Our bet is that since you’re here, you’ve definitely come across the ‘Green glass door’ game, and you’re a bit bugged because you haven’t figured it out.
Well, the good news is that we’re here to help you understand the game, and more than that, we’re also giving you some tips & tricks for making an impression next time you play the ‘Green glass door’ riddle.
And if you’re here by accident, stick around for a couple of scrolls. ‘Green glass door’ might get to you… It’s a great icebreaker, but also a fun activity during long car trips, camps, and even for a drinking game night!
Materials and equipment
For the classic version, you don’t need any materials or equipment. That’s what makes it perfect for indoors, as well as outdoors, during holidays, daytime, or nighttime.
Once you have the players, you’re good to go.
*Observation no. 1: However, if you plan a game night with some booze involved, well then… you should stop by the liquor store first. Make sure that everyone gets a beverage of their choice. (PS. The shots can become penalties, since you’re turning this into a drinking game.)
*Observation no. 2: If you’re suggesting ‘Green glass door’ as a fun activity for your class, maybe you could use a whiteboard and some markers, just to help players keep track of the game.
Skills and abilities
The ‘Green glass door’ riddle is all about:
- Focus – pay attention to the other players. Remember that some of them know the key of the game, some of them don’t.
- Memory – remember the players who got it correctly and try to discover a pattern in those answers.
- Logical thinking – avoid getting stuck and overthinking words.
Players and purposes
Playing the ‘Green glass door’ game is possible even with just two players. However, things are a lot funnier when there are several people involved.
The trick is that at least one player should have the ‘key’ to the ‘door’ (in other words, some do know the secret rule of the game), and at least one player should be clueless.
The goal of the game is for players to figure out what can be taken through the ‘green glass door’ by following the clues.
- Players who know the secret are supposed to give other players hints (*Note: They actually try to further confuse them) by saying ‘I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing ___, but not ___‘. They fill in the blanks with an object that can go through the green glass doors, and then with an object that can not.
- The purpose of the players who do not know the secret is to avoid being the last to notice a word pattern within a phrase.
What’s behind the ‘Green glass door’?
This is what everyone wants to find out. The ‘Green glass door’ riddle sparks a lot of interest and keeps most of the players guessing, while only a few know the answer. That is because the game is all about solving the mystery on your own. You need to look for the hidden clues within words or phrases, and you will eventually crack the code.
Once you have figured out the rule, you are on the winners’ side. You just need to keep playing until there is only one player left who hasn’t managed to solve the riddle.
‘Green glass door’: Rules
There is pretty much one rule and the entire game revolves around one sentence:
‘I’m going through the green glass doors and I can bring ___, but not ___’.
The trick is the word placed in the first blank space. What is the feature of the object or being that can get past the green glass door? Here is where players get stuck and spend a lot of time trying to crack the code.
- A player who knows the riddle goes first and says: ‘I’m going through the green glass doors and I can bring grass, but not flowers’.
The secret rule is that the name of the object/being must have double letters. These can be either consonants or vowels, and they have to be placed next to each other. (*Note: More on this in the next chapter)
- The next player must continue by changing the object/being they want to bring past the green glass door.
- If their suggestion does not contain a double letter, the previous players must say: ‘You cannot take that through the green glass door. You must ___’ – and here a penalty comes up.
The consequences can vary depending on the context: age group, setting, or how well the players know each other. Here are some examples:
- A dare if you are playing this during a car trip.
- Elimination, if you are using this as a classroom activity to entertain your students.
- If this is an outdoor game, campfire kissing or a spooky walk in the woods would be interesting penalties.
- If you are drinking and playing the ‘Green glass game’, then taking a shot after every wrong answer would be the way to go. For parties, you could also make them perform tricks or do particular tasks.
- The game continues, with some players having solved the riddle already, and some that are still confused and intrigued.
- When a player notices the pattern, the leader of the game must ask him or her to give an example rather than reveal the secret. This way, the other participants can keep guessing.
- The ‘Green glass door’ game can go on forever, pause and resume as needed until all players know the secret.
What can go through the ‘green glass door’?
Let’s take a look at something:
- Green – Double ‘e’
- Glass – Double ‘s’
- Door – Double ‘o’
In the title of the game lies the secret of the game itself. So, any object or being that is spelled with a double letter can go through the ‘green glass door’, respectively any word that is not spelled with a double letter can not.
Now, let’s look at some examples that could be considered correct, and some that could not.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing Harry Potter, but not Ron Weasley.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing the moon, but not the sun.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing mushrooms, but not a fungus.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing feet, but not toes.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing overalls, but not the blue jeans.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a happy man, but not a sad man.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing an apple, but not a banana.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a poodle, but not a dog.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a puddle, but not water.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing boots, but not sandals.
Tricking the others
The most common mistake players make is to focus on the relationship between the 2 objects (pepper VS. salt), rather than on their spelling. This is a trick for the players who do know the rule, so they can confuse things even more and prolong the enticing game.
- Use 2 similar objects (Eg. a rabbit, but not a hare)
- Use 2 related objects (Eg. a hammer, but not a nail)
- Use 2 objects that make a pair (Eg. pepper, but not salt)
- Use 2 objects from the same category (Eg. an apple, but not a banana)
- Use an object that is part of the other object (Eg. a glass, but not a window)
Our bet is on the following 3 categories. If you master these, you will definitely pique the players’ interest and confuse them more profoundly!
1. The category hoax
Once the ‘Green glass door’ game begins, players start uttering different statements, trying to get through the door different objects and beings. In the first round, introduce a category; let’s say ‘fruits’ – ‘I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a pineapple, but not a kiwi’. In the next round, you mention another fruit like, ‘I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing blueberries, but not grapes’.
In this way, some of the players will believe that it’s all about fruits and will come up with words such as ‘apricot’, ‘mango’, or ‘watermelon’. And neither will be correct.
Other examples of category hoaxes can be the following:
- Dairy:
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing cheese, but not yogurt.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing butter, but not milk.
- Animals:
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing puppies, but not dogs.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing squirrels, but not bears.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing kittens, but not cats.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing mooses, but not rhinos.
- Clothes:
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing slippers, but not shoes.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing sleeves, but not coats.
2. The relation hoax
This one refers to choosing words that are related to each other. It will be really fun when players will pick words that have something in common, and yet not get it right.
Take a look at some examples:
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a pool, but not water.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a tree, but not a forest.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a lollipop, but not a sucker.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing Halloween, but not candy.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing mommy, but not mom.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a mirror, but not a reflection.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a riddle, but not an answer.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a roof, but not a ceiling.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing daddy, but not dad.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing boots, but not sandals.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing boots, but not sandals.
3. The opposite hoax
This one presents objects/beings that are antagonistic.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing the moon, but not the sun.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a satellite, but not a planet.
- I’m going through the green glass doors and I’m bringing a queen, but not a king.
Variations of the ‘Green glass door’ game
You can come up with different rules for what can be brought through the ‘green glass door’, and you can even change the name of the game to match the parameters you have chosen. Here are some variations:
- Only items that are plural;
- Only items that are alive/dead;
- Objects with the first letter of the person sitting next to you;
- Only objects that end in a vowel (Eg. bottle, coffee, cigarette);
- Only objects that end in a consonant (Eg. pen, book);
- Only words that start with or contain other words (Eg. ‘bummer’ starts with ‘bum’, ‘doggerel’ starts with ‘dog’).
Now that you know the secret, use it wisely! Check out eTeamBuilding for other fun games!
