Party games
Codenames
IELLOVlaada Chvátil2015
- players
- 4–12
- minutes
- 20
- years
- 10+
In the box
200 Codename cards (400 words) · 40 Key cards and 1 stand · 16 Agent cards, 1 double agent, 7 bystanders, 1 assassin · 1 sand timer
Official rules (PDF, publisher's site)
Box details
- Designer
- Vlaada Chvátil
- Artwork
- Vlaada Chvátil, Stéphane Gantiez, Dávid Jablonovský, Tomáš Kučerovský
- Publisher
- IELLO
- Mechanics
- Communication LimitsDeductionMemoryRaceTeam-Based
Where to buy it
Near you and online
In a shop
Within 50 km.
Online
Affiliate link: Marquoir may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
The basics
Two teams race to get their agents found in a grid of twenty-five words that only their spymaster can identify. On their turn, the spymaster gives one word and one number, and their teammates touch cards as long as they hit their own colour; a bystander or an opposing word ends the turn. The first team with all its agents revealed wins, but the team that touches the assassin loses immediately.
Checked against the official rules · October 2026
The rules, step by step
Setup
5-by-5 grid, 9 words against 8, 1 spymaster per team
- Two teams, red and blue, of at least two players each. Each team has a spymaster; the others are field operatives.
- Twenty-five word cards laid out in a five-by-five grid.
- The two spymasters, seated on the same side, draw a key card at random: it alone shows which word hides a red agent, a blue agent, a bystander or the assassin.
- The lights on the key card show which team starts: it takes the double agent card and so has nine words to get guessed, against eight for the other.
- The grid also holds seven innocent bystanders and one assassin. A sand timer can hurry a team that is too slow.
How to play
1 word and 1 number, Keep going while right, At least 1 word per turn
- The teams take turns. The spymaster gives one word and one number: the number says how many words in the grid relate to the clue.
- Their teammates discuss, then touch a card. Their spymaster covers it with the matching card.
- An agent of your colour: you may continue. An opposing agent or a bystander: the turn ends at once, and an opposing agent counts for the other team.
- You must point to at least one word per turn. You may stop as soon as you have found at least one word of your colour.
- If all the words linked to the clue have been found, you get one guess more than the number given.
- An invalid clue ends the turn; the opposing team then covers one of its own words for free before its next clue.
Scoring
No points, Games won are recorded
- No points during the game: you note who won each game.
- The counter records one win per game won; how many games to play in a row is up to your table.
- Co-op variant for two or three players: the score is the number of cards the imaginary opponent still had left when you finished.
End of the game
All your agents found, Assassin: you lose
- The team whose agents have all been covered wins, even if it was the opponents who pointed to its last word.
- The team that touches the assassin loses immediately; the other team wins.
House rules and pitfalls
Forbidden as a clue: part of a word in the grid, a word from the same family…
- Forbidden as a clue: part of a word in the grid, a word from the same family, a homonym or a word that sounds too close, a translation, a word still visible on the table, a hint at a card's position or at the number of letters.
- The clue must always be about meaning. A covered word can be used as a clue again.
- The spymaster stays poker-faced while their team debates, and the field operatives avoid looking at them.
Going further
Frequently asked questions · Rules on video · In the same family · Play with the game assistant
Frequently asked questions
Can the clue be any word?
A single word, with no comment around it, relating to the meaning of the cards. Forbidden: words visible on the grid, parts or derivatives of a word to find, homonyms and sounds that are too close, translations, and hints at position or number of letters.
What does the number mean?
The number of cards the clue links. The team may point to that many words, plus one if they have found all the words for the clue: useful for catching up on a word missed in an earlier turn.
What happens if you touch the wrong card?
A bystander or an opposing agent ends the turn on the spot; an opposing agent also goes to the other team. The assassin loses the game.
Can you stop before using up your guesses?
Yes, as soon as you have found at least one word of your colour. But you must always point to at least one word per turn.
Can the spymaster gesture or react?
No. They stay neutral: no gestures, no expressions, no comments. Even if their teammates find a right word by chance, the spymaster covers it as if it was planned.
Who starts, and how many cards does each team have?
The team shown by the key card starts and takes the double agent: nine words to get guessed, against eight for the other.
What if a clue is invalid?
The offending team's turn ends, and the opposing team covers one of its own words before playing.
Rules on video
Videos in French, hosted on YouTube.