Amusement Park
This one's easy. Just pick a park, buy the tickets, and find your ride. There's almost no planning to worry about. In our case, the best amusement park nearby is clearly Six Flags Great Adventure which combines almost 10 solid to excellent roller coasters with DC Comics (Batman, Superman, etal) and Looney Tunes branding. They even have a Wild Safari right next door. The biggest drawbacks to this event (and the reason we haven't done it more often) are that there's not a ton of variety at a theme park and a lot of your time is spent just standing around on lines in the hot sun.
(Done at MBBB12.)
Arcade
This would entail just playing video games at an arcade. It's similar to a video game tournament, but more relaxed and with a greater variety of gaming experiences. Also, there's something to said for that arcade atmosphere: bright lights and big sounds as opposed to cramming onto the couch in someone's parent's basement.
(Proposed, but never done.)
Billiards
This is a pretty cool activity that can be enjoyed either in singles or team competition. There are also many different variations in play that you can try. The MBBB group focused on 8-ball for both MBBB1 and MBBB2, but chose to move it from singles to team competition for the second MBBB. You can view the rules we used for those two styles of play by clicking the link above. Another great facet of this game is that, if one of the members of your group has a table, the event is free! However, the biggest problem of this event usually overshadows the finer points. Only one person can play at a time, while everyone else either waits their turn or watches the game. That's not an ideal description for a group activity.
(Done at MBBBs.)
Board Games
Oh, the variety. $20-$30 will buy you an endless assortment of games that will tease your brain, move your body, and maybe even hum a song. Finding a game that everyone will enjoy can be a challenge, but not when you have us veteran board game players to help you along. We recommend Scattergories, Balderdash, Pictionary (for which we have a few reviews), Bananagrams, Apples to Apples, and Loaded Questions, all of which can be purchased on Amazon.com. There are no doubt many others; those are just the few that come to the top of our collective heads.
(Done at MBBBs.)
Blongo Ball
(Done at MBBB14.)
Bocce Ball
(Done at MBBB14.)
Frisbee
A number of the frisbee related events are either too tiring (Ultimate and Hot Box) or too difficult/time-consuming to find/organize (Frolf). Much like throwing a baseball around can be a relaxing and fun diversion, throwing around a frisbee can give you a chance to have fun and even just talk.
(Proposed, but never done.)
Geocaching
Much like Kan Jam, no one had really heard of this event until it was suggested by a Struck, this time Brian. After perusing the website, both David and Marc took a few geocaches on for size, though they didn't have much success. Nonetheless, we pushed through and found a good deal of fun as a result. The idea is a little bit odd, but very cool at the same time. Thousands of canisters known as caches are hidden across the world: in bushes, in trees, even attached to trains. AND you can only find them by using a GPS device. Of course, your GPS will only get you close to the cache. Then it's time to plunge your hand into a bush, a pipe, a tree so that you can add your name to lists hidden within. For a great review of the MBBB15 event, follow this link.
(Done at MBBB15.)
Hidden Transmitter Hunt
Matt had apparently done this event before proposing it for MBBB7. From the Wikipedia page, it sounds vaguely like a precursor to geocaching, but without Matt's input it's rather hard to say. Here's to hoping that Matt's contribution on the subject comes sooner rather than later.
(Proposed, but never done.)
Mini-Golf
Do we really need to explain this one? Putt your colorful ball over hills, around corners, and through pipes. Watch those water traps though, or you'll be paying a premium for that ball. The best part? Probably all of those ridiculous themes: pirate ships and castles, amongst others. Did Jack Sparrow and King Arthur really play mini-golf back in the day? I guess we'll never know for sure.
(Done at MBBBs.)
Poker
Throw in $5 each and you've got a respectable pot that will keep things exciting. Another plus is that you can hold a poker game in practically any location, as long as you have a deck of cards (and, if not, a few bucks at your local K-Mart will get you one). Wikipedia is great resource if you need to learn the ranking of hands or some basic strategy. If you want to learn about a bunch of great poker games that we've played again and again to ensure enjoyability, visit our proposal here.
(Done at MBBBs.)
Table Football
It doesn't get much cheaper than this. All you need is a piece of paper and a table. If you didn't play this game as a child, you were sadly deprived. Tap or glide your triangle football three times across the table; if it's hanging over the edge after that, you've scored a touchdown. Next, kick that extra point through the uprights and into your opponent's face. Fun times!
(Proposed, but never done.)
Video Games
If you want to have a four player party, hope that someone has a Nintendo 64 and any of the following: Mario Kart 64, Goldeneye 007, Super Smash Brothers, or Mario Tennis. Or use a system and game of your choice. Another great free event (unless you need to rent a system and/or game, which wouldn't be that bad of an idea either); just make sure that you put a time limit on this event, as a good video game party could easily last all day.
(Done at MBBBs.)