Playful Traditions: Japanese Summer Games You’ll Want to Try

Aug 28, 2025by Monica Vicente

The most exciting thing about Japanese festivals in the summer is not the food, drinks, or fireworks; it’s the games. Japanese summer games are family-friendly, fun, and rewarding. Many people who grew up in Japan still hold fond memories of playing these games with friends and winning cool prizes. This post will explore the huge role of festival games in Japanese summer traditions before diving into some of the best ones in modern culture.

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The Spirit of Summer: Why Games Are a Big Part of Japanese Matsuri

The word matsuri is the Japanese term for festival, and the goal of such an event is to celebrate culture or religion and keep adults or kids entertained. To achieve the latter, these events often feature an abundance of food, drinks, music, cultural performances, folk dance, and games. Festive games are more common in the summer, the season in which Japan has the most festivals. Examples of the festivities that fall in the summer include:

Gion Matsuri
Aomori Nebuta Festival
Star Festival (Tanabata)
Nango Summer Jazz Festival

During a Japanese summer festival (natsu matsuri), games typically take place in booths similar to Japanese food stalls (yatai). Some of these stalls provide both local treats and fun games for people of all ages, thereby creating nostalgic fun for kids and adults alike.

Japanese summer games may be simple, but some of them have been around for centuries. People play them with the promise of winning a small prize like toys, stationery, or treats. As for the rules, each game has its own set and could involve one or multiple participants. Let’s take a look at some of the most popular games in Japanese summer festivals.

Goldfish Scooping (Kingyo Sukui): The Quintessential Festival Game

Kingyo sukui, also known as gold scooping (or scooping goldfish), is one of those games that looks simple but requires a lot of skill. This traditional Japanese game involves trying to catch goldfish in a pool with the use of a thin paper scooper. It was invented around 1810, in the later stages of the Edo period. Back then, children would try to scoop the goldfish with nets. The use of paper scoopers became a thing around 1910. Gold scooping is often played in summer and during ennichi, a day dedicated to a Japanese deity. It reminds people of fleeting summer joy. The game is so popular that there is a National Goldfish Scooping Championship in Japan, which has been held every year since 1995.

Today, the core elements of gold scooping are a small pool made of plastic and filled with water, dozens of goldfish swimming in the pool, a poi for catching fish, and a bowl for storing them. The poi is a small plastic frame that has a circular head enclosing a thin piece of paper. It also has a slender handle.

Gold scooping rules are simple. The player uses the poi to scoop as many goldfish from the pool as they can before the thin paper breaks completely or becomes incapable of scooping more fish. In Japanese tradition, the game is not a competition between players but an individual endeavor. You get to scoop until your poi paper breaks, which can happen a lot easier than you think. At the end, the stall owner hands you all the goldfish you caught in a plastic bag. They may even throw in a few for free!

Yo-Yo Tsuri: The Water Balloon Game That Never Gets Old

Yo-yo tsuri is actually the name of the water balloons used in yo-yo fishing, a popular natsu matsuri game in Japan. These small balloons are often designed with the images of cartoon or anime characters, and you will find kids carrying them around festival grounds. Similar to goldfish scooping, people can win the balloons during a game of yo-yo fishing.

A yo-yo balloon is filled with both water and air. One end of the balloon has a rubber string attached to it. This string is tied into a loop on one end, allowing people to stick their fingers in the space and hang the balloon by one string, like they would a “yo-yo” toy. Besides water balloons, the game also features a small tub filled with water and a twisted paper string with a hook on one end.

The gameplay involves the player trying to catch the balloon’s rubber string with their hook. It’s a lot harder than you think because the paper string breaks easily when wet. So, you need to get as many yo-yo balloons as possible before the string gets too wet.

Wanage: Japan’s Take on Ring Toss

Wanage is the traditional Japanese version of the universal ring toss game. It has been a part of Japanese children’s play for generations. In case you’re not familiar with how the ring toss works, the rules are pretty simple: you attempt to throw rings at a target so that they land around a cone or peg. The English version is common in Western amusement parks because it's fun for children and helps them to develop their physical and mental coordination.

Wanage is exactly the same game. It features an area labelled with numbers. Each number represents a prize and is marked with a cone or peg. The players are each given a limited number of rings to throw. They are also restricted from leaving a specified area during each throw. Those who manage to toss a ring around a cone win the prize associated with the cone’s number. Stalls may have their own versions of wanage. For example, they may use bottled drinks instead of cones, and players get to win the drinks when they win.

