How to play

Split into two teams, Red and Blue, and choose one spymaster in each. A grid of 25 words is shown to everybody. Secretly, each word belongs to Red (9 or 8 words), Blue (8 or 9), is a neutral bystander (7), or is the one trap. The team with 9 words goes first. Only the spymasters get to see the key: put the phone between the two of them, press Show key, look, and press Hide the key before passing it back.

On your turn, the spymaster says one word and one number out loud. The word is a clue that links to some of your team’s words, and the number says how many words it relates to. Teammates talk it over and tap a word to guess. A word of your own color keeps the turn going, and they can guess again, up to the number given plus one. A neutral word or the other team’s word ends the turn (and the other team’s word counts for them). The trap ends the game: the team that picked it loses. The first team to find all of its words wins.

Rules for clues and tips

A clue must be a single word that does not appear on the grid, and the spymaster mustn’t give extra hints with a face or tone. Good clues connect two or three words at once: for “lion” and “crown” you could say “king 2”. Before you give a clue, think about which other words it could point to, especially the trap. If your team seems unsure, it is often better to stop than to guess a risky word. Each game uses a random 25 words from a list of about 250 simple nouns, so no two games are alike.

Is the key sent anywhere? On one phone, no: the key is made in your browser and is lost when you close the page.

Can we play on a video call? Yes: pick Play online and everyone joins the same room on their own phone. Only the two spymasters see the key.