42 Fun & Creative Retrospective Icebreakers breaking any Ice
Are you looking for unusual icebreakers for the check-in or retrospective check-in methods for your next retrospective? I’m glad to hear that, because a good, interactive check-in or icebreaker can have a very positive effect on the entire retrospective. That’s why we’ve developed some icebreaker questions to help you with that.
Retrospective Icebreaker Methods, Questions & Icebreakers
Creative kickstart for your retrospective
The retro begins with a warm-up: The first of five phase of a retrospective . Not only as a psychologist I can confirm that the perfect check-in has one goal above all: Create psychological safety. In the best case, even rather introverted team members feel a little more confident after this warm-up phase, making it easier for them to open up during the actual retrospective.
How can you achieve this effect? You could write a book about it, but in short: By showing that everyone on the team is an imperfect human being. Everyone on the team makes mistakes - and that’s perfectly fine. By the way, I actually wrote an eBook about it: 12 workshops for team flow & mindset change .
Creative check-in questions and icebreakers to promote psychological safety
Following this rationale, the very first icebreaker could look like this:
- Looking at the last weeks (or sprint), what was your favorite mistake (that might or might not triggered a learning)?
- Rather indirectly, showing that everyone can learn something new: What have you learned over the last weeks (both private or professionally)?
- Rather indirectly, emphasizing that team members need each other: When was the last time you said “Thank you” to athank you” to a team mate? Name the situation. In case you didn’t yet articulate your thankfulness, do it now.
Of course, not every check-in has to be geared towards this goal. You can also focus on setting the stage for the actual retrospective - or simply making everyone laugh. So here are some more possible questions for the retrospective check-in or icebreaker.
Retrospective Check-in questions, methods & icebreaker classics
The following check-ins and icebreakers are a few classics.
- How has your day been so far?
- In the last week(s): What has given you energy and what has been draining your energy?
- What’s giving you energy and joy at the moment?
- What has surprised you positively lately?
- What makes you excited about this retrospective?
- What was the task that took most of your time last week?
- What was the best moment of your day yesterday?
- Name one good thing and one bad thing about your day so far.
- On a scale of 0 (very bad) to 10 (very good), how ready/focused are you for/on this meeting right now?
Retrospective Check-in Questions & Icebreakers for getting to know each other
If your team doesn’t know each other very well yet, the following icebreakers are a good way to get to know the new team.
- If you could only eat one meal for the rest of the week, what would it be?
- If you had the rest of the day off, what would you do with that time?
- What is a new and interesting thing you dealt with recently?
- What’s been a big news (think of newspapers, TV etc.) lately that you are positively excited about?
More energy in (virtual or remote) space
In my experience, there are certain teams that benefit from becoming a little more active, possibly even physically.
The following smaller exercises or questions go a little more in this direction and should serve as good inspiration.
- Exercise: “Stand up (or raise your hand) if you are in this sprint…”
👉 …have learned a new tool.
👉 …had a small sense of achievement.
👉 …had more meetings than planned. - Exercise: “Draw a cat in 10 seconds with your eyes closed.”
👉 A quick, fun drawing exercise that will make you laugh. - Exercise: “Lightning word association”
👉 The moderator says “sprint”, everyone spontaneously names a word in turn (e.g. stress, fun, bugs, success…).
- Emoji mood check: Everyone shares their current state of mind with an emoji or a suitable image.
- Draw your current mood: Everyone draws their mood on a virtual or real whiteboard.
- GIF competition: Everyone posts a GIF that describes their current state of mind.
- One Word Icebreaker: Everyone describes the last working period with a single word.
- (Virtual) High-Five: Someone raises their hand, says something positive, and the others who feel similarly give a (possibly remote or virtual) high-five - alternatively, they can also stand up.
- Escape room puzzle: You solve a small logical puzzle or brain teaser together.
- My day in a color: Everyone names a color that describes their current state (“Today I feel like blue - calm and focused”).
