The After Eight® Game: A Beginner’s Tutorial

 In this article
 

1. How does the After Eight® Challenge Work?
2. After Eight® Game: Rules
3. What You Need to Play
4. How to Win the After Eight® Game
5. After Eight® Game Facial Warm-Up
6. How to survive in the After Eight® Game
7. More Christmas Activities 

You know how it is at the end of a dinner party. The laughter and chatter has been flowing all evening and now the coffee’s been served, there’s a pleasant lull in the conversation as everyone quietly relaxes into the squishy chairs. Until someone reaches for the box of After Eights… and says it. 

Shall we play the game?

Naturally, there is only one game they can be referring to. And it's the greatest after-dinner game ever conceived: the After Eight® Game.

The ultimate test of facial control and muscular manipulation, the After Eight® Game separates the adults from the children. One does not simply eat an After Eight® in this game – you earn one, and you look glorious while doing so. By reading this, you’ll not just know how to play, but you’ll know how to win the After Eight® Game – with dignity. 

How does the After Eight® Challenge Work? 

It’s hot and happening!

The rules are simple. Each participant takes one pristine After Eight® out of its wrapper and places it squarely on the centre of their forehead. On the word ‘go!’, all players have to coax the rippled prize into their mouth using nothing but the muscular prowess of their face. No hands, no sudden movements or “accidental” brushes with your collar, just raw human grins, expressive brows and the concrete law of gravity.  

This is harder than it looks. It’s a would-be Olympic sport that demands poise, balance and above all, speed. Because the longer the fated After Eight® lingers on your forehead, the higher the risk it will begin to melt and slide off your face in an undignified mint-chocolatey mess. 
 

After Eight® Game: Rules 

Like any great contest, the After Eight® Game comes with a strict code of honour.

1. No hands allowed. Players must sit on them.  
2. The After Eight® starts on the forehead, between the eyebrows and hairline.
3. A dropped chocolate means a restart. Strictly no picking it up and attempting to resume.
4. The winner is the first to get the After Eight® into their mouth, as agreed by the referee.  
5. For the truly brave, head-to-head eliminations or timed knockout tournaments are encouraged. 
    

What You Need to Play

Fortune favours the prepared.  

1. A box of After Eight® and perhaps a spare for practice.  
2. Two or more enthusiastic players.  
3. A timer for competitive formats.
4. Napkins, damp flannels – or preferably both, for melty mints are gloriously messy.
5. The true prize is the intangible glory, but a green paper crown and a box of After Eight® never go amiss. Or for something a little extra, you could gift the winner a batch of our After Eight® Brownies.  
    

How to Win the After Eight® Game 

Start slowly, but with intent. Lead with the brows and coax the mint to movement with alternative eyebrow raises and mental fortitude.  

As the After Eight begins its descent, engage your cheek’s core muscles and finesse the journey further. Raising one eyebrow and the opposite cheek simultaneously is the true mark of an elite player. Beware the nose zone, for what often seems like a cradle of solace has spurred many a would-be champion. One short drop, a bump on the snout, and before you know it, your mint is on the floor.  

Though many of the greats will not admit it, practising in the mirror is not cheating. It’s strategy. 
 

After Eight® Game Facial Warm-Up 

Before launching into competitive After Eight® athletics, make sure you warm up.  

1. Master your eyebrow aerobics. Raise and lower your brows repeatedly while glancing left, right, up and down. Picture a compass in your mind's eye. Be the compass.
2. Employ the classic big face, small face technique. Alternate between making your face as large and expressive as possible, eyes wide, mouth open, then as small as possible, scrunched eyes, puckered lips and pinched cheeks.
3. Harness kisses and gapes. Tilt your head back and alternate between fish-like open mouths and exaggerated air kisses.   

How to survive in the After Eight® Game 

Like any great undertaking, the After Eight® game is not without peril. Here are your survival guide strategies for when things go wrong.

What if…

1. The After Eight® gets stuck somewhere with no regularly used facial muscles?

   Hack: Try flicking your head sharply to dislodge it. Do this in small increments to avoid losing it completely. After each flick, test the position by reverting to facial muscles again.

2. The After Eight® falls off your face.

   Hack: Make a mental note of where it was on your face before you lost it. If it’s no longer retrievable, you must take a new one. Either way, you must start again with it on your forehead.

3. The After Eight® begins to melt.

   Hack: You need to now get the After Eight® off your face, and quickly. There are two main options: you throw the game – either by flicking it off and onto the carpet, or releasing a hand and grabbing it to eat – or you commit fully and double your efforts. You notice, out of the corner of your eye, your opponents are all ahead of you. 
    

More Christmas Activities  

These minty shenanigans are ideal for post-Christmas dinner chaos when young kids have gone off to play, and big kids need a bit of nonsense. It works equally well at office parties, end-of-year celebrations, or any festive soirée. Set up a bracket, appoint an impartial referee and let the games begin. For an evening of cocktails and cackles, pair the game with our After Eight® Cocktail recipe. 

Conclusion

The After Eight® Game is festive foolishness of the highest order, wrapped in elegance and oozing with competitive spirit. So next time you're looking to raise the bar on your holiday fun, break out the After Eight® and invite your guests to a challenge that demands cheek, wit and a seriously strong brow game.