Pictionary facts for kids
A game of "Pictionary Party"
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| Players | 2 teams |
|---|---|
| Setup time | < 5 minutes |
| Playing time | 30 minutes |
| Random chance | Medium |
| Skill(s) required | Drawing, image recognition, wordplay, vocabulary |
Pictionary is an exciting word-guessing game where you draw pictures for your team to guess! It's a bit like charades, but instead of acting, you use your drawing skills.
Robert Angel invented Pictionary, and it first came out in 1985. Over the years, different companies have owned the game. Western Publishing first licensed it. Then, Hasbro bought the rights in 1994. Today, Mattel has owned Pictionary since 2001. The game is played in teams, and players try to figure out specific words from their teammates' drawings.
Contents
How to Play Pictionary
Each team has a game piece that moves around a board. The board has different colored squares. Each square has a letter or shape on it. This letter tells you what kind of picture you need to draw.
Winning the Game
The main goal is to be the first team to reach the very last space on the board. To do this, a player must correctly guess the word or phrase their partner is drawing.
Sometimes, you might land on an "All Play" square. In this case, one player from each team draws the same thing at the same time. Both teams race to guess the word first! The first team to land on the final space and guess correctly wins the game.
Gameplay Basics
Before starting, each team picks one person to be the first drawer. This job changes with each new word. The drawer picks a special Pictionary card. Each card has five words on it.
The drawer then tries to draw pictures that show the word on the card. There are some important rules for drawing. You cannot use any numbers or letters in your drawing. Also, the drawer cannot say any clues about what they are drawing. Their teammates then try to guess the word based on the drawing.
Types of Drawing Categories
There are five main types of squares on the game board. Each Pictionary card has a list of five words. Players must draw the word that matches the square their team's marker is on. Here are the categories:
| Square Color | Subject |
|---|---|
| P | Person, Place, or Animal |
| O | Object |
| A | Action (something you do) |
| D | Difficult (words that are tricky to draw) |
| AP | All Play (everyone draws and guesses) |
| This special square appears in some versions of the game. If you land here, the player can pick any word they want from the five on the card. |
All Play Rules
The "All Play" category (marked with "AP") is special. For these squares, all teams compete against each other at once. Each team chooses a player to draw. The team that guesses the word first gets to move forward and take the next turn. If no team guesses the word, the turn simply passes to the next team in line. Remember, you cannot point or gesture to objects while drawing or guessing!
The Timer
A one-minute timer, usually a sand timer, is used during the game. This makes players draw and guess quickly. It adds to the excitement and challenge of Pictionary!
