This article is in English.
TL;DR
"Trust No Bunny" is a brilliant innovation/upgrade from typical werewolf-esque game (which usually needs everyone to stay in one place/group, and play it in offline-mode) that is worth-every-minutes-to-try, especially if you have friends (or even strangers) to play with, regardless or where you are.
Notice
- This article aimed to review and spread the information about this game.
- There is no copyright infringement intended.
- Copyright toward images or videos or any kind of media used in this article goes to the owner, such as the developer or publisher.
- The author is not affiliated in any way with the developer, or publisher, or any other possibilities regarding this game. This article is purely a review from a gamer's perspective.
- My understanding regarding this game is mainly based on the last time I played this game, which is on 28 June 2022. Any future changes to the game probably won't be reflected in this article.
Introduction
Honestly I don't even remember anymore how I stumbled-upon this game development team đđđđ My first time playing this game is recorded on 26 March, but I've joined their Discord server far from that, and missed few weekly-playing-team due to differences in time-zones.
Anyway, long story short, the theme for this game revolves around "social deduction game", which common people probably could relate better to other games (at least ever heard the game name, like me) such as Avalon, Werewolf, or Among Us. In short, all these games have a similar theme, where there are a few "bad guys" infiltrating "good guys/community". So the end game will be whether "bad guys" will win the game by "doing secret acts" toward the "good guys"; or the "good guys" win by successfully defending these secret acts or accuse the infiltrator.
Now, a new "social-deduction" game has come into the scene. What innovation will it bring to gamers? Is it gonna be fun? Is it good? Is it worth-to-try? Let's see then. Anyway, prior to read the review below, you could watch a snippet to the game here:
Game Details
Specification
This information is acquired/cited from Trust No Bunny official rules page1, their own Steam page2, and from my own understanding3.
| Developer2 | Friendly Pixel, Inc. |
|---|---|
| Publisher2 | Friendly Pixel, Inc. |
| Released Date (Planned) | 31 August 20222. |
| Platform1,3 | Hm... I guess any platform can play this, as long as you have a desktop and internet connection. Currently not supported in mobile version yet. Last time I know they probably have a mobile version, but probably still buggy? Or you probably could play using a mobile browser too......? |
| Genre2 | Casual, Free to Play, Early Access, Social Deduction, Board Game, Cute, Multiplayer, Party. |
| Available Language on Game3 |
|
| Price2 | FREE~~~~ đđđđ». YAYYYYYY đ For now. Currently you can play the game in "Early Access" or Alpha (?) version for now, and the tag on their Steam page2 does show the "Free-to-Play" tag, but... Let's see if the game is going to be released for free for everyone to play later... đ€đ» |
| Player1,3 | From 5 (minimum) to 8 player (maximum). Less than five players, you can't play the game, I guess. Cause you need at least two people as werebunnies (bad guy) on the game... |
| Connection3 | Online. Definitely need an internet connection to play this game as it's an online multiplayer game. |
| Requirements3 | In short, the game requires you to have an internet browser (Google Chrome is better than Mozilla Firefox), optimum internet connection, and that's it, I guess. For more fun, it's better to have a working microphone (and a headphone, if possible), so you can communicate clearly and easily with other players during the game. But if you can't do that, there is a chat-box where you can chat to all players (and separate room to chat with another werebunny). A webcam is also an optional tool if you are okay by showing your face when playing. |
Features, Mode, Characters
Features
So, compared to the original/vanilla version of a typical werewolf game, this game has a lot of new features, which enrich the experience of playing werewolf-esque game. The features are: Nights, Cards, Defense and Attack, Actions, Quirks, Magic Items, and Mutations. I'll explain this in details (based on my understanding) below:
Nights
Nights are practically "rounds" in this game, symbolised by the moon-cycle, located on the top right. If you click this moon, you can see the log for each night, such as who is in the tower that night, what the action/Quirk/Magic item/Mutation did, and how many points summed from every player that night.
Cards
Cards are the most essential/basic feature in this game. Within these cards, there are numbers, ranging from 1 to 4, and each card will be useful to carry your action throughout the game.
Defense and Attack
So this game has "a thing", dubbed as "A Town" that the townsfolk need to defend, and the werebunnies need to destroy to win the game. The thing is symbolised by "A Tower and The Outer Walls". These in total consists of 15+10 points. So to start, the werebunnies have to destroy the outer walls, in total of at least 10 pts; then they could destroy the tower, in total of at least 15 pts. And that vice versa applied to the townsfolk to defend their town.
