrapped gifts and prizes (at least 15+ items)
- A few “zonk” prizes (funny gag gifts or empty boxes for the risk-takers)
- Optional: Playing cards or numbered slips to determine player order
- Optional: Play money for cash envelope zonks in Round 3
Pro Tip: Grab a bunch of small bills from the bank to fill your envelopes with varied amounts. The wider the range, the more exciting the decisions become!
How to Set Up Your Game Show
Round 1: The Cash Envelope Mystery
Fill those envelopes with cold hard cash! Use a mix of amounts – some disappointing fivers, some solid twenties, and a few exciting fifties. Make sure you have more envelopes than players (we recommend 3-5 extra) so even your last contestant has real choices, not just leftovers.
Why this works: Starting with guaranteed money makes the later “trade or keep” decisions way more intense. Players know exactly what they’re risking!
Round 2: The Gift Card Gamble
Time to create your gift card game board! Write the dollar amounts on a white poster board, then use double-sided tape to stick gift cards directly over the numbers. This way, contestants can see where the gift card is for (Target, Amazon, Starbucks), but they have absolutely no idea if it’s worth $1 or $100.
The secret sauce: Include some hilariously low amounts (like $0.06 – yes, really!) mixed with some genuinely awesome $50-$100 cards. The unpredictability is what makes people sweat over their choices.
Round 3: The Wrapped Prize Showdown
This is where things get wild. Fill a tray with beautifully wrapped packages, gift bags, and mysterious boxes. Most should be legitimate prizes that anyone would love, but throw in 2-3 zonks (gag gifts or literally empty boxes) to keep that risk factor high.
Universal prize ideas that always win:
- Popular board games or card games
- Movie tickets or experience gift cards
- Cozy items like fuzzy socks or blankets
- Portable phone chargers or tech accessories
- Gourmet snack boxes or chocolate collections
- Insulated tumblers or water bottles
- Scented candles or bath sets
Alternative setup: Skip the wrapped gifts and use more cash envelopes instead – but include some filled with play money as your zonks. Attach numbered envelopes to the back of your gift card board for easy selection.
How to Play Let’s Make a Deal
Determine Your Playing Order
First things first: figure out who goes when. Our favorite method? Grab playing cards! If you have 12 players, pull out two matching sets of six cards (two Kings, two Aces, two Fives, etc.). Give everyone one card, then randomly draw from the other set – whoever has the matching card is up first.
Other options: Draw names from a hat, use a random number generator, or let people earn their turn by winning a quick trivia question.
Round 1: Choose Your Starting Cash
Your first contestant picks any envelope from the pile and opens it to reveal their starting cash amount. Now comes decision time!
The choice: Keep the guaranteed cash and walk away happy, OR trade it in for a mystery gift card that could be worth more… or way less.
Make sure everyone knows the gift card range (like “$0.06 to $100”) so they can make an informed gamble. Watching someone agonize over whether to keep their $20 or risk it for a mystery card? Chef’s kiss.
Round 2: The Gift Card Reveal
If your player decides to trade, they hand back their cash envelope and choose a gift card from the board. They peel it off to reveal the hidden dollar amount underneath – cue the gasps, cheers, or groans from your audience!
Optional hard mode: If someone gets a gift card worth less than their original cash envelope, they’re out – no Round 3 for them. This adds serious stakes to the decision!
The next choice: Keep the gift card and end on a high note, OR push their luck and trade for a wrapped prize that could be amazing… or could be absolutely nothing.
Round 3: The Final Gamble
Brave souls who make it to Round 3 trade in their gift card and select one wrapped gift from the prize tray. They unwrap it right then and there to discover if they’ve won big or if they’ve just opened a zonk.
Show some mercy (optional): If someone unwraps a zonk and ends up with nothing, you can let them reclaim their very first cash envelope as a consolation. We don’t usually do this because the risk is part of the fun, but it’s your party – you’re the host with the most power!
Keep the Energy High
After each player completes their journey through the rounds, bring up your next contestant! The beauty of this game is that everyone watches every decision, turning your guests into an invested audience that gasps, cheers, and shouts advice at each player.
Speed it up: Want to move faster? Have everyone go through each round simultaneously. All players pick cash envelopes together, make their “trade or keep” decisions together, then everyone who advanced picks gift cards at once. You’ll still need a selection order, but the pacing is quicker.
