Mesh Party › Guides
19 party games that need no materials
No cards, no board, no pen. Every game below works with just the people in the room, most of them sitting round a table, and several scale to a large group. Each has short rules, how many players it suits and the age it works for.
At a glance
| Game | Players | Ages |
|---|---|---|
| Charades | 4+, two teams | All ages |
| Contact | 3–10 | 12+ |
| Mafia | 7–15 and a host | 12+ |
| Never Have I Ever (clean) | 4–12 | 13+ |
| Associations | 3+ | All ages |
| Explain the word | 4+, teams of two | 10+ |
| 20 Questions | 2+ | All ages |
| Who Am I? | 3–10 | 8+ |
| Two Truths and a Lie | 3–10 | 10+ |
| Truth or Dare | 2–12 | Depends on the questions |
| Fortunately, Unfortunately | 3+ | All ages |
| Ghost | 3–8 | 10+ |
| Categories | 3+ | 8+ |
| Geography | 2+ | 8+ |
| Would You Rather | 2+ | All ages |
| Wink Murder | 6–15 | 8+ |
| Psychiatrist | 5+ | 12+ |
| Telephone | 6+ | Kids and up |
| One-word story | 3+ | All ages |
Rules
Charades
One player acts out a word, a film or a phrase without speaking, and their team guesses before time runs out. The other team picks the word and whispers it to the actor. Agree on a few signs in advance: number of words, “sounds like”, “film”, “book”.
Contact
The leader thinks of a word and says its first letter. The others try to break it open: someone thinks of a word with that start and gives a clue (“Is it a big grey animal?”). If another player gets it, they shout “Contact!” and both count to ten and say the word together. If the leader didn't name that word first, they have to reveal the next letter. Whoever guesses the leader's word leads next.
Mafia
The host deals roles in secret: with everyone's eyes closed, they tap the mafia on the shoulder (and a detective, if you play with one). At night the mafia silently picks a victim; in the day everyone discusses and votes someone out. The town wins when all mafia are out, the mafia wins when it equals the town.
Never Have I Ever (clean)
Everyone holds up ten fingers. In turn, a player says something they have never done: “Never have I ever been to a concert.” Everyone who has done it folds a finger. Last player with fingers up wins. Keep the topics to travel, food, school and silly habits.
Associations
The first player says a word, the next says the first word it brings to mind, and so on round the circle, fast. Hesitate for more than three seconds or repeat a word and you are out. Afterwards, try to walk the chain back to the first word.
Explain the word
One partner explains a word without saying it or any word with the same root; the other guesses. One minute per turn, a point per guessed word. With no cards, the opposing team whispers each word to the explainer. This is the idea behind boxed games like Alias.
20 Questions
One player thinks of a person, place or thing. The others ask yes/no questions, twenty at most. Whoever guesses becomes the next to think of something.
Who Am I?
Everyone gets a character they can't see and guesses it with yes/no questions. Without sticky notes, the player steps out while the group agrees on their character. Rules and 100 characters: Who Am I? game.
Two Truths and a Lie
Say three things about yourself, two true and one false; the others guess the lie. Ideas: 60 statement ideas.
Truth or Dare
Each player in turn picks a truth question or a dare. Agree up front that anyone can skip. Ready lists by group: 100 truths and 100 dares.
Fortunately, Unfortunately
Tell a story one sentence each, alternating good and bad luck: “Fortunately, I found a ticket to Paris.” “Unfortunately, the plane had no pilot.” Whoever breaks the pattern or stalls is out of the round.
Ghost
Players say one letter each, building a word fragment. You lose the round if you complete a real word (of four letters or more) or if you add a letter that can't lead to any word and someone challenges you. Each lost round earns a letter of G-H-O-S-T; spell the whole word and you are out.
Categories
Pick a category: fruit, countries, car brands, film titles. Go round the circle naming one each, no repeats. Stall for five seconds and you are out; the last player standing picks the next category.
Geography
Name a city or country that starts with the last letter of the previous one: London, Nairobi, Istanbul… A place can be used only once. Run out of ideas and you drop out.
Would You Rather
Ask a dilemma with no easy answer: “Would you rather always be ten minutes late or always be an hour early?” Everyone answers and has to defend their choice.
Wink Murder
With eyes closed, the host taps one player: the murderer. Everyone then mingles or sits facing each other. The murderer “kills” by winking; a victim waits a few seconds and dramatically dies. Anyone who thinks they know the murderer can accuse, and a wrong accusation puts them out.
Psychiatrist
One player, the psychiatrist, leaves the room. The others agree on a hidden rule, for example “answer as if you were the person on your left”. The psychiatrist comes back and asks anyone questions until they work out the rule.
Telephone
The first player whispers a phrase to the next, once, and it travels round the circle. The last player says out loud what reached them, and the first says what it really was.
One-word story
Build a story one word per player, round the circle. It gets absurd fast, which is the point. Try to finish with a proper ending in two minutes.
Which game for which group
- Large group (10+): Mafia, Wink Murder, Charades in teams, Telephone, Never Have I Ever.
- Round a table: Contact, Associations, Categories, Geography, Ghost, Psychiatrist, 20 Questions, Two Truths and a Lie.
- People who just met: Two Truths and a Lie, Would You Rather, Categories.
- With kids: 20 Questions, Telephone, One-word story, Charades, Fortunately, Unfortunately.
When phones help
Some of these games need a bit of admin: someone has to hand out characters in secret, collect answers or count votes. Mesh Party does that for four of them, on everyone's own phone, connected over Bluetooth with no internet:
- Truth or Dare (2–12): everyone writes questions and dares, a wheel picks who goes, the group votes.
- Who Am I? (3–10): the app hands out characters and hides yours from you. No sticky notes.
- Two Truths and a Lie (3–10): statements are written privately, the votes are secret, the app keeps score.
- Mind Match (2–10): everyone secretly answers the same question, and matching answers score.
Android and iPhone play together. Internet is only needed to install the app. More on that: offline party games.
FAQ
What party games need no materials?
Charades, Contact, Mafia, Never Have I Ever, Associations, 20 Questions, Who Am I?, Two Truths and a Lie, Truth or Dare, Fortunately Unfortunately, Ghost, Categories, Geography, Would You Rather, Wink Murder, Psychiatrist, Telephone and One-word story.
What are good party games for a large group?
Mafia and Wink Murder work with up to 15 players, Charades in two teams works with any number, and Telephone and Never Have I Ever get better the more people play.
What can adults play at the table?
Word games that need no movement: Contact, Associations, Categories, Geography, Ghost and Psychiatrist, plus Two Truths and a Lie and Who Am I?.
Can you play Mafia without cards?
Yes. The host has everyone close their eyes and taps the mafia players on the shoulder.
Guides
- A Jackbox alternative that needs no internet and no TV
- A That's You! alternative that needs only your phones
- Party games where Android and iPhone play together
- Offline party games for a group of friends
- A Truth or Dare app that works offline
- Who Am I? game: rules, 100 characters and a generator
- Two Truths and a Lie: rules, ideas and examples
- 100 Truth or Dare questions and 100 dares
- Games to play without Wi-Fi on a plane