- Your slogan for the last sprint: Create short, funny advertising slogans (“Code fast, debug later!”).
- What is your spirit animal today: Everyone names an animal that reflects their current energy (“I am a turtle - slow but getting there!”).
To give you another format: Of course, you can also design the check-in visually. Here, too, methods that stimulate creativity and possibly have a reference to the last Scrum Sprint are suitable.
Retrospective software tools can also help with this. Some of these use flexible whiteboards, others just a retro board. When it comes to good icebreakers, I would recommend integrated options such as Echometer. You can find more on this topic in this post: Online whiteboard vs. retrospective software tools for retrospectives.
Continue in the text: Here you can find some nice examples of retrospective check-in games: From our Retrospective & Health Check Tool - Echometer.
Creative Retrospective Check-In
Born to lie 👼
1. Retro game on online whiteboard
Duration: 10-20 minutes | Aim: Getting to know each other, analyzing team communication, retrospective games for new teams
The basic idea: Everyone on the team marks two places on a map of the world - and explains why they were born there. The person was really born in one of the places. The other place is a lie.
1. Detailed facilitation instructions (Retrospective Games for new Teams)
- Each team member marks the place where they were born and another place (if necessary on a digital whiteboard, see above).
- Timebox 5 minutes: Then the team member comes up with an explanation for both places as to why they were born there.
For example, Julia Rodriguez could say the following:
A) As you all know, I was born just around the corner in New York. That's why I work here and visit my family every weekend.
B) As you all know, my last name is Rodriguez. I am originally from Mexico, where I was born 39 years ago. My family moved to the USA shortly after my birthday because my father started working here.
Both sound logical - which fact is true? - 1 minute timebox per person: The explanation for the two places is given one after the other. After a person has told the truth and a lie, everyone on the team guesses which place is the real birthplace.
- In the end, you can delete the "lies" from the map - and you already have a beautiful map with the team's places of origin, which you can even save on your shared team page.
Creative Retrospective Check-In
Scrum Sprint Retrospective Games: Our Sprint Symphony 🎹
16. Remote retrospective game on online whiteboard
Duration: 5-15 minutes | Goal: Setting the stage
The basic idea: If our last sprint was a song, what would the title be? Have the team choose from predetermined songs or invent their own titles.
16. Detailed facilitation instructions (good retrospective games)
One of the rather short retrospective games:
- You give the instructions.
- 1-2 minute time slot: Everyone chooses a song title from the given list of songs (see screenshot of the whiteboard or below) or takes another title.
Everyone is free to change the title of a song. For example, someone could change the title "Eye of the tiger" by Survivor to "Eye of the customer" (e.g. because they met the actual customer for the first time). - The person who made a decision first starts explaining their choice and passes it on to the next person until everyone has given feedback.
Possible song titles
- "Something Just Like This" by The Chainsmokers and Coldplay
- "I Took a Pill in Ibiza" by Mike Posner
- "Rolling in the Deep" by Adele
- “The Twist” by Chubby Checker
- "Yes Sir, I Can Boogie" by Baccara
- "Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO
- "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga
- "Shape of You" by Ed Sheeran
- "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley & His Comets
- "Wind of Change" by Scorpions
- "Silent Night" by Bing Crosby
- "I Gotta Feeling" by Black Eyed Peas
- "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson (featuring Bruno Mars)
- "Call Me Maybe" by Carly Rae Jepsen
- "Time to Say Goodbye" by Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman
- "I Don't Care" by Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber
- Your addition...
Creative Retrospective Check-In
Sprint Animals 🐷
Retro game on the online whiteboard
Duration: 5-15 minutes | Goal: Setting the stage
The basic idea: If our last sprint were one of these animal faces, which would it be? Have the team choose from the given images and explain their choice.
