The buzzer round: first to name the song or artist wins
A song plays on the big screen and everybody has a big buzz button on their own phone or laptop. The first to buzz gets the floor and names the song or the artist. Quick, loud and perfect for a quiz night.
Free to try. Whoever starts the game logs in with an email code, no password. Players who join a party room need no account and no app.
In the buzzer round nobody waits for a turn. A song starts, everybody listens, and the moment you know it you press buzz. Your buzz locks every other player out while you answer, so being first matters as much as knowing the song.
You answer by typing the title or the artist on your phone, which the game checks for you, or the host can judge spoken answers instead. A wrong answer only costs you a short lockout, and the buzzer opens again for everyone else.
How a round works
Each round follows the same short loop, and the title and artist stay hidden until the round is over.
Listen and buzz
After a short countdown the buzzer opens. Tap the big button, or press Space or Enter on a laptop. The first buzz the server receives wins the floor.
Answer in time
The player who buzzed has 15 seconds to type the title or the artist, or to say it out loud when the host judges.
A wrong answer reopens the buzzer
A wrong or missing answer locks that player out for 4 seconds. Everyone else can buzz again, and each player gets two tries per song.
Reveal
On a correct answer, or when the clock or the tries run out, the screen shows the title, artist and year, who won the point and what was tried.
How answers are checked and scored
Either the title or the artist earns the points, and naming both earns a bonus. The automatic check ignores capital letters, accents and punctuation, a leading "the", featuring credits, anything in brackets, remix and remaster tags, and small typos.
The winner of a round scores 1000 for the title or the artist, 500 extra for both, up to 500 for speed, and 50 more for each round in a row they have won after the first, up to 250. A wrong answer costs no points, only the lockout. Between rounds you see the top of the scoreboard, and the game ends with a podium.
Settings and who can play
The host picks the number of rounds and a round clock of 20, 30, 45 or 60 seconds. Auto-check typed answers is the default; Host judges is for a room where people shout the answer, and the host taps right, half right or wrong.
There is no player limit. Players scan the QR code on the big screen, or open the join page on a phone, tablet or laptop, type the 4 letter PIN and pick a name. No account is needed.
Step by step
- 1
Open the host page
Go to hitify.app/host on the big screen and sign in with an email code.
- 2
Pick a deck and the buzzer round
It is under More ways to play. Choose the deck, the rounds, the clock and who checks the answers.
- 3
Players join by QR or code
Everyone picks a name on their own phone, tablet or laptop. There is no player limit.
- 4
Buzz, answer, reveal
Buzz first, name the song or the artist, and watch the points land.
The timeline in one look
A timeline is a row of songs in release order. You hear a new song, never its year, and decide where it fits between the songs already on the row. Get it right and the row grows.
Tips for a better game
Buzz when you are sure
Two wrong tries and you are out for the song, so a confident buzz beats a lucky one.
Type short
Just the title or just the artist is enough. Saying both earns the bonus, so add the second if you know it.
Use Host judges in a loud room
When people call out answers in the same room, spoken answers are faster than typing.
Why it works at a party
No cards needed
Everything happens on screen, so there is nothing to print, shuffle or lose under the sofa.
Works in the browser
No app to install, not even for a party room. Open the page and play.
Three ways to play
One phone for a small group, or a party room with a big screen for a bigger crowd.
Prefer real cards?
Make your own card game: paste a playlist, print the PDF at home or order the printed cards.
Frequently asked questions
What if two people buzz at the same time?
The game takes the first buzz it receives. Everyone else is locked out until that player has answered.
Does a spelling mistake count as wrong?
Small typos are forgiven, as are accents, capitals and extra credits. A different word is wrong.
Can I play on a laptop?
Yes. Press Space or Enter to buzz and type your answer with the keyboard.
What does it cost to play?
Popular public decks are free to play. If you turn your own playlist into a deck, the first 100 cards of that deck are free.
Do players need an account or an app?
No app is needed. Whoever starts the game logs in with an email code, no password. Players who join a party room scan a QR code or type the 4 letter room code, then pick a name.
Ready for the first song?
Pick a deck, choose how you want to play and have the first round running within a minute.
Hitify is not affiliated with Hitster or Jumbo. Hitster is a registered trademark of Koninklijke Jumbo B.V.