• Streams of the game by popular online personalities have spurred millions to play the game
• Among Us videos from local YouTubers have raked in over 100,000 views
• Players told TODAY the game is a good way for big groups to hang out virtually

SINGAPORE — You are a crewmate on board a spaceship, when an alarm sounds warning of a reactor meltdown. You see a fellow crewmate enter the room and feel relieved to see a familiar face and finally get some help. But before you can even turn to greet him, he sneaks up behind you, pulls his gun out and shoots.

You realise you have been betrayed, but it’s too late — who you thought was your friend and ally was an imposter after all.

This is Among Us — the multiplayer mobile game that has taken the world by storm amid the global pandemic.

Released in 2018 by American indie game company InnerSloth, the game was initially greeted with little fanfare.

But in the last few months, streams of the game by popular YouTube and TikTok personalities such as PewDiePie, Sodapoppin and James Charles have spurred millions of people around the world to download the game and play it themselves.

Over in Singapore, popular influencers have also hopped onto the Among Us bandwagon. Video streams by YouTuber Jianhao Tan, and channels Night Owl Cinematics and Wah!Banana have raked in over 100,000 views.

These videos have pushed Among Us into the mainstream, experts told TODAY, as viewers could understand the gameplay and see its appeal while being entertained by their favourite streamers.

IMPOSTERS DETECTED

Among Us is a free-to-play mobile game where players are dropped onto an alien spaceship and designated one of two roles — “crewmate” or “imposter”.

Crewmates have to complete a set of tasks while also trying to root out and avoid getting killed by one or several imposters. Players also can discuss and decide who among them to vote off the ship.

While the game mechanics are not new, Associate Professor Roberto Dillon said it is precisely because Among Us adds a twist to a well-established template that it is so successful.

“New and old players alike will instantly recognise how the game works and what they should try to achieve, without effort,” said Assoc Prof Dillon, academic head of James Cook University’s school of science and technology.

Mr Charlie Baillie, co-founder of e-sports marketing firm Ampverse, noted that the game also came at a time where there happened to be fewer new releases in the market.

But more importantly, the pandemic reignited interest in the game as through it people could satisfy their desire for social interaction, said competitive e-sports player Thomas Kopankiewicz.

“When cooped up at home, would you rather be chatting with friends and playing a game, or would you rather go on a single player campaign?

“I would say right now, I prefer playing games with friends because we don’t get to hang out in big groups outside,” he said.

Indeed, players whom TODAY interviewed said the game has been a good way for friends to get together and hang out virtually, given that groups larger than five are still not allowed to gather.

For Ms Rachel Chan, Among Us has become the go-to game for her group of 11 friends, who had tried a variety of video games over Zoom during the circuit breaker period.

Unlike the other tabletop games they have played, Ms Chan said Among Us is particularly engaging because all players are equally involved, even if they are assigned lesser roles.

“The act of guessing who is the imposter is also quite interesting,” she said. “When you’re trying to guess who is lying… that’s the part that gets people very excited.”

The popularity of the game has spawned popular memes such as “Red is sus”, which came about because of the stereotype that the red crewmate is usually the imposter and, hence, “suspicious”.

COMMUNITY OF PLAYERS

Interactive multiplayer games have certainly seen a rise in popularity during Covid-19.

Before Among Us, it was Animal Crossing, a social simulation game by Nintendo, whose popularity boosted the game company's first quarter earnings by 428 per cent.

Education officer Esther Lee, 47, was among the players who jumped on the bandwagon. Though the initial craze has since worn down, her family still looks forward to playing the game together every day.

Mdm Lee said what makes it so addictive is the community of players who offer to host island visits and share resources so that rare items can be collected easier.

Similarly, Ms Chan said her group of friends also became more engrossed with Among Us after more people started playing it.

HERE TO STAY OR PASSING FAD?

While the game developers have more in store to keep players hooked, experts said Among Us, like all others, will inevitably fade in popularity as new games hit the shelves.

Most of the players interviewed also said they would probably stop playing the game once big groups can gather in-person.

Still, one player, logistics manager Jackson Lim, 37, believes the game is engrossing enough and players like himself will keep coming back.

“With a game like this, the replay factor is always there because every time you play you are faced with a different situation, unlike single-player games which end when you complete the game,” he said.