Birthday party predictions – Typical bingo for your guests

A birthday party brings together people who rarely sit at the same table: the old crowd from school, people from work, family, maybe an aunt everyone else only knows from stories. Typical gives the evening a common thread. Before the party, each person writes predictions about how the others will behave, and while you celebrate, you tick off what happens. The birthday person plays too – and, like everyone else, has no idea what the cards say about them. The how-to-play guide explains how a round works.

How to set up a birthday round

• Card size by type of party. For a restaurant dinner lasting two or three hours, 2 × 2 or 2 × 3 is enough. A party at home that runs late into the night can handle 3 × 3. If you're celebrating for a whole weekend or with lots of guests, play in team mode with 4 × 4 or 5 × 5.
• Set the end date to the day after the party. The round then ends by itself, even if nobody has filled a line, and the next morning everyone sees what was written about them.
• Pick a prize that suits the occasion. The winner gets the last slice of cake or chooses the game for the next get-together. If you like, add a small penalty for everyone else that benefits the birthday person – such as helping to take down the decorations.
• Write freely when there's time; use Blitz mode when it has to be quick. Send the invitation to the round a few days ahead, and everyone has time for personal sentences. If the idea only comes up at the table, Blitz mode with the category “Chilling & chatting” fills the cards in seconds.

14 predictions for a birthday

These sentences were written for birthdays – use them as they are or adapt them. When you write, Typical tells you which person each sentence is about; some only suit the guests, others suit the birthday person too:

• arrives after everyone else is already there
• starts singing “Happy Birthday”
• photographs the cake before anyone cuts it
• asks for the cake recipe
• tells a story from the birthday person's childhood
• helps in the kitchen without being asked
• is the last to choose a dish at the restaurant
• takes a second slice of cake
• writes the birthday card at the party
• gives a short speech for the birthday person
• shows old photos around on their phone
• is the first to dance
• suggests a group photo with the birthday person
• stays until the end and helps tidy up

More sentences from Blitz mode

If you choose the category “Chilling & chatting” in Blitz mode, you get sentences that can come true on any sociable evening. These ones suit a birthday full of stories particularly well:

• goes off on a long tangent
• tells the same story twice
• suggests a game for the whole group
• already suggests the next get-together
• tells a story from school days
• starts reminiscing about the old days

Tips for a great birthday round

• Don't make the birthday person set up the round. Having a birthday keeps you busy enough for one day. If a friend or sibling creates the round, the birthday person only needs to join and write their sentences.
• Don't worry about the balance. Typical makes sure the same number of sentences is written about each person. So the birthday person isn't the only one in the spotlight, and the guests can expect something about them on a card too.
• Tick off straight away – and discreetly. A tap on the square counts immediately. Wait until the cake is gone and you'll have forgotten half of it. And whoever ticks something off doesn't say out loud why – otherwise the person might guess what was written about them.
• Mix family and friends. When both come together, write sentences that people who don't know your in-jokes can understand too. “Talks about the school trip” works for any aunt; a reference to last summer's holiday doesn't.
• Include quieter and older guests. In the browser, a name is all it takes to play; nobody has to install an app or create an account. And anyone who finds phones fiddly gets help in team mode: from four people up, each team shares one card, and the others on the team keep an eye on it too.
• Write nothing that hurts on someone's special day. Jokes about age, weight or a break-up don't belong on the card. The fun lies in recognising each other, not in showing anyone up.

At home, at a restaurant or as a surprise

Party at home: This is where the most happens, because everyone moves around freely – kitchen, music, presents, tidying up. Mix sentences that come true early with a few that only happen late in the evening.

Eating out: At the table, attention narrows to a few moments: ordering, the birthday song, the bill. Small cards and sentences about the meal work best here. Put your phones aside between courses – a quick look is enough when something happens.

Surprise party: The birthday person mustn't know about the round, or the surprise is ruined. So play among the guests and start the round a few days beforehand: then the preparations count too – who almost lets it slip, who asks about the present in the group chat, who whispers loudest while everyone is hiding.

When the round ends, everything is revealed: each person sees what was written about them, including what never came true. Read those sentences together, perhaps over the last slice of cake. For many birthday people, it's the best present of the day: seeing how well their own people know them.