8 Things You Should Know about Charlie Charlie

by Cattleya Mariano

By now you may have heard about the Charlie Charlie craze sweeping the internet. At the moment it might be the most searched term, more than any other news item. Here are 8 things you should know:

8. Origins

While the game has been doing the rounds on the internet for years, it wasn’t until it started gaining popularity on the Spanish-language web and began to trend that it was picked up. Finally armed with the #CharlieCharlieChallenge hashtag, the game went viral.

7. What is it?

Charlie Charlie, also known as Charly Charly, is a game of alleged Spanish origins, very similar to one called “Juego de le Lapicera,” also known as the poor man’s Ouija board. The idea is that the player or players create a board and invoke a spirit by the name of Charlie, who answers yes or no questions accordingly. Sources say that Charlie is either a dead child who committed suicide, or the spirit of a man with red and black eyes.

6. How to Play

If you’re daring enough to play, start by splitting a piece of paper into four quadrants and label each with alternating “Yes” and “No” results. Traditionally, two colored pencils are used, but players have gotten creative and have used regular pencils and even pens to play. Place the pens in a cross position across the “board” and call on Charlie by chanting “Charlie, Charlie, can we play?” until the top pencil points to either yes or no. You can ask Charlie as many questions as you want (as long as you’re ready to hear the answer!).

5. What Actually Happens

Gravity, at least, according to The Independent.

4. Internet Take Over

Some Charlie Charlie players have gotten creative, using the game to figure out if they’ll really end up marrying Beyonce, or if Zayn will ever come back to One Direction.

3. What the Church Thinks

The Catholic Church has issued a warning against children playing the game, because while to them it may seem harmless, they might actually call upon malevolent spirits and inadvertently open a portal. While the game may not end inpossession per se, players might open a door for other spirits who do want to communicate.

2. Word of Warning

If you do for whatever reason decide to try the game out for yourself, make sure that you’re on your best behavior. Charlie allegedly doesn’t care for rudeness or impoliteness. Don’t forget to end the game by asking “Charlie, Charlie, can we stop?” and dropping the pencils on the floor before you walk away.

1. Si or no?

One thing we don’t get about this whole thing is that if Charlie is supposed to be Mexican, shouldn’t it be called the Carlos Carlos Challenge?

Have you tried playing the Charlie Charlie Challenge? Let us know how it went in the comments!