Deputy Patrol: a free game about dating-site tricks
Published 2026-10-24. Free, 18+, no account.
Short answer
Deputy Patrol is a free browser game from DateSheriff. You play a deputy on an American Main Street and run the four checks we use before paying any dating site: who runs it, what it really costs, how to leave, and who you are talking to. It works on phones and computers, and the services in the checks are made up.
Play Deputy Patrol Opens full screen. Touch, arrow keys or WASD.
This week's Hall of Fame
The board needs JavaScript. It starts over every Monday at 00:00 UTC.
What you practise in each building
Main Street has six buildings in walking order. Four of them hold a check, and a yellow ! over the roof tells you one is still waiting.
| Building | Check | What you do | Full guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ownership Office | Who runs it | Find 3 warning signs on a made-up front page: a live member counter nobody can check, a chat box instead of a contact address, and a footer with no company name or country. | 10-point checklist |
| General Store | What it costs | Spot the "$1 trial" that renews at $49.99 every 7 days, then work out what you pay in 30 days if you forget it: $200.96. | Subscription cost calculator |
| Stagecoach Depot | How to leave | Get past "pause membership", "switch to yearly" and a big red "Claim my discount" button to the small link that turns off auto-renewal. Then decide what proof to keep. | How to cancel a subscription |
| Records Office | Who you talk to | Flag 3 of 6 chat messages: gushing that arrives 8 seconds after you join, "text me on WhatsApp instead", and a request for a $50 gift card. | How to spot fake profiles |
| Sheriff's Office | Start and finish | The Marshal hands you the four checks and pins your badge at the end. The Hall of Fame with this week's top deputies hangs on the wall. | |
| Saloon | Your country | Six doors lead to our pages for the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland. Most of the ads in town hang here, each marked AD. | Country pages |
The townsfolk have questions too
Two people stop you on the boardwalk during each patrol. Their questions come at random from six situations we get asked about:
- a charge on a card under a company name nobody recognises (guide)
- a match asking for a small fee through a link to "verify" before meeting (guide)
- a forgotten renewal and whether the money can come back (guide)
- a deleted app with the subscription still running (guide)
- signing up with a work email and a full name (guide)
- a threat to share private photos unless the person pays (guide)
The last one is serious, so it scores nothing. The game shows the steps the US Federal Trade Commission and the StopNCII service recommend and links to our full guide.
How the score works
- 50 points for each right answer in the four checks. There are 14, so up to 700. A wrong tap costs 25, but a check never drops below zero.
- Up to 50 points for each townsperson you help, two per patrol.
- Speed bonus up to 200. You keep all of it up to the 2-minute mark, then it shrinks to zero at 10 minutes. Our server times the patrol, not your device.
- Badge title comes from accuracy, the share of right answers among all your taps: Sheriff at 90% or more, Deputy at 70%, Rookie Deputy below that.
A perfect patrol scores 1,000. Patrols shorter than 60 seconds are not accepted, and the board shows each nickname once, with its best score of the week.
Why we made a game
Our guides are long, and most people read the price and skip the renewal line. In the game you cannot reach the next door until you find that line yourself. We think doing it once sticks better than reading about it. Every check ends with a link to the guide it comes from, so the game never says more than the guide does.
What we store
- Playing stores nothing on our side. Your browser keeps the nickname the game made up for you and your age confirmation.
- If you post a score: that nickname, your points, your patrol time and your badge title. No name, email or account.
- To slow down spam we keep a one-way hash of your IP address, mixed with the date, for up to 24 hours.
- Google Analytics runs only if you accepted it in our cookie banner. See the privacy policy.
Questions and answers
Is Deputy Patrol free?
Yes. There is no account, no download and no payment. It runs in your browser on datesheriff.com.
Who is the game for?
Adults. The game is about dating and cam sites, so it is 18+, like the rest of DateSheriff.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. On a phone you walk with the round stick and tap the yellow button to act. On a computer you use the arrow keys or WASD, E or Space to act, and Q to open your checklist.
Are the dating sites in the game real?
No. Prairie Flame, Mesa Hearts, Tumbleweed Match, Cactus Kiss Club and HeartRanch Plus are made up. The tricks are real: they are the ones our guides warn about, such as a $1 trial that renews every 7 days.
Are there ads in the game?
Yes, a billboard and a few posters, each marked AD. They link to services we list, and we may earn a commission. Ads never give stars or points.
How is the score calculated?
You get 50 points for each right answer in the four checks and lose 25 for each wrong tap. Each townsperson you help adds up to 50. A speed bonus of up to 200 points shrinks from the 2-minute mark to zero at 10 minutes. The best possible patrol scores 1,000.
When does the weekly board start over?
Every Monday at 00:00 UTC. The board shows each nickname once, with its best score of the week.
What do you store if I post my score?
The nickname the game made up for you, your points, your patrol time and your badge title. No name, email or account. To slow down spam we also keep a one-way hash of your IP address, mixed with the date, for up to 24 hours.
Get one safety check a day on Telegram
A short post every day: a warning sign, a cancel guide or a charge to watch for, with a link to the full guide. Free.