Truth or Dare is a great game until you have played it so many times that everyone already knows which questions are coming. The energy drops. People start picking the same option every turn. The game that used to feel exciting starts feeling like a routine.
The good news is that the energy Truth or Dare creates the confessions, the laughs, the “I cannot believe you just said that” moments is not exclusive to that one game. There are plenty of games that produce the exact same feeling, some better suited to certain groups, settings, or moods.
Games That Dig Deep (Truth Side)
These games are built around honesty, stories, and the kind of answers that make you see your friends differently.
Two Truths and a Lie
Best for: New groups, icebreakers, any size Works: In person, over text, video call Energy level: Low to medium
Each player states three things about themselves two are true, one is a complete lie. Everyone else tries to guess which one is the lie. The trick is making your truths sound unbelievable and your lie sound completely plausible. When someone reveals they once appeared on a TV show, got lost in a foreign city for six hours, or once accidentally called their teacher mum and everyone had assumed that was the lie the room goes wild.
This game works especially well with groups that do not know each other well yet. You will learn more about people in one round than you would in an hour of normal conversation.
Pro tip: The best players make their lie sound slightly more believable than their truths. That is where the real bluffing begins.
Never Have I Ever
Best for: Close friends, teens, adults Works: In person, video call, text Energy level: Medium
Everyone holds up ten fingers. Players take turns saying “Never have I ever…” followed by something they have genuinely never done. Anyone who has done that thing puts a finger down. Last person with fingers still up wins.
The game reveals shared experiences nobody knew about, produces stories that last for years, and has a natural escalation early rounds are light, later rounds get more specific and more revealing as people realize what they can target.
Pro tip: Start broad, then get increasingly specific as the game progresses. “Never have I ever been to another country” is a warm-up. “Never have I ever pretended to be somewhere I wasn’t” is a second-act question.
Would You Rather
Best for: All ages, family nights, road trips Works: Any setting, any platform Energy level: Low
One player presents two options. Everyone picks one and explains why.
The questions can be absurd “Would you rather only be able to whisper or only be able to shout?” or surprisingly revealing “Would you rather know when you are going to die or how?” Either way, the explanations are where the game actually happens. People defend their choices with a level of passion that consistently surprises everyone else.
Pro tip: The funniest rounds are when both options are equally terrible. The most interesting rounds are when both options sound fine until you think about them for ten seconds.
Hot Seat
Best for: Close groups, parties Works: In person Energy level: Medium
One player sits in the hot seat. The group asks them questions anything goes within whatever limits the group sets and they have to answer honestly. The twist is that everyone else also writes down what they think the hot seat player will say. After the player answers, everyone reveals their predictions. Points go to whoever guessed correctly.
It is part interview, part personality test. You learn things about people not just from their answers, but from how well their friends know them.
Pro tip: Mix easy, obvious questions with ones that nobody would predict the answer to. The gap between what people expect and what someone actually says is where the game gets interesting.
Paranoia
Best for: Groups of 6 or more, parties Works: In person Energy level: Medium to high
One player whispers a “who in this group is most likely to…” question into the next player’s ear. That player says the name of whoever they think fits the description out loud, in front of everyone. They do not reveal the question. The named person then has a choice: find out what the question was, or let it remain a mystery.
The result is a room full of people who all know someone’s name was just called in connection with a question nobody heard. The tension of not knowing and the decision of whether to find out is exactly what makes this game addictive.
Pro tip: The best questions are ones that could mean something completely innocent or slightly embarrassing depending on the context.
Find the Truth
Best for: Medium groups, parties Works: In person Energy level: Low to medium
Prepare slips of paper one says “truth,” the rest say “lie.” One player is the guesser. Everyone else draws a slip. Players who drew “lie” tell a false statement about themselves. The player who drew “truth” tells a genuine one. The guesser has to figure out who is telling the truth.
Unlike Two Truths and a Lie, this version puts one person under spotlight pressure while everyone else gets to act. It rewards both storytelling and observation.
Pro tip: Have players who drew “lie” make their statements as plausible as possible. The guesser should be looking for consistency and detail, not just believability.
20 Questions
Best for: All ages, small groups, travel Works: In person, over text, video call Energy level: Low
One player thinks of a person, place, or thing and keeps it secret. Everyone else asks yes or no questions to figure out what it is with a maximum of twenty questions total. Whoever guesses correctly goes next.
Simple, quiet, and surprisingly engaging. It also works over text better than almost any other game, which makes it one of the most versatile options on this list.
Pro tip: The best starting questions eliminate the largest number of possibilities at once. “Is it a living thing?” beats “Is it an animal?” every time.
