How to Play Secret Hitler for Free

Updated

Secret Hitler is available for free under a Creative Commons BY–NC–SA 4.0 license, so you can download the rules and print-and-play files from secrethitler.com and build your own copy. Budget about an hour with a printer and scissors, or roughly $5 and 20–30 minutes at a local print shop. This route is for personal, non-commercial use only — the license does not allow app store submissions or any commercial profit from the game.

What you need before you start

  • Player count: 5–10 people. The game is a social deduction format, so you need a full group to run it properly.
  • Files: the Rules PDF and the Print & Play PDF, both linked from the site.
  • Tools: a printer, paper or cardstock, and scissors. A print shop is the faster alternative if you don't want to cut everything yourself.

Step-by-step: from download to first game

  1. Download the two PDFs. The Rules file explains how the game works; the Print & Play file contains the components you need to cut out.
  2. Print the Print & Play file. Standard paper works, but heavier stock holds up better across repeated games. A print shop can handle this for you.
  3. Cut out the components. This is the time-consuming part — expect roughly an hour with scissors at home, or 20–30 minutes if a print shop does the printing and cutting.
  4. Read the Rules PDF before your group sits down. The game divides players into two hidden teams: liberals, who hold the majority, and fascists, who are hidden from everyone but each other. Liberals win by using their voting majority to control elections and stop a fascist takeover; fascists win by getting elected and advancing their agenda. Understanding the election and voting flow ahead of time keeps the first session moving.
  5. Gather 5–10 players and play. Because the fascists can say anything to get elected, the game depends on table talk and reading other players — the physical components are simple, but the social layer is the actual game.

What the license lets you do — and what it doesn't

Allowed Not allowed
Make your own version for personal play Profit from it commercially in any way
Use it as long as you credit the original Submit anything to an app store
Share it under the same CC BY–NC–SA 4.0 license Skip the identical license requirement

The site notes this isn't an exhaustive list and that it's your responsibility to make sure you're not infringing. If you plan to distribute or modify the game beyond personal use, check the license terms carefully first.

Common snags

  • Skipping the rules read-through. The print-and-play components don't teach the game by themselves; the Rules PDF does.
  • Underestimating cutting time. The "about an hour" estimate is for the full print-and-cut job at home — plan for it if you're hosting soon.
  • Assuming you can digitize it. The license explicitly rules out app store submissions, so a free print-and-play build is the supported free route, not an app version.
  • Looking for the wood box. The site states there are no wood boxes available and no plans to make them available again, so don't count on that as an upgrade path.

If you want the physical edition instead of building your own, the game is available everywhere Blackbox ships.