Are you playing Among Us and struggling to get the impostor before they do you in? Here are eighteen tips to help crewmates survive and even unmask the impostor.
Among Us is a multiplayer murder mystery where, when they’re not begging anyone with a female username for their Snapchat, the participants attempt to unmask one or more impostors. The snag is, they could be anyone and, as the bodies mount up, so does the paranoia. If you’re not careful, you could end up being wrongly accused and flushed into space.
There’s no quick shortcut to finding the impostor in Among Us, but there are several ways of narrowing it down and even, potentially, catching the criminal in the act, all while saving your own skin.
Here are some handy hints – some of these apply to the whole game, others just to certain maps:
Use freeplay mode to explore the maps.
A disproportionate amount of games take place on The Skeld, Among Us’s spaceship map, but you there are three maps that games can take place on. Launch freeplay mode from Among Us’s main menu and you can explore all three, giving you a feel for their layout.
Use the security cameras (The Skeld and Polus).
The security cameras don’t cover the entire base, but it’s worth checking them on the off-chance you catch the impostor in the act. In particular, you might catch them leaping into or out of the vent. But, on The Skeld, don’t forget to watch the bottom right screen as well – if you see someone coming into the security room, be prepared to head out in case they’re the impostor.
Tell people where you were.
You might think it’s pointless to tell people where you were if there’s no witnesses but it actually seems to account in emergency discussions. So if there was a murder and you were doing tasks in the reactor, say so. Keeping quiet, even if you have nothing significant to say, counts against you.
Save your emergency activations.
Depending on the match settings, you may only have one chance to call a meeting. The exception is finding a body – this will always call a meeting. But if you’ve noticed something important, like an impostor using a vent, you’ll need to call a meeting. So be sure you have something important to say before hitting that button.
Watch the reactor (The Skeld).
Whether you’re using the cameras or are on foot, watch for people entering the reactor and other single-entrance rooms that have a vent inside, like the electrical room. If someone goes inside then doesn’t come out again, even after a minute or two, chances are they’re the impostor and have ducked into the vents. True, they could have been murdered, but if you call a meeting and they have, they’ll show up as a cross. No cross? You’ve likely found your impostor.
Decontaminate alone. (Mira HQ)
Mira HQ’s decontamination passage, which you need to go through to the reactor, can be a real killing ground. If you see someone else go in, don’t follow. The decontamination process takes about five seconds, enough time for an impostor to stab you then duck into a vent.
Get tasks done in the dark.
When the lights go out, it’s tempting to run and help fix them. But, since the impostors will also find it much harder to see, it’s a great opportunity to get long tasks done, such as starting the reactor.
If you’re being chased, run to the cafeteria. (The Skeld).
If you’re being chased by a crewmate who you think is the impostor, run to the cafeteria. It’s not just that the emergency button is there, letting you call a meeting and point the finger at your pursuer. The tables are arranged in such a way that you can run around the edge of the cafeteria without the alleged impostor being able to reach you. This is especially useful if there’s just been an emergency meeting and you’ve got to wait a few seconds before you can call another.
Take notes.
If you’re serious about playing detective, having a pad and pencil handy is essential. Granted, you’ll probably need to be playing Among Us with friends for this to stick, but scribbling down where you ran into people is useful if you want to call them out on their lies.
Do investigate, don’t stalk.
If someone is suddenly following you around, it doesn’t guarantee they’re an impostor but it’s certainly suspect behaviour. So if you’ve finished your tasks, don’t just decide you’re going to stalk another player. We’ve seen several players ejected (at least of half of whom weren’t impostors) because they decided it was a good idea to play detective and follow one single player. If you are investigating, particularly if you have suspicious about a particular player, don’t make it obvious.
Be honest in emergency meetings.
It’s okay to think someone’s “sus” as long as you give a reason and are honest about it. Don’t say you’re 100% absolutely sure someone is the impostor unless you’ve seen them use a vent or kill someone. Yes, you can tell your fellow crewmates you saw someone go in the reactor and not come out, but if you swear blind they’re the impostor and you’re wrong, you’ll be next out of the airlock.
Call other people out.
Likewise, don’t be afraid to call players out in emergency meetings. If another player says someone is the impostor, ask them why. If they’re the impostor, trying to implicate someone else, they may stumble when asked to give a reason.
Report a body as soon as you find it.
Yes, there’s a danger you might be accused of murdering the victim. But if someone else reports it and you’re standing over it, that looks even worse. Besides which, it immediately calls an emergency meeting, teleporting all the players to the cafeteria, so if the murderer is lurking round the corner, ready to rack up a second kill, you’ll be safe, for now.
If someone unmasks an impostor, don’t assume they’re innocent.
If you’re in a multiple impostor match and the person ejected is confirmed as an impostor, don’t assume the crewmate who called them out isn’t also an impostor. They could have fingered them just to make themselves look trustworthy.
Three’s company, two’s a murder.
It’s possible, if you’re playing a multi-impostor game, that you could end up in the company of two or more impostors. But, on the whole, staying together with a couple of other survivors is reasonably safe. However, if you’re in a room and another player wanders in either leave the room or, if the room’s big enough, put some distance between the two of you.
Just because they don’t immediately murder you doesn’t mean they’re not an impostor – it’s not uncommon for impostors to lull you into a false of security then strike.
If the O2 alert sounds, go up (The Skeld).
There are two panels that need to be activated if an impostor sabotages the O2 system on The Skeld. There are arrows pointing the way but often crewmates tend go for the lower panel because it’s a more direct route, leaving no-one to sort the upper one. If you go for the upper panel, in the O2 room, you’ll have a better chance of restoring oxygen.
Watch the green bar when you see someone doing a task.
If you see someone doing a task, standing in front of a panel or so forth, and they’re not between you and the exit, watch the green task bar on the top left hand of the screen. It should go up by the time they step away from the panel.
If it does go up, it doesn’t guarantee they’re not an impostor as someone else could have been doing a task at the same time. But if they step away and the green bar doesn’t go up, they’ve almost certainly been faking the task and are an impostor.
Don’t quit if you die.
If you die, you become a ghost, but you can still complete your tasks. If you do quit, those tasks are removed from the match, but if you stick around you still get to participate in the game. Besides which, if you were mistakenly executed by your fellow crewmates, it’s fun to watch them crewmates become increasingly paranoid.
And there you have it. Paranoia will raise its ugly head and, despite your protestations, you’ll find yourself being fired out of the airlock or pitched into a volcano for no good reason. There will be times when you know you’ve identified the impostor but nobody believes you. But with a little care you can get the impostor before you’re a corpse.
