Situation Puzzles

The host describes a strange situation in two lines, and the rest reconstruct what actually happened with questions answered yes and no.

The host says: "A man walks into a bar and asks for a glass of water. The barman takes out a gun. The man thanks him and leaves." Everything said is true, but what is going on is not, and it is that which the group has to reconstruct, asking questions that can be answered yes or no.

The may answer in three ways only: yes, no, and "doesn't matter". The last is the most useful: it does not remove a possibility but reports that the question is beside the point, and saves the group a dozen turns.

The game is not played against a clock or for points. It ends when the picture comes together, and a good host holds out to the last, answering honestly and helping with nothing.

Situation puzzles and twenty questions

They are built alike and ask about different things. In Twenty Questions a thing has been set, and the questions cut away attributes: alive, bigger than a dog, in this room. Here an event has been set, and cutting away attributes is useless — explanations have to be put forward and tested whole.

The second difference is the limit. Twenty questions end at the twentieth; a situation puzzle does not end until it is solved.

Players2+

CategoriesVerbal games

ObjectiveReconstruct what actually happened, asking questions that can be answered yes or no.

Rules of situation puzzles

The host

The host knows the whole solution. They do not play and do not compete with the rest.

The opening

The host tells the — briefly and leaving things out. Everything said in it is true.

Questions

Players ask questions that can be answered yes or no. The order is free and the number is not limited.

Answers

The host answers in one of three ways:

yes;
no;
— where the answer bears on the solution in no way at all.

A question that can be met with neither yes nor no is turned down, and the host asks for it to be put differently.

Answering in any other way — hinting, qualifying, correcting the wording — is not allowed.

The solution

Players may set out their whole explanation at any point. The host says whether it is right.

The puzzle counts as solved when the essential circumstances have been named — those without which the situation stays incomprehensible. Small details need not be guessed.

End of the round

Whoever solved it usually becomes the next host and sets a situation of their own.

Worth knowing

What counts as solved is for each host to decide: the essential circumstances have to be recovered, and which of them are essential is known only to them. There is usually no limit on questions. Whether hints are given when a group has stalled is nowhere laid down.