AWfUL! Comics

The AWfUL! Game is a very simple yet highly entertaining game created by the minds behind AWfUL! Comics, and was developed in June 2002. It is designed to be played to kill time on public transport i.e. buses, trains, etc, but can also be played in other places such as classrooms, long queues or cinemas. The concept is quite simple, though playing the game successfully can require some skill which improves the more often you play.

HOW TO PLAY:
Before playing, you'll need to print off a sheet of official game strips. They can be downloaded as a zipped Word Document from here. Once you've printed off a sheet, you can then do the only tedious part of the game - neatly cut out all 176 individual strips and put them into some form of pouch of small purse for easy transportation. Once you've done that, you're ready to play!

1. Sit behind a complete stranger. Someone who you've never seen before, and for your own sake, someone you're not likely to see again after the game. If you are playing a two player match of The AWfUL! Game, you will need to have the person you are playing against sit next to you so that they are also seated behind the same stranger.

2. Take one, and only one, game strip out of the pouch or purse. Without the stranger in front of you noticing, place the strip on their head or shoulders.

3. If you are playing a two-player match, the second player must now do the same. Take it in turns going back and forth between you and your opponent. If it is a one-player game, simply continue to take out strips and put them on the stranger's head one at a time.

4. The stranger will eventually notice and turn around. In a one-player game, the aim is to see how many strips you can get on the person's head before they notice. In a two-player game, whoever gets caught trying to put strips on, or whoever's fault it is that the stranger catches on, loses.

Those are the basic rules of the game. Any other extra rules you wish to add are up to you. Have fun!