Among Us

Among Us Unblocked is a online science-fiction multiplayer social deduction game developed and published by American game studio Innersloth 2018. The game was inspired by the party game Mafia and the science fiction horror film The Thing. It allows for cross platform play, first being released on iOS and Android devices in June 2018 and on Windows later that year in November.

The game was then ported to the Nintendo Switch in December 2020, and will release on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S in December 2021. 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.

Among Us Gameplay

Among Us Unblocked is a multiplayer game for four to fifteen players, although recommended for at least five. Up to three players are randomly and secretly chosen to be the Impostor(s) each round. As of 2021, 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”; or an airship based on Innersloth’s Henry Stickmin series called “The Airship”.

The Impostor(s) win(s) one of two ways: either by killing most of the crew (to the point that they’re equal in number) or by sabotaging a critical system on the map (provided the Crewmates don’t resolve it in time). The Crewmates likewise can win one of two ways: either by completing all tasks or by identifying and ejecting all Impostors. 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).

Popularity

2020 spike

While Among Us Unblocked released in 2018, it was not until mid-2020 that it saw a surge of popularity, initially driven by content creators online in South Korea and Brazil. Bromander stated that the game is more popular in Mexico, Brazil, and South Korea than the United States. According to Willard, Twitch streamer Sodapoppin first popularized the game on Twitch in July 2020. Many other Twitch streamers and YouTubers followed suit, including prominent content creators xQc, Pokimane, Shroud, Ninja, and PewDiePie.

Memes and mods

The game’s popularity continued into the following months. YouTube reported that videos about Among Us Unblocked were viewed 4 billion times in September 2020, and TikTok videos related to Among Us Unblocked had over 13 billion views in October 2020. YouTuber CG5 wrote a song based on the game in September 2020, titled “Show Yourself”, and gained over 60 million views in four months.

In September 2020, the game exceeded 100 million downloads and its player count rose to 1.5 million concurrent players (nearly 400 thousand of which were on Steam), then peaked at 3.8 million in late September. The sudden increase in players overloaded the game’s server, which according to Willard was “a totally free Amazon server, and it was terrible.” This forced him to work quickly, under crunch time, to resolve these issues.

The game also received several mods made by the community, which added new roles, game modes, cosmetics, etc. Among Us Unblocked was also featured in Twitch Rivals 2020, an online gaming tournament which was held on December 4, 2020. During the event, players were able to receive an exclusive pet called “Glitch Pet”, which is the Twitch logo.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)