“Among Us,” a mafia-esque detective video game, has become the latest addition to a collection of viral games including Fortnight and Fall Guys over the past few years. The game, which was released in June 2018, averaged 6.8 online players in its first six months, but it has now soared to a whopping 388,000 players at any given time, making it the third most-played game in the world and the most viewed game on Twitch, a live streaming platform.
The premise of the game surrounds a group of players on a spaceship, with each player assigned one of two roles: imposter or crewmate. The goal of the imposter is to kill all the players on the spaceship without being discovered by the crewmates or the innocents. On the other hand, the objective of the crewmates is to either complete all their tasks on the spaceship or successfully pinpoint the imposters and vote them out through emergency meetings. All players are able to call an emergency meeting to discuss their ideas and possibly vote to kick someone out.
The imposter is always at a numerical disadvantage, with the number of crewmates always outnumbering the number of imposters. As a result, an imposter gains certain advantages that allows them to kill and sabotage crewmates more easily. This includes sabotaging the oxygen tanks on the spaceship and using vents to move across the map and kill crewmates without being detected.
When either imposter or crewmate comes across a dead body, they have the option to report it, with a discussion period following the report of the dead body where players talk about who may have done the killing.
It is these discussions that are considered by many as the most fun part of the game. As crewmates do not know the identity of other crewmates, while imposters do, these meetings often lead to hilarious contradictions among players, as the imposters attempt to lie their way past their killings, and the crewmates look to defend themselves.
To make this teamwork communication more enjoyable, many players use external voice chatting platforms such as Discord while playing the game, since the game allows for typing only through chat.
“I love being able to hang out with people on this collaborative game because it just allows everyone to pitch in and have fun,” junior Amitav Rawat said. “I don’t think I would be playing ‘Among Us’ if it wasn’t for the communication that the game uses.”
Not only does the game allow students to socialize under the current circumstances, but according to Rawat, the game is also a good distraction from all the stress from school and is an excellent way to enjoy a late Friday night with friends.
“Among Us” appeals to both the casual and competitive player with its assortment of environments to be played in, which allows for different experiences and playstyles. Each game is unique and fast-paced with players’ roles constantly switching, allowing for a simple and quick way to have fun in a short period of time.
“The game really keeps you on your toes, and provides a great source of entertainment,” Rawat said. “I would say that playing ‘Among Us’ with my friends has been a highlight of quarantine.”