The daily group chat
Because everyone gets the same seven prompts on the same day, you can compare notes. Share your result card without spoilers, then talk about the moments that surprised you: the answer that scored far higher than you expected, or the one that bounced. The share card shows scores and altitudes but never the answers you typed, so nobody’s plan is spoiled for the rest of the group.
Three ways to make it a game
- Predict the verdict. Before showing your score, each person guesses a verdict for the day: Updraft, Jet stream and so on. Closest guess wins a point.
- Same prompt, written down. Pick one prompt and give everyone twenty-five seconds on paper. Reveal together and count how many people wrote the same answer. Shared answers are the obvious ones; unique answers are the interesting ones.
- Streak club. Agree to keep a daily streak together. Remember that streaks follow one clock for everyone, midnight US Eastern, so players in different countries see the new day at different local times.
Sample evening: the Thin Air table
Here is a simple way to make a short, fun evening out of the game, with no preparation. Each person plays the day’s flight privately on their own phone first. When everyone is done, put the phones face down and go round the table with one question each: “Which prompt were you proudest of?” Without revealing the answer, each person describes the feeling. The group guesses the prompt, then the answer. Only after the guesses are made does the player reveal what they typed.
The game works because the process of guessing mirrors the game itself: you are working out what other people would and would not say. Players quickly learn each other’s habits. One friend always answers from the kitchen, another from sport, another from books and films. Over a few weeks, the group builds a shared map of everyone’s minds.
Keeping it friendly
- Do not rank people by score. Altitude is a mood, not a competition; two players can both enjoy a day with very different scores.
- Celebrate rejected answers too. A bounced answer is often a funny story, and a chance to tell us a word we should add.
- Let newcomers use More time without comment. It is there to make the game welcoming.
House rules that help
- No spoilers about answers before everyone has played. Talk about scores and feelings instead.
- Use More time freely; it is marked on the share card, so no one is misled.
- Allow regional words. If a friend uses a different name for a thing, treat it as a conversation starter.
- Celebrate the odd answers, not only the high scores.
With children
Younger players can play with a grown-up reading the prompt aloud and typing. The prompts are mostly everyday and friendly, and the game never shows chat or other players’ names. Because the game is general-audience, parents may like to supervise ads and use the Reject choice in Your privacy choices to switch off personalised ads.