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6 of Our Favorite Social Deduction Games

Social deduction games can make some of the best party games. Easy to teach with little to no components, the game plays out amongst the group and the interactions they have together while frequently accommodating several players.

There are a bunch of social deduction games out there, most featuring hidden identity mechanics where players attempt to discover the traitor(s) amongst them while the traitor(s) blend in while working towards their own objectives. With such similarity, it can be hard to know which ones are worth your time.

So to help in your quest, here are some of our favorite games in this category!

Deception: Murder in Hong Kong

A murder has happened! You and all of your friends must form a team of investigators to discover the murderer. The catch? The killer is one of you! Roles are randomly assigned to players at the start of the game with the investigators attempting to suss out the murderer and the murderer, along with his/her team attempting to mislead the investigators. This game is one of my absolute favorite social deduction games and also was the centerpiece to my all time favorite game moment! You know, those hilarious game nights that you’ll never forget? It plays up to 12 players, making it a great game to pull out for those larger groups. The game does have some graphic cards so it may not be suitable for kids outside the PG-13 zone.

Hail Hydra

If you’re a Marvel fan you’ll definitely want to check this one out. Your group will team up as S.H.I.E.L.D. heroes to save New York City from an evil villain – except, you guessed it, some of you are evil HYDRA operatives! Determine who is a truly loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D. and who is secretly saying “Hail Hydra” behind your back, (or out loud to the whole table!) You’ll choose your hero, each with their own special ability, a loyalty card letting you know if you’re working with or against the heroes and then you’ll all proceed to go on missions to defeat a villain, secretly choosing cards to attack the villain. If the result is positive, the villain takes damage; if it’s not, they don’t and the speculation as to everyone’s identity escalates. It is so very very fun! If you’ve played The Resistance, this will feel familiar, but, in my opinion, it is even better. The production value is also top notch!

Two Rooms and a Boom

If you’ve got a large group, this is your game. Perfect for parties, team builders, or family gatherings, Two Rooms and a Boom plays anywhere from 6 to 30 players. Yes, you read that right, thirty players! Players will be secretly assigned roles, forming two teams, and randomly placed into two rooms where one team’s job is to protect the president, and the other team’s job is to get the bomber into the room with the president before the end of the last round. Players must negotiate to determine which players are going to move to the other room at the end of each of the three rounds. Form alliances quickly and deliberate decisively as the game only takes minutes and you don’t have long before the “Boom.” Perfect for large groups and a great choice as an ice breaker or team builder!

Werewords

This game completely surprised me as we played it well into the hours of the night one Christmas. It’s simple yet thinky (that’s a word, right?) Twist on 20 questions that is just a ton of fun. Players are trying to guess a secret word by asking yes or no questions before time runs out. Among them is a werewolf who knows the word and is working against them, attempting to mislead the group without getting caught. If the group guesses the word they win, if they can’t guess the word, they can still win by identifying the werewolf! With its clever use of roles and variable player powers it makes for a really fun play experience with just about any group. Bonus! A free iPhone app is used to generate thousands of words in multiple difficulty levels for all ages so you’ll never see the same word twice! And you don’t just have to take our word for it, this game has been nominated for the 2019 Spiel des Jahres award!

Saboteur

I love this one because it packs a fun bluffing game with hidden traitors into a small card box. Players are dwarves hunting for gold in the mine, attempting to form uninterrupted paths to goal cards. But among them are saboteurs just waiting to mislead them in the wrong direction. Dwarves play cards from your hand to form paths through the mine to the gold while saboteurs attempt to mislead the path, keeping the gold for themselves. Played over the course of three rounds, the player with the most gold at the end is the winner.

The Chameleon

A lighter option for those who may not be interested in lying or acting but still love the challenge of deception. In The Chameleon you will have one of two goals, if you are the chameleon, you will want to blend in amongst everyone and discover the secret word. If you are not the chameleon, you want to figure out who is without giving away the secret word. In a world of a ton of word games and social deduction games alike, this one feels fresh and unique. This is one of my new favorite word games and a great option to pull out for a quick filler. Pull it out, teach it in minutes, play as many rounds as you’d like! Lovely!

What are some of your favorite social deduction games?