Coffee Topper is one of the easiest Minute to Win It games to set up and play. In fact, you can hold an impromptu match at home, at school, or at the office with just a few basic supplies.
The Goal
The object of Coffee Topper is to drop a CD and have it land on the top of a plastic cup. Sounds easy enought, right? Just remember that these items are bouncy when they collide with each other.
Equipment Needed
Here are the supplies you'll need to play Minute To Win It's Coffee Topper:
- A stack of old CDs
- Three plastic cups
- A ruler
- A narrow table
- Stopwatch
How to Play
The only tricky part about this game is the set-up, and even that's only if you want to play by the official rules - it all depends on how strict you want the game play to be. If you're following the show exactly and want to be accurate about these things, measure a spot up the wall 30 inches from the floor, using a pencil or a bit of masking tape to mark the spot. This is the height from which you'll be dropping the CDs. (If you're not too worried about details like this one, just carry on to the next step.)
Place the table near the mark on the wall (if you're using one). Place the three cups 12 inches apart on the floor in front of the table. The contestant will be standing on the opposite side of the table and leaning over it to drop the CDs, so make sure the table you use is fairly narrow.
The contestant stands facing the table with the glasses placed on the floor in front of him or her, and the stack of CDs on the table. (Note: Use CDs that you don't plan to use again for their intended purposes, since there's a chance that they'll get scratched up while playing this game.)
Start the one-minute timer. The contestant now grabs one CD at a time, leans over the table, and drops the CD from the pre-measured height. The CD must land on top of a plastic up without sliding or bouncing off. To win the game, all three cups must be topped by a CD and the CDs must remain in place for three consecutive seconds - all before the minute-long timer runs out.
The Rules
The rules for Coffee Topper aren't crystal clear - the game has been played with one cup and three cups on the show, and the official site doesn't list anything specific. Here's what we know for sure:
- You may only have one CD in your hand at a time
- It doesn't matter if the CDs on the cups are centered or what side is facing up - as long as they're resting on the cups they count
- Create your own rule about what to do if a cup falls over. Options include ending the game, having the contestant run over and put it back in place, or having someone else replace the cup.
Tips and Tricks
As with most others, this Minute to Win It game takes practice. Try dropping the CDs so that they fall straight/flat rather than at an angle to prevent some of the bounce factor.
The blueprint with video instructions for this game can be found at NBC.com.
Variations
The beauty of these games is that you can mix them up a bit and give them a personal touch. They can be adapted for different age groups and themes. Here are some suggestions for switching up Coffee Topper.
- For a Christmas version, use Christmas-themed cups and decorate the table with streamers or a holiday tablecloth.
- For young children you can use a single cup and don't worry about the distance from where the CD is dropped.
- Turn this into a two-player game by adding a second table on the other side of the cups, leaving the cups in a narrow tunnel between the two tables. Have one team member playing from a table on each side of the cups, and add a few more cups to make it more challenging.
