On May 7, 2026, asmodee announced "the completion of its rights acquisition to the Time’s Up! IP", as well as "a new strategic plan for the brand".
The party game Time's Up from Peter Sarrett and R&R Games was first published in 1999, with the design being based on a public domain game known as "Celebrity", "Celebrities", and other similar names. (Hat tip to Brian Bankler for pointing out a 1997 article on "Celebrity" in Entertainment Weekly that (as is that magazine's nature) highlighted the celebrities playing the game. An excerpt:
...Jennifer Aniston confesses the game often leaves her clueless. "I get totally terrified that I'm going to forget Gerard Depardieu's name or something in front of a whole group of people." Adds Liv Tyler, who played Celebrity with her That Thing You Do! cast mates during the movie's European press tour: "It's not peaceful. You have to be really quick and sharp and perform."
For those not familiar with the game, you play Time's Up in teams, with each teammate contributing a number of celebrity names (song titles, movie titles, etc.) to a pool. You're trying to get your teammates to identify those names, and your turn lasts thirty seconds.
The game plays out in three rounds that function like an increasingly difficult game of charades. In the first round, you can say, act, and mime almost anything, and your teammates can guess at names as many times as they wish. As soon as they guess a name, set it aside and move on. Once all the names have been claimed, teams score 1 point per name collected, then you shuffle them together again. In the second round, you can say only one word while acting as much as you want and passing on any names you don't like; your teammates have one guess per name. In the third round, you now can't say anything, so ideally you've used the first two rounds to prep for this one!
Repos Production started licensing the Time's Up design in 2004, releasing the game as Time's Up! Party, then following that up with multiple other editions, both general (Purple, Azul, Family) and specific (Game Geek, Troy, Football, etc.) In 2020, asmodee purchased Repos Production, and in 2025 it moved the brand to its Zygomatic brand, which releases social games with minimal rules for casual players. To quote from the press release:
Building on these strong foundations, Zygomatic's team will focus on expanding the IP and further strengthening its global reach particularly in English-speaking territories, where there is a significant growth potential for the brand.
This strategic move reflects asmodee's commitment to investing in brands with strong global recognition and long-term development potential. This comes at a time when social games overall have experienced constant growth over the past 5 years, above other board games categories, with growth foreseen to be maintained and contributing to global expansion of the tabletop gaming market.
As part of a structured development roadmap, Zygomatic will undertake a rationalization and modernization of the Time's Up! range in 2027. This initiative will streamline the product line, refresh the brand positioning, and ensure stronger competitiveness and accessibility across markets. Time's Up! Express, launched in January 2026, marks the first step in this refreshed strategy. Designed for faster gameplay and broader accessibility, it aims to reach new audiences while remaining faithful to the core experience that made the game successful. Further details of the evolution of the Time's Up brand and portfolio will be shared in the next months.
Frank DiLorenzo, president of R&R Games, tells me that multiple complanies have reached out to him over the years to inquire about purchasing Time's Up! or the entire company, but "most offers either didn't align with our valuation or came from partners we felt would not fully honor and support what we've built".
That's not the case here. "We've had a longstanding relationship with Asmodee, particularly following their acquisition of our European partner, Repos," says DiLorenzo. "They have a deep understanding of the game and a clear vision for maintaining its longevity and appeal. Their offer was both attractive and well balanced. We believe this agreement creates meaningful benefits for both companies and for the players who love the game."
While Zygomatic ramps up its plans for Time's Up!, R&R Games will wrap up its involvement. "We expect a transition period of at least four months," says DiLorenzo. "During this time, we will offer our remaining inventory through our website, with very low shipping costs and special bundle offers. I expect this will wind down the remaining stock while giving consumers great value."
I'll close with this amusing last line in the press release: "The transaction will have no material impact on asmodee's financial performance." I mean, I get what the company is saying — Buying this IP will not jeopardize the company's future — but clearly it hopes for success with the line, which will indeed impact asmodee's financial performance. Why else would the company buy it?!
