Recent reviews by Bob Katter

I am going to bed and seeing conveyor belts in my dreams. 10/10.

It may have originally come out in 2018, but Among Us took 2020 by storm, and it's deserving of that spotlight. Innersloth has made the tense, multiplayer fun of in-person cloak and dagger games like Mafia and Werewolf work on PC, mobile, and consoles with a flourish. And the great times I've had slaying, lying, and sleuthing my way through its charming sci-fi world got me wondering why it took so long for this sort of game to catch on. There are still a few technical hitches to be worked out, just like the fussy engines on the Skeld, but that hasn't kept me from coming back to it again and again in my down time.

The premise of Among Us is simple enough that just about anyone can pick it up quickly: eight crew members dash around a claustrophobic, cartoon spaceship to complete simple minigames and fill up a shared progress bar. But among them are two hidden impostors with the goal of secretly murdering everyone until they equal or outnumber the crew and claim victory. And yet, like so many excellent multiplayer games, it's very tricky to master because it’s about fooling real people, not gaming an AI. You can't even fall back on the same successful strategies too often or your opponents will catch on, so sometimes you have to mix things up and maybe even act illogically to keep them guessing.

The art is whimsical, with your bulbous, quirky astronauts stumbling around engine bays and reactor decks that look like the doodles I used to do in the margins of my notes in school. This is effective for a couple of reasons. For one, it keeps the mood pretty light, which is important in a game where you're going to be lying to, and being lied to, by your friends every single round. It's hard to take getting ganked in the middle of a task for the fifth time too personally when the animation for your demise makes you laugh after you're done yelling. The art style also makes interacting with the various machines and doodads on the map intuitive and enjoyable. I was able to drop right into my first match and get a decent grasp of what was going on without needing much help.

The tasks the crew will be rushing to complete present a good variety of tiny minigames, from finishing a simple maze to connecting colored wires. Most of them will test memory or hand-eye coordination in a way that requires you to keep your cool, which can be a challenge when you know there are murderers running around, out for your blood. The fact that most of the minigames cover up a significant portion of your screen is a really effective way to build tension, too. Even tasks like Download, which just makes you sit and watch a progress bar fill up, have me going, "Come on… come onnn!" Any movement at the edges of my monitor could mean impending death, and you know skilled impostors will use these blind spots to their advantage.

Playing as the impostor is definitely the most fun for me, and it requires a variety of skills to do well. Isolating your target so no one witnesses the crime is the easiest way to get away with it, but if you do get caught by only one other person, being able to pin the kill on them by lying over in-game text chat or an external voice app like Discord can save you from being cast out. Impostors can also use the well-placed vents on each map to flee the scene, but you have to be careful not to be spotted in two disconnected rooms in a way that makes it clear you took a shortcut. But I enjoy being on the other side as well: As a crewmate, it's a thrilling detective game to try and keep track of where everyone is, who they were with, and poke holes in their alibis at each meeting in a way that will convince the other players to vote them off the ship.

It's delightfully satisfying to lead either the impostor or the crew team to victory, because much like in poker, you're playing the other players more than anything. If you group up with the same people often enough, you can pick up on their tells. Some of my friends will stay dead silent if they're impostors, while others will start yelling and trying to direct the blame on anyone else the second the first body is found. There's a lot of mental juggling that goes into sussing out a killer, because you have to remember when and where you saw everyone and, ideally, ask the right questions to catch them in a lie without making it too obvious that's what you're doing. Then, you need to make a compelling case. Because even if you know who the impostor is 100 percent, that won't matter if you can't convince the other voters.

Some of my favorite impostor rounds have been those in which I coasted to victory in a public game by changing my handle to something unassuming, like "joey07", and acting like I'm a young kid who doesn't really understand the rules that well. Aside from how I type and what I do or do not choose to comment on, I can even make a big show of having a hard time getting around the ship or not understanding how crew tasks work. Knowing how to perform innocence, even to the point that you half believe you're innocent yourself, is a great skill to have. But it's a common enough strategy that if you overdo it, at this point, experienced players will catch on. So sometimes I have two cover identities: one that's way too obvious, and another that I want my opponents to figure out and think that's the final layer. But it's not. The mind games can get really deep, and they're my favorite part of Among Us.

