Spyfall 2 Review

There’s a spy amongst us.

Are they lurking in the shadows of an old, creaky retirement center? Or, perhaps they are covered in felines at the cat house?

No matter the location, everyone’s a suspect. It’s up to you and your civilian opponents to decide who’s telling the truth and who’s keeping secrets.

All players are dropped in the same location — unbeknownst to the spy who has no idea.

For civilian players, you can’t give too many clues about the location away, or the spy will catch on and win the game. For the spy, you’ll need to be as specific or vague as you can muster, without being totally obvious that you’re completely clueless as to where you are. 

Spyfall 2 smooths out that awkward ice-breaking stage and gets players pointing fingers in record time. 

Brief Overview of Spyfall 2

If you enjoyed the original Spyfall, you’re in luck. This second edition adds more locations, more spies, and extra deceit. 

For newcomers to the Spyfall realm, welcome. Unlike other party games, a group of 3 players is enough to get dangerous accusations flowing. You can host up to 12 players, with 2 spy variations changing up the game mechanics as you see fit. 

If you’re the spy, you’ll have your work cut out for you. You can’t say too much or too little. Other players know where they are, but you? No, you’re in the ambiguous mist like a typical spy. Hiding in the shadows to gather intel until the last possible moment when… BOOM! You stop the interrogating and announce your role and location. Alas, the round ends.

Unboxing Spyfall 2

Spyfall is small enough to grab and go, but slightly larger than other card games. It includes the following components:

• 20 ziplock bags (to organize card decks)
• 240 cards (20 decks of 12 cards)
• A fancy, photo-covered rulebook

Aaaaand, that’s it. Easy peasy. Granted, they could have saved you the effort and put the decks in the ziplock bags themselves but it’s part of the experience. 

Each deck of cards includes 10 of the same location, 1 female spy, and 1 male spy. Now, you don’t have to play with two spies — it’s all up to your player number and level of difficulty. 

The location cards; for example, “The Library,” will all look exactly the same. This is important as you may be asked specific questions to reflect you’re actually in the location and not a spy lurking nearby. 

If you do own the original Spyfall, you could combine the two games as the card backs are identical. Spyfall 2 improves on the original version with new locations; such as the retirement home, racetrack, and my personal favorite — the cat show!

For overall component quality, it’s normal. The cards are made from glossy cardstock with colorful cartoon depictions of locations, and the rulebook follows suit with matching location photos. I have no complaints. 

How to Play Spyfall 2

The only time-consuming part of learning to play Spyfall 2 is the setup. Everything else is just a guessing game.

Game Setup

1. Put all of the location decks in a ziplock bag with the Spyfall logo (back) on one side and the spy card, face-up, on the other.

2. Place all 20 of your location deck card bags, Spyfall side up, so you cannot see any details about the location. The card packs should look exactly the same. 

3. Pick a random card pack from the table and adjust the number of spies as so:

• 3-6 Players: 1 spy
• 9-12 players: 2 spies
• What about 6-9 players?

It’s up to you! How sneaky and deceptive are you feeling today? *throws in the second spy regardless*

4. Without looking at the location, put aside the spy card, and deal out the number of cards matching the number of players, minus 1. 

Now you’re all set up to start playing.

Taking Turns

If you’re one of the spies, you have no clue where you are. 

If you’re any of the others, you’ve just been transported to the same location as your fellow players and must now out the black sheep amongst you.

Whoever dealt the cards will go first. They’re able to ask any player a random question (not limited to yes or no answers) regarding their location. You do not have to answer according to your location if you don’t want to, although this might get you some side-eyed suspicion.

Also, there’s no player order. Once you’ve been asked a question, you get to ask another player a question. However, you cannot ask the same person who asked you. 

Rounds and Points

I recommend setting a time limit per round between 6-10 minutes, depending on the number of players. 

At the end of the round, players accuse someone of being the spy OR the spy announces their role and guesses the secret location. Both are ways to win the round.

You can play with points, or you can just get the satisfaction of outing your slimy spy opponents. It’s as simple as that.

Pros & Cons

Pros: 

• Quick rounds with no elimination wait
• Sizable 
• Can collaborate with Spyfall 1

As a sad member of the villager community who rarely survives past the initial eliminations in Werewolf, the quick round/non-elimination style has my vote. When you’re playing with large groups, it’s easy to lose interest as the game goes on for hours. With Spyfall, it’s customizable to you. After a round, you start again in a new location.

Branching off of that, you can take it anywhere and play with a vast range of ages and player amounts. I love the versatility and the fact that I don’t need to round up 8 players or more for a party deduction game.

Lastly, we all love collaboration. Spyfall 1 and 2 can mix together without you knowing if the location is from the first game or the second. Bonus win!

Amazon product

Cons:

• No reference cards

Come on developers. Everyone loves a reference card to guide us through the game, especially on first runs. 

*Cue sad violin music*

Throw these expectations out the window with Spyfall 2. Cryptozoic does not and does not plan to include location reference cards anytime soon. Although the game comes with a detailed rulebook depicting each of the various locations, I can’t help but feel like I’m giving myself away if I stare at it too long on my turn.

Spyfall 2 Review (TL;DR)

Spyfall 2 is a quick-thinking, question-and-answer, party deduction game, perfectly created for a wide range of ages and group sizes. 

Dice up a game anytime, anywhere, in under 15 minutes from start to finish. 

It’s a quick set-up and smooth tear-down opener, closer, or all-night activity similar to your other favorite acting-out games.

Other Versions of Spyfall

Spyfall: Time Travel

Conclusion: Verdict?

I can say without a doubt that I wish I played Spyfall 2 more often. There are really no downfalls to this game and a whole lot of fun to be had. I especially appreciate the easy-to-understand rules and how everyone is directly included- no storyteller needed.

I’ve both played and dearly loved other bluffing games like Werewolf and The Resistance, but Spyfall 2 throws more of a direction-based question element into the mix that I find interesting. Usually, if you speak too soon in Werewolf, you’ve got silver bullets coming your way. But, if nobody speaks, the game progresses at a slow and shifty pace. 

Spyfall 2 gets everyone involved by asking hard questions. The versatility and light-hearted speed rounds are a breath of fresh air, compared to longer-form games that pose challenges for younger audiences and non-native speakers. It’s an ideal party game to have on hand for any event. 

Catch you at the cat fair guys! Until next time.

We hope you enjoyed our Spyfall 2 review. Have you tried this fun party game yet? Drop a comment below and let us know what you think! We’d love to hear from you.