Last Updated on July 3, 2025 by The Official Game Rules Team

Brilliant or BS? is a fast-paced party trivia game that’s all about confidence, bluffing, and wit. Designed for those who love to outsmart friends—or fake their way through it—it challenges players not just to know the right answer, but to convince everyone else that they do.

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How to Play Brilliant or BS?

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1. Goal

Score the most points by convincing other players that you know the correct answers to trivia questions.

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2. Setup

• Designate a scorekeeper. This person will also be playing.
• Each player receives a set of white ABC answer cards.
• The player who suggested playing Brilliant or BS? is the first Judge. This person receives the black Brilliant and BS cards.
• Shuffle the yellow trivia questions and place them face down in a pile.

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3. Gameplay

• The Judge draws a trivia question and reads it out loud along with the three multiple-choice options.
• The other players secretly choose their answer using the ABC answer cards.
• Starting with the player to the Judge’s left and going clockwise, each person explains why they know the correct answer without saying or showing their chosen option. If you don’t know the answer, fake it!

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4. You Can Say Things Like

• “I learned about this place in school…”
• “I’m a big fan of this show…”
• “This person was in the news recently…”

You Cannot Say Things Like

• “I know the answer is A…”
• “I didn’t choose C because…”
• “I chose the answer with the highest number…”

You Also Can’t

• Use props, visual or audio aids to prove your point
• Use your phone to look up answers

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5. Judging

• The Judge interrogates each player to figure out who knows the correct answer and who’s only pretending to know. After everyone gives an explanation, the Judge makes their “Decisions” by giving out the Brilliant and BS cards.
• Each card represents a Decision.
  • The Brilliant card goes to 1 player you believe chose the right answer.
  • The BS card goes to 1 player you believe chose the wrong answer.
• You must give out at least 1 card but you can choose to give out both.

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6. Scoring

• The Judge reads the correct answer. Players who DID NOT get a Brilliant or BS card flip their answer first, followed by the BS Card holder. The Brilliant Card holder reveals last.

Points

• The Brilliant card holder earns 1 point
• Players who answer the trivia correctly earn 1 point
• The Judge earns 1 point for each correct Decision
• Players who accidentally say or hint at the answers during their explanation lose 1 point

Announce points after each round. If you need help keeping track of the score, download a scorecard from the FAQ page of brilliantorbs.com. (See example on reverse)

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7. Ending Your Turn

The scorekeeper announces the points. The player to the Judge’s left reads a new trivia question to become the next Judge.

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8. Winning

Play continues until each player has two turns as the Judge. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.

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9. Tiebreaker

Take turns reading trivia questions. Each correct answer earns 1 point until the tie is broken and a winner is declared.

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Video Tutorial