Games That Make You Move (Dare Side)
These games are about performance, action, and the kind of silliness that makes people laugh until their sides hurt.
Charades
Best for: All ages, family nights, large groups Works: In person, video call Energy level: High
One player acts out a word or phrase without speaking. Their team tries to guess before time runs out. Classic categories include films, songs, books, and famous people but you can make it specific to your group for better results.
Nobody is ever good enough at Charades to make it boring. The worse someone is at acting, the funnier the round tends to be. It is one of the few games where failing produces as much entertainment as succeeding.
Pro tip: Use the Heads Up! app by Ellen DeGeneres for themed categories and a built-in timer. It makes the setup instant and keeps the game moving.
Most Likely To
Best for: Friend groups, team events Works: In person, video call Energy level: Medium
Someone asks a “Most likely to…” question. On the count of three, everyone simultaneously points to whoever they think fits the description best. The person with the most votes shares a quick story or explains why the group is wrong.
The simultaneous reveal is what makes this game electric. Nobody can change their answer once they see where everyone else is pointing so the real opinions come out. It is equal parts flattering and roast.
Pro tip: Mix hilarious prompts with sincere ones. “Most likely to accidentally go viral” and “most likely to be the first one the group calls in an actual crisis” produce very different but equally interesting results.
What Are the Odds
Best for: Pairs, small groups Works: In person Energy level: Medium
One player asks another “What are the odds you will [do something]?” The person being asked names a number between 2 and 20 as their odds. Both players then count down from three and simultaneously say a number between 1 and whatever was chosen. If they say the same number, the dare happens.
The beauty of this game is the negotiation. Choosing a high number (1 in 20) makes it unlikely but signals you actually might do it. Choosing a low number (1 in 3) is either brave or reckless depending on the dare involved.
Pro tip: The dares should be genuinely funny to watch, not just embarrassing for the person doing them. Think performance, not punishment.
5 Second Rule
Best for: All ages, parties, large groups Works: In person Energy level: High
One player asks a question that requires three answers “Name three things you would bring to a desert island,” “Name three movies you could watch on repeat.” The other player has exactly five seconds to answer. If they cannot name all three in time, they lose the point.
The time pressure is everything. Questions that seem obvious become impossible when a timer is running. The game moves fast, creates constant energy, and works for any age group without modification.
Pro tip: The funniest rounds happen when someone clearly knows the answers but freezes completely under the five-second pressure.
Make Me Laugh
Best for: Competitive groups, parties Works: In person Energy level: High
Split into two teams. One person from the opposing team sits completely still and tries not to laugh. The other team has two minutes to do anything they can voices, faces, impressions, jokes to make that person crack. If they laugh, the performing team gets a point. If they hold a straight face, the defending team scores.
It is pure performance energy with a clearly defined goal. Watching someone try desperately to keep a straight face while the other team escalates is consistently one of the funniest things a group can do together.
Pro tip: The rule is simple if teeth show, it counts as a laugh. No exceptions. Having a clear rule removes all arguments about “that was just a smile.”
Games That Mix Both
These games combine the story-telling and revelation of truth games with the action and performance of dare games.
Telephone Pictionary
Best for: Creative groups, parties Works: In person (Gartic Phone for online) Energy level: Medium to high
Everyone writes a funny or specific phrase on paper. They pass it to the next person, who draws a picture of it. That person folds the paper to hide the original phrase, leaving only the drawing visible, then passes it again. The next person writes what they see in the drawing. This continues until the paper returns to its original owner.
The final reveal comparing the original phrase to whatever came out the other end is always completely unhinged. A sentence about a dog eating spaghetti becomes a drawing of a wolf at a formal dinner becomes a sentence about business negotiations.
Pro tip: Play Gartic Phone online if your group is remote. It is free, requires no download, and handles the whole process automatically.
Jenga Questions
Best for: Any group, game nights Works: In person Energy level: Medium
Get a cheap Jenga set and write a truth question or dare on the flat side of each block with a permanent marker. Players pull blocks as normal but whatever is written on their block, they have to do.
It combines the physical tension of Jenga with the social energy of Truth or Dare. The moment a tower is wobbling and someone still has to pull a block and answer an embarrassing question is genuinely hard to replicate with any other format.
Pro tip: Write a mix of truths, dares, and wildcards like “everyone answers this one” or “pick someone to answer.” Variety stops the game from feeling repetitive after the first few rounds.
