Short Form Game List
3 LINES: (2 or 3) Players work unseen pre-written lines of dialogue into a scene.
3 ROOMS: (6) Players pair up and are assigned a room. Host switches between the rooms and the last line from one is the first line for the next room.
3 RULES: (3) Each player is assigned a response and stimulus. When player 1 does this, player 2 does this. When player 2 does this, player 3 does this. etc.
ABC: (2) Players do a scene where each line of dialogue starts with the next letter in the alphabet. (ALTERNATE: See "WORD PATTERN")
ACTORS NIGHTMARE: (2) One player is given a playscript and a page number. They are only allowed to use lines from those pages. The other player must justify what they say and keep the scene going. (ALTERNATE: Host can yell "switch" and player on must hand off script to player two, host can do this through out scene.)
ASIDES: (2) Through out scene players will break the forth wall and tell the audience what they are thinking inside.
AUDIENCE RECAP: (4) NEW Two players leave the room, other two players do a quick scene. Then bring in the 2nd pair from outside and have an audience member recap the original scene, but they only have 5 seconds to do it. Second pair then must act out original scene with only that information.
AUDIENCE SOUND FX: (2) NEW Give 2 audience members microphones, and they will supply all of the sound effects of the 2 players during the scene.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
BARTENDER: (1 and 3) One player is the Bartender. The other 3 play patrons who come into that bar. You ask for a holiday. All the players create characters based on that holiday.
BEFORE OR AFTER: (2) Players do a short scene. Then they do a second scene either before or after, based on audience applause. Then they do a third scene either before or after, again based on the audience. If they must go back and redo the original scene, they can adjust it based on new information.
BLINDLINE: (2) Players must incorporate unseen lines of dialogue into their scene.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
BLUES TRAVELER: (4) NEW A guitarist plays a classic blues riff and players improvise songs based on 2 suggestions. Round 1 of songs is based on Suggestion 1, and Round 2 is based on Suggestion 2. Each player will stay the same character for both of their songs.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
CAFE': (3) Players A&B are celebrities on a date, player C is the waiter. A&C know what celebrity B is and B&C know what celebrity A is, and it's up for everyone to give clues to who they are on a date with. When it seems like the celebrities know who they are, they sign their names on their checks.
CHARACTER DING: (2) Player 1 is given 3 different characters. 1) A neutral character, 2) odd, 3) odd. Host will 'ding' and Player 1 must switch characters while still keeping the scene going. Player 2 must justify the changing character. An alternative would be EMOTIONAL DING.
CIRCLE OF FRIENDS: (3) 2 players begin a scene. At some point they bring up player 3 and a quirk he has. Player 3 enters, with that quirk. Then player 2 finds a reason to leave. A quirk is given to him, and so on until all 3 have something odd about them. They continue the scene until the button.
COMING HOME: (4) One person is a celebrity coming home and the other players play the people s/he see when/meet/know etc at their home.
CONFESSION: (2) Player goes offstage and is endowed with 2 sins, he comes back and must confess to these sins he doesn't know to the priest.
CONJUNCTION JUNCTION: See Well Actually except instead of just makeing a player say something differently. The host dings then says a conjunction; (but, or, and, etc.) forcing the player to justify.
DATING GAME: (1 and 4) A bachelor/ette asks questions to 3 players. They try to figure out the quirk/whatever of the three players. Has a host.
DEAF REPLAY: (4) 2 players do a short scene with a lot of strong physicality. 2 other players are watching the scene but can't hear what they're saying. Then this second pair goes up and does what they think the scene is, based on the phisicality. Option: Have a 3rd pair watch the second and then go up and they do their version of the scene.
DICTIONARY: (ALL) NEW Team gets in the back line. Get an odd long word from the audience.
- The team says the word together. Then spells the word one letter at a time until they are done.
- The team says the word together. 1st player says what part of speech it is. Noun, Verb, Adjective, etc. Then 2nd player begins the definition of the word. The team goes one word at a time until it's finished.
- The team says the word together. Then one word at a time they use the word in a sentence.
- The Team says the word together. Then the team acts our the scenario they just said.
At the end the players and audience must clap like a fancy play.
They get back in line, this time the 1st player moves to the end and they repeat process with a new word.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
DON'T START LAUGHING: (ALL) NEW 3 Players start. Get an overall topic for all of these short scenes to be inspired by. If one of the 3 players on stage laughs, they are out, and another player comes on and initiates a new scene. Continue as long as you like.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
DOUBLE SPEAK: (2) NEW At first Player 1 will be doing their voice as well as their partners voice. At any point the host can yell 'switch' and now Player 2 will be doing their own voice as well as their partners voice. Host can switch as often as they like, players must keep the dialogue seamless.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
ELIMINATION: (4) Players do a simple scene. Audience eliminates one player. Then 3 players do the same scene with 4 characters. Until 1 player does the scene all by themselves.
