Tutorial #3: Arrow of Time

by SyxP

In this tutorial, we will be clearing some doubts on how various mechanics of the time work within the game. There has been various times where this issue about how Time Adds, Overtime and Countdown come into play, yet there has not been a definite source where all of this information is compiled. It is understandable that this is a rather confusing mechanic to newer players, and I hope that this would help you clear your confusion.

First, let us talk about Time Adds. Time Adds come in three flavors: red, white and green (blue, white and black respectively for the colorblind folks). Red Time Adds will add 45 seconds to the clock on both the Sniper and the Spy machine and causes it to beep on both. (Beeps also occur every minute.) White Time Adds will add 45 seconds to the clock on both the Sniper and the Spy machine, but not have a beeping tell. Green Time Adds will add 45 seconds to the clock on the Spy machine and dilate (slow down) the time on the Sniper machine. However, this dilation is capped at a maximum of 2 seconds per tick on the clock. A corollary is that early time adds are hard to spot because of the minimal amount of slowdown, late time adds are easier to spot. Moreover, if the Spy gets a Green Time Add at 0:01 on the clock, the Sniper’s clock will then just stay at 0:00 for another 45 seconds before timeout occurs.

Countdown occurs when the Spy completes his/her last mission. (If the last mission was a Green Statue Swap or Green Purloin the Guest List, he completes it as soon as another partygoer swaps the statue or purloin the guest list respectively. That is, as soon as a hard tell becomes visible on the Sniper’s machine assuming no lag.) It lasts for ten seconds and the Sniper is not informed of this (unless it is Overtime). This is to allow the Sniper to take a shot when he/she notices the Spy completing his/her last mission.

Overtime occurs when the clock on the Sniper says 0:00, and the countdown begun on the Spy’s machine.  It will last until the countdown reaches 0 on the Spy’s machine. It is an indication that the Spy has completed his/her mission and you should always shoot when it goes to Overtime. This is because you will lose as the Spy will complete their mission when the countdown finish, and a blind shot still have a chance of catching the Spy. There are three ways to achieve 0:00 on the Sniper’s machine. The most traditional way is that the Spy only manages to complete the missions in the last 10 seconds on his machine. The other two is due to Lag and Green Time Adds. If a Green Time Add has occurred, it is possible that the Sniper’s clock has reached 0:00 due to the slowdown cap while the Spy still has plenty more time. If the Spy completes his missions then, the Sniper would know as Overtime has occurred. Lag can also de-synchronize the timing between the Sniper’s and the Spy’s machine, giving the Sniper from a few seconds up to a minute less time on his clock then the Spy’s. If he manages to get to 0:00 this way, he would also see Overtime.

This post is not a strategy discussion but going through the mechanics of how Time Adds, Overtime and Countdown work. A knowledge of this is helpful when it comes to deciding when to shoot. Those issues will be covered at a later date. Finally, I hope you have learned something from this tutorial.