Adelaide Fringe

Fringe Review: Werewolves

An interactive game where players sit in a circle and are assigned roles by the game-master. Can the villagers identify the werewolves before everyone dies?

Presented by Nicholas Phillips
Reviewed 6 March 2017

I had the benefit of dying early. In fact, I was the first to fall victim to werewolves in Nicholas Phillips’ capitvating game of mystical beings and pitchfork villages.

The premise is deceptively simple but great fun to play and, as I soon found out, being the first to die just meant I got to laugh at everyone else’s expense. It didn’t decrease my enjoyment in the slightest.

The participants sit in a circle while host, Nick, with his soft, deep, storytelling voice, introduces the rules: Everyone will play a part, chosen randomly to be an innocent villager of the ill-fated town of Millers Hollow, a witch, a seer, cupid and his/her lovers, and more. The prized roles are, of course, the murderous werewolves, who pick off the players one by one. Only they know who each other is and, as the frantic villagers try to guess, their numbers dwindle if they pick the wrong player to die.

Nick leads the game, telling players what to do and when to do it so the only guesswork is trying to figure out who the werewolves are. The game ends when all the werewolves are eliminated or there’s no one left to kill them. The complexities of the game come from the other characters, such as the witch, who can save or kill one life each way; the lovers who will both die if one of them is killed; the peeking girl, who can sneak a peak but will die if she’s caught; and the seer who gets to discover the identity of one player per round.

It’s a game for young and old and the relaxing atmosphere of The Henry Austin had everyone working together and having fun. Nick kindly offers a consolation prize of a glass of champagne for those (adults) who die early in the game but, at only an hour, it’s not a long time to sit out, no matter when you exit the game.

Werewolves is a surprise hit for the Fringe. I didn’t know what to expect when I arrived but I left as a happy zombie. It’s an understated hour of fun, camaraderie, and excitement. You’re sure to lycan it a lot.

Reviewed by Rod Lewis
Twitter: @StrtegicRetweet

Rating out of 5:  4

Venue:  The Henry Austin, 29 Chesser St, Adelaide (formerly The Chessar Cellars)
Season:  until 16 March
Duration:  1 hour
Tickets:  $15 all tickets
Bookings:  FringeTix

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