PULTEVENT
Timeline game for parties: 7 ways to put a room's memories in order
A silver wedding anniversary at a golf club outside Columbus, Ohio. Six cards on the projector: "They meet at a bowling alley," "First apartment, above a laundromat," "Buster the dog," "The twins," "The move to Ohio," "The proposal." The couple's grown-up kids are on their feet at table one, shouting instructions. The bride's college roommate is certain the dog came before the proposal. The groom, quietly, is certain of nothing.
★ Free for the first 3 days, no card required
Put five life events in order: it sounds like the easiest game in the world. It isn't, because everyone in the room remembers a slightly different version of the story, and the argument about whether Buster arrived in 1999 or 2001 is worth more than any question I could write.
In PULTEVENT the timeline game is a ready-made section. The cards go up on the big screen, the room tells you where each one goes, you place them from your laptop or your phone, and when everyone is happy (or at least exhausted) you press Check. The correct order lights up, and you can read out the dates. Guests don't need phones for this one, which is a relief at family events where grandma's phone lives in a drawer.
7 timeline rounds for birthdays, anniversaries and work
1 The couple's story
For an anniversary, a wedding or a rehearsal dinner: how they met, the first home, the pets, the kids, the proposal, the big move. The two families always disagree about something.
How to run it. Get the dates from the couple themselves, then check them with one of the kids. Couples misremember their own history more often than you'd think.
The couple end up telling the stories behind each card, and the room hears them properly for once instead of in fragments over dinner.
2 Company history
For a company anniversary or a kickoff: the first client, the first office, the rebrand, the year the canteen stopped doing fish on Fridays. New starters play blind, veterans play with confidence and still get it wrong.
How to run it. Mix the official milestones with office folklore. The day the server room flooded is better material than the ISO certificate.
It tells the company's story without a speech, and people actually remember it afterwards.
3 Which came first
General knowledge in a timeline: sliced bread, the zipper, the ballpoint pen, the microwave oven. The room is sure the microwave is older than it is.
How to run it. Pick objects everyone uses daily. Check each date against two sources, because the internet disagrees with itself about inventions.
It works for any crowd, including one where nobody knows each other yet.
4 Hits by decade
Song titles as cards, and the room puts them in order of release. You play a few seconds of each one from your laptop as a hint if they're stuck.
How to run it. Stick to songs the room's age group grew up with. For a fortieth, that's the nineties; for a retirement party, go back further.
It sits naturally before the dancing starts, and the hints turn into a small singalong.
5 Grandma's century
At a family reunion or a ninetieth birthday: the year she was born, her first job, the wedding, emigrating, the first grandchild, the first great-grandchild.
How to run it. Ask the guest of honor to confirm the dates out loud after you press Check. She will add details nobody else knew.
The grandchildren learn the family story from the person who lived it, with the whole family listening.
6 Team relay
Each team gets its own set of cards in turn and has sixty seconds to call the order. You add points on the team scoreboard for every card in the right place.
How to run it. Have a different set ready for each team, so the teams waiting their turn can't copy the answer.
It adds a clear winner to a format that's usually a free-for-all.
7 End-of-term review
For a classroom or a school event: the topics the class covered this year, in order. Or the history unit, done as a game instead of a worksheet.
How to run it. Let the class argue in groups first, then take one answer per group.
Teachers get a review lesson that the class asks to repeat.
Cards on the big screen
Each event is a card. The room directs, you move the cards into position one by one.
One button to check
Press Check and the correct sequence is highlighted, so there's no arguing with the host about who was right.
Dates in your hand
The right order, with dates, shows on your phone. You can run the whole round standing among the tables.
Your own events
The day they met, the year the company was founded. Edit cards, delete them or add new ones.
How one round plays out
The cards appear on the screen in a jumble. You ask the room which one goes first. Somebody shouts, somebody disagrees, and you place the card where the loudest consensus points. On to the second card. When the last card is placed, you ask, "Final answer?" and press Check.
The correct order lights up. The cards the room got right stay put, the wrong ones are obvious at a glance. Your phone shows the dates, so you can read them out one by one and let the guest of honor tell the story behind each.
Fewer cards, better round
Five or six cards is the sweet spot. With eight, the room loses track of what's already been placed. With twelve, you're running a history exam.
Put two events close together in time and three far apart. The far-apart ones give the room confidence. The close pair is where the argument happens, and the argument is the game.
Getting the dates right
For a personal timeline, ask two people. The couple will give you one version, their oldest friend another. Where they disagree, ask a third person, or make that card the tie-breaker and let the room vote on it.
For company history, the office manager usually has a folder of old newsletters. For general knowledge, check each date twice. Nothing kills a round faster than a smart guest with a phone proving the host wrong.
You don't have to type everything by hand. The section has a spreadsheet template: fill in the events, years and a short note for each, then load the file (.xlsx, .csv or .txt). Save the set as a file and it goes with you to the next laptop.
Hosting the argument
Your job during the round is to referee, not to hint. Repeat what the room says so the back tables can follow, and give the quiet table a turn before the loud one.
"Dog before proposal?"
"Dog before proposal. He needed practice."
When one person is very sure and everyone else disagrees, let that person place the card. If they're right, they're the hero of the round. If not, the room has its first in-joke of the night.
Timeline at a work event
At an office party or a company anniversary, the timeline works as a quiet way to tell the firm's story. Nobody wants a twenty-minute speech about the founding years, but everybody wants to prove they know when the old logo was dropped.
It also mixes departments. Put one long-serving person on each team and the new starters will cling to them. By the end of the round, people who've never spoken are arguing like old colleagues.
What you need on the night
A laptop with a browser, a projector or TV over HDMI, and internet for the laptop. Guests need nothing. If you prefer to walk the room, open the console on your phone through the QR code in the app header, and place the cards from there.
Try it on the free 3-day demo first, no card needed. The full version is a one-time license with no subscription; pricing is on pultevent.ru/en.
About the author
PULTEVENT was built by Ruslan Barashkin, who has hosted weddings, birthdays and office parties since 2014: over 500 events, best host of Moscow 2024 and of Saint Petersburg 2023 at the TOP 100 Awards. He made it for his own nights first. The rest is at pultevent.ru/en.
How to run a timeline game at a party
- 1
Choose the story: a couple, a family, a company or general knowledge.
- 2
Collect five or six events with dates and check them with a second source.
- 3
Add the cards in the section, or load them from the spreadsheet template.
- 4
Connect the laptop to the screen and open the stage window.
- 5
Let the room call the order while you place each card.
- 6
Press Check, read out the dates and let the guest of honor tell the stories.
FAQ
Do guests need their phones?
Can I place the cards from my phone?
Is the built-in content in English?
How long does a round take?
Can teams compete?
Can I reuse a set at another event?
What does it cost?
See also
Run brighter events — with PULTEVENT
All audience interactions, a second screen and timing in one app. Guests join by QR — internet is needed for you and for them.
Start free