Fake Artist is a drawing game where the skill is not drawing well, it is drawing just clearly enough. Show you know the word and the fake gets a free hint. Be too vague and you look like the fake yourself.
How to play Fake Artist online
- A category and a secret word. Everyone sees the category, for example "Animal". Everyone except one player also sees the word. That player, the Fake Artist, is told only that they are the fake.
- One stroke each. In turn, each player adds a single stroke to the shared drawing. Every player has their own colour, so the room can see who drew what. You go round twice.
- The vote. When the drawing is finished, everyone votes on who they think the Fake Artist is. Votes stay hidden until the reveal.
- The catch. If the fake is caught, they get one guess at the word. If the votes tie, nobody is caught and the fake slips away.
Scoring
- Fake escapes: 400 points.
- Fake caught but guesses the word: 250 points.
- Fake caught and misses: every artist scores 150, plus 100 more for each artist who voted for the fake.
The role passes round the group between rounds, so everyone gets a turn at faking it before anyone gets a second.
Needs at least 4 people, and no bots. A bot cannot bluff or spot a bluff, so this one is for real players only. Extra people in the room can watch the drawing build up, which is most of the fun, but only the 4 to 10 players draw and vote.
Tips for artists and fakes
- As an artist: draw one distinctive part of the word, not the obvious outline. A tail, a wheel, a handle.
- As the fake: copy what is already there and add something that fits any of the likely words.
- Voting: look at the colours. The player whose stroke could belong to anything is your suspect.
Want something different? Try Draw & Guess for a drawing race, Telephone for a draw and describe chain, or Two Truths and a Lie for another bluffing game: same room, same leaderboard.
Planning a session? See which games work above 20 people.