The stages
Every game moves through the same four stages. None of them lock viewers out.
A round's four stages
- Lobby — an interactive pacing tool, not a gate. It’s the beat before a round where the host lets the room fill, hypes what’s coming, and starts on the energy. Viewers already count as in the moment they play, so the lobby is about tempo, not access — and the host can skip it (see below).
- Loading — a brief prep step. Some games precompute for the round — a word game, for example, builds its closeness rankings so guesses rank instantly. It only appears for games that need it.
- Playing — the live round. Anyone can jump in by playing, even mid-round.
- Finished — the round is over. Results show, and the host can start another round.
Joining
Your first action joins you — a guess, a vote, or a like. There’s no join command to remember, and someone arriving from the FYP can start playing the instant they type.!join is optional. On the guessing, word, and reaction games it just puts
your name on the roster early — bragging rights, not a ticket — so you can
ignore it and play. Once you’ve joined a stream’s session, you stay joined as
the host switches between games.
The only games that require !join are the ones with a limited seat to
claim — 1v1 duels (Pairdle) or a contestant ladder (Big Giftor). They ask for
one !join because there’s an actual spot to take, not to keep anyone out.
Skip the lobby
When you want instant play instead of the pacing beat, flip Skip lobby on the setup screen — the round starts immediately and viewers are still auto-joined the moment they act. It’s ideal for a big or fast-moving room where a pause would kill momentum. (Seat and queue games keep their quick!join, so
they can’t skip.)
Play again does the same between rounds: it starts a fresh round right away,
skipping setup and the lobby and keeping everyone who was already playing. That
roster also carries across games in a stream, so back-to-back games don’t need a
new lobby.
Commands
Some games use simple chat commands to pick a side or line up:
Most other games just take your answer directly: type the word, the
letter, or
higher / lower, depending on the game.
Gifts
Many games give TikTok gifts an in-game effect. The exact behavior depends on the game and the host’s setup, but the common patterns are:- Lifelines — a gift banks a charge that saves you when you’d be eliminated.
- Reveals — a gift uncovers part of the answer for everyone, with bigger gifts revealing more.
- Time / progress — a gift advances the clock or the clue sequence (for example, unblurring an image faster).
- Game-specific moves — some games map gifts to bespoke actions.