Act Natural! Guide: How to Blend In and Spot the Real Players
Act Natural! is an online party game for up to eight players. Every player is a pigeon in a city plaza, hidden in a flock of about 45 bot pigeons that look exactly the same. You score by eating at secret snack spots and by snatching other real players. This guide explains how the bots behave, because copying them is the whole game.
How a match works
A match lasts 140 seconds. You get three secret snack spots, shown only to you with a ring and an icon. Stand inside a spot and peck three times to finish it for 2 points. Finish all three and you get a 4 point bonus and a fresh set of spots.
Snatching a real player is worth 5 points, and they lose 2. In the last 30 seconds a snatch is worth 10. Snatch a bot pigeon by mistake and you lose a point, you are dazed for a moment, and a red mark hangs over your head for about five seconds. When the time runs out, every player’s pigeon is revealed and the results show everyone’s path through the plaza.
How the bot pigeons behave
They walk, stop, and peck a lot. Bots walk a few steps, stand still for a second or three, peck the ground and turn their heads. Now and then one coos and struts in a little circle.
They never run without a reason. Bots only run toward grandma’s bread or during a squabble, when one pigeon chases another for a moment. A pigeon sprinting across an empty plaza is almost always a player.
They rush to the bread. When grandma throws bread, most nearby bots run to it and peck there for several seconds. Standing still on the far side of the plaza while everyone else rushes is a tell.
They hop away from the kid. When the kid runs through, almost every bot in the way hops aside. A pigeon that stays put gets bumped and sits dazed with stars over its head. Everyone sees that.
They fly away. Groups of bots take off and leave as the match goes on, and a few groups land early in the match. The flock gets smaller and smaller, so hiding gets harder near the end.
Blending in
Walk, don’t run. Use the stick lightly or tap the keys. Hold Shift only when the crowd is running too, during the bread rush or a squabble.
Peck and coo. Press Space now and then even away from your spots, and Q once in a while. A pigeon that only pecks at snack spots is easy to read.
Don’t make a beeline. Wander toward your spot with a stop or two, like the bots do. Visiting your three spots in a straight tour is the classic giveaway.
Hop when the kid comes. Press F as the kid gets close. If you forget, you get bumped and the whole plaza knows.
Go to the bread. The bread is worth up to 2 points per throw, and the crowd is your cover. It is also where hunters wait, so peck twice and drift away.
Hunting the real players
Watch for pigeons that run without a reason, skip the kid’s hop, or keep coming back to the same spot. Get close slowly, because walking straight at someone is suspicious too, then press E or click the pigeon. The orange ring shows which pigeon a snatch will take.
A red mark is a free snatch: only a player can wear one. When somebody snatches a bot, the nearest players usually pounce within seconds, so if it was you, walk away into the thickest part of the crowd.
A caught player lands again a few seconds later with a small group of bot pigeons, somewhere away from the hunter, and is shielded for a moment. Remember where groups land.
Playing with friends
Press Play with Friends to open a private plaza with a five-letter code and an invite link. Bot players fill the empty seats, so even two friends can play. The host starts each match, and after the results the same group stays together for the next one. There is no typed chat; you can send six emotes, which show in the corner with your name and never above your pigeon.