Red Door Yellow door is a spooky game that can be played on slumber parties or campfire nights with a minimum of two players, with one being the guide.
This game is also called Black Door White Door or the “Doors of Mind”.
Disclaimer – beware!
Before we dig into the rules, note that this game should only be played in a safe environment.
It is not for the faint-hearted; it can leave a strong impact, with the player falling victim to depression, anxiety or another mental disorder.
Only those who are willing to take part should play this game because it can get tough as the game proceeds.
So DON’T play this game for more than 1 hour!
Too much time in the dream state can cause dangerous effects in the form of mental disorder, or depression.
Summary
The Red Door, Yellow Door requires at least two players: a leader who stays awake leads another who sleeps through a corridor of rooms with different color doors.
The sleeping player experiences some uncanny events that can be both exciting and frightening.
How to play the game
Players
At least two players are required:
- One who knows the rules and is the leader
- Second is the player who actually experiences the spooky ride through the doors of his mind
The number of players is not restricted to two though. Everyone can join in, given they are not faint-hearted.
Items
There are a few items that add to the spookiness of the game and are used to connect with the supernatural world.
- Some candles
- Lighters or a matchbox
- A quiet space for the player to go in a dreamy state ( In a campfire, there can be a unanimous silence) (For a slumber party, a quiet room will work )
- An eye mask or cloth to cover the players’ eyes
- An alarm clock or timer
- Cushions ( Completely optional – just something comfortable for the player to place their head on. It can also be the lap of the leader. )
- A voice recorder or some other device for recording sounds
Now the game – let’s get spooky!
Step 1
Start with the ritual when you are calm and ready to dive in. Find a quiet place to focus and concentrate.
The leader sits cross-legged on the floor with the other player placing their head in their lap and covers their eyes with a cloth or eye mask.
The player raises his/her hands in the air, relaxes and keeps his/her eyes closed. His/her eyes remain closed for the remainder of the game.
Step 2
To put the second player in a trance, the leader massages the temples and slowly but continuously repeats the mantra of
“red door, yellow door, any other color door”
.
If there are other people present, they can chant along with the leader to help the player go into a dreamy state.
Another way is a statement that some leaders use while playing the game, “You are in a corridor, numerous doors are present on both sides of the corridor, I want you to explore these doors and describe them to me. What do you see, hear, touch and feel?”
Step 3
When the player sees any images, he/she is to put their hands down which is a signal that the game has officially started. The chanting will stop at this point and what would follow will be some questions asked by the leader.
The leader enquires what the player is seeing and asks for its description, as in the surroundings, the way the player feels.
The subject is to answer when the leader enquires. He/she must always answer.
The leader also prods the player to go ahead and try opening any door he/she sees.
It is very important that the leader asks about the emotions of the subject as it plays a vital role in steering the game ahead because if the subject is not comfortable, nine out of ten times, it will go wrong.
The leader is pivotal to the game, conducting the dream state orchestrating the moves of the player(subject).
Step 4
The timer goes off. Now it is time to come back to reality. The leader should guide the player back to the real world by using whatever words he/she consider suitable.
All doors that have been opened must be closed before waking up.
Once everyone is fully aware, the recording device should be switched off.
This is a video about playing the game with friends:
Questions the leader can ask to figure out what’s going on in the player’s mind are
- “Are you standing in a room?”
- “Can you describe what the room looks like?”
- “Are you feeling safe here?”
- “Do you see or feel any association with the door?”
- “What does that person look like?”
- “How do you feel about this person?”
- “Which color doors are in the corridor?”
- “Are there more than one or two rooms?”
- “What are you feeling standing in front of the green door?”
- “Open the green door and go through it.”
How to End the Game
The alarm clock or time stopper or any other device that is used to keep a track of the time that the player is under a trance is significant to the game.
So it is important to set the clock and as soon as it goes off, the player is to be awakened and brought out of the trance. It is the guide who leads the player out of the dream state into reality.
The words uttered by the guide depends on his choice, but it is important to note that while coming out of the dream state, the awakening should not be abrupt. The corridor of doors should recede out of the scene gradually and so should all the doors be closed if any left open once the player comes out of the trance.
Once awake, it will take some moments to adjust to the real world. The guide will use words of comfort and slow, steady utterances for the player to get comfortable with his surroundings and make his awareness an easy transition.
When the person has fully returned and in his senses, the candles should be blown out and if there was any audio or voice recorded for later, the device should be turned off. The player can listen to it later.
Exploration
The Player is to explore fully what his mind offers. Attention is the key .
The person sensing and feeling every single nuance attentively is significant to the game. What is in the surroundings, what type of clothes the player is wearing, are there any items the player is carrying around in his pocket, there can be something useful like a key to a lock.
All this exploration is possible, only if the guide helps the player notice and pay attention to such things with his questions.
