Do we need more than one phone?
No. The whole group plays on one iPhone, passed between guessers. Nobody else needs the app or even a phone.
The complete rules, in one read
How to play.
Forehead Party is a guess-the-word-on-your-own-forehead game. One player can't see the screen; everyone else can. That's the whole engine. Here is everything else.
Setup takes ten seconds
One phone. Everyone else just shows up.
You need one iPhone with Forehead Party installed and at least two people — one guesser and one clue-giver. Three to eight people is the sweet spot: enough voices to make the clues chaotic, few enough that everyone gets a turn. There are no cards to print, no boards, no accounts, and no other phones needed.
- Pick a deck. Open the app and choose a deck that fits the room — 20 of the 24 decks are free. Then choose a round length.
- Phone up. The guesser holds the iPhone flat against their forehead, screen facing the room, and the round starts.
- Friends shout clues. Everyone else describes the word on screen without saying the word itself — synonyms, acting, sound effects, panic.
- Tilt to answer. The guesser tilts the phone down to mark a correct guess and up to pass. Haptics and sound confirm each card so the phone never has to come down.
- Pass the phone. When the timer runs out, the score shows, the phone moves to the next player, and the shouting starts over.
Clue-giving, the real skill
Bad clues are the point. Good clues win.
- Describe, don't spell. Say what it is, where you find it, what it does. "You eat it at midnight, it has cheese" beats "starts with P."
- Act it out. Miming is legal and encouraged. Half of the game is watching someone impersonate a Roomba.
- Split the word. For compound words, clue each half. For names, clue someone or something famous connected to it.
- Don't say the word. Any part of the word on the card is off-limits. Rhymes-with is a house-rule judgment call — decide before the round, not during the argument.
- Pass fast. A stuck card burns clock. Good groups shout "pass it!" without shame.
Common questions mid-party
Settle the argument.
What if someone says the word?
House rule: the guesser tilts up to pass that card, and the clue-giver buys the next round of snacks. The app doesn't police it — the room does.
How does scoring work?
Correct guesses count, passes don't. Scores show at the end of each round for bragging purposes; the app deliberately keeps no long-term history.
Does it need internet at the party?
No. Every deck works fully offline — cabins, planes, and road trips included. No account, no login.
Can kids play?
The app is rated 17+ on the App Store because two optional adult decks exist, but those stay hidden behind an in-app 18+ confirmation. Every other deck is written for everyone — an adult should own the phone and pick the deck.
Why tilt instead of tapping?
Your eyes are on the ceiling and the screen is on your forehead. Tilting is the one gesture you can do blind — down for got it, up to pass — and the haptics tell you it registered.