Is multi-ball actually Mafia?

[AlwaysInnocent]

I mean at its worst its not a normal game of mafia.

At its best its a more complex game of mafia since you have to look for two different types of associations among players instead of one. Add in that scum could be scumhunting for other team making them appear more townie potentially.

I still don't see how that is not mafia.

I think a lot of people think Cult games are not mafia either, which I like personally and think just need town to work harder on actually figuring out players shifts from day to day. Too bad its considered bastard and only seen 1 cult game.

I have played some Cult games, too. Assuming that the Cult is the only scum faction, and the rest is Town, then I would consider it a game of Mafia. However, aside from being susceptible to balance issues, I think it could be considered bastard because of the alignment change during the game. This can create an unintended incentive for players to play against their win condition, hoping/expecting that they will be converted later, and have an advantage because of that (or just because they feel that it will be more fun).