How to Play Impostor with Inventions That Changed History

What an Inventions That Changed History round looks like

Each round deals nineteen real inventions, from the Wheel to the Mechanical Clock. Everyone describes what their invention does or what it changed, and the impostor writes an invented clue.

The category fools people because we all know the objects, but very few can place their century or country of origin. That is where the impostor profits from the general ignorance.

• Best with 4 to 12 players
• Rounds last 3 to 6 minutes
• Great for families, classrooms and work meetings
• Free in the browser, nothing to install
• Pairs well with Modern and Futuristic Technologies

How the database deals the inventions

The system hands out everything from the Compass to the Artificial Satellite. A useful clue describes the function or the consequence: 'it lets you sail out of sight of land', 'it made books cheap', 'it powered half the planet'.

The impostor is caught when they describe a modern gadget while the table is playing old inventions, or when they give a date that does not match their invention.

1. Create the room and select the Inventions That Changed History category
2. Write a clue about what the invention does, never its name
3. Read the other clues and spot the one from the wrong century
4. Ask the suspect what problem their invention solved
5. Vote together and the ejected player shows their card

The real inventions in this category and their usual clue

These inventions are in the game database. Placing their function and their century is enough to catch the impostor on the first read.

Strategies for an impostor who knows nothing about inventions

You do not need dates. The impostor wins when the clue describes something that sounds like an important invention, even if it is not one.

• Use generic functions: 'it changed how we travel', 'it made things faster'.
• Anchor your clue to a century already named: 'also from the 1800s' costs nothing.
• Avoid inventors. Naming Edison when nobody else does makes you stand out.
• Do not say 'it runs on electricity' if the table is playing old inventions.
• Ask a question back: 'is it still used today?' forces the others to explain.
• Match the length of the other clues, one short line works best.

How to catch the impostor with invention facts

Historical order is your best filter. If somebody slips a digital gadget into a round of old objects, the contradiction shows itself.

1. Ask for the exact function, a clue with no use is vague
2. Compare materials: wood, steam, electricity, silicon
3. Hunt the impossible, the Wheel does not need electricity
4. Watch who writes late, the impostor needs time to invent
5. Align the vote before voting, split accusations hand over the round

Common mistakes that ruin the round

• Naming the invention in your first clue
• Confusing the television with the radio and accusing without proof
• Voting against the player who knows the least about technology
• Reusing the same clue round after round
• Playing with more than 12 people, the chat becomes unreadable
• Debating who invented something instead of comparing functions

Recommended settings for an inventions game

With a technical group the full list is a real challenge. With children, it is better to keep only the inventions they recognise from school.

House rules for the inventions category

Once the group knows the list by heart, these house rules raise the difficulty:

• Inventions before 1900 only
• Mandatory clue: mention the country or the century
• One-word clues
• Two impostors with different fake clues
• The ejected player becomes the impostor in the next round

Frequently asked questions

Game guides