Blind Man’s Bluff Party Games

The original blind man’s bluff game dates back to ancient China, to the Han dynasty: around 500 BC. This game was played a bit like tag is played today, only the person trying to ‘tag’ others is blindfolded. This popular version was also a traditional party game in the Victorian era and there are many references on the internet and photographs of children and adults playing blind man’s bluff from the early 19th century.

A popular variation of blindfold bluff played exclusively in a pool is called “Marco Polo”. In the Marco Polo version of this game, the person trying to tag the others has their eyes closed and yells “Marco”, to which the other players reply (just as loudly) “Polo”. The person trying to tag the others uses their sound sense to try to locate the other players. I’ve seen a version of this game where players (by being tagged) can exit the pool and re-enter somewhere else. If the person yelling “Marco” yells “Fish on deck” when a player is out of the pool, that player is considered to be tagged and he or she takes the turn of the person trying to tag the others.

A lesser known version of this game, which was also popular during the Victorian era, was called “Blind Man’s BIFF”. The idea of ​​this variation was for two players to be blindfolded and lie down on the ground. Each held a rolled up newspaper in one hand and clasped hands with the other. Players then took turns trying to “hit” each other on the head with the newspaper. The idea was that they would try to locate their opponent’s head by listening to it (and this game was usually played by children, I wonder why!), talk. The speech was achieved through a question and answer, something like “Are you there, Mr. Jones?” followed by the other person replying “Yes, I’m here, Mr. Smith?” As soon as Mr. Smith, in the example, finished speaking, Mr. Jones would try and hit Mr. Smith with his newspaper. In the example above, as soon as Mr. Smith had responded, he would try to alter the position of his head to avoid being hit. As the old instructions for this game say, “it is more for the amusement of the spectators than the participants.”

While there are many other variations of the blind man’s bluff, one favorite has endured for years and that is “Pin the tail on the donkey.” This game simply involves party guests, who are blindfolded, trying to put a tail (in the correct position) on a picture of a donkey. A delightful party game for girls that is similar to pin the tail on the donkey is “Kiss the Frog.” In the game Kiss the Frog, each blindfolded girl, for example, “wannabe” princess, has a pair of cellophane lips in the shape of a kiss. In turn, the girls try to place their ‘kiss’ as close as possible to the lips of a frog in the photo. This is one of my favorite girls party ideas for a princess themed party, especially for younger kids. In all cases, the first time the girls see this variation of the blind man’s lantern, they will demand that their mothers buy it for their next party.

Whether or not the original nondescript man bragging game is played or a variation, the fun of people blindfolded and trying to tag, whack, or place a tail on a donkey (or a kiss on a frog) has lasted for more than 2,000 years.