Game words for Alias — board games, video games, toys

Dice, hide-and-seek, joystick and trumps. For people who never quite stopped playing.

A set about what we have played since childhood and still play: board games and cards, the playground, video games, puzzles and toys. From the ball and the sandpit to the gambit and the speedrun. No brands or specific games — only what makes sense without the box.

Who this set is for

Anyone who was ever a child knows the first level: doll, swing, draughts, tag. Then come trumps, head-start and checkpoint — words for people who played cards with their grandparents or stayed up too late with a console. The third level — castling, croupier, speedrun — is for chess players, gamers and anyone who knows what a casino looks like inside.

Who this set is for

Any group that has already sat down to play — which means yours. The easy level is great with children: toys and playground games are familiar to all. The medium one brings generations together: parents take cards and dominoes, teenagers take skins and lag. Put the hard one where there is at least one chess player or a keen gamer.

Tag

Works: “one person is it and chases everyone, and whoever gets touched has to chase next.” Rules everyone knows. Does not work: “a playground game” — the room goes through hopscotch, hide-and-seek and leapfrog before it reaches the word.

Trump

Works: “the card that beats any other, even an ace, as long as it is the right suit.” A moment at the table, not a term. Does not work: “the strongest card” — the room says ace, joker, king and loses time.

Speedrun

Works: “you play a game not to see everything but to reach the end as fast as you can, with a stopwatch running.” Does not work: “a record in a game” — the room says high score, ranking and level. Explain gaming terms through what the player does and why.

Where groups go wrong

The first trap is brand names and specific games. “Like in that game with the plumber” feels like a shortcut, but half the room has never played it, and Alias does not reward clues by title. Explain what people do when they play. The second is chess and card words: queen, stalemate and suit tempt you to explain them with other terms from the same game. Come in through the situation on the board or at the table. The third is gamer slang: lag, noob and skin are home turf for some and empty noise for others. Tie them to what even a beginner sees on the screen.

Explain playground games through the rules: who counts, who hides, who chases whom.
Cards and chess through the moment at the table: "you have only your king left and no legal move" is stalemate.
Tie gamer slang to the screen: "your character freezes and then jumps somewhere else" is lag.

Easy

Familiar words that land on the first clue. For warming up, for kids and for mixed groups.

game, toy, doll, ball, dice, draughts, chess, cards, dominoes, puzzle, jigsaw, block, teddy, robot, yo-yo, hopscotch, tag, swing, slide, sandpit, roundabout, seesaw, trampoline, balloon, bubble, kite, marble, counter, board, turn, winner, loser, tie, round, level, score, prize, opponent, team, player, referee, rules, joystick, console, monster, treasure, riddle, crossword, maze, king, queen, pawn, knight, checkmate, train, rattle, whistle, drum, sandcastle, bucket, spade, chalk, slingshot, darts, bingo, plasticine, gamer, boss, bonus, racing, deck, ace, joker, timer, token, contest, champion, trophy, record, point, luck, chance, cheat, playground, snowball, sledge, boat, dinosaur, dollhouse, tricycle, scooter, skateboard, rocking-horse, catch, skittle, pinwheel, seeker, crayon, piggyback, tickle

Medium

Takes a few sentences and some imagination. The default setting for an ordinary evening.

brainteaser, kaleidoscope, quest, bowling, snooker, solitaire, poker, backgammon, roulette, lottery, head-start, bluff, strategy, tactics, combo, trump, jack, suit, dealer, bet, stake, fortune, rook, bishop, gamepad, controller, multiplayer, simulator, arcade, platformer, shooter, inventory, skin, avatar, checkpoint, achievement, noob, lag, bug, patch, mod, server, clan, guild, raid, loot, esports, streamer, character, power-up, armour, developer, pixel, tamagotchi, boomerang, figurine, collection, sticker, frisbee, shuttlecock, relay, leapfrog, charades, quiz, mafia, werewolf, entertainer, sudoku, origami, slime, pinball, casino, tournament, league, ranking, rematch, tiebreak, campaign, dungeon, potion, glitch, rebus, anagram, wordsearch, hula-hoop, cosplay, handheld, shuffle, trick, snap, blackjack, scratchcard, raffle, jackpot, underdog, teammate, hangman, battleships, conker, pogo-stick

Hard

Rare or abstract words. More failed rounds, and more laughing at them.

grandmaster, gambit, castling, stalemate, endgame, blitz, handicap, mahjong, bridge, rummy, croupier, bookmaker, cardsharp, baccarat, craps, tombola, odds, respawn, cutscene, lootbox, gameplay, emulator, mana, hitbox, speedrun, sidequest, co-op, roguelike, sandbox, open-world, split-screen, cartridge, gamification, microtransaction, matchmaking, wargame, miniature, gamemaster, roleplay, tangram, pentomino, mikado, knucklebones, diorama, cryptogram, cheat-code, mob, Easter-egg, frag, sprite, polygon, render, framerate, beta, lobby, nerf, buff, cooldown, meta, anticheat, bot, grinding, hardcore, casual, crossplay, fork, middlegame, simul, kibitzer, notation, en-passant, promotion, zugzwang, fianchetto, pin, sacrifice, opening, pontoon, canasta, cribbage, whist, euchre, flush, straight, all-in, tell, shuffleboard, quoits, tiddlywinks, shogi, diabolo, kendama, bagatelle, coconut-shy, claw-machine, shooting-gallery, carousel, mancala, lore, leaderboard