When comparing The Resistance vs Secret Hitler, the Slant community recommends The Resistance for most people. In the question“What are the best boardgames that feature bluffing?” The Resistance is ranked 2nd while Secret Hitler is ranked 4th. The most important reason people chose The Resistance is:
Even though logic is very useful when determining whose a spy, The Resistance is more about being able to bluff, trick, and sway others. As such, players are always actively engaged in discussions and trying to outplay and outsmart each other. This creates a very social environment which allows the game to thrive.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Great social experience
Even though logic is very useful when determining whose a spy, The Resistance is more about being able to bluff, trick, and sway others. As such, players are always actively engaged in discussions and trying to outplay and outsmart each other. This creates a very social environment which allows the game to thrive.
Pro Unlimited replayability
While there is little variation game-to-game (for example, there will always be two spies when five or six people play the game, and the mission sizes are always based on group size), it's the circumstances, such as which missions are chosen and who participates in them, that change each time. This allows it to be played over and over and over again without losing any excitement.
Pro Creates a boisterous and entertaining atmosphere
Players are often very loud and active during gameplay. When everyone gets into the game and starts trying to figure out who the spies are, things can get really fun with theories and accusations flying everywhere. Overall, The Resistance creates a very exciting and entertaining atmosphere full of suspense and bluffing.
Pro Short game sessions
It's designed to be played in three to five rounds, with the entire session lasting about 30 minutes.
Pro Rules are incredibly easy to understand
There are zero complex rules or systems weighing this game down. It's incredibly easy to pick up and play, and new players will understand it immediately. This makes it an excellent game for everyone.
Pro No one excluded until the end
All players remain active and get to participate until the game ends. This is great since there's no way to mess up or have to sit out and watch your friends play.
Pro Perfect for large parties
While The Resistance is flexible and able to be played with as little as five people, the best results are achieved when played with six or more players. Each and every player is engaged and working together to determine who the spies are, which means all members of the group will be able to participate from start to finish. This makes it an excellent game for parties when you want to include everyone.
Pro Good combination of logic and social deduction, with a pinch of randomness
To win Secret Hitler players have to be able to play logically and figure out, using logic and the information they have, how the other players are playing. At the same time, there's a good amount of lying and deception going on, and that social aspect of figuring out who's not being honest meshes well with the logic reasoning. There's also an element of randomness coming from the Laws cards that takes the difficulty of the game up a notch.
Pro Clever and interesting take on historical events
This is an historical themed game, and one that took a very smart and creative approach to the historical events it portrays: Hitler's rise to power. Even if, admittedly, the setting is simplistic when compared to true history, most will still learn something from the game or at least feel compelled to do some reading on the subject.
Cons
Con Requires at least five people to play
Due to its design, a bare minimum of five players is required to play. This is especially unfortunate in situations where you have three or four people together who really want to play this.
Con Not great for shy or quiet gamers
The very nature of The Resistance often sparks loud debates with accusations and bluffs at every turn. If you are the quiet type, you may feel uncomfortable or overwhelmed in this kind of environment.
Con The information distribution between the two teams could be more balanced
The way the game is built, while the Liberals have lots of information to figure out and deduce, the Fascists have access to almost all of it. It is true that, in the "hidden identity" family of games, the general setting is an informed minority VS an uninformed majority, but other games usually integrate something that's hidden from the informed minority, like a one-player team that wins alone or a vigilante that kills bad guys. Something like this is strangely missing from the game.