It works so well in part because the default map, a spaceship called The Skeld, is very well balanced. There’s a clever, circular layout, a mix of bottlenecks and open spaces, and just enough room for impostors to maneuver unseen if you’re not watching for them at the right moment. The other two maps, Mira HQ and Polus, are a bit too fragmented and spread out, which can give the impostors a big advantage. That hasn’t been too big a problem for me, though, because the wide variety of game options allow you to tweak things in the crew or impostors' favor with toggles like anonymous voting and confirming someone's role when they're ejected. This also offers flexible difficulty when playing with a group of more or less experienced killers.

There are some technical issues, still. Finding a match can be frustrating, since the clunky, dated browser only shows you a limited number of lobbies at a time. It can be tricky to find games that aren’t already full or are a long way from getting there. And the fact that there's no mechanic to punish players who rage-quit when they don't get to play as impostor, or are caught dead to rights in the middle of a murder; those can lead entire rounds to premature, unsatisfying endings. Adding a quick match button and some way to disincentivize quitters, like a time out before you can join another match if you quit too often, would both go a long way – not to mention built-in voice chat support.

Verdict
Among Us lives up to the hype created by its delayed explosion in popularity, for the most part. It's a style of intense, refreshing multiplayer experience that simply didn't catch on digitally before recently. Its well-earned following speaks to just how enticing murdering and deceiving your friends can be, as well as Innersloth's endearing art, approachability, and clever minigame design. I don't have any sus that this will be the last game of its breed to make a splash, since we’re already seeing its influence on even mega-games like Fortnite. But it’s the breakout hit for the genre, and it's a great first impression.

Monopoly's river is absolutely infested with putrid ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ radioactive monstrosity's that hate me and only me and someone please help me I am broke living on the streets because this river is a complete trash dump

Among Us[c] is an online multiplayer social deduction game developed and published by American game studio Innersloth. It was released on iOS and Android devices in June 2018 and on Windows in November 2018, featuring cross-platform play between these platforms.[4] The game was also ported for the Nintendo Switch in December 2020, and has planned releases for the Xbox One and Xbox Series X and Series S in 2021. The game was inspired by the party game Mafia and the science fiction horror film The Thing, and since the release of its first map, The Skeld, other maps were added into the game. A fourth map, "The Airship", was released in March 2021.

The game takes place in a space-themed setting, in which players each take on one of two roles, most being Crewmates, and a predetermined number being Impostors.[d] The goal of the Crewmates is to identify the Impostors, eliminate them, and complete tasks around the map; the Impostors' goal is to covertly sabotage and kill the Crewmates before they complete all of their tasks. Players suspected to be Impostors may be eliminated via a plurality vote, which any player may initiate by calling an emergency meeting (except during a crisis) or reporting a dead body. Crewmates win if all Impostors are eliminated or all tasks are completed whereas Impostors win if there is an equal number of Impostors and Crewmates, or if a critical sabotage goes unresolved.

While the game was initially released in 2018 to little mainstream attention, it received a massive influx of popularity in 2020 due to many well-known Twitch streamers and YouTubers playing it. The game received positive reviews from critics, being praised for its gameplay and setting, although it was criticized for its technical issues. In response to the game's popularity, Among Us 2 was announced in August 2020. However, the planned sequel was canceled a month later and the team shifted their focus to improving the original game. Merchandise based on the game, such as toys, shirts, etc, were announced and released. Among Us has also inspired internet memes and achieved a very large following online.

Among Us is a multiplayer game for four to ten players. Up to three players are randomly[15] chosen to be the impostor(s) each round. A round can take place on one of four maps: a spaceship called "The Skeld"; a headquarters building called "MIRA HQ"; a planet base called "Polus";[16] or "The Airship", which based on the Henry Stickmin series.[17][18]

At the start of the game, Crewmates are assigned "tasks" to complete around the map in the form of minigames, consisting of maintenance work on vital systems such as fixing wires and downloading data.[19] Impostors are given a fake list of tasks to blend in with Crewmates. However, they are unable to actually perform any task. Impostors can sabotage vital systems (such as the ship's oxygen supply), covertly travel through vents, and work with other Impostors to kill Crewmates. If a player dies, they become a ghost. Ghosts can pass through walls, spectate other players, and chat with other ghosts.[20] Living players have a limited cone of vision,[21] but ghosts do not have this limitation.[22]

