Should we drop traditional games like tug-of-war and sack races entirely?

No need. The problem is repeating them year after year without adding anything new. Combining a new activity like kart racing with a few familiar games keeps a good balance.

Why is kart racing harder to turn boring than other games?

Because the result of each race depends on real reflexes on the track, not on a fixed script like tug-of-war or a sack race, so it stays hard to predict even after many plays.

Does a small company need to worry that the activity won't be exciting enough?

No. Indoor kart racing at Infinity Racing can be organized for groups from a few dozen people, and with sensibly split race rounds it still creates a competitive atmosphere even for a small group.

Boring Team Building: 5 Games Staff Have Seen Too Many Times

Ask ten people who have been to a company team building event in the last three years, and almost certainly someone will mention tug-of-war. It isn't that the game is bad. It has simply appeared at nearly every event, to the point that players know which team has more men, and will win, before they pull the rope. Boring team building is not about picking a fun activity. It is about picking one that still has the element of surprise.

The five games that show up most

Tug-of-war, sack races, pot smashing, an office treasure hunt, and speed cooking by team are the five most common activities at team building events in Vietnam over the years. All five are easy to run, need no special equipment and suit every age. That is also why they get repeated: easy to run means easy to repeat, and repeating many times means losing the element of surprise.

Why familiar is the problem

A game is fun the first time because nobody knows what will happen. By the third or fourth time, players know the rules, know the tactics, and know that the team with the physical advantage will win. The thrill that creates memorable moments fades with each repetition, even though the game itself hasn't changed.

Predictable results create no emotion

The human brain remembers most strongly the moments with surprising outcomes. A tug-of-war where every team knows in advance who will win leaves almost nothing behind after the event beyond a few hurried photos. This is why many companies that hold team building every year find that staff increasingly struggle to remember specific details of last year's event.

A group of colleagues playing tug-of-war at a team building event

The problem isn't the budget

Many companies think the answer is spending more on a nicer venue or a fancier party. But a nice venue that still runs the same five familiar games feels the same. The problem is choosing the wrong kind of activity, not spending too little.

Kart racing: a very different kind of surprise

At Infinity Racing, the three-level indoor kart track at Vincom Thao Dien in Thu Duc City, the result of each race can't be predicted, even by the person holding the wheel. Reflexes through a corner, the moment you brake and how daring you are when overtaking depend on each real second on the track, not on a tactic worked out in advance as in tug-of-war or a sack race. Anyone can hold the wheel without a car driving licence, so the surprise applies fairly to both newcomers and experienced drivers.

Why it is hard to turn into boring team building

The 300-meter track with 16 corners is enough for every race to play out differently depending on the driver's real reflexes, not on a fixed script. That is the biggest difference from the five games above: the fifth tug-of-war almost certainly ends like the first, but the fifth kart race can still come out completely different from the first.

You don't have to drop the old games

Not every traditional game needs to go. The problem is that a company has used exactly these five games year after year without adding anything new, turning the whole event into a repeated ritual rather than an experience worth waiting for. Adding one genuinely new activity, like indoor kart racing, in the middle of a familiar program is the lowest-risk way to change things without dropping everything people are used to.

The hidden cost of keeping the old formula

The company still spends the same amount on team building every year, even though the return shrinks with each repetition of the same five games. The budget doesn't change, but the value received for each dong spent falls, because the excitement and the memory left the next year are always lower than the year before with the same formula. It is an invisible loss that appears on no financial report, but it is still a real loss.

When working out a team building budget, most companies only compare prices between organizers, and rarely compare the value received between keeping the old formula and switching to a new activity. Two events costing the same VND 80 million can deliver very different bonding value, depending on whether the activity still has the element of surprise or has become so familiar it is predictable.

Tell me which activities your company is using for the upcoming team building, and I will advise on a suitable mix and send a quote. Send a quote request