Kung Fu is also a simple game that can be played with just about any number of people. There are no equipment requirements, though the game should be played on flat, preferably somewhat soft, ground.

Players stand in a rough circle and should be arms-length apart. At his turn, a player makes one smooth motion in an attempt to touch another player with his fingertips. The targeted player may make one smooth motion to dodge the attack. Play proceeds around the circle, with any player who is touched eliminated from the game at once.

The difficulty in the game lies in the fact that each "turn" a player may only move once. If the move results in the player off-balance, she must wait until the next time she can move to correct the problem. If she should happen to fall over in the intervening time frame, that is where she must stay until the game allows her to move again. The one motion rule remains in effect, so returning to a standing position can be quite complicated.

Despite its very simple rules, Kung Fu can be very fun and very challenging, like a good Sudoku puzzle. In order to win, a player must have well developed speed and balance, and be constantly paying attention to the players nearby. There is no rule that forbids a player from crossing the circle to make his attack after the game has started.

Nonetheless, some player will find the initial rules dull after many games. There are a few variants that can be added to make the game more challenging:

  • Hand to Hand - A player is only eliminated if another player's fingertips make contact with her hand. The considerably ups the difficulty for attackers and allows for creative usage of blocking moves.
  • By the Letter of the Law - When a player is touched, rather than instantly losing the game, he gains a letter in the word "Kung Fu". Play progresses until all but one player have gained all six letters, similar to the method of elimination in word games such as Ghost. This doesn't make the game itself any more difficult, but can give players chances to recover from singular mistakes.
  • Lockdown - The game begins with a much tighter circle (possibly as little as one foot between players). During gameplay, a player loses if she moves her feet. If the game progresses to a stage where none of the remaining players are actually able to touch each other, the circle is reformed with no penalties. This variant is extremely challenging with more than four people playing.