The Basics
Okay, this is a game pretty similar to something you’ve probably played before. A suggestion card is read and you have to come up with an answer that fits it. Usually this is done by picking from cards in your hand. Sound familiar? Our game is like that only you get to use your phone instead of the other cards. Now it’s personal!
A Little More ConTXT
To start playing, everyone should have a phone. You will also need a deck of Out of ConTXT cards. More on the deck later, but know that these rules will work for any deck (or combination of decks) you might be using.
The game starts by turning over a card and reading it for everyone to hear. Call out the category and the suggestion. Everyone will now go through their phones to try and find an answer. Once everyone is set they will read (or show) their answers to the rest of the group.
Once everyone has gone the voting begins. The card reader says something to the tune of “Okay everyone… vote” and people point to the person who they think has the best answer. Whoever has the most fingers pointing their way gets the card and has one point added to their score.
Play continues until the agreed upon winning score is achieved and then you can either start or new game or go about your business. Sure, we know that some might not vote for a person if they are one away from winning (even though they obviously had the best answer). But our suggestion is to stop being friends with a person who would do that. It’s just a card game. Someone can win and then you can start another game. Let’s be real here!
One Other thing that really makes Out of ConTXT so great is that the stuff on your phone is always changing. This means every time you play you’ve got new things to answer the suggestions. No need to buy new add ons, and you don’t have to worry about getting stuck with a handful of “bad cards”.
And, as we stated above, it’s personal! Think about it. Everything on your phone is either something you put there or something someone sent to you. It’s all unique to you! We’ve seen many games breakdown to into conversations about the texts – and isn’t that what a party game is all about?
Categories
There are five categories in Out of ConTXT.
Text Search: Use any text you find on your phone.
Personal Insight: Use only texts YOU’VE written.
Photo Bomb: Use any photo saved on your phone.
Meme Maker: Same rules as above, but with a spicier, internet twist! Just pretend it looks like a Meme.
Soundtrack of your Life: The answer must be from a song title found on your phone.
Note: You can use any messaging system you might have on your phone in either of the text-based categories. But purists of the game will always say to use actual texts.
The Decks
Out of ConTXT is a growing game and the creators will try and put out a few new decks a year. You can mix and match the decks as much as you want when playing. One feature that we really like is that the backs of all the decks are the same, but the fronts will have a different feel.
This is done for two reasons. First, we want it to be a surprise when you get a card from different decks. And second, this makes it easier to separate the decks. This is really important if you have something like our “After Dark” cards and want them out of the game before the kiddies start playing.
Alternate Rules
Soon we’ll be adding special “Rule Cards” to the game, but until then, feel free to make up your own House Rules for our game. We don’t mind. In fact, here’s one we like…
Phone Roulette: Every turn the phones are passed to the person to your right. The uncomfortable shifting in your chair as you wonder, “is that text still in my phone?” Yes. Yes it is. And the new phone in your hands is just as full of hidden treasures. Cue the maniacal laughter! Oh what fun!
The Creators
Out of ConTXT was created the Quick Wits Improv Troupe. For over 21 years, Quick Wits has been making the people of Utah laugh with their brand of improv. Go check them out at qwcomedy.com! There is even a free app you can download on the site for all of your improv needs!
Creator: Bob Bedore
Design: Blake Heywood
Technical Stuff: Jourdan Dixon
Suggestion Helpers: Jason Wild, Shawn Zumbrunnen, Briana Bedore
Play Testers: Several Quick Wits audiences and everyone we can get to play with us!