Why does Düdle have an umlaut? Why not! Also, it makes it more likely a reader will pronounce it Doodle instead of Dudley... maybe? 

Here at Düdle we’ve spent a lot of time writing, posting, and sharing things with umlauts, so we’ve gotten pretty good at finding them on our keyboards. Do you want to share things about Düdle and do it cörrëctlÿ? Or if not correctly, with an umlaut? Here’s how!

On a Mac, hold down option and hit u. A floating ¨ will appear. Then hit u again and it will become ü.

On a Windows, hold down ALT while you type 0252 (using the key pad, not the numbers along the top of the keyboard, and make sure Num Lock is on)

On a Windows laptop without a key pad? Press Start > Accessories > System Tools > Character map and copy the character from there. While you're there, check the key combination that produces an umlaut.

On an iPhone, go to your languages in the system preferences and add a language that uses the umlaut, like German. Then when you are typing hit the little globe symbol and the keyboard will switch to German, use the ü key and then hit the globe to switch back to English.

In HTML you type & (ampersand symbol) then the letter (u) then the letters uml, then ; (semicolon) ->  ü

Now go forth and ümläüt ünnëcëssäriîÿ!

After many sessions of play testing here is the best way we found to play. That being said, this is a game about creativity! If you and your friends, students, or colleagues decide that a different set of rules works better for you, by all means, create your own house rules!

How many people can play?
As many as you want! You can play by yourself if you’re just looking for ideas to sketch. Or you can play with as many people as there are cards. We found we had the most fun when we played with 4-8 people.

Step 1: Pick your cards!
Shuffle each deck and place it face down on your table.
Select 1 card from the Adjective deck
Select 2 cards from the Noun deck
Select 1 card from the Verb deck
Select 1 card from the Adverb deck
Make sure to keep your cards secret from the other players!

Step 2: Arrange your phrase!
Put your cards in order to create a phrase.
Our favorite way to organize them is Adj., Noun-Noun, Verb, Adverb... but that doesn’t mean you have to arrange them that way.

Step 3: Illustrate your phrase!
Have fun trying to draw your phrase without writing any words! Use whatever art supplies you have available, pencils, markers, crayons, pens, or whatever you want! Everyone works simultaneously. Don’t worry too much about hiding your work, everyone will be concentrating on her own drawings and peeking ahead of time isn’t usually an advantage anyway! We have never play tested with a set time limit to draw. We usually go with a “peer timer,” meaning when everyone else is done drawing they will start nagging you to finish up! So depending on whom you’re playing with you may have much more or less time to draw, depending on how patient they are!

Step 4: Reveal your Düdles and guess!
One at a time artists reveal their drawings to the group and its up to the group to try and guess what words the artist was trying to illustrate. We had the most fun when the group would work together trying to interoperate the drawing and come to a consensus on the 5 words, eventually presenting a final answer. As frustrating as it is, the artist can’t do or say anything to sway the discussion of the guessers.

Step 5: Record your score!
Each artist has the possibility to earn 10 points. If the word was guessed exactly it is worth 2 points. If a synonym of the exact word is guessed it is worth 1 point. Either use the synonyms listed on the card or have the group come to a consensus on what counts as a synonym and what doesn’t.

Take turns revealing and guessing. Whoever has the most points wins!

Want to share your Düdles?
Instagram or Tweet them @dudlegame1
Use the hashtag #dudledudles or #düdledüdles or #DudleADay
Thanks for sharing your Düdles and your love of the game Düdle!

So what does it take to make a card game and share it with the world? We don't know either! So follow along with us as we find out, together! This is the "behind the scenes" blog about the creation of the game Düdle!