What's The 'Shadow Boxing' Game On TikTok? Let's Explain How To Play, What The Rules Are And Where It Started

Shadow boxing is one of the latest TikTok trends, involving high-intensity matches between friends in school or at home, resulting in mega-viral videos. It's fast-paced and addicting, especially when the person being filmed messes up and looks directly into the camera.

The strange social game has no doubt captivated the mainstream internet, but many don't know where it started. In fact, it was originally called the Ish Game.

Curious about how to play and what its rules are? Let's explain.

Who Invented The 'Shadow Boxing' TikTok Game?

The history of the shadow boxing game actually predates TikTok by more than a decade, when it was originally called the "Ish Game." According to YouTube uploads dating as far back as 2007, the "Ish Game" was popular among Pacific Islander youngsters.

Another fun fact about the shadow boxing game is that its first appearance in popular culture was in the 1996 Super Mario game Super Maria RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars in an in-game challenge called "Look The Other Way."

Starting in 2019, shadow boxing videos started going viral on Twitter. One of the earliest ones was posted by Twitter user @Josephwalker_28. The video gained upwards 147,000 likes, predating shadow boxing's TikTok virality by roughly four years.

Get right😂 pic.twitter.com/nAchIkr4Mx

— J-5⚡️ (@Josephwalker_28) August 14, 2019

What Are The 'Shadow Boxing' Game's Rules?

The object of the shadow boxing game is to trick your opponent into turning their head in the same direction that you point your finger. Every time one person points, the other person must move their head either up, down, left or right at the same time. If the person is pointing in the same direction as the person's head, they've been symbolically "punched," failing to dodge the fatal blow.

How To Play The 'Shadow Boxing' Game

To play the shadow boxing game, you have to have two people and good reflexes. One person points and the other person moves their head. Switch off every time to see who gets "punched" first.

Also, many of the people going viral for shadow boxing on TikTok are using their phones to capture a selfie of their friend falling for the finger point. To do this, you have to be the one that's pointing. Keep your phone in your non-pointing hand when playing and leave your phone open with the front-facing camera on. When you think your friend's about to fall for your point, extend your camera out and snap a pic of them to expose their face at the moment of disappointment.

For the full history of shadow boxing, be sure to check out our entry on the trend here for even more information.