Emoji Pictionary
Best for: Text-based groups, all ages Works: Over text, group chat, video call Energy level: Low to medium
One player describes a movie, song, TV show, or phrase using only emojis no words, no hints. Everyone else guesses. First correct answer wins that round.
It is one of the only games on this list that works just as well over text as it does in person. Group chats come alive when someone drops a string of seemingly random emojis and everyone starts arguing about what it means.
Pro tip: Song titles and movie names from the last decade work best. Older references are harder to emoji-fy and take too long to guess.
Winking Assassin
Best for: Medium to large groups, parties Works: In person Energy level: Medium
One player is secretly designated as the assassin. Everyone sits in a circle. The assassin eliminates players by making eye contact and winking at them. A winked-at player must pretend to die dramatically or quietly, their choice. If someone thinks they know who the assassin is, they can accuse them. A correct accusation ends the game. A wrong accusation means the accuser is immediately out.
The paranoia builds slowly and then all at once. Players start scanning every face, reading every glance, and suddenly eye contact with anyone feels suspicious. You may also know this game as Mafia or Werewolf it has been played under many names.
Pro tip: The assassin should wink in plain sight when possible, during moments when other players are distracted or laughing. The boldest assassins are almost never caught first.
Quick Comparison: Find Your Game Fast
| Game | Best Setting | Works Over Text | Age Group | Energy |
| Two Truths and a Lie | Any | Yes | All ages | Low |
| Never Have I Ever | Parties | Yes | Teens / Adults | Medium |
| Would You Rather | Any | Yes | All ages | Low |
| Hot Seat | In person | No | Teens / Adults | Medium |
| Paranoia | Parties | No | Teens / Adults | Medium |
| Find the Truth | In person | No | All ages | Low |
| 20 Questions | Any | Yes | All ages | Low |
| Charades | In person | Yes (video call) | All ages | High |
| Most Likely To | Any | Yes | Teens / Adults | Medium |
| What Are the Odds | In person | No | Teens / Adults | Medium |
| 5 Second Rule | In person | No | All ages | High |
| Make Me Laugh | In person | No | All ages | High |
| Telephone Pictionary | In person | Yes (Gartic Phone) | Teens / Adults | High |
| Jenga Questions | In person | No | All ages | Medium |
| Emoji Pictionary | Any | Yes | All ages | Low |
| Winking Assassin | In person | No | All ages | Medium |
How to Pick the Right Game for Your Group
Not every game works for every crowd. Two questions narrow it down fast. What do you want the game to produce? If you want conversations and stories, go for the truth-side games Two Truths and a Lie, Never Have I Ever, Would You Rather, or Paranoia. If you want physical energy and performance, go for Charades, 5 Second Rule, or Make Me Laugh. If you want both, Telephone Pictionary or Jenga Questions handle it well.
Where are you playing? In person gives you the full range. For remote groups video call or text Two Truths and a Lie, Never Have I Ever, Would You Rather, Emoji Pictionary, and Gartic Phone all work without modification.
A few quick picks by group type:
- New group / icebreaker → Two Truths and a Lie, Would You Rather, 20 Questions
- Close friends → Never Have I Ever, Paranoia, Most Likely To
- Family with mixed ages → Charades, Would You Rather, 5 Second Rule
- Couples → Hot Seat, Would You Rather, Jenga Questions
- Over text → Emoji Pictionary, Never Have I Ever, Two Truths and a Lie
- Large party → Winking Assassin, Make Me Laugh, Most Likely To
FAQs
What is the best game like Truth or Dare for a group that has never played together?
Two Truths and a Lie is the best starting point. It is low pressure, works for any size group, and produces immediate conversation without requiring anyone to do anything uncomfortable.
Which games work over text or video call?
Two Truths and a Lie, Never Have I Ever, Would You Rather, 20 Questions, and Emoji Pictionary all work over any platform. For video calls, Charades and Gartic Phone also work well.
What is a good game like Truth or Dare for a family with kids and adults?
Would You Rather and Charades work across the widest age range. 5 Second Rule is also excellent for mixed ages because the time pressure makes it equal for everyone regardless of knowledge level.
What is the fastest game to set up?
Would You Rather and Never Have I Ever require zero setup. Just start talking. Most Likely To and 20 Questions are equally immediate.
Can these games be used as drinking games?
Never Have I Ever and What Are the Odds are frequently adapted as drinking games for adults of legal age. The core mechanics work perfectly a sip replaces putting a finger down or completing a dare.
What game creates the most energy in a room?
Make Me Laugh and 5 Second Rule consistently produce the highest energy because of their time pressure and performance elements. Winking Assassin builds more slowly but often reaches a very energetic peak later in the game.
