Sketch Round or Thirty-One?

The key differences

• Sketch Round needs a TV, or an iPad or Mac as the table; Thirty-One also runs on phones alone.
• From 10 players on, only Sketch Round works: it goes up to 10 players, Thirty-One only up to 9.
• Sketch Round needs at least 3 players – with fewer people, only Thirty-One works.
• Only Thirty-One can be played against the computer – Sketch Round needs real players.
• Sketch Round rewards skill more than Thirty-One (mostly skill vs. skill and luck).
• Sketch Round is louder than Thirty-One (loud vs. lively).
• Sketch Round is quicker to learn than Thirty-One (explained in a minute vs. quick to learn).
• Sketch Round has more interaction than Thirty-One (lots of back and forth vs. you react to each other).

At a glance

At a glance	Sketch Round	Thirty-One
Type	Party games	Card games
Players	3–10 players	2–9 players
Length of a game	10–20 min	10–20 min
Age	ages 7+	ages 8+
Luck or skill	mostly skill	skill and luck
Noise level	loud	lively
Learning curve	explained in a minute	quick to learn
Interaction	lots of back and forth	you react to each other
TV	needed	not needed
Against the computer	no	yes
Teams	no	no
Bluffing	no	no
Reading needed	yes	no

Which one suits you?

Sketch Round

One person draws on their phone while everyone else watches the picture appear live on the TV and types a guess. Faster correct guesses score more – and the worst drawings tend to be the funniest.

Pick Sketch Round when three to ten people are gathered around a TV and like to laugh.

Thirty-One

Three cards in your hand, three in the middle: swap until one suit gets as close to 31 as you can. Whoever knocks ends the round – and the worst hand then loses a life.

Pick Thirty-One when a bigger group wants a fast card game with a bit of a thrill.

What they have in common

• Both work for 3–9 players.
• In both, everyone has secret information on their own phone.
• Both work from age 8.
• Both come free with Gather and need no account.