Online game platform ‘Among Us’ grows in popularity: What is it?
“Where was the body found?” “I think they’re the imposter!” “I was in Navigation with Orange!”
During the month of September and the beginning of this October, one multiplayer platform has grown in popularity. This online game is called “Among Us.” The game was first published in 2018 by the developer Innersloth. However, it has grown in popularity during the global pandemic, COVID-19. Some could say this is the perfect game for this era of our lives.
What is this game about? How does it work? “Among Us” is a murder-mystery style game where games are run on different servers. It can be played on a computer or mobile device. Servers can be public or private and anyone can host one. There can be up to 10 players on one server. To get into a private server, you must receive an entry code. The characters that one can play as are all little, cartoon astronauts. The looks of them are minimal, but there are large color and costume options. You may select between red, orange, yellow, green, lime, blue, cyan, purple, black, white, pink and brown. You can choose from a large assortment of hats and/or pants for your player as well.
Before the game begins, the host can customize game settings to their liking and they select a map to play the server on. The settings are how long certain things will last like kill cool-down, voting period, and more. There are three maps to choose from and they are called Skeld, Mira HQ and Polus. The Skeld is a large spaceship. It is divided into an eastern and western wing. Then it has two large central hubs. The Mira HQ is a high-rise building. The map is somewhat smaller and condenses the players more. Polus is a big station on a cold, chilly planet. Traversal can take a long here. A key factor is planning your sabotaging with timing.
You start in a lobby with everyone else. This is where you wait before the game begins, but also where you can customize yourself. The waiting room takes place in a small spaceship. The game starts when the host chooses. Once the game begins, all players start at the spawn point or starting point. There are two types of players in the game. You’re assigned a position right before you spawn. There are the “crewmates” and the “imposters.” The crewmates are given a list of tasks and their objective is to complete the tasks. The imposters are trying to kill everyone but one person. They must do this before everyone completes all their tasks. The imposters have many abilities to help them kill everyone.
They can sabotage the map in many ways. The maps consist of various locations that control different parts of the map. The imposter can sabotage one room which results in a crewmate having to go fix it. An example of sabotage is when the imposter chooses the electrical room, then the crewmates will be notified to “Fix the lights.” This also causes the lights to go out which greatly affects the players. There are many other types of sabotage that the imposter can do. Within most of the rooms are vents. These result in an imposter being able to “vent” or move to another room. The imposter(s) must play sneaky and betray those around them.
When someone is killed, their body will lay on the ground until found. When another player finds the body, they will report it. After a body is found, an emergency meeting is conducted among all the players. Within an emergency meeting, the players will discuss in the chat who they think killed the victim found. Players must try to prove their innocence. After discussion, they can vote off who they think it is or skip the vote. If there are a majority of votes for one player, they will be sent out of the spaceship and the ones left will find out if they were/weren’t an imposter. If an imposter or imposters remain, then all players will respawn at the starting point. The same cycle will occur until either the crewmates finish all their tasks or the imposter wins.
The game has gained much popularity during the global pandemic, COVID-19. Being restricted in our rooms with little contact gives this game much power over its audience. It has cured boredom while keeping people socially distanced. Thousands of people are playing this game with their friends. It gives an opportunity to reconnect with friends. Why don’t you give it a try?
