Among Us: AOC plays game in front of massive Twitch audience

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took to Twitch to stream herself playing Among Us, something that delighted viewers across the United States and beyond. Incredibly it became the third most viewed single stream of all time.

AOC was Among Us

AOC, as she’s commonly referred to, has already confessed to being an avid gamer so quite why we had to wait this long for her to get involved in one of the most popular online games of the year is a mystery. It’s possible, of course, that with the small matter of a presidential election less than two weeks away, she’s had a little too much on her plate to let her chill with the controller.

Along with the politician, well-known streamers Hasanabi and Pokemane, as well as Ilhan Omar, the representative for Minnesota's 5th congressional district, also got involved with what turned out to be a 3.5-hour event. It surprised a few excited followers by getting going 20 minutes before the expected 9 p.m. start on the east coast.

What was behind AOC’s Among Us fun?

Although I’m sure she rather enjoyed the game - certainly it appeared that way from her reactions - there was more than just escapism behind this idea, and it was directly linked to the aforementioned election. She was aiming to inspire people, especially young people, to make their vote count.

All too often the make-up of politics is driven by the older demographic and by getting involved in the game - one that at its peak had just shy of 440,000 concurrent viewers - she was hoping to get more voices heard in what many see as a fundamental vote for the future of America. The politics and, more importantly, the characters of President Donald Trump and Joe Biden couldn’t be more contrasting.

What is Among Us anyway?

If you’ve not already heard about this game then where have you been hiding? (To be honest, it’s been out for two years and the phenomenon only really started over the past few months!) Anyway, to use the words directly from the mouth of develops Innersloth:

‘Join your crewmates in a multiplayer game of teamwork and betrayal!

Play online or over local wifi with 4-10 players as you attempt to hold your spaceship together and return back to civilization. But beware...as there may be an alien impostor aboard!

One crewmate has been replaced by a parasitic shapeshifter. Their goal is to eliminate the rest of the crew before the ship reaches home. The Impostor will sabotage the ship, sneak through vents, deceive, and frame others to remain anonymous and kill off the crew.

While everyone is fixing up the ship, no one can talk to maintain anonymity. Once a body is reported, the surviving crew will openly debate who they think The Impostor is. The Impostor's goal is to pretend that they are a member of the crew. If The Impostor is not voted off, everyone goes back to maintaining the ship until another body is found. If The Impostor is voted off, the crew wins!’

Fancy a game? Here’s everything you need to know. Oh, and here’s a trailer to get you in the mood.

Social media reacts to AOC in Among Us

The response on social media was wild. Take a look at this selection of tweets to give you an idea, including some from Hasanabi and Pokemane:

As ever, we'll be keeping our eye on AOC and other politicians looking to use other spheres of influence ahead of the election. Who knows, maybe we'll see Donald Trump battle it out on Fortnite...