How to Host a Murder Mystery Party
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Host the perfect murder mystery party with these essential tips and choose from over 20 DIY kits to make it a night to die for!
Consider this: on a dark and stormy evening, you and your friends gather around for a dinner party at your house, only to find out a murder has been committed. Not just that—one of you did it! You all act as suspects in the murder, all the while trying to solve it with a limited number of clues and testimonies. Sound fun? Then read on, my friend, this post is for you.
If you’re a fan of mysteries and all things crime-solving, like I am, you’ve probably been drawn to the idea of hosting a murder mystery party in your home or backyard. Now you’ve taken the necessary step of figuring out how to do it. You’re in the right place! Below, we’ll give you all the tips and tricks for throwing the best DIY murder mystery party, as well as suggest twenty of the best party kits for you choose from. Each of these murder mystery kits will have the materials you need to throw your party and provide advice on how to make your party the best it can be.
Hosting the party means there are quite a few things for you to consider, from scheduling to inviting to cooking to decorating. We’ve got answers to your most nagging questions below. But there is also something to be said about learning from experience. So even if you’re nervous about trying it out, we suggest you choose one of the kits below and just go for it! You’ll be sure to have a party to die for.
(Want to solve more mysteries? Try these 25 Crime Solving Games You Can Play at Home)
How Do you host a murder mystery party?
As the host, it’s your job to orchestrate the evening and make sure it runs smoothly. But that doesn’t mean you don’t also get to play along, just like everyone else. Below, we’ve listed twenty murder mystery party kits, and each one allows the host to play too. There is only one caveat—you can’t read ahead! Since you, as host, will have access to all of the game materials beforehand, it may be tempting to read through all of them, including the booklets reserved for individual characters. This usually is where the murderer finds out that they are, in fact, the murderer and by reading it you will spoil your chances of participating in the mystery. So exercise your best self-control and stick to reading the materials designated and marked for the host, then follow the instructions carefully. Why shouldn’t you have fun just like everyone else?
If you just came up with several reasons and are arguing with me in your head, then perhaps playing along isn’t for you. If you would prefer just to host and not to participate, retaining perfect control over your party, you may find other ways to join in. You could read the introductions and clues aloud, or act as the murder victim, lying sprawled on the floor, or act as the police officer, there to arrest the culprit in the end. Just be sure to have the right number of players without counting you, and do not spoil the big reveal for anyone else.
When Is a Good Time for a Murder Mystery PartY?
For mystery buffs, anytime is a good time for murder mystery party. But since it is a unique event for most people, it can be a great way to celebrate a special occasion or holiday. New Years, Christmas, Halloween, Mardi Gras, and Fourth of July are all holidays when family and friends are gathered together looking for something to do, so why not bond over solving a crime? Special occasions like birthdays or anniversaries can also be a memorable time to have a party.
Each of the kits we suggest takes 2-3 hours, so choose an evening where most people won’t have to work the following day, like a Saturday. Likewise, choose a start time that gets people home at a reasonable hour, like 6pm. Invite your guests far enough in advance that they can arrange for childcare and verify their work schedules.
Who to Invite to a Murder Mystery PartY?
You may already have a guest list for your murder mystery party or you may be curious as to who to invite. Be sure to choose a party kit that involves the amount of guests you want to invite, and to invite the correct number of people. Several of the kits below (though not all!) require an exact number of guests to play, which means RSVPing is essential, and having an idea for a backup in case someone cancels is also essential.
Keep in mind that not everyone enjoys games, especially ones that require you to get into character, act, and improvise. For everyone’s sake, only invite people who will get into the fun, or at least go along with it. Nothing spoils a party more than someone moping in the corner muttering, “this is stupid!” Invite friends you know will have a good time, who will get along with each other, and who have a reasonable (and appropriate) sense of humor. Be sure to read the basic plot outline for your story and any content warnings (without spoiling anything for yourself!) to ensure you aren’t inviting anyone who may be sensitive to the subject matter.
All of the murder mystery party game kits we suggest below are marketed for adults only. That’s because many of them contain adult themes (for example: murder) and therefore they are not suitable for kids. If you feel your child or teen is mature enough to tackle adult themes, and even act some of them out, that is up to you and your discretion. I do recommend reading reviews thoroughly to know what kind of themes you may be dealing with. Or, as host, you can read through the materials in advance and adjust them as needed, but as we said above, realize that makes it so you cannot play too.
What food to serve at a Murder Mystery Party?
The food you serve at your murder mystery party is entirely up to you. Often the kit you choose will give you suggestions that carry on the theme of the party. For example, a murder mystery that takes place at an Italian restaurant will have you serve lasagna, etc. You may have to alter these suggestions to fit dietary needs, so be sure to check with guests beforehand. We suggest you also choose foods that are easy to eat with a fork and that don’t require much cutting or use of your hands. A burger or hot dog, while delicious, would be messy and would require you to eat with your hands, which would make it difficult for your guests to look at their character booklet while eating. Likewise, a steak would require cutting with a knife in your hand, which would make it difficult to follow along with the game. Don’t forget about drinks (with and without alcohol), appetizers, and dessert to keep your guests satisfied while they work their mind muscles to solve the crime.
What to wear for a murder mystery party?
