Before you come in
Questions, answered
Everything couples ask about MasquePlay, the private roleplay game for couples: what it is, how a night plays, what stays private, how AI is used, and how to join the beta.
The basics
What is MasquePlay?
MasquePlay, pronounced “mask play”, is a private roleplay game for couples who are already together. You share a scene, each of you secretly keeps one fictional character, and you look for each other's. When you find each other, the scene opens as a private chat where you play those two characters together.
Is MasquePlay a dating app?
No. There is nobody to meet and no way for a stranger to find you. Accounts are paired one-to-one with a partner code, every character you see is fictional, and the only real person on the other side is your partner.
How is it different from couples card games and truth-or-dare apps?
Those apps hand you a prompt to read out or a dare to do. MasquePlay hands each of you a character and a place, and then gets out of the way: nothing is scripted. You write the story together, line by line, as the people you are playing.
How is it different from an AI companion or AI roleplay chatbot?
In a companion app you talk to an AI. In MasquePlay the character across from you is played by your partner. AI builds the cast and the setting and can help with wording when you ask; it never plays the other side and never sends a message as either of you.
Who is it for?
Two adults, 18 or older, in a consenting relationship, each with their own phone. It suits readers of romance and romantasy, people who like to improvise, long-distance couples, and anyone who wants date night to feel like something other than another evening in.
We have never roleplayed. Is this for us?
Yes. The game does the awkward part for you: it picks the place and gives you each a character with a face and a backstory, so you are never starting from a blank page. If you want a feel for it first, our beginner's guide to roleplay for couples has eight scenes to try and what to say when you run out of lines.
How a night plays
How does a round work?
Whoever opens the app first picks tonight's scene, and you both play it. Each of you is dealt ten characters for that scene, keeps one, and locks it in without saying which. Then you swipe your partner's ten: every face is visible, and only their choice is hidden. If you each liked the character the other kept, it's a match, and a private chat opens for those two characters. You can play a short version of a round on the homepage.
What is a scene?
The setting you share for the night: a rooftop bar before a storm, a lantern-lit quay, a station observation deck in the quiet hours. You are both in the same one, and it shapes both of your character pools.
Why can't I see which character my partner kept?
Because guessing is the game. Neither of you learns the outcome until you have both finished, so nobody can play to the other's choice, and the result lands as one shared moment instead of leaking out piece by piece.
What happens if we don't match?
The night tells you so, gently, and the story deals again when the pool refills. A miss is part of the game, not a failure. Your first night together always ends in a match, so nobody's first evening ends in nothing.
What is the star for?
Each of you gets one star a scene: a like that says "this one, especially". If you star the character your partner kept and they liked yours, it's a gold match.
How long does a night take?
Setting up takes a minute or two. After that it's up to you: a few lines over dinner, or an hour on the sofa.
Do we need to be good at writing or acting?
No. Short, plain lines work, and your character gives you somewhere to start. If you want help, you can ask for a suggested opening line, a rewrite of your message in your character's voice, or ideas for where the scene could go next. All of it is optional, and nothing is sent unless you choose to send it.
What if one of us wants to stop or slow down?
Then stop. The characters are fiction; the person you are playing with is not. Step out of character and say so plainly, or agree on a word that means "pause" before you start. Where a scene goes is always up to the two of you.
Stages and characters
What are stages?
A stage is a setting with its own cast, its own manners and its own places to meet. There are three so far:
- The Real World: modern romance. Rooftops, galleries, hotel bars and last trains, exactly as things are now except the names.
- The Veil: romantasy. Thornmere, a candlelit city on a misted lake, where everyone arrives masked.
- Perigee: space opera. Vesper Station, a neutral port where the shipping lanes cross.
More stages are still behind the curtain.
Can we switch stages?
Yes. Either of you can suggest a different stage, and the switch happens when the other accepts.
Are the characters real people?
No. Every character's name, bio and photos are AI-generated and entirely fictional. Any resemblance to a real person is coincidental.
Do we play ourselves?
No, and that is the point. You each play someone else, with a different name, a different life and a different way of flirting, so you can be bolder, shyer or simply new to each other for a night.
Is MasquePlay explicit?
It's for adults only, 18 and over, and where a scene goes is up to you. MasquePlay sets the stage and stays out of the way.
Privacy and safety
Who can see what we write?
Only the two of you. There is no feed, no public profile and no way for another couple to see you. Staff access to account or chat data is limited to what is reasonably needed to run and fix the service, answer support requests, investigate reports, keep it secure, or meet legal obligations.
Do you sell our data or use it for advertising?
No. We don't sell your data, use it for advertising, or share it with anyone for marketing, and we don't use tracking or advertising cookies. The Privacy Policy has the full detail.
Can we delete our account?
Yes, in the app, at any time. Because the game is shared, deleting an account can also remove roleplay history the two of you had together.
Can a partner pairing be switched to someone else?
No. Accounts are paired one-to-one with a partner code, and a pairing cannot be switched to someone else.
AI
Where does AI come into it?
AI creates the fictional characters and can help with wording and scene direction when you ask for it. It never plays your partner and never sends a message as either of you.
Are our messages used to train AI?
Your messages are not used to train MasquePlay's models, and under the terms we use, our AI providers do not train on them by default. When either of you asks for a rewrite or scene direction, recent messages from the chat are sent to an AI provider for context, and those can include messages the other person wrote. The AI Disclosure explains exactly what is sent and when.
Devices, cost and the beta
What do we need to play?
Two smartphones, one each. iPhone or Android, in any combination. There is no solo mode.
Can we play long-distance?
Yes. You each play on your own phone, so it works across the couch or across the country, and the chat is live: you see your partner's lines as they send them. For ideas, read our guide to long-distance roleplay.
Is MasquePlay on the App Store or Google Play?
Not yet. During the private beta you play on your phone through the web, and you can add it to your home screen. Native iOS and Android apps are built, with App Store and Google Play releases planned after the beta.
How much does it cost?
It's free for Founding Couples, with full access for as long as the private beta runs.
How do we join the private beta?
Apply with your email on the homepage. Either of you can apply; the application asks whether your partner is on board. A small number of Founding Couples are invited to play all three stages, play twice over two weeks, and tell us honestly how it went in one short conversation afterwards.
Something we haven't answered?
Write to [email protected]. For account support or a privacy request, write to [email protected].