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- BGG rating
- 6.0
Party & Co: Original
- 3–20 players
- 45 min
- Complexity 1.3/5
- 2007
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- BGG rating
- 5.7
Play It By Ear
1991
Rules assistance for Play It By Ear
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–12 players
- 60 min
- 16+
- Complexity 1.6/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for Play It By Ear
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Play It By Ear is a board game released in 1991 for 2–12 players, 60 minutes per game, and ages 16 and up. It was designed by Barry Levine and its main mechanics are Memory and Storytelling.
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About the game
Play It By Ear is an audio trivia and challenge game. Components include a set of trivia cards, a game board and tokens and a game cd. During the game, players select one trivia category (pop music, movies, tv, news etc…) from which they must answer a question. Each question is linked to one of 99 sound clips on the cd. The difficulty of the questions varies from simply identifying where the clip originated, to providing information loosely related to the sound. Some categories are more "activity" based, such as short term memory, where one has to identify something heard in the clip. In the earlier parts of the game, players can choose their own categories while in the latter, the opponents select. In answering questions, players move around a small circular board. The first to make it to the "winner's circle" is the victor.
Mechanics
Designers
Publishers
- Rykodisc
Questions and answers
Play It By Ear supports 2–12 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Play It By Ear is 60 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Play It By Ear for ages 16 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Play It By Ear has a complexity rating of 1.6 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Play It By Ear belongs to these categories: Word Game, Party Game, and Memory. Its main mechanics are Memory and Storytelling. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Play It By Ear are: Barry Levine. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Play It By Ear as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.