How do you play Add-On in climbing?

One climber does a single move. The next climber repeats it and adds a move of their own, and you keep alternating. Falling or forgetting the sequence earns a letter, and spelling CLIMB loses the game.

Are climbing games safe for beginners?

They are best once you are comfortable on easy problems and know how to fall onto a mat. Total beginners should start with plain bouldering on VB and V0 problems first, then add games after a few visits.

How do we make climbing competitive but fair?

Handicap by grade. Give the stronger climber a higher starting grade in the Grade Pyramid, have each of you pick problems at the other's level in the Flash Challenge, and play Silent Beta, which rewards reading routes more than strength.

🪨 Dates for Couples

climbing challenges for couples

The best climbing challenge for a couple is Add-On: one of you climbs a single move, the other repeats it and adds one more, and whoever falls first takes a letter, like basketball's HORSE. It works at any grade because you invent the moves on the easiest wall in the gym. Below are six bouldering games for two, each with rules and scoring, for couples who already know their way around a climbing gym.

by An Nayal, founder of Flamme · Updated October 2026

where: Any bouldering gym or the bouldering area of a rope gym
cost: Your usual day pass, about $20 to $35 each
level: Comfortable on V0 to V2 already. New to climbing? Start with the beginner page.
session: Two or three games in 90 minutes

how to run a climbing games session

step 1

Warm up on easy problems

Ten minutes on problems two grades below your limit. Games make you try harder than usual, and cold fingers are the most common way to tweak a tendon.

step 2

Pick a quiet wall

Games like Add-On need a section of wall for several minutes. Choose an overhang or a corner that is not busy, and step off when others are waiting.

step 3

Play two games, not six

One creative game (Add-On, Silent Beta or Hold Roulette) and one points game (Flash Challenge or Grade Pyramid) is the right mix for a session.

step 4

Keep score on your phone

One note, both names, running totals across visits. The winner of the month chooses the post-climb food.

the six games and how they score

game	how it works	scoring	time
Add-On	Climber 1 does one move. Climber 2 repeats it and adds one. Keep alternating.	Fall or forget a move and take a letter. Spell CLIMB and you lose.	15 to 20 min
Eliminator	Pick a problem you can both send. After each send, your partner bans one hold.	The last person to send it with the fewest holds wins.	15 min
Silent Beta	One climbs a problem they have never tried. The other guides with pointing only, no words.	1 point per send. Swap roles every problem.	20 min
Flash Challenge	Each of you picks five problems the other has never tried.	3 points for a first-try send, 1 point within three tries.	20 to 30 min
Grade Pyramid	Race to send four V0s, three V1s, two V2s and one V3 (shift the grades to your level).	First to finish the pyramid wins. Repeats do not count.	30 min
Hold Roulette	On a busy wall, your partner calls out each next hold, any colour.	Count holds touched before you fall. Best of three.	15 min

how do you keep it fair if one of you climbs harder?

In the Grade Pyramid, the stronger climber's pyramid starts one or two grades higher.
In Add-On, the stronger climber's moves must stay on footholds the other can reach.
In the Flash Challenge, each person picks problems at the other's level, not their own.
Silent Beta favours whoever reads routes best, not whoever is strongest. It is often the great equaliser.

what safety rules apply to climbing games?

Games make you take more falls, so the usual gym rules matter more. Never walk or stand under someone on the wall, and keep the landing zone clear of bags and water bottles. Down-climb when you can and land on both feet with knees bent. Stop a game the moment a finger or shoulder feels sharp rather than tired. Spot each other on high or awkward moves by standing behind the climber with hands up to guide their hips onto the mat, never catching them.

variations & upgrades

set a problem for each other

Many gyms have a spray wall or a board where you can invent problems. Each of you sets one for the other using a photo and arrows drawn on your phone. Whoever's problem takes longer to send wins, so setting a hard but possible problem is the real skill.

long-distance version

Play a remote Flash Challenge. Each of you films your attempts on new problems at your own gym and sends them over. Score honestly from the videos, then compare totals on a call that evening.

after the session

Write down the best Add-On sequence before you forget it. Next visit, start the game from where you left off.

good questions, answered

Add-On, Eliminator, Silent Beta, the Flash Challenge, the Grade Pyramid and Hold Roulette all work with exactly two climbers. Each needs only a bouldering wall and takes 15 to 30 minutes.

An Nayal

Founder of Flamme, the couples app used by more than 200,000 partners. He writes the relationship guides here and builds the free tools that go with them. annayal.com

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keep score off the wall too

Flamme has couple games, a daily question and a shared streak for the days your fingers need a rest. There is an AI coach too. Free on iPhone and Android.

scan to get the app 📱

Point your camera at the code - it opens the App Store or Google Play on your phone.