Identity

By Daniel Marvin

I greatly enjoy playing social deduction games. They engage the whole player. One either has to fool the other players or find out the truth (or a combination of both). Games that I would call social deduction games include Mafia, the various versions of Werewolves, Blood on the Clocktower, and a host of other games. In a social deduction game, the players have to work together to find the truth, to uncover the evil member/team. The game is a social deduction in the sense that the goal is to find the other player’s role and keep yours hidden (unless of course it is advantageous to be honest about one’s role). Roles and the freedom of how you can use your role is what I love most about social games. Roles have always been something I have been fascinated by, whether that be in board games, video games, or life. Roles are essential to how we function as a society, and the same is true in a social deduction game. How one plays the role determines the success and outcome of the game for each side. When I take on a role in a game, I learn about myself and the other player. The other players' roles reveal things about themselves as well. In a social deduction game, we are asked the question: what is my role and how do I fulfill it? I wonder if that is what life asks of us. What is my role? Where do I have a purpose? Where am I most needed? Which side am I on? Outside the context of the game, these become the fundamental questions of life. By asking ourselves the same questions, we examine what our roles are in life and find meaning. Let us find our role in this world as we play along.