This is where those cards will play its role. So if you are a townsfolk, you will be provided with only one hand, a right hand. You can only defend the tower by placing any cards into your right hand, as strategic as possible to defend the tower. In the other side, if you are a werebunny, you will be provided with two hand, left and right. You can use the left hand to attack, and your right to defend. The choice is yours. đđđŠčđ»
Actions
Actions are a few acts that you can do in each night, there are a few available in this game, which are:
| Bless |  |
By "Bless"-ing, you can give another player a card randomly. |
|---|---|---|
| Predict |  |
By "Predict"-ing, you can predict whether the tower(-and-the-walls) will be damaged or undamaged that night. You can acquire a card if your prediction was right. |
| Sabotage |  |
By "Sabotage"-ing, you have to predict someone's quirk, so you can destroy a player's magic item, and it's not gonna be usable anymore if sabotaged correctly. This feature is only available to werebunny. |
| Accuse |  |
By "Accuse"-ing, you have to accuse two suspicious werebunnies collectively with other townsfolk. This action only works as a group. So, if all townsfolk accuse the same people, it will work, and the town will be saved. You will lose a random card upon accusing, whether it's correct or no. Only townsfolk can accuse, werebunny can't do this. |
Quirks
Quirks is your characteristic in the game. These only applicable to townsfolk, so werebunnies won't have any quirk. You will receive this quirk automatically as the game start, and you can't change it to other quirks. You also have to do your best to keep this secret as werebunny could sabotage your quirk, which will make you end up losing your Magic Items, if they guessed it correctly. There are only three quirks as for now, which are:
| Greedy |  |
To win, you have to defend with the most points till the game ends. However, even though the official rules page stated points of cards, sometimes in the game it's kinda confusing if it's the most cards, or the most points. But in my experience, the system seems to understand it as the most points throughout the game. |
|---|---|---|
| Clumsy |  |
This quirk is... one that I like the least. If you want to win with this quirk, you must go on guard at least twice, and contribute the least point. However, if you placed the most points compared to other players inside the tower (in guard), the total defense will be reduced randomly from -2 to -4. Which is.. Suck. đźđš |
| Stubborn |  |
You must vote "No" at least twice to win with this quirk. Which could make you kinda questionable/suspicious to other players. Also... If the vote fails when you've voted "No", the number of wolves will go up by two, and could multiply if there are other Stubborn players too in the game and coincidentally voted "No" too.. |
Magic Items
Magic Items are useful abilities that will work for good if used correctly together with other players. Either Townsfolk or Werebunnies could select one out of two magic items that will be offered to you after you see your quirks. You can't change this later in the game, so choose carefully. Some magic items probably could benefit one player only, but still, each needs coordination with other players to trigger the ability. Also... Seems like there is another Magic Items that will be released on the upcoming days, but... I'm still not sure. Anyway, the magic items available in this game are:
| Shiny Medallion |  |
If someone who guards the town that night has this item, any guard(s) who played the most points will gain an additional card. So this item will benefit random people on guard, not exclusively to the owner of this item. |
|---|---|---|
| Patchy's Tools |  |
This is one of my favourite items. If townsfolk have this item, as long as there are people playing three cards numbered 1, this item will trigger 5 defense points. On the contrary, if a werebunny has this item, the item will trigger 5 attack points. Which is so fun to have. đđđđŠčđ» |
| Mystic Recipe |  |
Another favourite from me. If someone on guard has this item, as long as everyone plays 1, 2, 3, and 4, every townsfolk guarded that night will receive an additional card. Win-Win :)) |
| Sword of Unlimited Power |  |
This item will benefit yourself as the owner. As long as you play at least one card when on guard, a random number (either +1, +2, or +3) will be added to your total point that night. |
| Crystal Ball of Dubious Portents |  |
With this item, you can take-a-peek of how many cards a player on guard defends that night. |
| Ear Horn |  |
If you are on guard, you will know which player played the most number of cards after the round end. |
| Candle of the Holy Carrot |  |
If a player who has this item blessed someone else, the receiver will receive a 4, so not randomly between 1/2/3/4, but definitely will be 4. |
Mutations
Mutations are Quirks, but for werebunnies. Mutations available in this game are:
| Hypnotic Eyes |  |
This mutation will benefit you to gain two cards instead of one, if you were blessed with a townsfolk. Pretty slick, so you can attack with more cards when you infiltrate the tower later. đđŠčđ»đ |
|---|---|---|
| Stealthy Coat |  |
With this mutation, if you are at home, then play a pair of cards, you can add 5 points of damage. However I have no idea yet, on how to execute this as I didn't see any hands to play a pair of cards... |
| Monstrous Fangs |  |
This is... Powerful. I just realised that this is really powerful. I think I never got this mutation, but this is so powerful. I mean, with this mutation, you can select a player who guarded the tower, to find out how many cards they played to defend the town that night. Which means... This is practically the Crystal Ball of Dubious Portents, but instead of Magic Items, it's a Quirk for werebunny. Woah.... |
| Haunting Howl |  |
With this mutation, you may discard three cards, so the total number for each guard will be -1 from the initial total that night. To explain more, if a player in total defends with 2x3 = 6 points, the points will be reduced into 2x2 = 4 points. Honestly... I've never encountered this mutation too if I remember correctly, so I'm not that sure with this understanding... |
Other than these essential features to enhance your gameplay, there are other features too that is available to use in the game, which are:
- Webcam feed, so you can turn your camera on or off, so other players can see you in the game.
