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About Monikers
Monikers is a boxed version of the old parlour game Celebrities. Two teams race to guess names from one shared deck, and the same deck is used for all three rounds. In round one you can say anything; in round two only one word; in round three you can only act. By then the whole room has private jokes about every card, and that is the point.
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Is Monikers Right for You?
Best for
Monikers is for a big, loud group that is happy to act daft, and it scales well from six up to a whole room. It is at its best at parties where people know each other a bit, because the running jokes build across the rounds. We think it is one of the funniest party games made.
Maybe skip it if…
Shy players or groups who dislike performing will struggle with the charades round. Some cards reference adult humour and internet culture, which is why the box says 17+.
How to Play Monikers
Setup
Everyone is dealt a few cards and keeps some of them, building a shared deck. Split into two teams.
On Your Turn
- The clue-giver has sixty seconds to get their team to guess as many cards as possible under the round's rule.
- Guessed cards are kept for their point value; a skipped card goes back into the deck.
- When the deck is empty the round ends, and the whole deck is shuffled for the next, stricter round.
How to Win
After three rounds, the team with the most points wins.
💡 Strategy Tips
Remember how each name was clued in round one. Those words and gestures are what you will lean on later.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Rushing through round one without thinking about later. What you say now becomes the shorthand you need in rounds two and three.
- Refusing to skip. A card that is not landing wastes precious seconds, and it will come back round.
- Saying part of the name in round one. That is the one thing you cannot do, and it wastes the card for your team.
- Letting the confident players give every clue. Rotate strictly so everyone on a team takes a turn, including the quiet ones.
Advanced Strategy
- Read the card's description text aloud in round one when you do not know the name. It gives the table something to remember.
- In the one-word round, use the word your group laughed at, not the most accurate one.
- Keep an eye on high-value cards in your hand when building the deck. Obscure cards score more, but only if someone can guess them.
- In the charades round, repeat the same gesture your team used before. Consistency beats invention.
Variants & House Rules
Standalone expansions
More Monikers and Serious Nonsense are standalone boxes of new names. Monikers: Classics bundles three earlier packs.
House rule: one-word round last
Some groups swap the order and play charades second, finishing on single words. It is a sharper, harder finish.
Video Guides
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Our Verdict
Monikers takes a free parlour game and makes it better with sharp, funny cards that nobody at the table had to write. The three-round structure is the magic: by the end, a nonsense gesture means a specific person to everyone in the room. For large groups willing to be silly, few party games come close.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is it different from Celebrities?
The rules are the same idea. Monikers adds written cards with descriptions and point values, so nobody has to think up names.
Is it suitable for families?
The box says 17+ because some cards are adult. Removing those cards before a family game is common and easy.
How many players is it best with?
Six to ten is ideal. It works with more, but turns come round slowly.