Who hasn't heard of Among Us? Released in relative anonymity on mobile devices in 2018, the game became a common phenomenon in 2020 when it was released on PC thanks, in particular, to the enthusiasm of the Twitch and YouTube community. The concept is very simple and consists of a camera between four to fifteen players (it was still ten until mid-June) locked in a relatively small map (the first map was a ship). Among them have slipped saboteurs whose objective is to kill everyone, without being discovered.
During the game phase, despite the danger, the team members must accomplish their quests, one of the possible objectives of victory. This leads to scattering on the map to accomplish ultra simple mini-games such as, for example, filling oxygen cylinders, downloading documents or even connecting wires. Meanwhile, the saboteurs stab the unconscious who are walking alone, leaving only a poor abandoned leg behind them, and destroy the vain efforts of the good guys (locking the doors, turning off the lights, overloading the reactor, emptying the 'oxygen...). To cover their tracks, the saboteurs are the only ones who can use the air vents to quickly move from one room to another. But be careful not to be seen!
If a team member notices something fishy, they can trigger an emergency meeting by pressing the big red button. The other way is, if not, to discover a body. Then begins the second phase of the game, the debate, during which each player puts forward his arguments on the situation in order not to be accused of being an impostor. Of course, the other players will do everything to cover their tracks and blame others for them. Whether through the integrated chat or on an additional discussion server like Discord, bad faith is systematically invited, accusations are made, misunderstandings occur. At the end of the allotted time, you must vote... or abstain. If there is a consensus, the player who received the majority of votes is killed (the means differ depending on the map, whether it is ejected from the ship or thrown into the lava, the result is however the same). Otherwise, nothing happens and the game resumes with the same players (minus those who are already dead, the teammates then having the opportunity to complete their quests as ghosts). But, we can never say it enough, abstention is dangerous because not voting is the risk of keeping an impostor in its ranks and leaving him a new phase of the game to massacre innocent people!
Even though Among US seems simple, and a game or two is enough to understand the basics, getting good and mastering the game is much more complex than it seems, as I unfortunately discovered the hard way during of my many games (hello former Renegades). And this is where the guide comes into its own with the breakdown of the rules and roles of each, team member or impostor. Then, he details the cards, which allows to know them better, with his blind spots, his places of quest, but also the means of confusing the impostor, like the places connected by the ventilation, the angle of the cameras or the presence of motion detectors. Finally, the guide reveals all the secrets of the greatest. Thus, I ignored for a long time that certain quests were visual (depending on the setting of the game), enough to confuse an impostor who would pretend to complete quests to bluff. Not to mention the tricks to kill without being seen or heard!
With pages entirely in color, in a graphic style reminiscent of the game (therefore very simple), the texts are also within everyone's reach: short sentences, simple vocabulary, essential information. And it works wonderfully. However, the book should not be seen as a novel. I do not recommend a linear reading, it would be too off-putting, but rather as a book to keep close at hand. You have to go through all the chapters once, read the elements of interest, then above all come back to them later in case of uncertainty, or even keep a page open with the advice at hand, such as the double pages of the maps. Note that the guide includes maps and tips for The Skeld, MIRA HQ and Polus, but not for the fourth, The Airship (added in March).
For less than 10€, a book to offer to your friends so that they improve, just like to children (and not so young) who rage in front of their computers because "I got caught again!". Available at your favorite bookseller or online (such as on Amazon) for €9,95 (ISBN 978-2035971029 published by Larousse).