- Voice feed, so you can communicate better with other players in the game. I strongly recommend you to turn this feature on. I mean, what's the point of a social deduction game, online, but with no voice? đ„
- Individual voice mixer. Yes. Yes. You read that one correctly. In-di-vi-du-al. Which means you can turn down someone's volume down/up as you wish. Someone's voice too small? Turn it up. The other end sounds too loud? Turn it down. Press "Tab" or "menu icon" on top-left to access this feature.
- Chat box. Can't speak at the moment, but wanted to play the game, and have no idea how to communicate with others? Worry no more. There is a chat box available on the bottom-left of the screen. You can type anything (aside from emoji) there, and deliver your aspirations. To make it even better, if you are one of the werebunnies, there will be a separate room for you to chat with your villainous-colleague. đđŠčđ»đ Just click those circle on the left corner of the chat box, then you can change it from yellow circle (townsfolk room) to red circle (secret werebunnies room).
- Timer. This is a useful feature to time how many seconds you have to make a decision, whether to vote, to do your acts, or to remind someone who speaks a lot and hasn't made their decision yet. đđ
- Reminder. I said this as a reminder, cause it serves as a reminder/quick wiki in the game. This symbolised as a house on the top-left. If you click it, you can see your quirk/magic items/mutations, each with their explanations. So if you forget what these are or those are, you can just click the icon, and it will show you what yours are.
Things that I haven't explained here are Number and Stats, which is... so confusing and hard to understand in my opinion. You can head to the Trust No Bunny rules page to read this more.
Modes
There is only one mode available in this game, which is the gathering session, as the werewolf-esque game goes on, and you will be divided into two teams as the game starts, whether as a Townsfolk (Good Guy) or Werebunny (Bad Guy). As the game starts, if you are a townsfolk, your house will have yellow light, but if you are a werebunny, it's gonna light up as red. Then as the game begins, no townsfolk will know which players are the werebunnies, as that's the main theme of this game, deduce who is the infiltrator in the community. Sometimes these werebunnies are sly as a fox, you know... đđđŠčđ»
Characters
No certain/specific character in this game as you will play as yourself in this game. But there will be lots of cosmetics available to change your appearance as you play the game.
My Review
Played On
Played on Lenovo Ideapad Flex 5 AMD Ryzen 5 4500U with Radeon Graphics 2.38 GHz, and 8 GB RAM. I use Google Chrome as the browser, and recorded the gameplay (even livestreamed the gameplay if possible) using OBS at the same time.
Game Play
The gameplay is simple. Host (symbolised with a crown on the house) will press the "Start Game" button to start the game, then a loading screen will appear for a while. After that, your role will be shown, following with your Quirk (keep this as secret as possible), then you can choose 1 out of 2 magic items offered to you, and the game starts.
House with the crown then needs to choose which players will guard the town (around 3 to 4), then the game will be divided into two teams, players who stay at home, and players who guard the town. After all players made their decision, a summary screen will appear to summarise what happened that night. Then the house with the crown will need to choose again, and so on. There were five rounds (maximum), and the game ended after round five. That's all, basically. You can go play again after the game ends, and start fresh all over again.
Pros
No High Skills or Powerful Devices Needed
Don't have high-end devices? Not a problem. Kinda dumb and not that smart? Not a problem. As this is a social deduction game, you only need a browser (not sure about smartphones though...), and good internet connection (as long as it's stable and working), and that's all. You only need to show-off your social and deduction skills, and that's all, basically. Can't speak? Worry not, they have a chat box for this. Shy to show-off your pretty face? Worry not, there is an avatar for everyone that you could change easily before the game starts.
