Tonight I'm going to highlight a game that I just recently played and is a bit different than the rest I've featured thus far. It has elements such as hidden roles, bluffing, and deduction, much like Avalon, Resistance, Spyfall, and others of similar design. In fact, the original version of this game may be what inspired those I listed. This version, however, has been condensed and runs roughly 10-15 min.

It's a great Filler/Gateway/Party game, though maybe best for players who can handle the bluffing pressures involved. Either way, it's time to see if we can survive...

In One Night Ultimate Werewolf players are attempting to make it through a single night. One full of drunks, witches, and worst of all: werewolves. Setup for the game basically involves selecting a number of roles equal to the number of players plus three. So with four players there will be seven roles. You can follow the basic setup, or randomly select which roles will be involved in each game — it's up to the group. Some roles are on the Villager team, while the others on the Werewolf team.

Each player is assigned a role tile face-down, which only they may look at. It's important to keep your role hidden from other players. The remaining 3 role tiles are placed in the middle of the play area, along with the tokens matching the chosen roles (this is to remind players which roles are in the game). Once everyone has had the chance to identify their role, the Narrator (someone playing who is familiar with the game's scripts OR someone outside of the game agreeing to read the scripts OR the handy dandy phone app!) will command everyone to close their eyes and begin the Night phase.

The Narrator will give commands that each player of the role signaled will follow. Each command will be announced by their role, to wake up (open their eyes), describing the actions they may (or must) make, and followed by telling them to once again close their eyes. There are so many roles involved, so I won't be listing them all. But the Seer, for example, when signaled to "Wake Up", will open their eyes and may look at either one other player's role tile, or two role tiles in the center. This could potentially help the Villagers identify who is a Werewolf or not.

NOTE: Some roles involve specifically swapping the roles of others (like the Troublemaker), so even in the example above with the Seer, there is a chance that the role they peeked at of a specific player may not be the same role they have at the end of the Night phase.

Once the Night phase has ended, and all player's with roles having a Night action are complete, the Narrator will command everyone to "Wake Up". At this point the players will discuss, debate, accuse, and bluff their way through a preset time limit. At the end of that time limit, the players vote for who they believe is a Werewolf. Majority rules (I actually have no idea what happens in the event of a tie, sorry, it's never happened).

If at least one Werewolf is identified the Village team wins. If a Villager is falsely accused and murdered then the Werewolf team wins!

NOTE: There are some roles with their own specific win conditions. As morbid as it is, the Tanner, for example, is so sick of their life they want to die, so they attempt to get players to believe they are the Werewolf. They can only win the game if they are falsely accused of being the Werewolf. In turn, this would mean that player and Werewolf team players would win!

Full Review Forthcoming

Have you ever played One Night Ultimate Werewolf? If so, what was your opinion of it? Have you ever played the larger party game it's based off of Ultimate Werewolf? If playing both, which do you prefer? Do you have a specific role you enjoy more than the others? Does this sound like a game your playgroup may enjoy?