Here are the rules to New Girl’s somewhat confusing drinking game “True American.” After breaking through with movies like 500 Days Of Summer, Zooey Deschanel turned to TV with sitcom New Girl. Deschanel played Jess, a teacher who moves into a loft with all-male roommates. The show set itself apart with great comic writing and performances, especially from Max Greenfield and Jake Johnson. The series followed the roommates’ personal and professional dramas, with Jess and Johnson’s Nick eventually falling for one another.
New Girl ran for seven seasons, with Jess and Nick eventually marrying and the other roommates receiving their own happy endings. The emotional finale found them reuniting in the loft one final time - though Jess is notably more upset than the others. There’s also a brief flashforward showing the various couples with children of their own, proving they stayed friends.
One recurring element of New Girl is “True American,” a drinking game the roommates first play in season 1. The game was based on a similar game a New Girl writer played in college, though their fuzzy memory meant the rules were hard to define. This was played up in the game’s first appearance, where it was hard to grasp exactly how “True American” was played. In the end, its an excuse for players to get as drunk as humanly possible, with new rules inevitably being invented while it’s being played. Due to audience curiosity, Fox eventually released some official rules - though the game is still open to interpretation.
The Castle
“True American” revolves around The Castle, which is made up of assorted cans of beers - the number of which varies depending on the amount of players - with a bottle of booze at the center. The cans represent pawns and the Soldiers of the Secret Order.
Zones
“True American” is divided into five zones the players have to navigate with The Castle in the center. New Girl established the floor is made of lava, so navigation means stepping on sofas, chairs, cushions, etc. Touching the floor means death, though players can rejoin by drinking a whole beer.
Starting Off
Teams in “True American” are optional, with players holding up a random number of fingers to their foreheads; a player with one finger less than you becomes a teammate. The game commences with someone shotgunning a beer, then somebody else chants a three-second countdown followed by “JFK!” Other players then shout “FDR!,” grab a beer from the castle and jump off the floor.
The Rules
New Girl’s “True American” has players move in a clockwise direction, with players having to win a move. They do this by completing a random quote, playing the random number to the forehead game - where an opponent with the same number as the player can move - or guessing a common trait between two famous people.
Winning
After all pawns and soldiers are removed from The Castle, the first player to move to the center zone and take a drink from the bottle wins.
That’s the basic setup to New Girl’s “True American,” but if the rules seem sketchy and ill-defined, that’s because they are. At any time, a player can yell “JFK!” and the others must reply “FDR!” and down their current beer, and it’s possible to lose if caught without a drink. Players can also invent random rules to make the game more challenging so if New Girl’s fans attempt “True American,” it should be noted to just to have fun - and not to get too blasted.
Next: New Girl Season 7: Finale & Twist Ending Explained
