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Pictionary

Overview​

In 1985 Rob Angel and graphic designer Gary Everson published Pictionary through Angel Games Inc. The game was inspired by the word-guess game charades, only instead of acting out a word or phrase to guess, players would have to illustrate the word by drawing.

When developing the game Angel wanted to focus on the group play aspect of the game. While drawing is an aspect of the game you do not need drawing skills to play the game. As it turns out, sometimes the worse you are at drawing the better, as the game really focuses on the fun aspect of playing bringing together.

Players​

4- 6 players

Resources​

  • Sheet of paper
  • Pen or pencil
  • Word cards
  • Timer

Goal/Objective​

To be the team that reaches the high score first, by accurately guessing the most words in 60-second rounds.

Setup​

Divide the group into small teams of 2 or 3. Ensuring that each team has an equal number of players.

Provide each team with a pencil and paper.

Shuffle the word cards, and place the deck face down in the middle of the teams.

Game Mechanics​

Select which team will go first. Each team will select a player to be the first "Drawer".

On their turn the Drawer will select a card from the pile. The drawer reads the word to themselves then places the card face down in front of themselves.

(Note the drawer can choose to pass up to 3 cards, simply selecting another card, and placing the previous card at the bottom of the deck.)

Once the drawer sets down the selected card a 60 second timer is set. The drawer will have to draw a graphical representation of the word, while their teammates attempt to guess the drawing.

Drawers can not use any letters, words or numbers. Common symbols such as a dollar sign ($) or plus sign (+) is allowed. Drawers can not speak during their turn but can gesture to provide feedback to their team.

If the team members are unable to guess the word in before the timer ends, then the opposing team can attempt to guess the word within a 30 second.

The team that guess correctly receives the card and point.

The gameplay repeats, with each team taking a turn and each member playing as a drawer.

Outcome​

The first team to reach the high score will be the winners.

The high score is defined by the group. For a 30-minute game, a high score of 10 is usually set.