ENTRANCES AND EXITS: (3) Players each get a word that forces them to either enter or exit the scene, they must justify why they are exiting or entering the scene.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
FIRST LINE/LAST LINE: (2) Players do a scene starting with the audience given first line and end it with the audience given last line.
FLASHBACK: (2) 2 players do a scene where they bring up the past. Then 2 other players clap and run in and do a mini flashback of that event. This happens a ton.
FLASH PHRASE: (4) 2 pairs of players are on stage. One pair gets a typical phrase like "Alls well that ends well." The 2 players go back and forth saying rhyming phrases, ex: "Alls well that ends well." "All wells end in wales." "Bar Bells send me shells." etc. This goes on until the other pair clap and then they act it out for a few seconds.
FREEZE: (X) 2 players start out doing a physical activity. Other players yell freeze and tap out someone in the scene and take their physical position and start a new short scene. It goes till it's over.
FUNERAL SERVICE: (3) NEW Players do short scenes. The 1st shows player 1 getting killed. (a suggestion from audience). Then we see 2 players mourning their friend and talk about his life, at any point the dead person can jump up and act out whatever moment from their past they were talking about. At the end of each short scene the dead person gets back in the coffin. This goes as long as you want.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
FORWARD/REVERSE: (2) NEW 2 Players act out a scene in short bold lines, the host can yell 'forward' or 'reverse' and players must say lines in backward or forward order depending. Host can force players to repeat whatever they want, as long as they want. It's fun to make the players reverse all the way back to the beginning of the scene.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
GENRES: (3)
GOOD/BAD/WORST: (1 and 3) Each player gives good, bad, and worst advice about a topic. The audience asks questions. A host deligates.
GROWING SHRINKING MACHINE: (4) 1 player does a mini scene; player 2 claps in, player 1 freezes and they do a short 2 person scene based on his frozen position; 3 claps in and does a short 3 player scene based on their positions; 4 claps in etc. Then 4 claps out and it goes back to the 3 person scene continuting the story in their new positions, then they clap out in reverse order back to 1.
GUESS WHAT: (2) The players get a realationship. Player 1 leaves the room. Player 2 gets 3 physical actions that s/he must get player 1 to do organically. The audience snaps and claps as s/he gets close or gets it.
HALF-LIFE: (2) Players do a scene in 1 minute, they repeat the scene in 30 seconds, then 15 seconds, all the way down to 1 second.
HAPPILY EVER AFTER: (1 and 3) Players get in a line and tell what happens next in a fairy tale. Host points from player to player.
HE SAID, SHE SAID: (2) Each player describes the action of their partner. Ex: player 1, "I'd like to talk to you, Mabel." Player 2, "He said, standing up and putting his hands on his hips." Player 1 carries out that physical action as Player 2 continues, "All right." Player 1 responds, "She said while pulling out a bullwhip and snapping it over her head." Players refer to each other in the third person, to keep the narrative strong. The idea, like with every other scene, is to endow your partner with do-able actions. It gives the players and excellent view on how to endow.
HESITATION: (2) Players do a scene and they have 2 audience members to point to and help them fill in words when the 'hesitate.'
HISTORY: (3) 3 players get in a line. A "pointer" sits before them. They will in turn describe the complete chronological history of something from the audience. An object, person, or noun. At any point in time, the "pointer" can freeze the lesson and ask to see that moment in time in a scene. Then the lesson can resume.
HONK/DING: (2) Audience member is given a bell and a horn. One of the players is acting out said audience member on a date. When the player does/says something the audience member agrees with s/he dings the bell, if they don't agree, s/he hits the horn.
IN A (_____), WITH A (_____), WHILE (_____): (2) Players get suggestions to fill in the title. IN A Toster, WITH A Marine, WHILE a hurricaine is approaching. Scene does not necessarily have to begin with the suggestions but may move toward that moment. Or it may begin at the suggestion and proceed wherever it might.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
IT COULD HAPPEN: (X) Get many people, places, and events from the audience. Host then matches them up and the players have to do a scene. Ex: "Lets see Hitler at Disneyland." or "How about Edgar Allen Poe inside a whale." It goes till everything is crossed off.
IT'S NOT YOU IT'S ME: (X) Players line up and do jokes based on an occupation in the model of; "It's not you it's me. (pun on occupation.)" Ex: stripper; "It's not you it's me, my friends did a pole."
JABBA-RISH: (4) Played just like gibberish, except the 2 players in the scene are Jabba-The-Hutts.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
JOB INTERVIEW: (2) 1 player is applying for a job, but he doesn't know what that job is. It's up to the interviewer to provide clues for him.
LOVE/HATE: (3) Audience decides whether each player loves or hates the other 2 players. Once everyone is figured out they do a scene keeping those deals.
