# Pruie

Participants move through a clear space with eyes closed, asking 'Pruie?' when meeting someone. The secret Pruie stays silent, and anyone finding them joins hands or links arms to grow the silent group until everyone is connected.

**Time:** 15 minutes. Playmeo lists this as a short group game; UWT allocates 15 minutes to cover safety boundaries, silent selection, movement rounds, and debrief.
**People:** 6 to 24. Whole group mingling individually, merging into one linked chain

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Locate an unidentified silent person and assemble the entire group into a single linked chain without using vision or speech beyond one cue word.
**Use it when:** Use in an open, obstacle-free room as an active icebreaker or warm-up focused on non-verbal awareness, careful movement, and active listening.
**Skip it when:** Skip when the space contains tripping hazards, when participants cannot navigate safely without sight, or when group members decline physical contact.

## Materials and tools

- Open, level floor space cleared of chairs, bags, and cables
- Floor tape for marking boundary lines (optional)

## Before participants arrive

1. Clear the room of all trip hazards, furniture, and loose items.
2. Identify room boundaries with clear walls or floor tape lines.
3. Designate safe perimeters so no one steps off ledges or into doorways.

## Say this to open

Today we will play a locating game called Pruie. One person will be chosen secretly to be Pruie. Everyone will close their eyes, put hands up at chest height as bumpers, and wander slowly. When you encounter someone, ask 'Pruie?' If they answer 'Pruie?', you both turn and keep searching. If they stay completely silent, you have found Pruie. Link arms or hold hands with them and also become completely silent. The chain grows until everyone is linked. Participation is optional, and you can open your eyes or step aside at any second if you feel unsteady.

## How to run it

### 1. Establish safety and boundaries (3 minutes)

Explain boundary lines and the 'bumpers up' position (hands raised at chest level, palms forward). Agree on a stop word such as 'FREEZE' that anyone can call if there is a hazard. Identify anyone who prefers to act as an outside spotter rather than wandering with eyes closed.

### 2. Select the secret Pruie (2 minutes)

Ask everyone to close their eyes and turn around three times slowly in place to lose their orientation. Walk around the room and tap one participant gently on the shoulder. That person is Pruie. Pruie remains silent for the entire round.

### 3. Mingle and assemble the chain (6 minutes)

Instruct participants to keep eyes closed and walk slowly with bumpers up. When two people touch hands, one or both asks, 'Pruie?' If both reply 'Pruie?', they separate and continue wandering. When someone touches the secret Pruie, Pruie does not respond. The seeker links arms or stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Pruie and stops speaking. Anyone bumping into any linked member asks 'Pruie?'; receiving silence, they link to the chain and become silent too. Continue until all participants join the chain, or until the facilitator calls time.

### 4. Debrief (4 minutes)

Ask everyone to open their eyes and observe the final chain. Lead a brief whole-group discussion using the debrief questions, hearing from 2 to 4 volunteers.


## Debrief questions

- How did you adjust your movements once your eyes were closed?
- What cues helped you identify whether you had met another wanderer or part of the linked chain?
- What made it easy or challenging to connect to the chain as it grew larger?

**Finished output:** A single connected chain of all participants gathered in silence.

## Remote

This activity requires physical navigation and direct physical contact; it cannot be played online in its original form. An online alternative focusing on hidden identity is a secret leader or camera-cued detective game in gallery view, which is a different activity.

## Hybrid

Hybrid delivery is not recommended because the defining mechanic relies on physical touch and shared physical navigation in a room. Remote participants should be assigned a separate parallel text-based or breakout communication activity.

## Access and participation choices

- Participants may choose to serve as visual safety spotters along room perimeters instead of closing their eyes.
- Anyone may open their eyes at any time if disoriented or uncomfortable, without needing to explain.
- Touching elbow-to-elbow, holding an object, or standing adjacent without contact are accepted alternatives to linking arms.

## If the session gets stuck

**Participants walk too quickly and risk collisions.**

Call 'FREEZE'. Remind everyone to keep bumpers at chest height and take slow, deliberate steps.

**People talk or whisper clues while in the chain.**

Remind the group that the only permissible word is 'Pruie?' from seekers; all members of the chain must maintain total silence.


## Terms used here

- Bumpers up: Holding both hands at chest level, palms forward and elbows slightly bent, to feel nearby people before bumping into them.
- Pruie: The code name for the silent focal person and the resulting silent chain of participants.

## Sources and adaptation

Observed in Playmeo group games documentation, which lists 'Activity by Mark Collard'.

Retained core mechanics from Playmeo record (blind movement, 'bumpers up' safety posture, verbal 'Pruie?' cue, silent linking to the target). Added explicit spotter options, clear safety bounds, consent alternatives to arm-linking, time allotments, and debrief structure.

[Playmeo](https://www.playmeo.com/activities/fun-large-group-games/pruie)

[Playmeo](https://www.playmeo.com/activities/fun-large-group-games/pruie/)

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/fun-group-blindfold-game-builds-trust-social-connection-pruie/