Jokes & punchlines · Debate & laughs
Read it out loud joke game: Cold Read
You write it, someone else reads it out loud without seeing it first, and they have to keep a straight face. Then the room rates the laugh.
- ~20 min
- 3–10 people
- One device, or phones
- Included in Pro
- Ages 10+
What it feels like
Good evening. Tonight's top story was written by someone in this room, and read by someone who has never seen it. Here's how it works. Everyone writes a line, in secret, for another person to read out loud. When it's your turn, stand up, read every word, and keep a straight face. The room rates the laugh on their phones. Then the reader names who wrote it.
How to play
- In secret, write a line for the person named on your phone. They'll read it out loud to the room without seeing it first.
- When it's your turn to read, stand up, read every word, and keep a straight face.
- Everyone else rates the laugh on their phone. Then the reader guesses who wrote it.
Scoring: The writer gets 1 point for a groan, 2 for a laugh and 3 for the floor, from each person rating. A reader who keeps a straight face takes 2; one who cracks gives them to the writer. Guess the writer right and the reader takes 1, wrong and the writer does.
You'll get prompts like
- “A dad joke so bad {s} will regret reading it”
- “A heartfelt confession {s} has never made”
What you need
3 to 10 people and one phone, tablet or laptop to pass around — or everyone on their own phone in a room. Nothing to download, no accounts. The best lines can be sealed into your group's Almanac and come back in later games.
