What is it?

Top Secret is a narrative-driven game played in real-time by email. It’s an exploration of the issues raised by the Snowden leaks.

The game was successfully Kickstarted in 2015 and is no longer available for sale. If you want to find out more or get a copy of the game, please email .

How does it work?

Top Secret unfolds in real-time over 2 weeks. Players take on the role of an NSA agent tracking down the source of Top Secret leaks. They email selectors (names, email addresses, phone numbers) to their NSA team and receive surveillance reports on their chosen targets. The player must analyse the intel to choose their next target.

Top Secret is a game about surveillance in which the player’s own play is surveilled. Every email you send whilst playing the game can be intercepted and read by the NSA or GCHQ. To prevent this, Top Secret supports the encryption method used by Edward Snowden - Pretty Good Privacy (PGP). Players can send and receive encrypted emails from the game which even the NSA can’t decipher.

 Replying to an email in the game

What platforms are supported?

Top Secret is best played in real-time by email and can be played on any device which supports email. Every purchase also includes a digital copy to play on Windows, Mac, and Linux.

The digital copy is DRM-free and is completely playable offline. The content is identical to the email version, but messages are sent and received from a fake inbox.