Guide · Offline
An offline party game app for when the signal disappears
The cabin has no Wi-Fi. The campsite has one bar on a good day. The flight is six hours. Here’s what to look for in a party game app that works offline, and how to run a game night on one phone.
Kumustahan is a bilingual conversation card app: 1,200 questions in English and Filipino across 7 decks, with a short reflection on the back of every card.
What makes sharing a quiet moment with a friend comfortable for you?
Ano ang nagpapakomportable sa'yo kapag tahimik lang kayo ng friend?
The silence can stay silent. You do not need to fill it for this answer.
Puwedeng manatiling tahimik. Hindi kailangang punuin ng usapan para sa sagot na ito.
In short
The idea
An offline party game app keeps all of its content on your phone, so it works in airplane mode, at a cabin with no Wi-Fi or at a campsite with no signal. The easiest kind for a group is a pass-the-phone game: one phone, everyone takes a turn, nothing to download mid-game.
Kumustahan is one of these, but it’s a conversation game, not trivia or charades. Below is what to check before you leave, and how to run a night with it.
Tips
- Test the app in airplane mode before you leave.
- Bring a power bank.
- Add everyone’s names so the app shows whose turn it is.
- Start light, then open up as the group gets smaller.
- Have a no-phone game ready in case the battery dies.
Decks for this
When you need offline
- Cabins, lake houses and rentals with no Wi-Fi
- Camping and campfires
- Long flights and train rides
- Road trips through dead zones
- Basements and venues with bad reception
- Traveling abroad without a data plan
What to check before you leave
- Test it in airplane mode at home. Some apps say “offline” but need to download content first, or need a login.
- No account required, or sign in before you go.
- One device is enough. Games that need everyone’s phone on the same network won’t work without Wi-Fi.
- Battery. Bring a power bank; a game night drains a phone faster than you’d think.
- Enough content to last a weekend without repeats.
Running a game night on one phone
In Kumustahan, pick a couple of decks (Just for fun and Icebreakers are good for a mixed group), choose Keep it light, and add everyone’s names so each card shows whose turn it is. Pass the phone around the circle. The person holding it reads the card aloud and answers, or names who answers. Anyone can pass.
As the night goes on and the group gets smaller, switch to Open up and add the Barkada (friends) or Getting to know deck. That’s usually when the best conversations of the trip happen.
What it isn’t
Kumustahan is a conversation game. There are no buzzers, scores or timers built in, and it won’t replace a trivia or charades app if that’s what your group wants. Plenty of groups use both: a loud game early, then conversation cards around the fire. If you want to add some competition, see how to turn conversation cards into a game.
Offline games that need no phone at all
If the battery dies, the classics still work: Two Truths and a Lie, Fishbowl with scrap paper, Telephone Pictionary, or Story Chain around the fire. We describe each in game night without board games and conversation games for groups.
The questions
Questions for an offline game night
Real cards from the app’s Just for fun, Icebreakers and Barkada decks, all available with no signal.
Around the fire or the table
5 questions
Quick, silly and loud.
-
Two choices: unlimited snacks or perfect sleep for one week. Defend your pick.
Dalawa lang: unlimited snacks o perfect sleep for one week. I-defend ang pick mo.
Back of the card
Low-stakes choices still reveal priorities. Snack joy and good sleep are both valid campaign platforms.
Kahit low-stakes, may priorities pa rin. Snack joy at good sleep, parehong valid campaign platform.
-
Choose a fake job title that fits your personality.
Pumili ng fake job title na bagay sa personality mo.
Back of the card
A fake title can be more accurate than a real one. It gives a playful name to the thing people already notice.
Minsan mas accurate pa ang fake title kaysa real one. Binibigyan lang niya ng playful name yung napapansin na ng tao.
-
You wake up on a peaceful island with food and shelter ready. What do you do first?
Nagising ka sa tahimik na isla na may pagkain at matutuluyan na. Ano ang una mong gagawin?
Back of the card
Imagine you find a path across the island. Would you follow it or stay where you are?
May nakita kang daan sa isla. Susundan mo ba ito o mananatili ka muna sa kinaroroonan mo?
-
Imagine a place to stay: tiny with a great view or huge but far from everything. Which do you choose?
Isipin ang titirhan mo: maliit pero maganda ang view o malaki pero malayo sa lahat. Alin ang pipiliin mo?
Back of the card
Put one favorite thing in your new place. What belongs there?