Ghosts help their living teammates by completing their tasks (as a Crewmate) or performing sabotages (as an Impostor).[16] The Impostors win when they kill enough Crewmates to be equal in number, or when the Crewmates fail to resolve a major sabotage.[20] The Crewmates win by completing all tasks, or by identifying and ejecting all Impostors.[16] Games can also end by players quitting the match if doing so fulfills any win condition (if a crewmate quits the game, their tasks are automatically considered completed).[23][24]

To help the Crewmates identify Impostors, there are various surveillance systems on each map, such as security cameras system on The Skeld,[25] a doorlog in MIRA HQ,[26] and a vitals indicator in Polus.[16] Crewmates may also confirm their identity through visual tasks, which cannot be faked by Impostors.[27] Any living player may call a group meeting by reporting a dead body, or by pressing the Emergency Meeting button at any time.[20][28][29]

During a meeting, players discuss who they believe is an Impostor based on the available evidence. A plurality vote is held, and the chosen player is ejected from the map and they become a ghost.[19][20] Players can communicate in a text chat,[19] but only during meetings, and only if they are alive (though ghosts can speak with one another at any time).[16][20][21] While the game does not have a built-in voice chat system, it is common for players to use external programs such as Discord.[30][31][32]

In each game's lobby, various options can be adjusted to customize aspects of gameplay, such as player movement speed, the allowed number of emergency meetings, number of tasks, if there will be visual tasks,[33] or whether or not an impostor is revealed after being voted off.[34] There are also many cosmetic options, including spacesuit colors, skins, hats, and pets,[35][36] some of which are paid downloadable content.[e][6][11][21]

Development and release
Early development
Among Us timeline
2018 iOS/Android release
Windows 10 Release
2019 "MIRA HQ" release
"Polus" release
2020 macOS release
Nintendo Switch release
2021 "The Airship" release
Xbox Series X/S release
Among Us was inspired by the live party game Mafia,[6][38] and science fiction horror film The Thing.[39] The idea for the concept was originally gave by Marcus Bromander, co-founder of Innersloth, which played Mafia since he was a kid.[40] The game was initially intended to be a mobile-only local multiplayer game with a single map.[5] Originally, the game had no audio to avoid revealing hidden information in a local setting.,[f] and Willard mixed sounds from numerous sound packs to compose the SFX during the game's Steam release.[7] Bromander paused development on Innersloth's other game, The Henry Stickmin Collection, in order to build Among Us' first map, The Skeld.[7] When they began developing the first map, they intended that the ship was always in crisis and that the Impostors could do tasks, however, they found this "stressful" and that would affect discussions.[40] In designing maps Bromander and Artist Amy Liu would use Google images to determine what kind of details a room such as an the electrical room should have.[7] Willard described playtesting as painful and frustrating, as the game would break down during sessions forcing him to send playtesters new builds off of Google Play. The team tested the game with 8 of their friends and never tested the game with 9 or the maximum 10 players.[7]

The game was released in June 2018 to Android and iOS under the AppID of "spacemafia".[6][41] Shortly after release, Among Us had an average player count of 30 to 50 concurrent players.[33] Bromander blamed the game's poor release on Innersloth being "really bad at marketing".[5] The team nearly abandoned the project multiple times, but continued work on it due to a "small but vocal player base",[42] adding in online multiplayer, new tasks, and customization options.[42] The game was released on Steam on November 16, 2018.[5][43] Cross-platform play was supported upon release of the Steam version.[44][45]

On August 8, 2019, Innersloth released a second map, MIRA HQ,[46][47] which was firstly announced to be in development after the incrementation of map filters during 2019's first update.[48] A third map, Polus, was added later that year on November 12.[46][49] The fourth map, the Airship, was released on March 31, 2021 and is based on a location in the Henry Stickmin universe.[17][18] MIRA HQ and Polus were initially US$4 via in-app purchase, however their prices were reduced to $2 on January 6, 2020, then made free on June 11, 2020.[50] While the map packs are still available for purchase on all platforms, they now only provide the player the skins that were bundled with the maps.[51]

I mean i love the game.
I think that fortnite is bad and not my cup of tea so this should be a good alternative?
Well yeah and nah.....
The devs should just rework the game completely to eliminate the bugs.

A very fun little game with a rich and fun combat. I love the different classes and weapons and how the attacks and defence is like. And also how easy it is to learn how the combat and how your enemies work to strike the right move.
For an old game like this, it is great.










(btw its max resolution is 1050p)

A Small little fun game you can enjoy with your friends ( And preferably with your friends)