2020 has been an interesting year for gaming. Multiplayer games have been growing even higher across all platforms. Just a few weeks ago Fall Guys were taking the internet by storm, it was an instant hit. Almost overnight, however, a new challenger appeared to kick it off its throne. That challenger would be Among Us.

Among Us is an online hidden-role game, kind of like Mafia. While the idea of a hidden-role game isn’t new (in fact, it’s been picking up steam the past few years with games like Town of Salem and many a card game), Among Us lets players do things no other game in the genre has before. One of the main problems people have with hidden role games is the common day and night phases. This pretty much just means that there is a day, where innocents try to figure out who the killer is, and the night, where killers strike. The extended amount of time in which you are just waiting for your phase is a large con for many players. Among Us fixes this by combining them, letting the killers roam free while the innocents are trying to do their day to day jobs.

Among Us has been downloaded over 86 million times, and that’s not surprising either, as players agree that the game is very fun. Like most hidden role games the game is split between innocent players, that being the crewmates, and the killers referred to as the Imposters. The Crewmate is the more common role. Their goal is to try and sleuth out who the Imposter is by talking amongst themselves and complete given tasks around the map. Tasks are minigames that are generally not the same on any given map, and take more than a few seconds to finish. Tasks, while considered enjoyable to do, will leave your character vulnerable to the Imposter. The Imposter, like with most killers in Hidden-Role games, blends in with the other players having no apparent differences, however Imposters have the ability to kill/eliminate other players, which leaves a body, and sabotage tasks to gain an advantage over the crewmates. When a body is discovered or a certain amount of time has passed the crewmates can start a vote to eliminate the most suspicious player, if they find the Imposter they win the game. If the Imposters kills/eliminate all the crewmates they’ll win the game.

While the role of the Imposter is fun, many players may not like it at first. Until you’ve played as the Imposter a few times and have learned the maps it can be kind of stressful, as you’ll worry about making basic mistakes like being caught in the act of crawling through vents, sabotaging a task, or even killing a Crewmate! However, once players get better it becomes a lot more enjoyable. Trying to sneak under the radar and dispatch the crewmates is already great enough, but adding all the new strategies you can come up with to trick the crewmates into believing that you’re innocent can add a whole new layer of complexity to the whole game.

The gameplay alone wasn’t the only thing that gave Among Us the giant player base that it has today. One of the biggest things that Among Us has going for it is accessibility: many games are exclusive to PC players, and lots of the ones that aren’t are also not cross-compatible (meaning someone on their phone, console, computer, etc. can’t play along with someone using a different platform). 

Among Us is interesting–it is cross-compatible between PC and mobile. Mobile is by far the most common platform for playing games. The majority of people you ask will have a smartphone, and even if they don’t use it for games they still have the option to, so having Among Us be available on mobile devices (for free no less) increases the number who have access to it by a lot. Add to that being able to play with friends on PC (on which it costs $5) and you have a way for tens of millions of people to be able to play the game with their friends. The ability to make your own rooms that only people you know can join is another bonus.

While Among Us is a great game, it can be easy for dishonest players to cheat and ruin it for everyone else, although this is a rather rare occurrence. However, if you are worried about it there are plenty of places you can go to find people to play with you. On Discord alone, there are many servers dedicated to helping you, and others, to find honest players. 

Overall, Among Us is highly regarded as a great game. Whether you’re playing with complex strategies to win lots of games or are just trying to play a game to relax after school, Among Us’ simple gameplay makes it a fun option for most people. Even with a few toxic players, it has an overall welcoming and sportsmanlike community, and you’re sure to be able to find a server that you’ll enjoy.

Among Us! on the app store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/among-us/id1351168404

Among Us! on Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.innersloth.spacemafia

Among Us! on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/945360/Among_Us/