Few reality shows have grown as quickly as The Traitors.
What started as a murder-mystery competition has become a global franchise built around deception, paranoia and impossible trust. Now the format is expanding beyond television in a rather unexpected way.
CityDays and All3Media International announced The Traitors: Anywhere on June 23, 2026, an officially licensed social-deduction game that takes place entirely through WhatsApp. Variety also reported the announcement, describing the project as a WhatsApp-based game that allows fans to play their own version of The Traitors from home.
The experience is initially aimed at players in the UK and Ireland, with groups of up to 30 people able to participate.
The Game Brings The Traitors Experience Into Your Group Chat
Unlike a traditional mobile game, The Traitors: Anywhere doesn’t require players to download a separate gaming app.
The entire experience takes place through WhatsApp.
Players gather a private group of friends, family members or colleagues before entering a game that runs across multiple days. They take part in missions, discuss suspicions at the Round Table, vote to banish other players and, if selected as Traitors, secretly plot against the Faithfuls.
CityDays says games typically last around six days for groups of eight players and up to 15 days for groups of 30.
That makes it considerably closer to playing a real-life version of the television format than simply downloading another licensed trivia or puzzle game.
How The Traitors: Anywhere Actually Works
Everyone initially enters the game as a Faithful.
On the first day, the Traitors are selected and given their own private “Turret” chat, while everyone else remains in the main “Castle” group.
From there, the game follows a daily structure inspired by the television show.
Players receive a mission, gather information, discuss who they suspect and eventually participate in the Round Table. Someone can then be banished, while the Traitors secretly choose another player to “murder” during the night.
The Traitors are finally revealed during the end game.
There is also a prize pot of gold that players can build through the missions, giving the game an actual objective beyond simply identifying the people lying to them.
Why WhatsApp Makes Sense For The Format
The choice of WhatsApp isn’t just a gimmick.
The entire concept of The Traitors revolves around conversations, suspicion and trying to work out whether people are telling the truth.
WhatsApp already provides the basic environment for that.
Players can communicate through text, voice notes and emojis while trying to figure out whether a strange message, sudden silence or suspicious accusation means something.
The official game website even encourages players to scrutinize how their friends communicate because there are no facial expressions or body language to rely on when the game is taking place remotely.
That turns an ordinary group chat into the central playing field.
Up To 30 People Can Play
The game isn’t limited to small groups.
A single The Traitors: Anywhere game can accommodate up to 30 players. Larger groups can be split into multiple games running at the same time.
That makes the format suitable not only for groups of friends but also for families, clubs and even corporate teams.
CityDays says larger groups can run parallel games and compare their results, allowing the experience to work more like a tournament.
It’s Initially Available In The UK And Ireland
There is an important geographic limitation to the launch.
The Traitors: Anywhere was announced for UK and Ireland players, with a minimum age of 16.
The game doesn’t require players to be physically together. Once everyone has joined the WhatsApp group, the experience can unfold wherever the participants happen to be.
That is particularly appropriate for a game designed around messages and secret conversations.
The Game Is Officially Licensed
This isn’t an unofficial fan project using The Traitors name.
The Traitors: Anywhere was created by CityDays in partnership with All3Media International, under an official license.
CityDays founder Tom Rymer said the company wanted to bring the experience to people who wanted to play against the people they already know.
All3Media International’s EVP of Formats & Licensing Nick Smith similarly described the concept as taking the show’s central question — who can you trust? — and putting it directly into people’s group chats.
The Traitors Was Always A Game People Wanted To Play
Part of the appeal of The Traitors is that viewers already try to solve the mystery themselves.
Every episode invites audiences to decide who is lying, who is manipulating the group and who might secretly be working for the Traitors.
The Traitors: Anywhere takes that basic idea and removes the television audience from the equation.
Instead of watching contestants accuse each other, players become the contestants.
You have to decide which of your friends is lying.
And unlike the television show, you already know the people sitting on the other side of the conversation.
This Is Another Expansion For The Franchise
The WhatsApp game is part of a wider licensing push around The Traitors.
The franchise already has live entertainment experiences, publishing deals, merchandise, board games and other licensed products, while an official stage production is also planned for 2027.
The Traitors: Anywhere simply takes the concept somewhere the franchise hasn’t gone before: the private messaging apps people already use every day.
That makes it a particularly direct extension of the show’s central idea.
When Can You Play The Traitors: Anywhere?
The game was initially announced for launch in the UK and Ireland during 2026, with CityDays later opening sales in August. The official website currently lists games for up to 30 players and says passes start at £8.99 per player.
Players don’t need another app or a physical venue.
They need WhatsApp, a group of people willing to betray one another, and enough trust to make the eventual accusations hurt.
And that may be the most natural expansion The Traitors could have found: the castle is gone, the cameras are gone, and the people you’re supposed to distrust are sitting in your own WhatsApp group.