Creative Retrospective Check-In
The Retrospective Riddle 🕵🏻♂️
7. Online Whiteboard Game (Retrospective Game Ideas)
Duration: 45-90 minutes | Goal: Reflecting on the teamwork in general and the last sprint
Die Grundidee: Ein weiser Zauberer hat 3 geheime, magische Fragen. Die Beantwortung dieser Fragen würde deinem Team sehr darin helfen, als Team zu wachsen. Aber um diese Fragen zu erfahren, muss das Team zuerst 3 Rätsel lösen.
7. Detailed facilitation instructions
- You give an overview of the agenda for today's retrospective.
- 3-minute time slot: The first riddle is presented (see whiteboard above or the next toggle below). The team must solve it as quickly as possible. If the team is faster than 2 minutes, the remaining time will be added to the time to solve the next riddle.
- 5-minute time slot: The first magical question (a creative retrospective question, see below) from our magician is asked.
- 20-minute time slot: Repeat steps 2 and 3 with the second and third riddles, possibly with the remaining time from the last round.
- Choose one of the retro questions from the repertoire. Here are some suggestions for magical questions the wizard could ask:
- When I think about my team, what am I not hearing that should be heard?
- What are you grateful for when you think about the last few weeks?
- What would James Bond do if he had the challenges we face?
- Imagine we didn't achieve our team goal. What would have been the reason we didn't achieve it?
- From now on, proceed with the typical 5 phases of an agile retrospective.
- Explain thoughts: After everyone is done answering the last magical question, everyone's thoughts (and notes) are shared. There is no discussion at this point.
- Prioritization: Each team member has 3 digital points to vote. Now put the points where you believe there is still room for improvement.
- Discussion: Discuss the areas that received the most votes. Would you like to write down an action item?
- Actions: Name a specific person who is responsible for this action. I recommend not recording more than 3 actions - focus on quality rather than quantity (more on this in our post: 7 Tips for Good Measures).
List of puzzles to choose from.
- Ihr wollt ein Ei in zwei Minuten kochen. Wenn du nur einen Drei-Minuten-Timer (Sanduhr), einen Vier-Minuten-Timer und einen Fünf-Minuten-Timer hast, wie können kann dann das Ei genau zwei Minuten lang kochen?
- Antwort: Sobald das Wasser kocht, macht ihr den Drei-Minuten-Timer und den Fünf-Minuten-Timer an. Wenn der Drei-Minuten-Timer abgelaufen ist, legt ihr das Ei in das kochende Wasser. Wenn der Fünf-Minuten-Timer abgelaufen ist, sind zwei Minuten verstrichen und es ist Zeit, das Ei aus dem Wasser zu nehmen. Den Vier-Minuten-Timer brauchst du für dieses Rätsel nicht.
- Zwei Väter und zwei Söhne gingen eines Tages angeln. Sie waren den ganzen Tag dort und haben nur 3 Fische gefangen. Der eine Vater sagte, das reicht für uns alle, wir nehmen jeder einen. Wie kann das möglich sein?
- Antwort: Es gibt den Vater, seinen Sohn und der Sohn dieses Sohnes. Das macht 2 Väter und 2 Söhne, also insgesamt 3!
- Achtung, funktioniert nur im Englischen: Forward I am heavy, but backward I am not. What am I? Übersetzung: Vorwärts bin ich schwer, aber rückwärts bin ich es nicht. Was bin ich?
- Das Wort "Ton" im Englischen.
- Achtung, funktioniert nur im Englischen: Which of the following words don't belong in the group and why? CORSET, COSTER, SECTOR, ESCORT, COURTS
- Courts. Alle anderen sind Anagramme von einander.
- Eine Frau erschießt ihren Mann. Dann hält sie ihn über 5 Minuten lang unter Wasser. Schließlich erhängt sie ihn. Aber 5 Minuten später gehen die beiden zusammen aus und genießen ein schönes Abendessen zusammen. Wie kann das sein?
- Antwort: Die Frau ist eine Fotografin. Sie hat ein Bild von ihrem Mann gemacht, es entwickelt und zum Trocknen aufgehängt.