Before exploring the rooms, the player should take a closer look at what he is to face. His feelings matter a lot. If he does not feel good about a door, he should be apprehensive and on guard because it is a way of his mind signaling him to be cautious.
The color of the door, its shape, and size, even the doorknob or its temperature is to be observed carefully and how the player feels about all of this, only then he should proceed to open it.
If there is a door, the player does not want to enter, although the guide is to provoke him to explore. But if the player shows extreme reluctance, the door should not be explored.
Advice for players
- Any sort of people the player encounters in the expedition can trick him/her and should be avoided.
- If a player enters a room filled with clocks or watches, he is advised to escape immediately. Clocks are big traps.
- The choice of place is the player’s – he/she can take any path, go anywhere but is advised to go either up or down.
- In the dream state, objects and ways of lighter colors are better than darker places and colors because of the element of uncertainty and evil.
- If the player gets locked in a room, he/she is to try their hardest to wake up, because once stuck, the player will never be able to escape the dream state.
- Death is not metaphorical in this game because it is speculated that if the player dies in the dream state, he could die in his reality as well.
- If the player comes face to face with an uncanny and eerie man who draws chills through his body, the player is advised to try to wake up and end the game instantly.
- If an exigency occurs and the player cannot shake the trance or wake up from the state, the leader is instructed to bring him/her out by physical exertion, shaking hard and bringing him/her back to reality.
Game Not Working/ Bad Signs
If the game sometimes does not work, it might be because the player is too hyperactive to go under in the trance state, other times it might be the guide who is unable to make the player uncomfortable and the game does not proceed. They should both be in harmony with the game to work.
If there are incidents when the guide witnesses’ bad signs or the player is too deep in, he should try to bring him back even if the player is unable to utter it.
The bad signs can be the flickering of the candles, or the radio or voice recorder acting up or even the silence of the player in his dream state are all signs that show the player is too deep in and he should be taken out immediately.
Experiences of players
Story 1
One player tried a variation of this game on their mother and maternal aunt twice, and it worked both times.
She used this as the starting point, “You are at one end of a very long corridor. There are numerous doors on both sides, spanning the entire length. I want you to explore these doors and the rooms behind them. Describe to me, what you can touch, feel, see and hear with detail…” and ended up having an interesting game with the elders.
However, she is unable to try this on herself because her mind is full of creepy stuff.
Story 2
Two best friends played this game. The sleeping player had a twin brother and they both had brown eyes. The girls started the game, unaware of the rule to stay away from any man they might encounter in their dream like state.
In her trance, the girl came across a man in a suit and started talking to her. He praised her eyes, the girl thanked him, and in her dreamy state, she rolled over and threw up.
After waking up, she realized that her eyes had turned hazel, and to her shock, when she went home, her twin brother’s eyes had turned hazel too (although he was not even present in the house when the girls were playing).
The girl says that even in her old pictures, she can see that her eyes are brown. Spooky, eh?
Conclusion
This game is believed to be safe than other urban legends games! If you can play it following the rules, this game is the one you can give a hit!
That is all about the Red Door, Yellow Door game. Stay safe, follow the rules, and you are sure to have a blast with your friends and family while playing this game.
Do let us know if you have any questions, different variations of the game, or simply share your spooky experiences with us!
rose says
when i try to do it,i don’t see anything nothing happens
Paige says
My friends brother tried it, it worked… kinda. He only saw one door and i told him to open it, it was locked. Ictold him to pull it instead of pushing it and he broke the handle off it.
rose says
when i try to do it,i don’t see anything nothing happens what should i do
Kayla says
If you can’t get into the dream state your either not relaxed or your trying too hard. Take deep breaths and let your mind clear, once your “guide” starts speaking envision what they say to the best of your ability. It could also be your not following all the instructions, make sure you have candles, it won’t work without candles and if you watch those videos without candles they are faking, candles are an envision of light and purity, they are a “connection” to the spiritual realm.
Isabella Alexandra says
It worked for my friends without candles
Abby says
then it was easier for them to get into that state of mind. Candles just help calm and connect the person to more of the spiritual world
Chansook of Bangtan says
It doesnt work for everyone i TRIED didnt work my friends TRIED and it worked
Kennedy says
Meditate before
kyo says
It didn’t work
Moa says
We are doing this now and all of a sudden one of the lights turned on is that supposed to happen?
maliq says
i saw a painting and nopw i cant get it out of my head and now i keep getting these cough spurs where i cant stop and im chocking on nothing
Susan says
Drink some water sweetie
Angela says
That is absolutely terrifying
Adia says
Was it a painting of some body part or an eyebrow? I would really need to know
Rebecca says
It works with out candles too.
My friends and I tride it in school on Break and it worked with out candles!
bob says
us too
it worked at school and our friend john saw his dead grandpas stuff and started crying in and shaking
Kambri Poor says
cause u weren’t calm enough and were you in a quit place when you and some else played???
