Masked Mela
Play Masked Mela now · free, no download, no sign-up
Masked Mela is a game of teamwork and suspicion set at an Indian village fair on the night before it opens. Eight masked friends walk the moonlit fairground, lighting lanterns, tuning the dhol, fixing the giant wheel's gears and filling kulfi moulds so that everything is ready by dawn. But one or two of them are Tricksters, quietly working against the rest.
It is for players who enjoy reading people, building alibis and arguing a case. You can play alone against seven computer players or invite friends to a private online table. Chat is made of quick, kid-safe phrases rather than free typing, so it suits family groups too.
How to play
- At the start you are secretly a Helper or a Trickster.
- Helpers walk to their job markers and complete short mini-games; every finished job fills the dawn bar. Helpers win when the bar is full or every Trickster has been sent home.
- Tricksters fake jobs, freeze Helpers into statues with a puff of colour powder, and cause sabotage: a blackout, fog or a runaway giant wheel that two players must stop together.
- A Trickster can also wear someone else's mask for eight seconds to frame them.
- Find a statue and report it, or ring the temple bell once per game, to call everyone to the banyan tree.
- At the meeting, share what you saw with quick phrases, then vote; the player with the most votes leaves on the bullock cart. Tricksters win when they equal the Helpers still around.
Controls
On a phone or tablet
Walk with the on-screen stick and use the action buttons that appear for jobs, freezing, sabotage and reporting.
On a computer
Walk with WASD or the arrow keys, press E to use, Q to freeze, F to sabotage and R to report.
Game modes
Solo
You and seven computer players. Choose a random role, Helper or Trickster, and set the bots to easy, medium or hard.
Online
Two to four friends at a private table, joined with a code or link; computer players fill the fair up to eight.
Tips
- A puff of colour powder rising above the lanterns means someone was just frozen nearby.
- Watch who finishes jobs: a real job sparkles, a fake one does not.
- "Was with me" is a strong alibi, unless the other player is the Trickster.
- During a blackout, stay close to others; Tricksters can still see far.
- If you are frozen, keep going: as a spirit lantern you can still do jobs.
- Remember the mask swap: the person you saw may not have been who they looked like.
About the game
Masked Mela takes the hidden-role party games played around tables and campfires, where a few secret villains hide among a group, and sets them at a mela with ten different job mini-games. Coins earned by playing unlock masks and outfits.
On a phone you move with a thumb stick and tap big action buttons, which makes it easy to play in short bursts. On a desktop the keyboard shortcuts let you move and act quickly, which helps a lot as a Trickster.
Questions
- Is Masked Mela free?
- Yes, it is free to play in your browser.
- Can I play alone?
- Yes. Solo mode fills the fair with seven computer players, so you can play any time.
- How do players talk to each other?
- At meetings you pick from quick phrases such as who you saw and where, who was with you, or who you suspect. There is no free text chat.
- Does it save my progress?
- Coins, wins and unlocked masks and outfits are saved in this browser on this device.
