How to Host Jippis
A good Jeopardy night has everyone leaning forward, thumb on the buzzer, shouting answers a split second too late. A bad one has the same three people answering while everyone else checks their phones. The difference usually comes down to a few choices you make before the game even starts.
Keep it shorter than you think
It's tempting to fill a big board with lots of rounds, but energy drops fast once people start wondering how much is left. Five or six categories with five questions each is plenty for most groups. End while people still want one more round, not when they're relieved it's over.
Write questions most people can answer
In Jeopardy, knowing the answer is only half the game. The other half is being first to buzz. When most of the room knows the answer, every question turns into a race, and that's where the fun is. When nobody knows it, the room goes quiet and you move on to the next one.
Save the hard ones for the top of each category, and make sure the low-value questions are ones almost everyone gets.
Make the questions together
Quizzes get better when more people help write them. You get a mix of topics you'd never have thought of, and the inside jokes land harder when someone else came up with them. Invite friends as collaborators in the Jippis creator and you'll all edit the same board at the same time.
Just remember that whoever wrote a category probably shouldn't play it.
Use images
A photo says more than a long clue, and it's quicker to read from across the room. Try a baby picture of someone in the group, a zoomed-in album cover or a famous landmark from an odd angle.
Mix in multiple choice
If you're a big crowd or playing in teams, mix in some multiple choice questions so more people get to take part. With a regular question, only the fastest player gets to answer. With multiple choice, everyone picks an option on their own phone, so nobody sits out.
Tips by group size
The original show had three contestants, but that's no reason to stop there.
2 to 4 players
This is how Jeopardy was made to be played. Everyone plays for themselves, and with this few players every question is a real duel. You can go a bit harder on the questions, since each player gets plenty of turns.
5 to 10 players
You can still play one against one here, and the buzzer race gets more intense with every extra thumb. Lean on easier questions and multiple choice so the fastest buzzer in the room doesn't run away with the whole game.
More than 10 players
Once you're past ten, split into teams. Three to five teams works well. Teams talk through answers together, so even people who rarely buzz get to chip in, and the room stays loud. Mix up the teams so one table full of trivia buffs doesn't take every question.
Ready to build your board? Open the Jippis creator and invite a few friends to help.