Tony-Man plays One Night Ultimate Werewolf

I hope I don't get a werewolf... Arooooo!

It feels like forever since I've done an actual review on something that I actually like!  And while I know people have been asking, "Where's the July 4th editorial?"  Here's what I have to say on that.  Fuck the July 4th editorial!  I don't like the fireworks, I don't like the obligatory cookouts and our inflated sense of bullshit entitlement, I don't like the noise.  I do like the freedom, and the day off from work.  The End.

But, on July 4th, I did get to play a game that I actually really enjoy.  But before I go on, let me tell you some things about me.  I am a gamer.  But most people when they think of the word "gamer" they have a tendency to limit themselves to video games.  Now, in a way, that is part of what being a gamer is... is playing video games.  But the entirety of gaming is memory games, its board games, its video games, its computer games, its gaming when you have no games in which to game with.  The thing I like about board games, role-playing games, and other such games as these that video games typically do not have, is a physical social interaction with other people.  That's where board games and role-playing games have a distinct advantage over video games.

One of my more favorite games that I've been hearing about and reading about before finally getting to play is a game called One Night Ultimate Werewolf.  The concept is pretty simple to understand.  Every player is dealt a role card that they should only look at once.  For those who were dealt a werewolf role, the object of the game is not to be killed.  For those who drew a villager, the object of the game is to kill at least one of the two werewolves.  Sounds easy enough, hmm?  Well... there are a few twists to the game that makes it more interesting.

There are some villagers who get to do special things.  For example, the Seer when prompted is allowed to look at one player's card, or two cards from the center pile.  The Troublemaker can exchange two other player's cards.  The Hunter can choose to kill any player he wishes if he is the one killed.  The Minion serves as a distraction for the werewolves, and will win if the minion is killed and both werewolves survive.  There are a couple other cards that have different roles, and other instructions, but you get the idea.

Gameplay is very simple and you can learn how to play the game by the first or second time you play.  If you download the app, it will walk you through everything.  The game plays in three phases: Sleep phase, Suspicion phase, and Kill phase.  The game plays anywhere from 3-10 people, and this is a game where the more people there are, the more fun you can potentially have.  When I played the game, there were three people and from there we had fun, but we all agreed that more people would have made the game better.

The Sleep phase is the simplest phase in the game, especially if you have the app downloaded.  The Sleep phase consists of two parts, which are knowing your role and closing your eyes.  Each player is dealt out a card that has the particular role on it that the player assumes.  When prompted to close your eyes, each player closes their eyes.  Then prompts will go out to those who have drawn the werewolves, and the special villagers.  Once every player with a special role has gone, you will be prompted to open their eyes and the Sleep Phase is complete.

The Suspicion Phase comes next.  In this phase, all the players have a total of up to 10 minutes to try to figure out which player, or players are the werewolves.  Of course, the werewolves have up to 10 minutes to try not to be caught.  In this phase, the players can talk to the other players, try to figure out which roles have been dealt out, or even try to figure out if there even are any werewolves within the bunch.  This is the most fun part of the game and can lead to pretty interesting rationalizations, accusations, and psychological mind-fucks.  At the end of 10 minutes, or when all players are ready to vote, the Suspicion Phase is complete.

The last phase is the Kill phase.  After the Suspicion phase all players get to vote on who they think is the werewolf.  In the event of a tie, all players involved in the tie are considered to be killed.  In which case all players involved in the tie must reveal their card to figure out if they have killed the werewolf.  If at least one werewolf was killed, the villagers win.  If no werewolf was killed, the werewolves win.

One Night Ultimate Werewolf is a fun game that's also reasonably simple, but that's the beauty of it.  I encourage anyone who like bigger games but also short games such as this to play it at least once.  I know that I intend to play it more than once, hopefully with a bigger crowd.  Aroooooooo!