Chameleon is a hide-and-seek painting game where you either hide using camouflage or hunt down other players. As a hider, you paint your character to blend into the environment. As a seeker, you use special abilities to find and catch them. Master the controls and tactics below to outsmart your opponents.

Core Game Modes

Chameleon splits players into two roles. Hiders must avoid seekers by painting themselves and finding clever hiding spots on the map. Seekers use abilities and hunting skills to find and catch hiders before time runs out. Your role switches each round, so you'll experience both sides of the challenge.

Essential Controls

Learn these keybindings to use your painting and survival tools effectively:

  • B — Activate the brush tool to manually paint your character
  • G — Use fill to quickly cover large areas with a single color
  • C — Color picker to sample colors from the map and match them perfectly
  • Q — Undo your last painting action
  • E — Redo a painting action you undid
  • F — Freeze in place, a key tactic for staying hidden
  • T — Taunt other players to distract or provoke them
  • R — Access seeker abilities when you're hunting

Painting and Camouflage

Your main survival tool as a hider is painting. Use the brush (B) to paint freehand onto your character, or use fill (G) to cover large sections instantly. The color picker (C) is your secret weapon—sample colors directly from walls, floors, and objects on the map to match your surroundings perfectly.

💡 Tip — Paint multiple colors on your character to match complex environments. A wall isn't one solid color, so your character shouldn't be either.

The better your camouflage, the harder you are to spot. Don't just paint and stand still—seekers are trained to spot statues. Paint to match the wall you're hiding behind, then blend in naturally.

Hiding Tactics

Painting alone won't save you. Smart hiders use multiple strategies:

  • Pick your spot early — Find a location with colors and surfaces you can match quickly before seekers begin searching
  • Freeze when caught — Press F to freeze in place. Many hiders use this to play dead or appear as a harmless object
  • Stay still — Movement draws attention. Once painted, minimize walking and running
  • Mix colors — Solid-colored characters are suspicious. Paint stripes, shadows, and texture to look like part of the environment
  • Use taunts strategically — T triggers a taunt animation. Use this to confuse seekers or create a distraction for teammates
💡 Tip — If a seeker is close, freezing can make them think you're just a painted wall or floor. Stay calm and don't move.

Seeker Abilities

When you're the seeker, press R to access your hunting abilities. These tools help you spot and catch hiders hiding in plain sight. The exact abilities vary, but they're designed to counter camouflage tactics—use them to scan areas and expose hidden players quickly.

Survival Strategy

Winning as a hider comes down to three things: fast painting, smart positioning, and staying calm. Paint as soon as the round starts so you have time to find a good spot. Choose a location with varied colors if possible, so your paint job will be more convincing. Once hidden, freeze and wait. Seekers often scan quickly—if they don't spot you in the first few seconds, you're likely safe for the rest of the round.

💡 Tip — Watch where other hiders paint themselves and avoid copying their colors and spots. Seekers will expect hiders to hide in similar places each round.

As a seeker, stay alert and trust your instincts. Look for unnatural shapes, mismatched colors, and objects that don't quite fit their background. Use your abilities early to cover ground quickly, then focus on suspicious areas.