Gameplay Guide

Assassin Protocol has two distinct game types: Games and Field Ops. Games are the classic assassination format — you're assigned a target, you hunt them using weapons or your camera. Field Ops is a premium mode that adds a scavenger-hunt layer: players start unarmed and must physically walk to map locations to collect weapons and shields before the hunt begins.

The standard game mode. You join with your equipped weapon already in hand. Once the game starts, your target card shows direction and distance. Close the gap and hit Attack when you're in range. Each weapon has a different range and cooldown: Knife (5m, instant), Sniper Rifle (150m, 24h cooldown), Dirty Bomb (AoE blast, 48h). Shields can be equipped from your loadout before joining for passive protection.

A verified elimination format — no honor system required. Get in person with your target, open the camera, and point it at their face. The app runs on-device face recognition, comparing the live camera feed against your target's stored identity signature. If the faces don't match, the elimination is rejected. No raw photo is ever transmitted to the server — only the numeric face descriptor. Both players must complete a one-time identity verification on their Account page before camera-mode games are available. Camera mode has a 1-hour cooldown between attempts.

Field Ops is a subscriber-exclusive game mode that transforms the hunt into a full scavenger experience. Players start with no weapons or shields. When the game starts, gear drops are placed on real streets within 400 meters of each player's location — you have to leave home and physically walk to collect them before you can fight. Only available to Operative and Ghost subscribers. Weapon mode only.

Each player gets five private gear drops placed on nearby streets: Knife, Sniper Rifle, Dirty Bomb, Ballistic Vest, and Radar Vest. The drop locations are unique to you — other players can't see or collect your drops. Walk within 25 meters of a marker and tap Collect (or let the automatic proximity check trigger). Once you've armed up, the assassination game plays out normally. Drop markers appear on your 3D map as colored icons — purple for weapons, blue for shields.

Special items appear on the shared map for all players on a rolling schedule — every 15 to 45 minutes throughout the game. A push notification fires the moment one appears. Each item expires in 10 minutes if uncollected. First player to reach it wins it. Items include: Field Medic (+50 HP), Scrambler (hides your GPS for 30 min), Dead Drop (reveals your assassin's location for 5 min), Witness (reveals a random alive player for 10 min), Extraction Point (fakes your location to enemies for 20 min), Neural Tap (+50 neural energy), and the Bounty Chip — collect it and every other player sees your live location for 10 minutes. Survive and earn +100 credits.

Combines both modes: each player gets private loadout drops near their location AND the shared FFA item schedule runs throughout the game. The most complete Field Ops experience — you start from zero, race to gear up, and compete for high-value map items while simultaneously hunting your target. Best for groups who want maximum chaos.

Assassin Protocol is a real-world, location-based elimination game. Each player is secretly assigned a Target. You hunt them down in the real world using proximity and weapons. Your Target is hunting someone too — and someone is hunting you. Last player standing wins the prize pool.

Browse open games on the Games page, then tap Join (costs 10 credits). You'll be placed in the lobby. Once the game creator starts the game, targets are assigned and the hunt begins. You can also create your own game and invite others.

Credits are the in-game currency. You receive 100 credits when you sign up. Each game costs 10 credits to join. When you win, you receive the full prize pool minus a 10% protocol fee. Credits are not real money — they're a closed beta currency for testing.

The prize pool is the total entry fees from all players, minus 10%. Example: 5 players × 10 credits = 50 credits total pot → winner receives 45 credits. The 10% goes to the protocol treasury. The pot is shown live on each game's detail page.

Once the game is active, open the game page — you'll see your Target card showing their name, avatar, and live distance + compass bearing (e.g. ↗ 34m · NE). You must enable location sharing first. Your target's position updates every 30 seconds, so keep moving.

In Weapon Mode: get within your equipped weapon's range and hit Attack. The button turns red when you're in range. In Camera Mode: get in person with your target, tap the camera icon, point it at their face, and tap Capture. The app uses on-device face recognition to verify the face matches your target's stored identity — if it doesn't match, the attempt fails. No photo is sent to the server. This is verified elimination, not an honor system.

Camera Mode uses face recognition to confirm eliminations — the app needs a reference photo of every player to compare against. Before joining a camera-mode game, each player must complete a one-time identity verification on their Account page: take a selfie using the front camera. The app extracts a face signature (128 numbers describing your face geometry) and stores it — no raw photo is kept. When you go to eliminate someone, the app scans their face live and compares it against their stored signature. No match, no kill.

Your target is eliminated and you inherit their target — so you immediately have a new person to hunt. The chain continues until one player remains. If you're the last one standing, the prize pool is credited to your account instantly.

