- Among Us, developed by InnerSloth, for Android, iOS, Windows, Switch, Playstation, and Xbox
- Target Audience: group of friends or strangers
- The game is played with 4-15 players, with as many 3 players being selected as “imposters” at the beginning of the round. The objective is for either the imposters or the crewmates to win via the following methods:
- Outcomes resulting in crewmates victory: complete all tasks; kill or vote out all imposters
- Outcomes resulting in imposters victory: cause critical sabotage that the crewmates cannot amend; kill or vote imposters to create an imposter majority
- Crewmates start the game by completing their assigned tasks, which take the form of games and puzzles. Imposters can sabotage systems, deceive crewmates by faking tasks, or killing crewmates.
- Once a body has been discovered, or an Emergency Meeting is called, players can discuss who they think the imposter is. At the end, players vote to eject someone from the game. If a plurality is reached, the person is removed and becomes a ghost, where they can spectate but cannot interact with the living players.
- The game has a similar format to the social game Mafia, only there are more aspects of visual evidence and testimony. Since it is played virtually/online, it lacks certain nuances that an in-person game can create, but introduces mechanics that would be difficult to implement in real life (such as tasks and “killing”).
- I personally find the game to be more enjoyable when played with a group of friends rather than an online lobby with of strangers. I recall a particular moment from when I played this game for the first time a few years ago — I was selected as the imposter but was unaware of it. I vented several times thinking it was a normal mechanic, and my friend called a meeting to oust me. Sincerely believing that I was a crewmate, I argued with him and encouraged him to bet money on his claim. Needless to say, I was baffled to see a crewmate victory after getting voted out…
- It may be interesting to mask the identities of other imposters from each other. This way, it would be possible to for an imposter to unknowingly kill one of their side, adding to the decision-making in the game.
