In this way it’s helpful for players to be of roughly the same skill level, or be keen to learn. You win and you want to know if the Sniper suspected you, you lose and you want to know which mission did you in. Victory not only carries with it the 'a-ha!' of defeating a foe, it is a deeply personal victory of mastering the role of Spy or Sniper over a single enemy - because Spy and Sniper aren't even seeing the same things, in some ways aren’t even playing the same game.

For the Spy, this is a game about playing smoothly and strategically for the Sniper, it’s a game of information management. Strictly speaking you don't level up, you don't unlock perks, but the evolution of the game is based on the constant accumulation of player skill. My luck may have diminished - but then SpyParty is a learning game. It has been a few years since I first fell in love with the alpha build of SpyParty and it has moved into paid beta.

Meanwhile, the Sniper player is positioned on a building outside the party and must observe goings-on through the scope of their rifle trying to detect tells, noticeably human behavior, amidst the AI.Ī Sniper's-eye view of the party, a suspect (this is the old character art) Your view is of the party, that is your playing field. You must complete these missions in a way that makes it difficult - ideally, impossible - for the Sniper to detect you among a party of NPCs. Actually, even when the Spy gaffes there’s a persistent feeling of uncertainty - the result of partial information and one shot with guaranteed accuracy.Īs the Spy you undertake a set of missions to be completed at a cocktail party within a given amount of time. Unlike Clue, SpyParty is not fully deductive, and unless the Spy player gaffes you will never be completely sure. A game, as Hecker says, about 'making consequential decisions based on partial information'. More than a competitive multiplayer title, it's a game about behavior. SpyParty is an espionage game with two players where you play as Spy or Sniper. Well, he gets paid for his magnificent creation, SpyParty, with which I, through a combination of sheer luck and such skill it defies human limitations, kill my husband*.

Chris Hecker gets paid to watch me kill my husband over and over again.

Spyparty microfilm