Real Suspense. No Real Danger

Do you remember those viral videos where the magician messes up the classic Smash and Stab routine, hurting themselves or worse, their participant?

Moments like these highlight the problem with many of these routines. To put it simply, when you’re slamming your hand onto a nail, “pretty safe” isn’t going to cut it. 

That’s why John Allen created The Pain Game. 

If you haven't seen his routine, four paper bags are placed on a table, and in one of the bags is a wooden block with a six-inch nail pointing straight up.

While you look away, your participant mixes the bags and chooses a bag for you to smash. You repeat it until you have just one bag left.

The final bag is opened to reveal the nail still standing upright inside the block.

The tension and suspense this routine creates for your audience is real, but with "The Pain Game," the danger isn't. Once it is properly set, it’s 100% safe. 

With “Pain Game 2.0,” the gimmicks are sturdier, the nail sits flat, and best of all, you can even have your participant push the nail into the block themselves.

And you still get the safety, reliability, and practicality that made the original a favorite for performers around the world.