Types of Tag Games and How to Play Them
Tag, that simple game where the person who’s “it” touches someone to pass on the role, is something just about everyone has played.
It’s said that if you trace it back, its origins lie in Heian-period rituals for driving away demons.
Today, it has evolved into many different variations.
This time, we’ll introduce some of those diverse forms of tag.
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Types of Tag/Oni Games and How to Play (31–40)
Sport Tag
It’s a pretty serious, competition-style version of tag.
It’s a team sport with seven players per team, and the side that collects more treasures from the opponent’s area within the time limit wins.
You can only tag an opponent when they enter your own territory, and tags must be done with both hands, not just one.
There are also tournaments, so if you’re interested, check it out.
Tail tag
This is a tag game where everyone is “it.” Tuck something that can serve as a tail—like newspaper strips, ribbons, or strings—into the back of your pants, and everyone tries to grab each other’s tails.
If your tail is taken, you can take a spare from the box of extra tails and continue.
The person who collects the most tails wins.
Freeze tag
Kori-oni is a children’s game that adds extra rules to a regular game of tag.
Players are divided into taggers and runners; anyone who gets tagged must freeze on the spot, and the game continues until everyone has been caught.
Beyond these basic rules, there are some regional variations, so adapting the rules to your environment can make it more fun.
Cops and Robbers
Names vary by region, and while Keidoro is the most widely used name nationwide, there are many others such as Dorokei, Doro-jun, and Jun-doro.
There are also various local rules depending on the area, so you can get creative with how you play.
Rescue Tag
As in a regular game of tag, choose one person to be “it” and have them chase the others.
When “it” touches a player, that player must freeze on the spot, but if another player touches them, they come back to life and can run again.
If there are many players, adding more taggers makes it even more thrilling and fun.
Types of Tag/Demon-Tag and How to Play (41–50)
Shadow stepping tag
Shadows are fascinating, aren’t they? It’s a somewhat indirect and slightly mysterious game where the person whose shadow gets stepped on becomes “it,” and the length of the shadow even changes depending on the time of day.
Maybe because of that dreamy image, there are lots of songs titled things like “Kagefumi-Oni” or “Kagefumi” (Shadow Tag or Shadow-Stepping).
The video shows an owl playing shadow-stepping.
It seems animals are interested in shadows too.
Desert Tag
As the name suggests, it’s a game of tag played in sandy places like sandboxes or beaches.
Both the runners and the chaser can’t run fast because their feet get bogged down in the sand, which makes it thrilling.
Since the handicap is significant for both sides, it seems fun to come up with various rules to play with!