Face Up: Forehead Guessing Game with Friends
Hold your screen to your forehead. Everyone describes, you guess out loud.
Party · 3 to 12 players · about 10 minutes · free to host, nothing to download, TV optional
About the game
Hold your screen up to your forehead, word facing out, and let the room shout clues at you. Face Up is the quickest party game on the shelf: 3 to 12 players, one turn each by default, and about 10 minutes for a full lap. It works with any group, though 4 to 8 keeps the clues flowing without everyone talking over each other.
A TV is optional. It shows the clock, the score and the words already done, never the current word. Every describer also sees the word on their own screen, so on a video call the guesser simply looks away while everyone else reads it from "Just this screen".
How to play
- On your turn, hold your screen facing the group so they can see the word and you cannot.
- The group gives clues while you guess out loud. Use the tilt controls or the on-screen buttons to mark a correct guess or pass. Follow the tilt instructions shown before starting.
- Each correct word earns a point. Everyone takes a turn each round. Highest total after the final round wins.
Open a room for Face Up. No app, no accounts, free to host.
Tips to play well
- Passing is free and unlimited, so do not stall. If a word means nothing to you after a few clues, tilt up and take the next one; only correct guesses count.
- Describers can mark a guess too. If the guesser is fumbling with the tilt, anyone giving clues can tap Got it or Pass on their own screen.
- Get the tilt right before the clock starts. You have 10 seconds after your turn is called, and the clock starts on its own if you have not pressed Start. Tip the screen down for a correct guess and up to pass.
- Pick a narrower deck for younger players or mixed ages. Animals and Food are easier to describe than Famous jobs or Movies & shows, which reward a group that shares the same references.
Host settings
- Seconds per turn: 45 to 120 seconds in steps of 5. The default is 90.
- Turns each: How many times everyone holds it up: 1 to 3, with 1 by default.
- Deck: Everything (240 words, the default), or one of four 60 word decks: Animals, Movies & shows, Food, or Famous jobs.
Questions people ask
Is this like the Heads Up! app?
It is our own take on the forehead guessing style that apps like Heads Up! made popular. It runs in the browser, so nobody installs anything, and the room keeps score for everyone.
Do we play in teams?
No. Everyone scores for themselves: one point for each word you guess on your turn. The highest total after the last round wins, and ties are shared.
What if a screen will not tilt?
Use the Got it and Pass buttons instead. They do exactly the same thing, and the other players can press them for you.
Can a computer player join?
The host can add bots so the turn order has more names. A bot takes its turn as the guesser and scores by chance, but it cannot give clues, so the describing is down to the people in the room.
Similar games
- Act It Out: Charades where the other team picks your word. Only your screen shows it. 4 to 16 players, about 15 minutes.
- Hush: Describe the word without the six forbidden ones. The other team buzzes slips. 4 to 16 players, about 15 minutes.
- Scrawl: Draw on your screen, it appears on the TV, everyone else guesses on theirs. 3 to 16 players, about 15 minutes.
- Most Likely To: The TV asks who is most likely to. Everyone points at someone, even themselves. Read the room to score. 3 to 16 players, about 10 minutes.
Guides
- Heads Up Game Online Free: How to Play, 15 Categories With 450 Cards, and Kids' Version: How to play the Heads Up game online free or at home, 15 original categories with 30 cards each, kids' cards, and free alternatives to the app.
- Christmas Party Games: 29 Games for Family, Adults, the Office and Video Calls (With Word Lists): 29 Christmas party games sorted by group, each with players, time and kit, plus charades words, Most Likely To prompts and a plan for the night.
- Dumb Charades Movie Names: 300+ Bollywood, Regional and Hollywood Titles by Difficulty and Era (Plus Rules and Signs): 300+ dumb charades movie names: easy, medium and difficult Bollywood titles by era, regional and Hollywood films, kids' lists, rules and hand signs.
- Party Games: 62 of the Best Party Games for Any Group, Room and Mood (With a Chooser): 62 of the best party games, sorted by group size, energy, setting and props, each with players, time, what you need and how to play.
Heads Up! is a trademark of its owner. Rondovo is not affiliated with it.