Among Us

Among Us is a casual multiplayer online game focused on social deduction. It is a simplified and faster version of "Mafia": from 4 to 10 players try to survive by completing simple tasks, but one of them is actually an imposter. To win, the imposter needs to eliminate other team members while constantly avoiding detection and removal from the group. Depending on the server rules, the average game time is from 3 to 15 minutes.

Like other casual games, Among Us is simplified to the extreme. There is no intricate game lore, expansive world, or lengthy leveling up. Even the characters look the same and only differ in color. For customization, there are pets and hats skins. The maps consist of a set of rooms connected by corridors. The controls are limited to a couple of actions, viewing the map, and moving.

The field of vision is an important part of the gameplay. Players do not see the entire corridor or room at once, only the space within a certain radius around them. Objects in the line of sight create dark spots where nothing is visible. This encourages players to be attentive, look around, and check corners.

For the innocents, many simple tasks are scattered across the map, such as "connect wires by color," "flip the switch," "scan," "upload data," and so on. The quests are divided into common ones and unique ones for each player. By completing all of them, the innocents will automatically win.

For the imposter, tasks turn into sabotage objectives. By breaking the electricity, the field of vision for the innocents will decrease, making it easier to kill them. A communication failure will render cameras useless. Sabotaging critical systems, like the nuclear reactor, will put the innocents on the brink of losing. All this is done with one click on the sabotage map, allowing the imposter to be physically on the other side of the map.

Both the innocents and the imposters do not disappear after death but remain in the form of a ghost. They cannot communicate with living team members, vote, kill, or report bodies, but they can pass through walls, open doors, and have a wide field of vision. Team members can continue completing their tasks, while imposters, if there is more than one in the group, can cause minor sabotage.

If a player finds themselves on the innocent team, they need to:

The tactics of the team members are simple. Stick together, keep an eye on each other, do not separate. Know the map thoroughly, understand who could and could not have come from where. Also, know the connections of the ventilation system where the enemy might crawl.

If a player is the imposter, they need to:

The traitor's tactics are more complex. They need to ambush a lonely innocent in the right place without witnesses, while ensuring they have an alibi. Ideally, someone should see them in another location. Usually, a critical failure needs to be arranged, and in the ensuing chaos, stealthily eliminate someone. Some maps allow escaping the crime scene through ventilation, but without knowledge of the map and a bit of luck, one can always emerge under the watchful eye.

Upon discovering a body, a discussion is called. Each player expresses their opinion on who could have done it, provides evidence, and votes to exclude the player they suspect from the group. Being voted out means the character's death, but there may not be enough votes to make a decision.

Often, there is no evidence, and identifying the traitor must be done logically: knowing the map, the murder location, and who came from where. The traitor's task is not only to deflect suspicion from themselves, if there is any, or to refute accusations if someone witnessed the crime, but also to successfully frame an innocent. This way, they can kill two crew members at once.

The killer's success is achieved through a symbiosis of correct actions and confident lying. It’s not enough to simply imitate an innocent while avoiding extra eyes, cutting off communication and lighting. One must convincingly prove that they are not involved, while the yellow or green player is unoccupied, behaving suspiciously, and lacking an alibi.

With the gift of persuasion, it’s important not to overdo it. Actively campaigning against one person — you’ll be voted out along with them. If you go completely silent — you’re afraid, plotting a cunning plan, on your way out. Stating something definitively — means you’re intentionally framing someone. If your voice trembles at an unexpected question — you’re caught, traitor! During the discussion, it’s necessary to carefully place accents and understand human psychology.

If there are two or three traitors, it significantly changes the social aspect of Among Us. After all, traitors are not friends, but just partners. If one is exposed, the other will have to throw the first one under the bus, rather than defend them. Otherwise, it will become clear to everyone that this pair is working together.

The emotional tension rises when using voice chat instead of text chat, and the game is played among acquaintances, not random players. Knowing how friends react to stress or lies makes it easier to guess — is this behavior normal, or is the acquaintance hiding something? Or maybe they are so PRO in communication that they are meticulously imitating a natural reaction?

All these possibilities further immerse the player in the process.

By the end of 2020, Among Us had three maps, functionally consisting of small and large rooms connected by narrow corridors. There is no definitively safe place on the map where you can group up and wait it out. However, there is usually one very dangerous spot that is better to enter in groups of three, and a couple of hazardous rooms where you shouldn't linger.