- Achtung, funktioniert nur im Englischen und durch's Vorlesen: There are 30 cows in a field, and 28 chickens. How many didn't?
- Hör genau hin: 30 cows, and twenty-eight chickens. Say EIGHT and ATE (gegessen). Das klingt identisch. Es bedeutet also 20 Kühe haben Hühner gegessen. 30-20=10, also haben 10 Kühe keine Hühner gefressen.
- Manchmal werde ich in der Stille geboren, ein anderes Mal nicht. Ich bin ungesehen, aber ich mache mich bemerkbar. Mit der Zeit vergehe ich spurlos. Ich schade niemandem, aber ich bin bei allen unbeliebt. Und was bin ich?
- Antwort: Ein Furz.
- Achtung, funktioniert nur im Englischen: Ich bin sechs Buchstaben. Wenn du einen wegnimmst, bin ich zwölf. Und, was bin ich?
- Das Wort "Dozens".
- Welche Art von Musik hören Kaninchen?
- Spaß-Antwort: Hip-Hop.
Creative Retrospective Check-In
Fun Retro Games Agile: Movie Time 🍿
18. Remote retrospective game on online whiteboard
Duration: 5-15 minutes | Goal: Setting the stage
The basic idea: If our last sprint were a movie, what would the title be? Have the team choose from pre-selected movies or come up with their own titles.
18. Detailed facilitation instructions (fun retrospective games)
A simple, good retrospective game:
- You give the instructions.
- 1-2 minute time frame: Everyone chooses a movie title from the given list of movies (see screenshot of the whiteboard or toggle below) or takes another title.
Everyone is free to change the title of a movie. For example, someone could change the title "Lord of the rings" to "Lord of the bugs." - The first person to make a decision begins to explain their choice and passes it on to the next person until everyone has given feedback.
List of suitable movie titles
- Goldfinger
- Titanic
- Lord of the Rings
- Back to the future
- Rain Man
- Avatar
- The Birth of a Nation
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
- Paranormal Activity
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
- Furious 7
- Gone with the Wind
- Doctor Zhivago
- Spider-Man: No Way Home
- E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
- ...
If you like these games, here are some more:
Feel free to check them out 🙂
Fun & creative Retrospective Check In Questions & Icebreakers
- Explain the course of your week as a weather report and forecast.
- What adjective best describes your current emotional state?
- If your last week were a movie - what would the title be?
- If your last week were a song - what would it be called?
- If your last week were a newspaper report - what would the headline be?
- Describe the latest revelation you had.
- With whom in our organization would you like to switch roles tomorrow and why?
Exciting Check-In: Team Health Check
Quick health check’s can also be a fun check-in for retrospective. In health checks, different statements are presented to the team and each team member expresses agreement on a scale.
It must be added that you often drift into the data-gathering phase and discussions - but that’s not so bad.
You can open a Health Check Retrospective Check-In directly with our Health Check & Retro tool Echometer and run it online with your team (Echometer- without registration). Here, for example, is our template on the subject of team spirit - feel free to take a look:
Team Morale Health Check 😇
Health Check Questions (Scale)
Conclusion - Variety of Retrospective Check-In Questions
I hope this has given you some ideas for your next retrospective. If you’d like to try more interactive check-ins (remote and in-office), feel free to visit the linked post on the best retrospective formats for any situation: 3 interactive check-ins on a whiteboard . By the way, we also have many seasonal retrospective ideas in our tool (for example: 6 Thanksgiving Retrospective Ideas ) - feel free to stop by and browse a little.
By the way, if you are still looking for a suitable retro board (with 60+ agile retrospective formats), this post can help you: Comparing the 6 best retrospective boards
"Many team members are afraid to speak up!"
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"We discover too many unexpected issues & bugs at a late stage!"
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"Why does it sometimes take me hours to prepare a simple retrospective?"
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