Sam says
What happens if im not closing a door before leaving?
Sky says
You’ll be stuck in the trance from before. But DON’T open the red door.
Anna says
Is this game good to play???
khanwareesha says
if you die in the game are you gonna die in real life
jaquees sullivans says
yes make sure what ever you do DO NOT open the red door.
Holly says
What happens if you open the red door, and does everyone go to the same place does it all looks the same for everyone
Anonymous says
It’s different for everyone it’s not the same
Monica Rico says
Why?
KIKKO says
why?
Celeste says
Why cant you open the red door? I played this with my friends and almost all of them went into the red door.
ᴋᴇʀᴀ says
hi uhm me and my friends played this game at school recently and we all are connected somehow and we don’t know how to unconnect from eachother and from the game for good…any ideas or can you help us?
sophie says
what do you mean by being all connected
Girly says
This game is dangerous and has to do with devils, please do not play it can really effect you.
jaquees sullivans says
Actually i saw god and he turned me black and now i can say the n word.
Hannah says
bahaha
matti says
Omg I did this and so saw the man in the suit and he had a knife and it was all bloody then he started running toward me and he tried to stab me but then I woke up bruhhhhh this is so scary dude. Also my friends and I always get the same scenario where the guy kills two little kids called Ben and Lily on a train and if we do it at the same time we see each other???
Ricasia says
Omg I saw a man behind me in black and had a bloody knife too
Andree says
To say the truth this is called hypnosis
Marina says
Was passiert wenn ich gehe ohne die Türen zu schließen oder wenn ich in einem Raum eingeschlossen wurde und dann geweckt werde, kann es sein das ich wenn ich schlafen gehe wieder zurück an diesen Ort kommr und nicht von alleine schaffe zu fliehen?
Cooki says
What happens if you don’t close the doors?!?
My friend wants to play this at my sleepover but it sounds really horrible and scary. I don’t know if I should play this…
barry and sarah says
dont worry, just follow the rules and you’ll be fine
anonymous says
ok so my friends and i did it and we were all tied into the game somehow… my friend said she saw my other friend who left when we were about to start, then she heard humming. she saw a dog with similar descriptions to my other friends dog and she heard my name being whispered. she’s been hearing whispers all day….
Iris says
I wanna play this game but i’m afraid that i’ll die or sum.
Casey Hayes says
No way Iris. Give it a chance.
Terence White says
My classmates is trying it I really want to try it
Joe Mama says
The game is a hoax. I don’t think it’s real at all.
Sophie says
But my friends and people I know have done it I thought it wasn’t real but…. I think it is
rosie says
well you also have t give it a try. and if it doesn’t work for you then it doesn’t work. i tried it with my friend and we swore to god that we would tell the truth. and she has never lied to me. so when she said she was in a dark hallway i believed her.
Annika says
I’d love to play this game but I read all these comments and I can’t decide… what should I do?
Casey Hayes says
It’s really impressive
Ayla says
I tried it and it felt so real… It was today (valentines day) and I saw this guy that I’ve known my whole life and he was about to kill himself before I woke up… I tried it once more and I saw knifes everywhere. Also my friend always sees a floating flower, what does that mean?
Luke says
My friend went into a green door and was at his 5th birthday party. He left and went up a long staircase. He described golden gates with lots of clouds, and he saw his grandparents and his aunt who had passed away recently. Pretty freaky.
help says
it wont work i need help
Meghan Gantz says
I played this at my house with my sister and we both have brown eyes.
I was the sleeper and she was the leader. It took about 30 seconds for it to work. When I woke up I had ocean blue eyes.
rosie says
what did you do while sleeping? i think that is so cool but i don’t know how to change my eye color
... says
thats cool tho
Gracie says
What are the rules
elsa says
my friend played and she saw a bunch of people but they were all mute and every room had a paper that said “joseph’s diary” and different dates on all of them and there was a black lady that had her leg cut off and in one room there was a bag of a leg in a closet, and every person had blood on their hands and said “it wasn’t me” or “i’m sorry” over n over, and the man had a bloody knife in his hands.
chelsie says
how do i get it to work i tried everything
Ricasia says
It is I tried it
somebody says
That’s what a lot of people say but, it’s like a dream but someone is controlling it for you and like it’s an actual horror movie but not really. All I’m saying is that I hope you played it safely or something like it’s no really real but kind of? Sorry if that didn’t make sense
ywoi says
It wont work on me and my really close friend but it works on my other friends. why?
Abby says
maybe because you aren’t calm enough or you are trying to hard to get into that state of mind. using candles helps to relax you, try using some. meditating before doing it will get you in a calmer state. try that to. just clear your mind
mariam allamy says
we do it in school
barry and sarah says
us too, we tried on a few people and it worked