Casually Fun
Well it’s just a game, and the main idea for this game I guess is to make our bond stronger, as other typical offline/table/board games are supposed to be. And that’s the point. The game is fun to play as a casual game, and there’s no need to think that hard or try to be as perfect as possible. Just enjoy the game session, and if you feel betrayed after a session, you can easily take a break, and come back again later when you are ready again. That’s how you feel when you play UNO, Monopoly or such, right? You probably felt sucked and betrayed if you lost, but you came back again as it feels… fun to play with others.
Could Bond Stranger to Friend
When I try this game, I know no one, then I brave myself to try. Weeks after, now I know a few people already from this game. Kinda interesting... And makes me wonder sometimes...
Easily Connecting People from Afar
As an internet/digital social deduction game, this game could easily connect people far apart from any place in the world. Whether you are at home, at a cafe, in Asia, in Europe, in America, in Australia, or anywhere else in the world, you can join the room easily. There's no need to stay physically together in a room, which makes this more fun for people who live far apart from each other, but wanted to spend some time together by playing fun game(s).
Clear Objectives
The objective of this game is super clear. Defend the town and deduce who the werebunnies; or attack the town and slyly carry your werebunny status till the end. Who's gonna win? Simple, either Townsfolk, or Werebunnies.
Cons
Hard to Find People to Play
If you are a lone wolf like me, who mostly play single-player games, and rely solely on certain communities to play multiplayer games, then this game is probably not suitable for you. As the game needs at least five people to play with, sometimes it's hard to wait for another person to join the room. But this is probably just a problem with lone wolf people, and won't apply to a group of people who have enough numbers in their group. There are a lot of other streamers who played this game with eight people, and others tune in to the broadcast as they stream.
Server Distance
As most people who played this game seem to live in America, Europe, or Australia (and some in APAC), it seems like server distance is one of the problems that is yet to be fixed by the developers. There were times when it took around three to five minutes for the game to load until players reached the lobby, or when the character cosmetics didn't appear correctly to some players. But this problem probably could be fixed in the future releases.
One Language, English
Currently, the only language available as the user interface for this game is English. Kinda limited as this meant only people who understand English will be able to play this game, and other speakers will have limited experience. But, there is probably a plan to translate the UI to certain languages in the world. I could imagine more people will flock to this game if it's ever translated into other languages than English.
No Ban/Kick Feature Yet
There was a moment, when it seemed like a troll had successfully invaded the game, which made the game halt soon after round 1 began. Although this is a rare occurrence, unfortunately, there is no ban or kick feature available at the moment, which definitely will be helpful in case this occurs again in the future.
No Tabulation Yet
This is one of the features that I am longing for, a tabulation score, so we could understand better what happens each night. How many werebunny attacks that night? How much do townsfolk defend that night? What certain Quirk do? What certain Magic Items do? And so on... I think this would be helpful for dummy people with maths like me, who sometimes feel confused on how each round goes..
Extended Media
Check the game on Steam too :)
Discord Server
The developer made a Discord Server which was named Friendly Pixel (the developer themselves). You can join the server to find people to play this game with :)
Past Gameplays
I uploaded my gameplay to my YouTube channel, which you could check through this playlist. You can check other gameplay from other channels through Trust No Bunny topic on YouTube, or you could also check Trust No Bunny category on Twitch. You could browse past VODs from various streamers, or probably catch a live channel who played the game at a certain time.
Explanation, but with Pictures
Closing
To conclude, I think...
This is such a brilliant innovation from a werewolf-esque game. There are a lot of features that typical werewolf games don't have, but this game fixed those. People also don't need to blindly guess which person is the bad guy or good guy, and it's easily understandable on how the defense was defended or attacked using simple maths. This game also will work best for a group of friends who live far from each other, or an icebreaker game, or even from strangers who don't know each other and only know each other from certain communities. As people are slowly adapting to how virtual life works, this game definitely could be one of a few favourite casual games people chose to play with others. Hopefully... This game could explode and more people will discover this gem.
So, my rating for this game is...
Seeing how the game developed throughout time, from March till this early July, there are a lot of good improvements that they made to the game. And if they polished this game for better in the future, it seems like this could easily become one of people's favourite casual games to spend time with.
Thank you for reading this post, and see you on another one :)