Secret Hitler is a social deduction game created by Goat, Wolf & Cabbage as a board/card-based party game (we played online) that is best-described, in my opinion, as an amplified version of Mafia that elevates the social interaction and deepens the narrative elements. Based on our gameplay, its target audience is any group (teenagers and older) with an interest in history looking for a social game. In fact, I felt that it was effective enough independent of the premise that it would appeal to any group looking for a ‘party’ game.
I argue that Secret Hitler emphasizes social deduction by using its mechanics to incentivize players to reflect and lean on interpersonal dynamics for their game strategy. Specifically, I will discuss how player dynamics, multiple victory objectives, and well-balanced mechanics all interact to repeatedly force players into the multilateral discussions and disputes that make the game fun.
Player dynamics are central to the aesthetics of Secret Hitler. Our group of 7 was split across two opposing teams of 3 fascists and 4 liberals. Not only is there a team versus team component, but granularity of roles within the fascist team deepens the way different types of fascists (Hitler and non-Hitler) play. This marks a particular difference from genre staples like Mafia, where the ‘antagonist’ team is on level footing and aware of each other. Each round, we were forced to explain our actions which made the game very conversation-heavy (which we enjoyed), and discuss disputed information about party affiliation, which makes it unifying along party lines. People committed to their teams, and when we played, people who were closer friends with each other began to probe each other further, and people who knew each other less well found entertainment in trying to read one another. Even during our first round playing (before everyone was fully aware of the rules), players were fully committed to backing their respective parties, and this tribalism was also a source of fun when we were still figuring out how to be good at the game.
The players inform their interactions in pursuit of the game’s multiple victory objectives. If you’re a fascist, you’re trying to play fascist policies and elect Hitler as chancellor. As a liberal, you’re trying to enact liberal policies and detect the fascists through the policies they play and the special powers they unlock. Multiple win conditions are another differentiating factor from other members of the genre. Since each side has multiple ways to win, players pursue different strategies and need to coordinate through their gameplay. This once again comes back to the central player interaction – a player’s path to victory necessarily crosses with other players, feeding the group dynamic.
Finally, the well-balanced mechanics of the game are crucial towards prolonging the game so group interaction can dynamically evolve. Both parties benefit from the special powers unlocked by playing fascist policies. I noticed that this mechanic was useful on two levels. First, the special powers themselves shook up gameplay and gave us more things to discuss when trying to characterize the players as liberals or fascists. A well-timed action in our games often were crucial to swaying people’s opinions on each other: An execution could silence a particularly vocal critic of potential fascists, but also draw suspicion simultaneously. Secondly, the special powers are accessible in a way that gives liberals a reason to play fascist policies as well. Initially, I was of the opinion that the game would benefit from more special powers – perhaps powers unlocked by playing liberal cards. Upon reflecting, I realized that we had just got caught in a gameplay loop of a first order optimal strategy (playing policies that brought us closer to the victory objective), and having special powers accessible only through fascist policies gives a reason for anyone to play a fascist policy. This made it harder to detect fascists, since a true liberal could have a valid reason for playing a fascist card, which is crucial to the game.
I also want to note that Secret Hitler’s ‘magic circle’ is accessible and effective – I argue better than in other genre members like Werewolf. The game’s premise incorporates historic elements into its mechanics and objectives, which sets it apart from a fantasy setting: For example, the fascists can win by electing Hitler as Chancellor after garnering sufficient support. At the same time, the historical flavor of the game never gets in the way of actual gameplay mechanics. This allows the game to have the best of both. Initially, some of our group had reservations about playing the game since they weren’t too interested in the historical aspect. After playing, they found that the game was easy to follow even without that context. The most pivotal part of the game is that its ‘magic circle’ is deliberately porous: Players are free to bring in context and relationships outside of the circle to inform their in-game decision-making. Once again, this brings us back to my core claim that the interaction between interpersonal dynamics and game strategy is what makes Secret Hitler enjoyable.
In summary, the formal elements of Secret Hitler interact with one another to emphasize the games’ social aspects, and incite actions that force players into game states that are more contentious and hence more fun. The player party affiliations create immediate tribalism among players, which encourages players to buy-in and commit to the magic circle and the game’s premise. They do so in pursuit of many different paths to winning, which players are free to choose between, enabling flexibility, but more importantly, repeatedly facilitating contentious player versus player interaction. Finally, the game’s mechanics themselves are well-balanced: They make player interaction non-trivial to deduce information from, making the game necessarily social. Secret Hitler quickly became my favorite party game – it is rare that I enjoy social games at all, let alone ones with a (relatively complicated) historical premise. A large part of it is because playing the game continually gave me reasons to have funny conversations with my friends – and so I will happily return to the game’s ‘magic circle’ soon.
