In Korea, there are various drinking games, and among them, “APT,” which recently became popular through a song by Rosé, is a game that almost every Korean knows and plays during drinking sessions. With its simple rules and fair play, it can easily liven up the atmosphere at any gathering. This game gained even more popularity when Rosé introduced it internationally, and it became a big hit after being released as a song in collaboration with Bruno Mars.
APT Game
- Number of players: Minimum of 2 players, but it’s more fun with 3 or more players.
- Objective of the game: The goal is to match the announced floor number while raising hands, and the person who calls out the final floor number “loses” the round.
- Game setup: No special tools are needed; you only use your hands to play.
- How to play:
- One player starts by singing “Apartment, apartment” to begin the game.
- This player then calls out a random floor number. For example, they might say, “10th floor!”
- All players then cross their hands and place them in the center. The order in which you place your hands doesn’t matter. You can place both hands at the bottom, or one hand at the bottom and one at the top, however you prefer.
- Raising hands:
- Starting from the lowest hand in the pile, the players raise their hands one by one, announcing the floor numbers as they go.
- For example, “1st floor, 2nd floor, 3rd floor…” until they reach the number that was announced.
- The goal is to keep raising hands in sequence until the specified floor number is reached.
- Who gets caught:
- The player who has to call out the final floor number, i.e., the player who says “xx floor” (e.g., “10th floor!”) loses the round.
- Penalty:
- The losing player (the one who calls out the final floor number) has to drink or perform another penalty as decided by the group.
APT Song
There are many differences between apartments in Korea and the U.S. First, while apartments in Korea represent the typical form of housing, in the U.S., single-family homes are more common, and apartments are more similar to Korea’s concept of rental studios. Accordingly, people generally live in U.S. apartments on a rental basis. Also, the word “apartment” in Korea is a form of Konglish; the correct term is “apartment” in English.
One of the main reasons why the song “APT” became so popular can be found in its lyrics. Phrases like “Turn this 아파트 into a club” and “Sleep tomorrow but tonight go crazy” resonate with people because they cleverly capture the local party culture, making the song highly relatable.