How the family quiz works
Everything you need before your first round — the two ways to play, how questions are scored, and how relatives join in seconds without an account or an app.
Two ways to play
Pick the setup that fits your room
Big screen + everyone’s phones
Best for a full gathering. One screen hosts the game; each guest plays along on their own phone as a buzzer.
- 1 Open your family tree and press Start a quiz.
- 2 A six-letter room code fills the big screen.
- 3 Everyone opens the join link on their phone, types the code and their name — grandma included.
- 4 Each question shows on the screen; the four answers light up on every phone.
- 5 The leaderboard updates between rounds, and a podium closes the game.
One phone, passed around the room
No TV needed. Add everyone’s names to a single phone and pass it around — perfect for car rides, power cuts and small evenings.
- 1 Choose pass-the-phone and add each player’s name.
- 2 The phone shows whose turn it is before every question.
- 3 Hand it over; that player taps their answer.
- 4 The phone keeps a running score for each person.
- 5 Pass it on — the highest score at the end wins.
Anatomy of a round
How a question is scored
Every round is the same simple rhythm — and speed is everything.
The question appears
A question about your family shows on screen with four big answers, each a distinct colour and shape so it reads at a glance.
Everyone taps an answer
Players tap on their own phone before the countdown runs out. Lock it in — you can’t change your mind.
Faster correct answers score more
A right answer always scores; answering quickly scores more. A wrong answer scores nothing, so there’s no penalty for a confident guess.
The leaderboard updates
Scores are tallied on the host and shown between rounds. Watch the uncle who “knows everything” slide down the board.
Question types
What the game can ask
Six kinds of question, all generated from your tree — plus any you write yourself.
Guess the relation
Example: “What is Lakshmi to Arjun?” Four options, one correct kinship term.
Who is older?
Four relatives, pick the eldest — settled by the birthdays in your tree.
Name the face
A photo from the tree with four names. The old black-and-white ones are the great equaliser.
Family counting
Example: “How many grandchildren does Ajja have?” Everyone’s sure until they count.
Your own questions
Add questions only your family can answer — where the 1998 wedding was, who burned the pongal.
Birthday months
Which month is Amma’s birthday? The scoreboard exposes who really remembers.
Joining a game
Guests are in within seconds
No account, no app, no store page. If they can open a link, they can play.
- 1 Open the join link on any phone browser.
- 2 Type the six-letter room code from the screen.
- 3 Pick a name to show on the leaderboard.
- 4 Wait for the host to start — you’re in.
Only the host needs a free RootsNRites account. Everyone else joins as a guest.
Where the questions come from
The quiz is built from your family tree
Relationships, birthdays and photos you’ve already added become the questions — a fresh deck every game. The more complete your tree, the richer and funnier the quiz gets.
In your language
Everyone plays in their own language
The game runs in all 22 scheduled Indian languages. Each player sees it in the language their phone is set to — grandma can play in Kannada while the kids play in English, in the same room.
Questions
Before you press start
How many people can play at once?
Do we need the internet?
What devices work?
How long does a game take?
Can I write my own questions?
Will elders and young children manage it?
How much does it cost?
Ready when you are
Your tree already knows the answers
Add your family, press start, and hand the room a reason to argue happily. The first quiz takes about five minutes to set up.
Start a family quiz