Sofa Heist — Remember the names. Steal their players.

remember the names · steal their players

SOFA × HEIST

1 · Setup2 · Private entry3 · Story

A note on name data

To work out which characters and story packs to build next, this app keeps a tally of which well-known names get picked, and shares those counts anonymously. Both are on by default and can be turned off separately in Settings.

Well-known names are sent as plain totals.
Any other name is sent along with a one-way hash used to count how many different people have submitted it.
An unrecognised name is sent to our server immediately alongside a one-way hash, but held privately — never shown, used, or added to any list, by us or anyone else — unless at least 12 different people submit that same name. If it doesn't reach that threshold, it's deleted within 45 days.
No account, no device identifier, and no location beyond your country.

Remember the names. Steal their players.

Everyone chooses a secret identity. They're hidden inside one ridiculous story. Then the phone goes down, and you find out who can remember who.

Free · no sign-up

Your first heist

Two scenarios to play right now: a country-house murder with a disturbed trifle, and a wedding running badly behind.

10 story packs · £2.99 each

Choose your next heist

Ten story packs, each with at least five stories. Any three for £5.99, or unlock the complete collection for £14.99.

How to pull off a heist

Sofa Heist is a two-team party game. This app handles the setup and the story — the actual guessing game happens off-app, in person.

1. Set up your teams

Split into two teams and tell the app how many people are on each side. No names are typed here.

2. Everyone secretly picks a name

Pass the device around. Each player privately types a name for themself (their own name, a nickname, anything) — only they see it. No one else, including the app's next screen, groups these by team.

3. The app writes a story

Once every name is in, the app automatically weaves all of them into a short, silly story — shuffled, with no clue who's on which team. Read it aloud to the whole group (or use "Read story aloud").

4. Play the game

Two sofas, one per team. No spare chair.

One team names somebody they think is sitting on the other sofa.
Right? That player moves across and joins your sofa — and you guess again.
Wrong? The other team takes a turn.
At the start of each round, a sofa may call back players it has lost — but only if it can still remember the names they used.
One team ends up with everybody. That team wins.

For example

Team Amber says “Sherlock Holmes”.
Sophie is the one who entered Sherlock Holmes.
Sophie moves to Team Amber — and Amber guesses again.

5. Play again

Back in the app, hit "Play again" to return to the front page, where you can pick a different story pack before setting up the next round.

Name insights

Which famous names get picked most in your games.

Community picks

The most popular names across everyone who's chosen to share.

Tap a button above to load.

Counting happens on your device only, on by default. Names that look personal — containing "aunt", "my ex", "from work", or very short — are never counted.

Sharing is a separate choice, also on by default: recognised names are sent as plain country totals.

—Unrecognised names are sent along with a one-way hash used to count how many different people have submitted the same name.
—An unrecognised name is sent to our server immediately alongside a one-way hash, but held privately — never shown, used, or added to any list — until at least 12 different people have submitted that same name, and deleted within 45 days otherwise. This is how new and regional names get discovered — including names that are common within just one country.

Now pull off the heist

Two sofas, one per team. No spare chair.

Put the phone downYou've heard every secret name. No looking at the list from here.

Team Amber goes firstSay the name you think somebody on the other sofa is using.

Right? Steal that playerThey get up and join your sofa — and you go again. Keep guessing until you get one wrong.

Wrong? Other sofa's turnPlay passes across, and they start guessing.

Each new round, call your people backA sofa may reclaim players it lost earlier — but only if it can still remember the names they used.

One sofa ends up with everybodyThat sofa has pulled off the heist.

What a steal looks like

Team Amber says “Sherlock Holmes”.
Sophie is the one who entered Sherlock Holmes.
Sophie moves across — and Team Amber guesses again.

How did it go?

Share the result, not the identities — nobody's secret name appears on the card.

Settings

Everything here is optional and stored on this device.

Read aloud

Choose any voice installed on this device.

Name entry

Speaking names

Players can say a name instead of typing it.

Name insights

Choose your next heist

Your first heist is free. Each story world adds at least five more, and unlocks permanently on every device you own.

Story worlds

Narrator voices

Voice packs use a matching voice already installed on your device where available.

Choose tonight's heist

Only unlocked story worlds are selectable. The narrator voice is chosen in Settings.

Choose your narrator voice

Used when you tap "Read story aloud" later.

Classic Party

Set up your two teams

Name the teams and say how many people are on each. Nobody types their actual name yet — that happens privately, one person at a time, on the next screen.

Number of players

Pass the device

Hand the device to the next player. No one else should look at the screen.

Team Amber — Player 1

Type your secret name below. Only you should see this screen.

Your secret name

Suggest names as I typeHelpful for spelling — but anyone watching the screen will see the suggestions.

All names are in 🛋️

Listen carefully — you only hear this once Every secret name is in the story you're about to hear. Try to remember as many as you can — you'll need them the moment it finishes.

Every player has secretly submitted a name. The app will now weave them all into a story automatically — no one person needs to see who's on which team.

Classic Party

The heist

Auto-generated so no one has to see the full roster. Read it aloud to the whole group — every name is in there, shuffled, with no clue which team it's from. Then set the app aside and play.

Story text

And that is where our story ends.

Remember the names. You're about to need them.

All names in this game

Just the names — not grouped by team, so this doesn't give anything away.