Among Us has added new player roles in a big update
The Scientist, the Engineer, the Guardian Angel, and the Shapeshifter
Compared to many of the tabletop social deduction games which inspired it, Among Us is fairly straightforward. Goodies, baddies, and that's it. Well, last night it took a step towards its roots with the addition of four new roles which can change how you play your character—and how you need to think about other people's characters. Say hullo to the Scientist, the Engineer, the Guardian Angel, and the Shapeshifter.
On the side of crewmates, the Scientist can check on everyone's vital signs remotely to detect deaths, the Engineer can travel via the vents previously exclusive to Impostors, and the first dead crewmate will become a Guardian Angel able to give a living pal a temporary protective shield. Impostors pick up a Shapeshifter role too, able to morph into the likeness of another player.
Lobby hosts can futz with role settings, changing how many of each can appear and the likehood of someone becoming each, as well as buffing or nerfing role the duration and cooldowns of role abilities.
The update has also brought a new system for buying cosmetics. It revolves around two currencies: Beans, earned by playing, and Stars, bought for real money. These can buy different 'Cosmicubes', which each contain a series of items unlocked by Pods (earned by playing), a bit like a load of skill trees or battle passes. It seems unecessarily complicated but hey.
Along with this, developers Innersloth have introduced account linking, letting you share cosmetics and XP on the same account across different platforms.
Read the version 2021.11.09 patch notes for more on all the workings.
The patch got off to a wonky start. Innersloth had to issue a hasty patch to stop false bans for hacking, and players who disconnect have been getting temporarily banned for sometimes several hours. "SORRY, fixing it," they said about that second issue.
Among Us might not be as vital a part of the social structure as it was during the height of Covid-19 lockdown, but we'll still tell you it's one of the best multiplayer games.