Among Us – What Should Parents Know About This Popular Video Game?
Considering that Among Us is technically a murder-mystery game for kids, parents and guardians may have some concerns about what the game actually entails. Let us explain…
Among Us mixes the suspense of a murder mystery, the strange backdrop of deep space, and social interactions into a captivating concoction that calls to mind a nostalgic hit of board games like Clue/Cluedo.
It’s best played with at least four or five people at once, and it may be enjoyed online or locally over a network. Although you can practise executing tasks in “Freeplay” mode offline, there is currently no real single-player option, as it would essentially defeat the point of the game.
InnerSloth has created this networked multiplayer video game that is accessible on PC, Playstation, Xbox, Android, iOS and the Nintendo Switch. It was originally launched for iOS and Android on June 15, 2018, and it will be available on PlayStation and Xbox consoles in 2021.
How To Play Among Us
You can play as a normal crewmate or an impostor in Among Us, and your role is allocated at random at the start of each game. You take control of a space-suited astronaut cartoon figure who can fly around a spaceship.
You must undertake diverting activities aboard a ship as a crewmate while avoiding being murdered by one or more imposters within the crew. Along the process, the crew could figure out who the imposter is and decide to evict them into space.
If you play as an impostor, your mission is to assassinate crew members or sabotage the ship while blending in so that no one notices.
Misdirection and skilful negotiating are frequently used in Among Us since allegations in the chat can lead innocent individuals to be evicted if players can persuade others that an innocent person is an impostor.
Does Among Us Cost Money?
Acquiring Among Us may or may not cost you money, depending on which platform you wish to play it on and when exactly you get around to installing it.
If you want to play Among Us on PC, which is arguably the best experience as you can factor in the likes to Discord for communicating with your party, you will usually have to pay $5 to purchase the title on Steam.
However, Steam has been known to offer the game for free during select time periods, so if you time it right you may get lucky.
If you want to play Among Us on Xbox, you’re looking at a price of $4.99 too, however, there is also an “ejected edition” that will set you back $90 but will also include all the downloadable content and a bunch of collectable items.
The Playstation version of Among Us will cost $4.99, but Sony system owners will have another option. This is known as the Imposter Edition, and it will cost $50 and feature everything from the Xbox “Ejected Edition.”
Among Us is free on mobile, but you will have to cope with advertisements. Ads may be removed for $2, and the best thing is that if the party leader pays for an ad-free gaming experience, the rest of the party will as well.
Do Kids Play With Friends Or Strangers?
Each game can have anywhere from four to ten participants.
If your child is playing with friends, they can utilise a private party, which will mean no strangers can join. However, if your child isn’t playing with friends they will need to join a public game online, where they’ll almost certainly be playing with strangers.
Nevertheless, the game does not include a voice chat feature, so unless your child uses an external voice chat service like Discord, they will not be able to directly communicate with others. The game has a text chat feature, but as previously stated, it is only available during “emergency meetings,” which last approximately 30 seconds.
Unfortunately, because the discussions are not regulated by any form of moderator, they may be subjected to inappropriate comments including racism, homophobia and sexism during such sessions. Luckily, there is a profanity filter that can sensor such language.
Does Among Us Contain Violence?
The fairly disturbing kill animations that occur when you are slain by one of the Imposters are worth noting if you’re concerned about the violence that may be witnessed by your child. These depict rather graphic scenarios, such as being stabbed with a knife or by a sharp alien tongue, being shot with a gun or having your character’s neck snapped.
While the scenes are graphic, they barely last around two seconds on-screen and aren’t shown very frequently. The kill animations are only shown on screen when a Crewmate is killed, therefore even if you’re a Crewmate most of the time, you’ll only see the animation once every game. Imposters themselves don’t even see the animations.
While the sound of this could sound disturbing, the majority of the game is fairly tame and the main focus is certainly not on these significant yet brief moments.
Should Kids Be Playing Among Us?
Depending on your child’s age and emotional development, you’ll have to decide whether or not you personally think the game is suitable for them, however, the game is suitable for children aged 10 and above according to Common Sense Media.
One fun idea is to try the game out with them. We’ve enjoyed it personally, along with many other adults, and this is by far the best way to get a true feel for the game and make the right decision as to whether or not it’s suitable for your child while keeping them company whilst experiencing it themselves.
They’ll probably tell you it’s embarrassing to play with their parents, in which case you might have to pull out the old “scared I’ll beat you?” trick.
You never know, you might end up enjoying it more than them and continue playing it when they inevitably head back over to Fortnite.