Usually your murder mystery party kit will give you suggestions for each character’s costume. When you invite your guests, try to assign characters that you can picture each guest playing. Then provide the kit’s costume suggestions to them in advance, along with any of your own. If your kit doesn’t provide suggestions, or you have to make changes to the character (for example, by changing the character’s gender to match your guest’s, you may have to come up with a new idea or research suggestions online. Be sure to suggest things that the wearer may already have in their closet and give your guests the option to dress up as much or as little as they want, as some will be more willing to do so than others.
(Also a fan of escape rooms? Check out 30+ Escape Room Board Games You Can Play at Home)
How to Decorate for a Murder Mystery Party?
While decorating for your party is not strictly necessary, it can add ambiance and flair. Your party kit may have suggestions for you, and if not, try researching what other people have done for your theme online. Something as simple as red and white checkered table cloths for a restaurant mystery, garland for a holiday mystery, or fresh flowers for a garden party mystery, can make your guests feel like they are actually there. If you want to go all out, make a tape outline on the floor of the body and surround it with crime scene tape. Get creative and your guests will appreciate your efforts.
The Best Murder Mystery Party Kits
With a murder mystery party kit, everything is thought up and organized for you—all you have to do is follow the instructions. We’ve found six of the best game brands and listed four of the top kits from each. That makes over twenty different murder mystery scenarios for you to choose from! We recommend choosing a brand that fits your needs (number of people, desired set up, etc.) and then choosing a theme that pulls to you. You’ll be sure to find a party theme that you and your guests will enjoy.
Looking for a kit for a specific holiday? Checkout these titles below: Murder at Mardi Gras for Fat Tuesday, Murder at the Christmas Feast OR A Christmas Crime for Christmas, Monster Mansion for Halloween, or Turkey, Taters, and Terror OR Halftime Hysteria for Thanksgiving.
Culinario Mortale
Culinario Mortale creates murder mystery party kits that are sleek in appearance and straightforward to follow. Each of the following kits can be played with small groups, most with as little as five players and as many as eight, which gives each player more time to feel involved. The host even gets to play just the same as the rest of the characters. None of the dialogue is scripted, so be sure to invite guests who will jump in and get creative. The games are all recommended for adults due to mild innuendo, though some reviewers have reported success with older teens. The settings for each mystery vary from an elite manor house to a Shakespearean theater, from a fancy yacht to the depths of the Peruvian rainforest.
University Games
Some of the most popular murder mystery party games on the market come from University Games. Each game requires exactly eight adult players (again because of mild innuendo) and each acts as a suspect, including the host. Unlike the freewheeling games above, these games follow a more regimented script and are great for guests that don’t improvise easily. Each comes with an audio CD that explains the scenario and the solution, so be sure to have a blu-ray player or another way to play the CD. Settings in these games include a New Orleans-style Mardi Gras masquerade party, a wake at a local Italian Restaurant, a wine tasting at a Napa Valley vineyard, and a 1950’s backyard BBQ.
Masters of Mystery
Smaller parties will appreciate that Masters of Mystery only requires as few as 4 players for their games, but they can include up to 20 players for larger groups as well. As a bonus, the host of the party gets to play too. One of the best parts of these packs is that these games are replayable with a different ending each time, making them a good bang for your buck. Players can mix and match characters regardless of gender and game play lasts 1.5-3 hours. Your kit includes evidence folders, invitations, costume suggestions, character guides, a host guide, and access to audio and video files. Lots of options are available for themes, from holiday parties at Halloween or Christmas to the old west to the 1980’s.
Murderous Decisions
For larger parties, we recommend Murderous Decisions games because they provide the flexibility that a large crowd requires. Each of the games can be played with 6-14 players, who are all characters and suspects. The player playing the murderer can be anybody, and assigned by the host at random, as each character can be given either a “guilty” or “innocent” booklet of information on the day of the party. This eliminates worry about last-minute cancellations. Like the above games, an audio CD comes with the game to offer guidance, but the information is also included in a PDF and can be read aloud, or downloaded from the company website here in MP3 format. Game play can be more or less formal as desired, with guests milling around or sitting around one table. Just be sure each guest gets to question every other player. The game makers have a wide selection of settings and themes available, with even more on their website, but we recommend the ones below: an English country manor, a cozy library, a Vegas casino, or a Christmas feast.
Vanbier
Vanbier’s games are a tad more rigid, requiring exactly 8 adult players at a dinner party with only one designated ending, but they are excellent in quality. Each game includes an illustrated host guide (the host plays along with everyone else), dinner suggestions, easy-to-access video clues, character scripts, invitations, and magnetic awards for guests to put on their fridge afterwards as a reminder of a fun night. The quality of the game can make you and your guests feel like it’s worthy of everyone’s time and effort. Settings include Thanksgiving dinner, the Kentucky Derby, a football game party, and a glamorous drag bar.
Talking Tables
Another series of murder mystery kits notable for their quality comes from Talking Tables. Each game comes with a ton of exceptional content, including (but not limited to) an instruction booklet, welcome speech, murder weapon props, a police crime file, murder clues, and trophies. The format is slightly more flexible, for between 5 and up to 13 adult and older teen players, though it should be noted that the missing characters are still considered suspects even when no one is playing them in person. The host plays along with everyone else. Each game has three alternative endings, which means that you can play them more than once, though you will probably need some time in between to forget consistent details of the storyline. Setting options include a 1920’s theatre, a night train a la the Orient Express, a 1970’s disco, and a big top circus.
Have you been to a murder mystery party or hosted one yourself? Tell us about it in the comments below, or on social @makeadateofit!
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