The Big Deal of the Day (Bonus Round)
Want to go full game show? Add one final twist for your top three winners!
After everyone’s played, identify your three biggest winners based on final prize value. Offer them the chance to trade everything they won for one of three mystery “Big Deal” prizes.
Here’s the catch: One prize should be your grand prize – the absolute best thing you’re giving away. The other two should be decent but not necessarily better than what they’re giving up.
Let your highest winner pick first, second place chooses next, and third place gets what’s left. It’s the ultimate “risk everything for glory” moment, and your audience will go absolutely wild watching someone decide whether to trade their $75 gift card for what could be a $200 prize… or a $30 one.
Indoor Christmas Scavenger Hunt Printable for Kids
25 ready-made clues = zero stress for you – Just print, hide, and watch kids stay engaged for hours while you actually enjoy your coffee
Instant download, works today – Get it in minutes, print on regular paper, create Christmas magic in under 15 minutes of setup
Saves Christmas on bad weather days – Perfect indoor activity when kids are bouncing off walls and you need them happily occupied
One purchase, use it every year – Blank templates let you customize for different ages or create new versions as kids grow
Outdoor Christmas Scavenger Hunt Printable for Kids
Gets kids outside and active – Burns energy while solving 25 riddles and challenges around the yard (lifesaver when they’re hyped on holiday sugar)
Instant download, 15-minute setup – Print, hide clues, done. Perfect last-minute activity that looks like you planned for weeks
Works with your yard decorations – Turns your Christmas lights and lawn decor into part of the adventure kids will beg to do again
Reusable every year – Blank templates let you customize for different ages or add new challenges as kids grow
Difficult Christmas Scavenger Hunt Printable for Adults – Twelve Days of Christmas
Actually challenging puzzles for adults – 30 clever clues including ciphers, logic puzzles, and cryptic riddles that will genuinely stump your smartest friends
Print and play in minutes – Download, print, hide. Setup takes less time than wrapping gifts, but creates hours of laughter and memories
Flexible for any group – Pick 12 clues for a quick adventure or all 30 for an epic night. Customize with blank cards for personal inside jokes
Variations to Try
Kids & Adults Party? Create separate kid and adult versions! Make kid cash envelopes and gift cards worth less ($1-$20 range), and choose age-appropriate prizes for their Round 3. This way the adults aren’t competing with kids for the big prizes, and you can tailor the gifts to each age group.
Quickie Deals: Channel your inner Wayne Brady and offer mini-deals to audience members between rounds! Give $5 to anyone with a specific item in their purse or pocket (“Who has lip gloss? You win!”). It keeps non-players entertained and engaged.
No-Zonk Version: Not feeling the gag gifts? Fill every prize slot with legitimate winners. The risk becomes getting something less valuable, not getting nothing at all – still suspenseful, just less cutthroat.
Why Your Guests Will Love This
This isn’t just a game – it’s entertainment. Instead of quietly handing out gifts, you’ve created an experience where every person becomes the star of their own mini-drama. Will they play it safe? Will they risk it all? Everyone watching has an opinion, and the energy in the room absolutely skyrockets.
Plus, there’s something magical about watching someone wrestle with a decision between a guaranteed $30 gift card and the mystery wrapped box that could contain either Bluetooth headphones or an empty container. It’s the perfect mix of silly and suspenseful.
Final Tips for Hosting Success
Set the stage: Play the Let’s Make a Deal theme music in the background if you can find it. Bonus points for encouraging contestants to make a big show of their choices!
Know your ranges: Before each round, announce the high and low values so players understand what they’re risking. Transparency makes better drama.
Ham it up: Channel your inner game show host! Build suspense before reveals, playfully pressure people to “go for it,” and celebrate big wins with enthusiasm. Your energy sets the tone.
Prep ahead: Have everything organized before the party starts. You want cash counted, envelopes sealed, gift cards mounted, and prizes wrapped so you can jump right into hosting when it’s game time.
With these games in your hosting toolkit, you’re not just giving out prizes – you’re creating moments your guests will replay and laugh about for weeks. Because the best parties aren’t just about what people receive; they’re about the fun they have along the way.
Now go forth and host the most entertaining prize giveaway your friends have ever experienced!
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