The Timeline alternative that never runs out of cards
The same fun: place each item before or after the previous one on your timeline. But with 5,000+ items instead of one box of cards, solo, remotely or around the table.
Timeline vs Junban: the comparison
| Timeline | Junban | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Physical box (~€15) | Free |
| Content | ~110 cards per box | 5,000+ items |
| Themes | One per box (paid expansions) | 50+ themes and playlists |
| New content | Buy another expansion | Regular updates included |
| Solo mode | No | Yes, with a global ranking |
| Remote play | No | Yes, up to 4 players online |
| Music | No | Yes, a chronological music quiz |
| No screen or battery | Yes | No |
The Timeline idea, without the card limit
Timeline made chronological sorting popular: one card, one event, and you place it at the right spot on the timeline. The problem comes around the fifth game, when everyone knows the cards by heart. Junban keeps exactly the same move, before or after, but draws from more than 5,000 items: the same question almost never comes back.
50+ themes instead of one box
Movies, TV shows, history, sport, inventions, and sagas like Harry Potter, Star Wars or Stranger Things: each theme plays like a Timeline box, with nothing to buy. New themes arrive regularly.
Music mode: impossible with cardboard
A clip starts blind and gets placed like a card: did it come out before or after the previous one? It is a chronological music quiz, with playlists by country and decade, and no Spotify subscription needed.
Play solo, remotely or around the table
Timeline always needs several players around a table. Junban also has a solo mode with a global ranking, daily challenges, and multiplayer for up to 4: each on their own phone remotely, or everyone passing one phone around.
What Timeline does really well
To be fair, Timeline is a great game. It fits in a pocket, needs no battery or connection, and the physical cards create a kind of conviviality no screen fully replaces. It is also a great gift and a very good learning tool for kids.
Do you have to choose?
Not necessarily. Many players keep Timeline for screen-free family dinners and play Junban the rest of the time: on the train, solo, or once the cards in the box have been memorised. If you want the Timeline feeling without the card limit, the app does the job, and the first game takes less than a minute.
To compare further: our ranking of the 10 best timeline quiz games and our Hitster alternative for the music version.
Frequently asked questions
Is Junban really free?
Yes: the app is free to download and includes a permanent free tier. Optional premium themes complement it.
Can you play a Timeline-style game online with friends?
Yes: Junban supports up to 4 players remotely, each on their own phone, or on a single phone around the table.
Is it the same idea as Timeline?
Yes: you place each item before or after the previous one on the timeline, without needing to know exact dates. Junban applies it to more than 50 themes, music included.
Can you play alone?
Yes, that is one of the big differences from Timeline: a solo mode with a global ranking and daily challenges.
Can you play offline?
Yes, offline mode lets you play on a plane, on the subway or in the car.
What age is it for?
From reading age, around 8. Since you only say before or after, kids can beat adults on the themes they know.
Ready to play?
Download Junban and start your first game within a minute.