You're marked ☠ Eliminated on the player list. You can still view the game and watch the remaining survivors, but you can no longer attack. You keep any credits you had before joining, minus the entry fee.

Currently four weapons: Knife (5m range, 1h cooldown), Sniper Rifle (150m range, 4h cooldown), and Dirty Bomb (AoE — damages all players within 20m, 8h cooldown). The Missile is a special purchasable weapon that unlocks 24 hours after game start — global range, dynamic price based on remaining players. The Nuke is a rotating special event that can end the entire game instantly.

Go to Account → Loadout. Tap Equip on any weapon to set it as your default — it'll be auto-equipped when you join your next game. Inside a pending game lobby, you can also swap your weapon before the game starts by tapping Change next to your current weapon.

The Missile becomes available to all players 24 hours after game start. It has global range — distance doesn't matter. The price is dynamic: it costs your buy-in divided by the number of players still alive, rounded up. Early in the game with many players alive it's cheap; late game with just a few survivors it becomes a serious investment. It's a single-use weapon — after firing it returns to the pool for someone else to buy. Designed to break stalemates and reward aggressive play.

The Nuke is a rotating special event. Every 5 minutes, it passes to a different alive player in a deterministic cycle — when it's your window, a countdown and DETONATE button appear on your game screen. Detonating ends the game immediately: all other players receive a full refund of their buy-in plus an equal share of 10% of your penalty fee. You pay a 30% protocol fee on your own buy-in and there is no prize pool — no winner. Use it to escape a losing position or burn it all down. The Nuke cannot be equipped from your loadout; it arrives on its own schedule.

The Dirty Bomb has a 20m blast radius — when you attack, it damages all players (not just your target) within 20m of your current location. It's the only AoE weapon in the game. High risk, high reward in dense areas. 8-hour cooldown.

Shields give you passive or active protection during a game. There are two types: loadout shields (free, equipped before joining) and mid-game purchasable shields (bought with credits once the game is active). Multiple shields stack — all apply simultaneously. Equip loadout shields on your Account → Loadout page. Purchasable shields are available from the in-game shield shop after the first elimination.

A free loadout shield. Absorbs one complete hit from any weapon or missile — the damage is fully negated. Lasts for 4 hits before breaking. The Vest is passive and always active; no manual trigger required. Equip it before joining a game from Account → Loadout. In Field Ops, a Ballistic Vest drop appears on your personal map.

A free loadout shield. Sends you a push notification the instant a missile is fired at you — giving you advance warning before it lands. Always-on, no activation needed. Useful in weapon-mode games where missiles are in play. Pair it with Ghost Module to both receive the warning and immediately disappear from the map. Equip from Account → Loadout.

A purchasable timed shield. When active, your GPS coordinates shown to your assassin are blurred by up to ±30 meters — they see an approximate location, not your actual position. Has 3 activations. Each activation lasts 90 seconds. Buy it from the in-game shield shop after the first elimination occurs.

A purchasable active shield. When manually triggered, it returns 50% of incoming damage back to your attacker for 30 seconds. If someone hits you with a 100hp weapon while Reflective Shield is active, you take 50hp and they take 50hp. Requires manual activation — tap the shield icon when you think an attack is incoming. 2 activations per purchase.

A purchasable one-use shield — the most powerful defensive item in the game. When activated, you vanish completely from all enemy location pings for 45 seconds. Your assassin sees nothing. Your GPS position is not updated on the server during this window, so traps also cannot trigger on you. Use it to reposition, escape a close-range threat, or slip out of a trap zone. One use per game.

Location sharing is opt-in. You toggle it on the game page. When enabled, your GPS position is sent to the server and shared only with the player assigned to hunt you. Nobody else can see your location. Sharing is global once enabled — it persists across page navigations until you turn it off.

Only your assigned assassin — the player whose target is you — can see your location. They see a distance and bearing, not a map pin.

Yes — your real-world location is what matters. You need to physically move near your target to be in range for most weapons. The Sniper Rifle has 150m range, so you can attack from a block away. The Knife requires you to be within 5m. Play responsibly and follow your local laws.

No. Assassin Protocol is a Progressive Web App (PWA). Visit the site in Safari (iOS) or Chrome (Android) and tap Add to Home Screen for a native app-like experience with an icon, full-screen mode, and background location. No App Store required.

We use battery-friendly GPS settings — positions are cached up to 15 seconds and only significant changes trigger server updates. Keeping the screen on and GPS active will still use more battery than normal. Enable Low Power Mode if you're planning a long session.