Gotcha! is a bluffing trivia party game for 3 to 12 players. Everyone gets the same weird but true trivia question, writes a fake answer that sounds real, then tries to pick the real answer out of everyone’s lies. You score for finding the truth and for every friend who falls for your lie.
A standard 7-round game takes around 15 minutes. Each player uses their own phone, so it works around a table or with friends on a video call. Here are the full rules, the scoring, and a few tricks for writing lies nobody spots.
What you need
- 3 to 12 players. Only two of you? Add Gotcha Bot and it takes the third seat.
- A phone each. Friends join from their phone’s browser with a room code. Nobody else has to install anything or sign up.
- An internet connection, or one Android phone hosting over Wi-Fi or a hotspot (see ways to play).
Start a game
- One person hosts. The host picks a deck and gets a two-word room code, like
JAZZ LAMP. - Everyone else joins by entering the code on their phone, picking a name and an avatar.
- The host sets the game: 5, 7 or 10 rounds, or endless, and whether Gotcha Bot plays too.
- The host taps start. Each deck opens with a quick card explaining how it plays.
Each round, step by step
- Read the question. Everyone sees the same real trivia question, like “What does the word ‘GROAK’ mean?”
- Write a lie (60 seconds). Type a fake answer that sounds like it could be true. If you accidentally write the real answer, the game tells you to try again. Stuck? Tap Help me lie for a ready-made decoy, worth half points.
- Pick the truth (30 seconds). All the lies are shuffled in with the real answer. Pick the one you think is true. You can’t pick your own.
- The reveal. One by one, each lie shows who wrote it and who fell for it. Fooled someone? Their screen shouts your name: “DEV GOT YOU!” Then the truth comes out.
- Scores. Points are added up and the leaderboard shuffles. The next round starts when the host is ready.
Rounds end early once everyone has answered, so nobody waits around for the timer. If two people write the same lie, it shows up once and they share the credit.
Scoring
| What happened | Points |
|---|---|
| You picked the real answer | +200 |
| A friend picked your lie | +100 per friend |
| A friend picked a lie from Help me lie | +50 per friend |
| The final round | Double points |
Finding the truth is worth more than one fooled friend, but a great lie that fools three people beats it. The final round counts double, so nobody is out of it until the end.
At the end there’s a podium and a set of awards, like Master Liar, Truth Seeker and Most Gullible, plus who fooled you the most.
The decks
Gotcha! has seven decks. Five are classic bluffing decks with a real answer to find. Spill the Tea and After Dark are about the players themselves: there’s no right answer, so everyone votes for their favorite answer instead (+100 per vote, and the vote of the person the question is about counts double).
- Fact or Cap?: Real facts. Fake answers. For example: “Wombats are famous for producing poop shaped like ___.”
- Word Nerd: Big words. Bigger lies. For example: “What does the word 'GROAK' mean?”
- Plot Twist: Movies, shows and stories. For example: “TUSK (2014). What is this real movie about?”
- Weird Laws: Real laws. Ridiculous answers. For example: “In Switzerland, it's illegal to own just one ___.”
- Wild Kingdom: Nature is weirder than your lies. For example: “A group of owls is called a ___.”
- Spill the Tea: About your friends. For example: “What would Priya's autobiography be called?”
- After Dark: For mature groups only. For example: “What's Dev's worst pickup line? (18+, verified with Google.)”
How to write a convincing lie
- Copy the style of a real answer. A word definition should read like a dictionary entry. A weird law should sound like it was written by a tired lawmaker.
- Be specific. “A Victorian word for a burp” beats “a sound”. Real answers are often oddly specific, so specific lies look real.
- Don’t be too funny. The funniest answer is rarely the true one, and everyone knows it. Save the jokes for when you want laughs, not points.
- Play to your friends. If someone always picks the most boring answer, write the most boring answer.
- Keep it short. Long, rambling answers stand out. Match the length of what the truth probably looks like.
How to spot the truth
- The strangest answer is often real. Trivia questions are picked because the truth is surprising.
- Look for answers that sound written by a person. Jokes, typos and inside references usually come from your friends.
- Remember who writes what. After a couple of rounds you’ll know everyone’s lying style.
- Watch for the bot. Gotcha Bot writes with total confidence, which is its own giveaway.
Ways to play
- In the same room: everyone on their own phone, yelling at each other during the reveal.
- On a video call: share the room code in the chat on Zoom, FaceTime, Google Meet or Discord. Each player sees everything on their own screen, so there’s nothing to screen-share.
- Without internet: one Android phone hosts the party over Wi-Fi or a hotspot, and friends join from their browsers.
- With two players: add Gotcha Bot. It writes lies and fills the third seat.
- Endless mode: pick ∞ rounds and keep going until someone calls it.
- 18+ groups: After Dark is for adults only. Everyone in the room signs in with Google so we can check they’re over 18.