SMSPlayers

The games.

We run collaborative mystery games over text message. You get clues, you talk to each other, you work out what happened. No app, no account, no login.

How a game works

1. You joinText the keyword on your invitation to the number it came from. That text is your opt-in — nothing starts until you send it.
2. The game beginsClues, messages and developments arrive as texts, at the pace the story runs.
3. You playReply to move things forward. What you and the other players send changes what happens next.
4. It endsEvery game finishes. When yours does, gameplay messages stop on their own.

What we send you, and what we don't

Texts from us are the game. That's all they are. Clues, story beats, and replies to what you send — for as long as your game is running, and not after.

We don't send promotional texts. No offers, no links to buy anything, no news about other things we're doing. If you want to hear about future games, you can ask us at the end — on the web, once you've seen whether you liked it.

Our games are sponsored

Each game is paid for by a sponsor. We're telling you that before you play, because you should know who's footing the bill for something you're being asked to spend your attention on.

Who it is, you'll find out while playing — they're part of the story, and spoiling that would spoil the game. At the end we point you to their own game, which is free on the app stores. It's free whether you played with us or not, so it isn't a gift and it isn't a prize — it's a recommendation, and it has nothing to do with who wins the contest.

Stopping, and getting help

Leaving mid-game is always allowed and costs you nothing, and it doesn't affect a contest entry you've already made.

What it costs

Playing is free. Message and data rates may apply — that's between you and your mobile carrier, and depends on your plan. Message frequency varies by game and by how much you play.

Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages.

Who can play

These games are for adults. You must be 18 or older to take part, and you must play on a phone that's yours, using a number you're allowed to use.

If we learn a player is under 18, we remove them from the game and delete their number. If that's someone you know, email us and we'll take care of it.

Your number, and what we do with it

We use your phone number to run the game. That's it. We don't sell your number, we don't share it with our sponsor, and we don't share it for anyone else's marketing.

The full detail is in our Privacy Policy, the rules of the program are in our Terms, and the contest itself is governed by the Official Rules.

What's real and what isn't

The game is real. The prizes are real. The story is not.

Messages you get while playing are part of a fiction you agreed to join. Nothing inside that story is a real emergency, a real legal notice, or a real demand for money — however urgently it's written. That's the game working, not something going wrong.

We will never ask you by text for a password, a payment, or a Social Security number. If a message claiming to be from us does, it isn't us. Text STOP and email us.

One honest exception: if you win a prize worth $600 or more, US tax law requires us to report it, so we'll need your legal name, address and taxpayer number on an IRS form. That happens only after you've been notified as a winner, never over text, and never before. The detail is in the Official Rules.

Last updated: September 4, 2026