HELP - looking for (non alcohol) themes for New Year's party

[Grand Inquisitor]

Over the years I've sort of perfected the slosh-fest (just ask Iamfish, Eastman, Kerz, Mykeatog, etc) in various forms, and as I'm being goaded towards maturity, I'm trying to evolve the types of parties I throw.

Clarification - By 'non-alcoholic' I mean not drinking games, toga, etc.  There will be plenty of alcohol at this shindig, but I'm trying to find fun, interactive, dare-I-say intellectually engaging themes or activities for a party of 20-somethings.  TMD'ers seem to be pretty imaginative, and like to party, so I figured you guys would have plenty of ideas.  Options like mafia or vampire style sub-plots you can add to a party are on the right track.  Guests won't have advanced notice, so it's going to be something I can spring on 'em when they come in the door.  Thanks for the help.

[LotusHead]

I don't know if this helps, but on New Years Eve 1999 or 2000, my buddies were deep into EverCraft (or whatever it was called. WarCraft is the modern equivalent).  They wanted me to come up there for New Years to "do new years stuff", but I knew the would spend the night talking about EverCrack (I didn't have a computer cool enough for MMORPG's) so I brought all of my music gear and taught everyone how to play Punk Rock Music.  It worked pretty well.

[Grand Inquisitor]

I don't know if this helps

It doesn't.  Not that I don't appreciate the response, but I should also explain I'm expecting 30-40 people.  A punk rock lesson of this size would be ill advised.

[Shock Wave]

I hear you Steve. I'm stuck in the same boat. As of now, I'm thinking of forsaking the "intellectually stimulating" angle. After all, it will be New Year's Eve, and regardless of how "mature" you are, alcohol will be impairing your better judgement at some point. =). I'm going to suggest to my circle that we bust out a bunch of different games so that everyone gets a chance to try something they like. Board games, video games, card games, etc.

I'm going with the following combo: Scene It! (or Scattergories)  + Twister + Guitar Hero + <insert good card game here>. Add alcohol into the mix and it should be decent. Best of luck with your shindig.

* Scattergories obviously has an intellectual element, but once you're licked, it is hilarious to hear the shit people come up with. Good times guaranteed.

[Grand Inquisitor]

games

Sure, I love games, and so do my friends.  I've just found that once you hit 15+ or so, anything besides group games like the aforementioned vampire-esque stuff just doesn't work.  Guitar Hero, DDR, karaoke are all good for big groups because they can spectate, but I have neither the system for the formers nor the stomach for the latter.

[Hi-Val]

You can, if you still have time, make it a "gangsters" party where people dress in pinstripes and carry violin cases. Probably too short notice, though. Black and White parties fit in here, too.

There are books with a bunch of questions like "what record would you take to a desert island?" and stuff.

As the host of many parties, I've learned that the best thing you can do is walk around and introduce everyone to everyone. Know a little something about your guests that you can tell to other people. When folks are meeting new people and getting to talking about their interests, they don't need drinking games or elaborate setups. You have to circulate for about the first 2 hours and keep pulling people into different talking groups. Ideally, you want everyone to leave feeling that they've met 30 new friends.

[Grand Inquisitor]

"gangsters" party

That sounds pretty good, actually, and I may try that for a future event.

introduce everyone to everyone

Sure, these kinds of things are definitely the basics of hosting.  What I'm talking about are themes or 'games' for young adults to play that don't have to do with drinking.  It seems that once college is over, the social playbook needs to be rewritten.  For medium size groups, good conversation, a meal, board games, etc are good center pieces.  However, with larger groups, there seems to be a lot of potential but not a lot being done outside of drinking and/or dancing.

Incidentally, the (themeless) party went great on the back of good people and good music.  Sometimes old tricks are the best tricks; I'm just trying to learn some new ones as well.

[Matt]

I suppose it's a little late for NYE party, but whatever:

Party game:

Write many small sayings or turns of phrase on slips of paper. Calibrate for strangeness based on your guest list, but keep them short - 4 words, max.

Give one to each guest.

The goal of the game is to get someone else to say what's written on your piece of paper. When you successfully get someone to say your phrase, you steal their slip of paper (and accompanying saying).

The winner is the person who, at the end of the night, has collected the most slips of paper. Award them a prize.

The fun part is trying to steer a conversation towards your phrase. Obviously it is easy to transform this into a drinking game.

[hulk3rules]

Odd, no missed calls