Super Ball Scooping and the Rise of Modern Festival Games

So far, we’ve explored some of the more traditional summer games in Japanese culture. Next, we’ll introduce newer games that blend tradition with modern flair. These games are not just common in the summer festivals; people play them at other events, such as the Tokyo Bay Fireworks Festival and the Sapporo Snow Festival.

One of them is suupaa boru sukui, which literally means super ball scooping or bouncy ball scooping. It’s exactly the same as goldfish scooping except that players scoop bouncy rubber balls instead of small goldfish. The following are other modern festival games:

Toy capsule lotteries: Participants enroll in a fast lottery for a chance to win capsule toys (gachapon), which are typically dispensed by a special vending machine.
Katanuki: With the use of a needle, the player must separate an outlined shape from a candy mold. A similar game was depicted in season one of the hit TV show Squid Game.
Gun shooting (shateki): The player uses a toy gun with paper or cork bullets to hit a target. The targets are the prizes, and players have to shoot them down to win.
Underwater coin dropping: Players compete by dropping coins in a water tank. The tank has bowls at the bottom, and each person tries to land the most coins in their assigned bowl.

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Disclaimer
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Bokksu is not responsible for the accuracy of the products’ nutritional or allergen information. Warning: California’s Proposition 65 may be in effect. For more information,visit www.P65Warnings.ca.gov.
Some Bokksu Market products are produced overseas and may have a Production Date printed on the packaging, rather than a Best Buy Date as is standard in North America. If your product appears expired, do not be alarmed! This is most likely the Production Date. All items have been double checked to ensure they are not expired and safe to eat.

Games and Prizes: Why Festival Booths Are So Irresistible

Game-hosting stalls are the most vibrant and crowded places at the festival, even at night. It’s not uncommon to see people of all ages gathered around a booth and cheering players on. For participants, the joy of winning small prizes makes the entire festival experience even more memorable. Many games offer prizes such as cute stationery, snacks, and toys. While those items may seem cheap, they evoke childhood excitement and community bonding.

Snack Break! Festival Foods to Fuel Your Game Wins

It’s always a good idea to eat snacks in-between festival games. Japanese people patronize the countless food stalls and local shops for the following popular matsuri snacks:

Baby castella: They are small, round snacks that resemble miniature pancakes. These sponge cakes taste like regular castella but in a bite-sized format. If you’ve never had authentic Japanese castella, you should try the Okayama White Peach Castella.
Takoyaki: This ball-shaped snack is made by filling grilled batter with octopus and other ingredients.
Ramune: It is a Japanese carbonated soft drink stored in a Codd-neck bottle.
Noodles: Somen noodles with two types of dipping sauces are popular in the summer, especially during Tanabata festivals, where they symbolize the Milky Way. Many people use the Soumen Noodle Gift Set to share their love for Japanese summer cuisine with family and friends.
Kakigori: This traditional dessert is made from shaved ice. It’s often flavored with syrup and condensed milk.

Cultural Roots: Games That Teach Patience, Skill, and Community

At festivals, games aren’t just fun—they also reflect Japanese values like mindfulness, focus, hope, and group enjoyment. For some adults, these games gave them the best childhood memories. Often, the rules are straightforward, so both locals and tourists enjoy them, unlike how other festival attractions are set up.

Make Matsuri Magic at Home with Japanese Games and Snacks

You can host Japanese-style summer games at home and invite family or friends to participate. Consider buying game kits or making the in-game elements yourself, and feel free to add a modern twist to the event. Themed decor can also help participants enjoy games more. For prizes, Bokksu Boutique offers various treats, including snacks and soft drinks.

Bokksu Boutique Picks: Summer Fun in Every Box

When it comes to seasonal snacks or gifting items that match the spirit of summer matsuri fun, Bokksu Boutique is the ultimate online destination. We offer a vast array of themed and seasonal collections for every occasion. In fact, our Summer Collection 2025, features all kinds of new and limited-edition items, including the following:

White Peach Jelly Gift Box: an elegant gift box made by expert fruit artisans in celebration of Japanese summer. It contains 7 pieces of juicy white peach-flavored jelly.
Lemon Russian Cake Cookie Set: a set of biscuit-like cookies topped with flavored jam and chocolate.
Tsugaru Biidoro Sake Time Bundle: a pairing of artisanal glassware and savory snacks that are perfect for enjoying Japanese sake in the summer.

Celebrate summertime in style by exploring our summer collection. It’s only available for a short period, so start selecting your favorite items today. We’ll deliver your picks directly to your doorstep.