Frequently asked questions
Short, straight answers about BETRAYAL: how to start, how the rules work, what each role does, the solo mode, the word lists and your privacy. Can't find your question? Read how to play or just start a game and learn as you go.
Getting started
Is the game free?
Yes, completely. There is nothing to buy and no locked content. The site is funded by ads, which never appear while you are playing.
Do I need to download an app?
No. BETRAYAL runs in your phone's browser at betrayal.online. Open the page, type the players' names and play. There is no sign-up either.
Can I put it on my home screen?
Yes. Open the game in your browser, open the browser menu and choose “Add to Home Screen” (or “Install”). An icon appears next to your other apps and opens the game straight away.
Does it work without internet?
Yes, after the first visit. The game keeps its files on your phone, so you can play at a café with no signal, on a trip or in the countryside. Only the ads and fonts need a connection.
How many players do we need?
From 4 to 20 players, all sharing one phone that is passed around the table in seating order. Nobody else needs a phone.
How long does a game last?
Usually 10 to 30 minutes, depending on the number of players and the settings. You choose the length of the first day (3 to 15 minutes); each later day is 60% as long, with a minimum of 2 minutes. You can also end the discussion early and go straight to the vote.
Which phone or browser do I need?
Any smartphone with an up-to-date browser will do.
Rules
Who asks the first question?
The game picks the first asker for you when the day starts. That player asks someone a question out loud, the person who answers asks the next one, and so on.
Can I ask back the person who just asked me?
Not immediately. Pass the question to someone else, so the conversation moves around the whole table instead of bouncing between two people.
What happens if a spy guesses the secret?
A spy who is voted out gets one last chance: they pick the secret from the list of options. If they are right, the spies win at once (and that spy earns an extra point). If they are wrong, they are out.
What happens on a tie in the vote?
With the secret vote, a tie leads to a second vote between the tied players only. If they tie again, nobody goes out that day and night falls. With the group vote, you can also choose “we didn't agree”.
What can eliminated players do?
They can't talk or give hints during the day, and they don't vote. They can still watch, which is often fun when they already know who the spy is.
What is Chaos mode?
A setup option that makes the spy's final guess harder to read: the spy sees 8 possible secrets, and only one of them is the real one.
Roles
How many spies are there?
By default the game picks it for you:
- 4 to 10 players: 1 spy
- 11 to 15 players: 2 spies
- 16 to 20 players: 3 spies
You can change the number in setup. When there is more than one spy, they know each other.
Can I turn on every role with only a few players?
Yes. All 12 roles are available with any number of players. If you turn on more roles than there are seats, the game picks some of them at random for each game, so every round feels different.
What do the power roles do at night?
- 🔎 Detective: checks one player and learns “looks suspicious” or “probably innocent”.
- 🔮 Seer: sees the exact role of one player.
- 🛡️ Guardian: protects one player from the spies, never the same player two nights in a row (may protect himself).
- 🧪 Witch: plays after the spies, sees their victim and has two one-time potions: life (save that victim) and death (kill anyone).
- 👧 Little Girl: may peek. Half the time she sees a spy's name, a quarter of the time nothing, and a quarter of the time she is caught and dies instead of the spies' victim.
The 🏹 Hunter has no night action: when he is eliminated, he immediately shoots one player who goes down with him. Full details are on the roles page.
Why does the phone go to everyone at night?
So nobody can tell who has a power. Every living player gets the phone in a random order. Those without a night action pick who they suspect, and the result appears in the morning as the “village opinion”.
How do the lovers work?
During the card reveal, 💘 Cupid picks two lovers (he may pick himself). If one lover dies, the other dies of a broken heart. If the two lovers are on different teams and end up as the last two alive, they win together, with 4 points each.
Can the Thief become a spy?
Yes. During the reveal, the 🦹 Thief sees two extra cards and may take one of them, and one can be a spy card. If he keeps his own card, he becomes a civilian.
What's the difference between the Saboteur and the Detective?
They are opposites. The 🧨 Saboteur is on the spies' team: he knows the secret and knows who the spies are, but the spies don't know him. The 🔎 Detective is on the civilians' side and hunts the spies. The catch: the detective sees the saboteur as “probably innocent”, so a clean result doesn't clear everyone.
And the Jester?
The 🃏 Jester plays alone. He knows the secret and wins if the table votes him out, earning 4 points. The detective sees him as “looks suspicious”, which makes him even more tempting to vote for.
Solo mode
What is “Today's secret”?
Tap “🎯 Play alone”, then “📅 Today's secret”. Everyone in the world gets the same secret on the same day. You are the spy: you see the category and the first of 5 clues, from vague to obvious. Each wrong guess, or tapping “next clue”, reveals the next one. You have 5 tries and earn 5 points on clue 1, then 4, 3, 2, 1. A new secret arrives at midnight, your local time. More on the daily secret page.
How do streaks work?
Your streak 🔥 counts how many days in a row you have solved the secret. Miss a day or fail to solve it, and it starts again. Your stats show games played, win percentage, best streak and how many clues you usually need.
How do I share my result?
After the round, share your result as coloured squares, without giving the answer away:
- 🟥 a wrong guess
- 🟨 a clue you asked for
- 🟩 solved
- ⬜ tries you didn't need
What is Spy training?
Unlimited rounds from a category you choose, or a mix. Points add up as you play, and words don't repeat for about 30 rounds. See also the spy guide.
Words & languages
What categories are there?
Four, plus a mix: Places (55 words), Countries (30), Jobs (30) and Fruits (25). Everyone knows the category, including the spy.
Can I add, edit or delete words?
Yes, from the word lists in the game. When you add a word you can give it an icon, a short description, the words that give it away too easily and some question ideas. You can edit or delete any word, and search a list to find one fast. Your words are saved on your phone. We recommend at least 6 words in a category so the spy can't guess too easily.
I deleted original words by mistake. Can I get them back?
Yes. A list with deleted originals shows a “↩️ Restore” button that brings them back. Words you added yourself are not affected.
How do I switch between Arabic and English?
Tap the language button in the game (🌐) to switch at any time with one tap. Your choice is remembered on your phone.
Privacy & ads
Do I need an account?
No. There is no sign-up, no email and no password. You open the game and play.
Where is my data stored?
Only on your phone: player names, points, settings, your added words, the current game and your language. None of it is sent to a server. You can erase it by clearing the site's data in your browser. Details are in the privacy policy.
Where do ads appear?
Only on the home screen and between games. Never while the phone is being passed or during play.
Ready? Start a game and pass the phone.