If you’re hooked with the thrill of playing Among Us with your friends, the good news is— the fun doesn’t stop there!
The online multiplayer social deduction game is one of the trending games of the summer, which can be played by almost anyone in your group of friends. For one, it doesn’t need prior First Person Shooter (FPS) or Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) knowledge, making it suitable for all ages.
The InnerSloth-developed game has overtaken Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout, the color-filled trending BR title, as the most-streamed game in the 3rd quarter of 2020. It has also reached the number one spot on the top-downloaded games on both Play Store and App Store.
Amid the continued hype of Among Us, here’s a list of similar social deduction multiplayer games you can play with your squad on Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, Xbox and PS4 while in quarantine and social distancing.
Social deduction games
First off, what exactly are social deduction games? This genre is also known as impostor or traitor games, with one player pretending to be all innocent like the rest until a point arrives everyone’s suspicious of one another.
The victory goes to the “impostor” if they manage to make everyone believe they’re off the hook, while the rest of the crew wins if they successfully sniff out who’s the traitor amongst the team.
If you’re the traitor, you’re usually tasked to discreetly do all the bad things you can possibly do in a match. In the case of Among Us, you need to kill the other crewmates without getting caught and sabotage the various systems of the spaceship.
You need to be an excellent liar in order to win these types of games, armed with convincing alibis and reasons up your sleeve. One way to think about social deduction games is a logical battle royale, where your best weapon or loot is manipulation.
Town Hall meetings
One common feature in social deduction games is a town hall meeting where players talk to each other to discuss who is who, and which is which.
In Among Us, players can have an emergency meeting if a dead body is reported or if someone presses the emergency button usually found in the Cafeteria. During the meeting, others ask where the body was found, who they were with during the time of the killings, and who they think did the crime.
If you’re under suspicion without a strong alibi, this can easily evict you off the match before you can even put your plans into action. But, you can also use these meetings as the perfect chance to pin the blame on someone else— just make sure to do it convincingly enough.
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Project Winter (PC)
This 8-person multiplayer title is also heavily based on team survival and betrayal, much like Among Us. It also gives players certain tasks to complete, where they have to gather immediate resources, repair surrounding structures, and strengthen themselves.
Players must work together to survive the cold long enough to call for help. Of course, there are traitors in the group who may coyly disguise themselves like the rest. Don’t let this fool you— as they may only sabotage your group’s survival.
If you’re assigned as the Traitor, you can lure unsuspecting crewmates into the wild, shoot them, and blame their unfortunate death on a bear attack.
Project Winter also offers a voice chat feature, giving players the freedom to skip on using Discord to communicate with friends. The game is also praised for having excellent gameplay visuals.
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Deceit (PC)
Although having a different gameplay to Among Us, its theme of trust and deception can be very similar to the general social deduction approach. On Deceit, players must find other innocent players, build each other’s trust, and survive.
It is a multiplayer game limited to be played on PC at the moment and free to download on Steam. Deceit also has a first-person shooter gameplay but it doesn’t have any local gaming option like Among Us.
The game starts with players waking up in a dark asylum with five other people. 2 of the players are infected with a fatal virus and must sabotage and outsmart the rest to kill the innocent players.
Trust your instinct and form an alliance with other players you believe are also innocent. However, there’s always a chance that your friend is one of the infected. Deceit is an action-packed FPS game filled with suspicion, instinct, and survival. The fast-paced gameplay is also what made it considerably one of the best trust and deception titles to try today.
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Town of Salem (Android/iOS & PC)
Town of Salem is another great social deduction title to try on Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows. It is one of the oldest strategy games, having been released in 2014. The game offers a maximum of 15 players, which is a contrast to the 10-player max capacity of Among Us.
One of the most notable features of Town of Salem is how it allows players to pick their favorite role of 48 unique roles, with their own unique abilities, attributes, and goals. In a broad sense, you can choose to be a Town member (good), Mafia, Arsonist, Serial Killer, or Neutral.
If you want to play as the good guy/Town member, you must work to protect the other innocent players. Sniff out the suspicious ones who may actually be a mafia or a serial killer and can kill people in your town.
This is a great choice if you want to put your social deduction and deception skills to a test! Not to mention, it also has a large player community of over 8 million users.
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Unfortunate Spacemen (PC)
The premise of Unfortunate Spacemen leaves you stranded on a distance outpost, trying to survive long enough to be rescued back home. Try not to be clawed to death by another player you believe to be your friend but turns out– is an actual killing monster!
The free-to-play title plays from a first-person perspective, elevating the thrill of playing. Whoever plays as the “Monster” can opt to impersonate other crewmates to lay out traps, sabotage the team, or go on a killing spree.
With the monster being powerful, you need to work as a team to take the beast down. As a part of the space crew, you also need to finish your designated tasks. Both parties have different perks and items they can use to their advantage.
The game caters up to 16 players in a match. There’s also a built-in voice chat feature you can use to talk with other players!
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Enemy on Board (PC)
From the title itself, the 8-player online multiplayer game has a similar premise to Among Us. Within the group, 6 players are innocent crew members while two are picked as the Alien imposters. The rest of the team must work together to determine who are the imposters and eliminate them to win.
The imposters easily appear like your regular crew member, making it difficult to conduct a blatant witch hunt. Like Among Us, generators of the spaceship may also be destroyed to prevent any communication between the participants.
The team must repair the generators to keep their communication line going, as well as surviving and staying alive. Enemy on Board also has a voice chat feature and is free-to-download on PC.
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Barotrauma (PC)
Barotrauma is a co-op submarine survival game, but set in space. The game is also known for its survival horror elements!
The crew must steer the submarine, follow given orders, fight monsters, fix leaks, operate various machinery, man the guns and craft items, and stay alert for any signs of danger.
Each match plays out differently, much like a horror film with no consistent plot. One thing is for sure, though. The tasks are challenging and can possibly go wrong in a lot of ways.
Although Barotrauma doesn’t heavily revolve on a “Traitor,” it focuses on the element of survival against all odds. Be careful of a gigantic spiny eel that is out to get you. Communication plays a vital role and serves as your key to survive.
Bottomline
Fortunately for those who don’t have extensive gaming experience, you are not limited to picking between RPGs, MOBAs, or FPS titles— since there’s a game out there for everyone else.
The success of Among Us in 2020 just proves that other gaming genres, which are currently away from the mainstream, will gradually enjoy the spotlight if the time is right. With its simple premise and fast-paced gameplay, it’s no wonder why the space-themed online multiplayer social deduction game became a global success.
Given the pandemic and global travel restrictions, what better way to bond with your friends than through a fun-filled online multiplayer game like Among Us, right?
There are lots of multiplayer social deduction games with a similar premise like Among Us, so gather your friends and inform them of this well-curated list! Just don’t blame us for any newly-developed trust issues in your friendships, though.
