How to Play Machine Party: Beginner Guide

Machine Party is a party game built around a rotating set of short minigames. Each round pushes one player into a different lethal scenario while the rest of the party watches and judges. This guide covers the setup you need before your first session and the mistakes that most often end a run early.

What Machine Party is

A session moves a small group through a sequence of violent minigames. One player takes the active role per round, reading a short briefing and then carrying out an objective under pressure. Everyone else watches, reacts, and then swaps in.

Keep two things separate in your head while reading this site: confirmed launch facts (what is true today) and changing features (what the developer has said is still in motion). This page sticks to the first category.

Standard play or Arcade mode?

Machine Party offers two ways to structure a session:

1. Standard play — the full sequence of minigames, best for a longer evening.
2. Arcade mode — a shorter format that moves through a reduced set of simulations, useful when time is tight or when you are still learning the rhythm.

Start with Standard play until your group has seen most of the minigames, then switch to Arcade when you want faster rounds.

Three things to do before each round

1. Read the full briefing. The active player is the only one who sees the full instructions.
2. Confirm the failure condition. Know exactly what kills the run before you start moving.
3. Agree on the callout. Compress the rule into one short phrase the group can shout in the moment.

Advice by minigame type

• Memory and judgment — re-check the briefing before acting; the answer is rarely in the first thing you see.
• Race and chase — leave space around other players; collisions cost more than speed gains.
• Survival and interference — keep both the hazard and an exit in view.
• Collection and transport — move the object, not the fight; secure the path before grabbing anything.

Six common beginner mistakes

• Skipping the briefing text.
• Acting before the failure condition is clear.
• Fixating on one hazard while missing a second one.
• Using both inputs at once instead of one at a time.
• Interfering with other players without a purpose.
• Overextending late in a round when a small score is safer.

Beginner FAQ