How to Play Freeze Tag
Set up a playground round, freeze when tagged and rescue your teammates. Agree on the details together before starting.
1. Set up a playing area
Mark boundaries away from obstacles, choose a tagger and agree on a gentle tag. Everyone else starts as a runner. Demonstrate the rescue and agree how the round ends.
2. Chase and freeze
On the start signal, the tagger chases runners. A runner who is tagged stops in a safe spot and waits for a teammate. In regular tag a caught player may become the next tagger; here the same tagger normally keeps chasing.
3. Rescue a teammate
A free runner unfreezes a teammate using the agreed action, such as a light touch. Both can then move again. Agree beforehand whether rescuers are protected and whether taggers may wait beside frozen players.
4. End the round and rotate
Stop when every runner is frozen or when your agreed time ends. Choose a new tagger and repeat. If the round stalls, change the space or number of taggers between rounds.
Watch a playground demonstration
Splash Games demonstrates a version of freeze tag. Your group can agree on a different rescue or finish rule.
Choose the rules for your group
Read the complete rules, compare variations, or use the activity setup guide for kids. Looking for the separate wizard video game? Play Ultimate Freeze Tag online.