Maglagay ng isang paborito mong bagay sa bagong titirhan mo. Ano iyon?
-
Give yourself a funny award for something you are surprisingly good at.
Bigyan mo sarili mo ng funny award para sa bagay na surprisingly magaling ka.
Back of the card
A funny award makes small talents official. Some skills may not belong on a resume, but they still deserve a ceremony.
Ginagawang official ng funny award ang small talents. Hindi man pang-resume, deserve pa rin ng ceremony.
Trip stories
5 questions
For a group that’s been through a few adventures.
-
What failed plan with friends turned into a good memory?
Anong pumalpak na plano kasama ang friends ang naging masayang memory?
Back of the card
The failed plan can be the story's best plot twist.
Puwedeng ang pumalpak na plano ang pinakamagandang plot twist sa kuwento.
-
What funny experience made you late to meet a friend?
Anong nakakatawang nangyari kaya ka na-late sa pagkikita ninyo ng friend?
Back of the card
Retell the delay as a very dramatic excuse, if you like.
Kung gusto mo, ikuwento ang pagka-late na parang sobrang dramatic na palusot.
-
Share one time your timing was really off and it became funny later.
Mag-share ng time na sobrang sablay ng timing mo at naging funny later.
Back of the card
Bad timing can be annoying in the moment and hilarious later. It has a way of turning itself into comedy.
Yung bad timing, nakakainis sa moment pero funny later. Parang kusa siyang nagiging comedy pag binalikan.
-
Tell about a ride home with friends that you still remember.
Magkuwento ng pag-uwi kasama ang friends na naaalala mo pa.
Back of the card
You could remember just the last thing someone said before you parted.
Puwedeng balikan ang huling sinabi bago kayo naghiwa-hiwalay.
-
Name a place that reminds you of a funny story with friends.
Magbanggit ng lugar na nagpapaalala ng funny story kasama ang friends.
Back of the card
That place gets a new name just for this story. What would it be?
Kung papangalanan mo ang lugar ayon sa kuwentong ito, ano ang itatawag mo?
Late, when it’s just a few of you
5 questions
Slower questions for the end of the night.
-
What makes sharing a quiet moment with a friend comfortable for you?
Ano ang nagpapakomportable sa'yo kapag tahimik lang kayo ng friend?
Back of the card
The silence can stay silent. You do not need to fill it for this answer.
Puwedeng manatiling tahimik. Hindi kailangang punuin ng usapan para sa sagot na ito.
-
Who is a friend you can sit quietly with without it feeling awkward?
Sino yung friend na kaya mong samahan nang tahimik without it feeling awkward?
Back of the card
Comfortable quiet is its own kind of closeness. It means the friendship does not always need talking, joking, or trying hard.
May closeness din sa tahimik na hindi awkward. Ibig sabihin, hindi laging kailangang magsalita, magpatawa, o mag-effort nang todo.
-
What are you looking forward to over the next few weeks?
Ano ang inaabangan mo sa susunod na mga linggo?
Back of the card
Finish if you like: "The part I cannot wait for is..."
Kung gusto mo, ituloy: "Ang pinaka-inaabangan ko ay..."
-
Finish this sentence: “In this next season, I hope I get to experience...”
Tapusin mo yung sentence: “Sa next season, sana ma-experience ko...”
Back of the card
This sentence can stay small or open wide. Either way, it gives your hope a place to begin.
Puwedeng maliit lang o biglang lumawak yung sentence. Either way, may starting point yung hope mo.
-
Which simple friendship tradition would you like to keep even when everyone gets busier?
Anong nakasanayan ninyong gawin ng friends mo ang gusto mong ituloy kahit maging mas busy kayo?
Back of the card
What would be the easiest version to keep on a busy week?
Ano ang pinakamadaling bersiyon nito kapag busy ang linggo?
An offline party game app
Frequently asked questions
Is there a party game app that works offline?
Yes. Pass-the-phone apps that keep their content on your phone work with no signal. Kumustahan is an offline conversation card app: no Wi-Fi, no account, one phone passed around.
What games can you play with no Wi-Fi?
Offline apps like conversation card games, plus classics that need nothing at all: Two Truths and a Lie, Fishbowl, Telephone Pictionary and Story Chain.
Does Kumustahan need internet?
No. Every card is on your phone, so it works in airplane mode, with no account. 420 cards are free.
Bring a better question to the table.
Free on iPhone and Android. 420 cards free, no account, works offline.