King's Game

How to play

1. Set the headcount and start: Six seats by default; the stepper goes from 3 to 13. Tap a seat to type a real name — duplicates get ① ② marks. Pick the Everyone or Close friends deck and tap Start drawing.
2. Pass the phone to draw lots: The screen says who gets the phone next. That person taps "I'm …", holds the card to see their number, lets go to hide it, then taps "Got it" and hands it on. Once everyone has drawn, the joker's owner is crowned.
3. The king gives an order, then reveal who: The king reads an order card, may swap it twice or use a blank card, then fills in the numbers and announces. Tap "Reveal who" to see which seats hold those numbers — a number on the table means the king. Mark it done or skip it, then every number is revealed and the next round starts.

Rules & variants

King's Game rules: each round uses one number card per player plus one joker. First, one number card is dealt face down to the table — that is the king's own number. The rest are shuffled with the joker and every player draws one in secret by passing the phone. The joker makes you king; everyone else remembers their number and keeps it to themselves.

Giving orders: the king sees a random order card such as "No. 3 and No. 5 take turns naming fruits until someone gets stuck". The king may swap twice per round or switch to a blank card and say the order out loud. Orders name numbers, never people, so nobody knows who gets picked — not even the king, who doesn't know the table card.

Revealing who: after the king announces, "Reveal who" flips only the called numbers. If a number belongs to a player, their name appears; if it is the face-down table card, the screen shows the king's own name with a wax-seal stamp. The king calling themself is the biggest laugh in this game, so it is shown outright instead of waiting to see who owns up.

Done or skip: tap Done once the order is carried out, or Skip if anyone would rather not. Skipping carries no penalty and ends the round just like Done. Then every number is revealed, each called player gets a +1 and the king gets a crown.

Players and pace: anywhere from 3 to 13 players works, 5 to 8 is the sweet spot. A round takes two or three minutes, most of it passing the phone. With fewer players the king calls themself more often — about one round in three with three people.

Two decks: Everyone is for mixed company — impressions, small talents, compliments and quick challenges. Close friends is for a table that knows each other well, with bolder prompts like re-enacting how two players first met. Neither deck includes drinking, kissing, physical intimacy, undressing, money, contacting anyone outside the room or posting online.

No repeats: an order card never comes back within a game, and playing again on the same device keeps skipping tonight's cards. Only when a whole deck is used up does it reshuffle, with a notice.

Tonight's record: tap End the night to see rounds played, how many were done or skipped, how often the king called themself, how many times each player was king or was called, and who was called the most. There are no winners or losers.

No peeking: the draw screen hides everything until you hold the card, and it flips back the moment you let go or switch apps. Until the reveal, no one's number ever appears on screen. Anyone who forgets their number can use "Check my number" while the king is choosing — the screen notes it publicly.

FAQ