Section 6: Scoring
Traditional Simon Says is usually an elimination game rather than a points game. No numerical score is necessary: a player who makes an error leaves the active group, and the last remaining player wins the round.
Elimination Format
A player remains eligible while correctly following valid commands and ignoring invalid ones. If several players remain when an announced time or command limit expires, they share the win or enter a tiebreaker round.
Points Format
For non-elimination play, each player may receive one point for correctly obeying a valid command and one point for correctly ignoring an invalid command. An error earns no point for that command. To prevent scores from rewarding inactivity, Simon should use a balanced mixture of valid and invalid commands.
The winner is the player with the most points after the announced number of commands or rounds. If players join late or miss commands, scoring should use only a complete round in which all competitors had the same opportunities.
Lives Format
In a lives game, each error removes one life. The last player with at least one life wins. If a command eliminates every remaining player, the group may restore the players’ most recently lost life and replay with a new command.
Team and Cooperative Scoring
Teams may earn one point when every active team member responds correctly. Alternatively, each individual correct response may add to the team total. In cooperative play, the group records consecutive error-free commands and attempts to beat its previous best.
Tiebreakers
Tied players may continue alone in sudden-death play. Simon alternates valid and invalid commands until one tied player makes an error and another completes the same command correctly. If all tied players make the same error, none gains an advantage and the tiebreaker continues.