On Your Mark – How to Play

More Details/Setup:

Host

• Go to the Host page and create a game.
• Choose:
  • Whether players can see their score.
  • Whether mark order is cycle (predictable) or random.
  • How skips work (casual, limited free skips, or penalty skips).
• Share the join link with everyone in the room.
• Watch players join from the Host lobby, then click “Start Game” when you’re ready.

Players

• Open the join link on your phone.
• Enter your name.
• Keep your player page open – this is where you’ll see your:
  • Current round.
  • Score (if the Host allows scores to be visible).
  • Your mark for this mission.
  • Your mission text.

Game Flow

Marks & Missions

• In each round, the system quietly assigns:
  • A secret mark to each player (someone else in the game).
  • A secret mission they must complete with that mark.
• You must not tell your mark what your mission is.
• You can be someone else’s mark at the same time – that’s part of the fun.

Completing a Mission

• Use normal conversation and behavior to get your mark to do whatever the mission says.
• Once you’ve clearly done it, tap “I Completed This”.
• The system:
  • Marks that mission as completed.
  • Adds points to your score.
  • Gives you a new mark + mission when available.

Skipping a Mission

Sometimes it just doesn’t work – maybe your mark caught on, or the moment passed. That’s where the Skip button comes in.

• Tap “Skip This Mission” if you truly can’t complete it.
• Depending on Host settings, skipping can:
  • Do nothing (casual mode).
  • Use up a limited number of free skips per game.
  • Cost you points after your free skips are used.
• You’ll always see a confirmation before a skip is final.

Rounds

• A round is going through the list of players once.
• Rounds are handled automatically in the background.
• When you’ve cleared all your missions for the current round:
  • The game quietly advances to the next round.
  • New marks and missions are generated for everyone.
• Players can be on different missions and reach the next round at different times – faster players will simply have more chances to score.

Scoring

• You gain points for completed missions.
• You may lose points for skips if the Host has enabled skip penalties.
• Scores can be:
  • Visible to players on their screen, or
  • Hidden so only the Host sees the scoreboard at the end.
• At any time, the Host can click “End Game & Lock Scores” to finish the game.
• At the end, the Host reads off the scoreboard to announce the winner.

Safety & Boundaries

• Respect people’s boundaries. If someone looks uncomfortable, stop.
• No missions should involve anything unsafe, illegal, or humiliating.
• Keep missions light, social, and fun – this is meant to be a party game, not a dare game.
• It’s OK to skip a mission if it doesn’t fit the vibe or the group.

Suggested House Rules

• Open Table: At the end, everyone can share their missions out loud. It’s usually hilarious.
• Guess the Mission: Let people try to guess each other’s missions before revealing them.
• Off limits: Set certain times as a virtual pause of the game where nobody is going after anyone.

Tips

• Sometimes it's better to take a hit and skip a mission then try to get the next 2-3 to make up for it.
• Bring up a topic and ask other people about it, then go after your mark. It'll seem more natural.
• It might be fun to sign someone up who doesn't know they're in the game. They get missions on them, and you tell them later about the game. Just open up the game link in another tab and set them up as a player.

FAQs About the On Your Mark game

Is On Your Mark free to play?

Yes. There is no cost. It's ad supported. There is no email required, and there are no accounts or passwords.

What if someone loses their player screen?

The Host can see a “Copy Link” button next to each player’s name and resend their personal link so they can re-open their missions.

Should people use their real name?

It's up to you, of course, but other players in the game will need to know who each player is.

Can the Host play, too?

Yes. The Host just joins the game like everyone else on their phone and uses another device (or tab) to watch the lobby and scores. The host should keep the Host tab open so they an close out the game later.

Can players join late?

No, they'll have to wait unti a new game starts.

Can multiple games be going at once?

Yes, that works fine. People can be in multiple games, and doing this could be more fun as they can be working on multiple marks at once. They just would need separate tabs open for each game.

Is there an app to download?

No, it's just played in your web browser. No app to download. We may do that later as an option, but no app means it's easy for people to play.

What if the host loses their screen?

That's more difficult since we don't require email accounts to play. Check your browsing history to find the page. If you can't find it, then please contact us for help. We'll need to know the exact name of your game. Optionally, you can either start a new game or just decide the game is over.

Can I start my own game?

Yes, just go to the home page and click on the button to host a game. Please share this game on your social media accounts and tell others how much you enjoyed it.

Can we put in our own missions?

No, not yet. We may add this feature later. If you have mission ideas, you can contact us.