How to play Among Us: Beginner’s guide, tutorial, and frequently asked questions

Even though Among Us has been out for quite a while, it seemingly exploded with popularity overnight. Most recently, the player count in Among Us even peaked higher than PUBG momentarily. With all these new players coming into the game, it might help to have a basic guide for how to play, and the answers to some of the questions many new players ask.

Among Us, how do I play the game?

The basic overview of Among Us is simple. A crew of 4-10 (usually 10) players are at a location doing tasks while 1-3 impostors (usually 2) are doing everything they can to sabotage their efforts and kill them all. The game ends in one of four ways.

1. All impostors are dead. (Crew Win)
2. All tasks are completed. (Crew Win)
3. There are an equal number of crew and impostors. (Impostor Win)
4. The crew fail to stop a catastrophic sabotage (Impostor Win)

Games can be longer or shorter based on the number of players, their skills, and the options selected by the play group. When a game starts, you will be assigned a role, either as crew or impostors, and your goals and how you achieve them will change based on that.

For that purpose, the crew and impostor sections will be separated.

Among Us is a game for intellectuals pic.twitter.com/KTC7PS00dy

— Jamezietocool (@Jamezietocool) September 15, 2020

Among Us, I got assigned Crew, what do I do?

Congratulations, you’re a member of the Among Us Crew. That means you’re out there to help repair this ship/station/colony. For every game as Crew, you’ll be assigned tasks listed in your task list. You can locate where to do these tasks on the map. Simply walk over to each location and complete the job. Some jobs are going to be harder than others, but you’ll eventually figure them out. Don’t be afraid to ask your fellow crewmates how to do some of your tasks if you have to, it’s all part of learning on the job.

Of course, there may be some impostors Among Us, so keep an eye out for suspicious activity. Impostors don’t do tasks, but they might fake it. You can keep an eye on the task list to keep track of every task that is completed, and if you think you see something suspicious, you can always call a meeting using the button on the table.

But most of the time, you might not see anything suspicious at all. If you end up alone with an impostor, you might find yourself becoming a ghost. Just because you’re dead doesn’t mean your job is finished though, so make sure to do your tasks and count on your crewmates to solve your death.

Among Us, I got assigned Impostor, what do I do?

Congratulations, you get to sabotage the Among Us Crew. That means you’ll be in charge of throwing a wrench into their operations, and making sure this job is anything but “business as usual.”

On your screen, you’ll see a list of tasks and their locations on the map, but these are just suggestions for things to fake and not your actual goal. Instead, you’ll want to try to find a way to isolate members of the Crew and kill them whenever you can. Of course, this won’t be easy, and you’ll have to be sneaky.

Fortunately there are a few crawlspaces for you to use, usually covered up by vent coverings. You’ll want to use your mobility to your advantage as you pick off the crew one by one.

But there are other things you can do as well. If you open your sabotage map you’ll see there are quite a few things you can do. You can lock doors to keep the crew stuck, or break the lights and limit their vision.

You can also sabotage their communications, preventing them from seeing their tasks. Additionally, you can sabotage the reactors, oxygen, or other vital pieces of equipment that will spell doom for everyone unless they’re fixed.

Among Us, a meeting was called, what do I do?

Meetings are the only times players have to talk with each other, making them an important part of Among Us. Meetings get called when a body is reported, or when someone presses the emergency meeting button.

If you’re the crew, use this opportunity to share information and interrogate suspects. If you're an impostor, use this time to throw off suspicion and sow chaos.

At each meeting, players can vote to execute one person, and if anyone has the most votes then they will be thrown out of an airlock/into a volcano.

If you don’t want to vote someone off, however, you can also vote to skip at the bottom. Use the meeting time wisely, as communication will be vital to helping the crew coordinate, and equally as important for impostors to disrupt.

among us is a horror game pic.twitter.com/HiPaWmwFWg

— Disguised Toast (@DisguisedToast) September 13, 2020

Among Us, extra tips

A few final words about playing Among Us. If you’re playing on voice, please make sure that you limit your discussion to times when everyone is at the meeting, and that everyone in your Among Us game is on the same voice chat.

If you’re crew, try to provide as much information as possible during meetings. If you’re impostor, don’t be afraid to tell wild lies or to throw someone else under the bus.

Don’t get mad at other players just because they made a mistake, and don’t be afraid to call someone out for making the game a negative experience. It’s just a game, and nobody needs to get upset just because they lost.

Also, just because you’re a ghost doesn’t mean you’re done. If you’re crew, you still have tasks, and if you’re impostor, you can focus on sabotaging the remaining crew.

How do I go through vents like yellow #AmongUs pic.twitter.com/fm69iadRx8

— 3BD (@3BLACKDOT) September 15, 2020

And finally, have a discussion with your playgroup about what you do or don’t want out of the game. Some groups end up grouping together a bunch, and that can make the game unfun for impostors. If you’re not having fun, talk to the players and get them to make a conscious effort to make Among Us fun for everyone.