LUXURY!: (4) Players get a pet peeve from audience. One player starts taking about how they hate that pet peeve until another player yells; "Luxury!" and tells the bright side of that situation and how they don't have it. Then that player talks about his problem until another player yells; "Luxury!" and it goes and goes. Players keep characters they create thruout.
MAKE MORE INTERESTING: (2) NEW Similar to WELL ACTUALLY, this game makes people change their actions opposed to their words.
MORE DETAIL: (2) NEW 2 players do a regular scene. At any point the host can yell "Detail!" and that player must add more detail to whatever they just said. Ex: "I went to the store." "DETAIL!" "I went to the shoe store." "DETAIL!" "I ran with my brother to the shoe store."
MOVE ON: (2) NEW 2 players do a scene, at any point the host can yell "Move on!" and the players must jump forward in time. It can be minutes, days, years, etc.
MUSICAL:
OLD JOB/NEW JOB: (2) A person is either at an interview for a new job, or is on their first day of their new job. During the scene they use qualities of their old job in this new job setting.
PARTY QUIRKS: (1 and 3) A player is hosting a party. Three players come in, each with different quirks or as characters. They all interact and the host has to figure out who they are.
PEOPLES COURT: (2 and Judge) Two players are lawyers, each defending the point of view of the husband and wife about a minor disagreement they might have in the home. For example: Who's job it is to do the dishes. They can "object" each other and give reasons and the Judge can either "sustain" or "overrule" them. This game has a two minute time frame.
POP-UP BOOK: (1 and 4) A player is an author and gets a fake name of a childrens pop-up book from audience. Other players act out the pages. Author can pull tabs, and make the players move. Usually 3-4 pages and out.
POW: (4)
PRESS CONFERENCE: (1 and X) 1 player leaves the room and is given a celebrity and world event. They come back and answer questions from the team and/or audience until they know who they are.
PROP GAME: (4)
REFERENCES: (2) Each player is given a broad topic. They have to reference this topic as many times as they can in the scene using puns or whatever.
REPLAY PILEUP: (3)
ROM-COM REPLAY: (2) NEW A couple acts out a classic moment from a romantic movie. Then the host gives them other famous couples to them replay the scene as.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
SAMETIME/ONE AT A TIME: (4) NEW 2 players are character 1 and 2 players are character 2. Character 1 players must talk at the same time, Character 2 players must talk one word at a time.
WATCH EXAMPLE HERE
SCENE WITHOUT (_____): (2) 2 players do a normal scene, but with something is taken away. Either a letter of the alphabet, or something from the world, etc.
SHOULDA DID: (2) 2 players do a scene similar to Ding/Well Actually. The host can yell "Shoulda Said" but they can yell "Shoulda (anything)" Ex: Shoulda walked, Shoulda crossed arms, Shoulda consoled, Shoulda eaten that sandwich, etc.
SIDELINE SERMON:
SIGN LANGUAGE INTERPRETER: (3)
SOUND EFFECTS: (1 and 1) 1 player will mime an activity, player 2 will be offstage with a mic. Player 2 will make all the sound effects for player 1.
SOUNDZ OFF: (2 and 2) 2 players are in a scene, but they can not talk. 2 other players will do all of their lines for them.
SPLIT SCREEN: (4) 4 players are playing 2 characters. A room is split down the middle and the sides are flipped. When one player walk off stage to the left another player playing that same character comes in from the opposite side, keeping the exact same traits and continuing the scene.
SUBTEXT: (4) 2 players are in a scene. Two other players are sitting off to the sides and they act as the inner voice of the players in the scene. When a player in the scene says a line, the outside player says what that character is actually thinking. You must stick to the order of the lines for it to work.
SUPERHEROES: (4)
SWITCH: (4) Players 1 and 2 start the scene creating 2 very different characters. Players 2 and 4 are offstage. When the host yells switch player 1 runs off to the back of the line, player 2 takes 1's character, and player 3 runs onstage and takes player 2's character. Keep switching till it stops being funny.
WELL ACTUALLY: (2) Players are doing a scene when the host dings them they have to go back and replace their last line of dialogue with something else. They can get dinged as many times in a row as the host sees fit. (Variation: TAG-TEAM WELL ACTUALLY: (4) When the host dings a player steps out and their partner takes over the scene and repeats the line. Play like normal Well Actually. A double ding means both players are replaced.)
WHAT IF THEY MET: (2) 2 audience members are interviewed. The the 2 players portray those audience members in a scene.
WHY I WAS LATE: (1 and 3) See Happily Ever After except players (as one person) describe why they were late for a given event. Host switches between the players.
WORD PATTERN: (2) See ABC except instead of the alphabet players use a 5 letter word. Each sentence must start with the next letter in the word. They use the word more than once ofcourse.
WORLDS WORST: (X) Players get in the backline. Host will say, "Worlds Worst (occupation or whatever)." Players step forward and act them out. Usually do 5-10 occupations.