I wrote a pirate mystery game for any women in the US recently, who did her backyard up as a giant pirate ship and hid treasure throughout the yard for the guests to find. Conversely, I spoke to a woman at a recent game I facilitated (The Pool Hall Pummeling) who said she had a lot fun, as the last murder mystery game she attended all they did was sit around a table and browse clues.
Sure, both methods work, but really, which party can you rather attend? There’s you don't need to go full-scale like the woman with the pirate mystery game (unless you wish to, obviously), however there's something to become said for adding in little extras to make your party special. Here are some ideas I love to include when I facilitate or host my own murder mystery game party.
- Create pamphlets with the pictures of every suspect. I really like this idea because there is so much potential to fire up some fun. Inside a recent game I facilitated for a family member’s 60th birthday celebration, I created pamphlets in Paint, including pictures of every of the suspects. Only, rather than including nice pictures of my family members, I sifted through years of photo albums and selected the most menacing pictures of each person I possibly could find. I distributed the pamphlets as everyone arrived, and the room was instantly full of laughter within the photos. Cries of “where did you get this picture?” were accompanied with shrieks of joy, as well as those not playing a suspect had a good time making fun of everyone’s most murderous looking profile pics.
- Set up a mock murder scene When playing a murder mystery game, nothing matters a lot more than having a good imagination. Help your guests along by setting up a mock crime scene. I wrote a custom mystery for a baby shower celebration of over 50 guests in which the nanny was stabbed. The hostess setup her spare bedroom as a crime scene and, as everyone entered, these were showed through the crime scene. That detail was listed as her guest’s favorite moment from the party! So how exactly does one do this? Well, first you need to read ahead a bit in your Game Kit (not too far or you’ll spoil the mystery) before you find the crime scene description. Because of this, Shot At nighttime Mystery Games always feature the crime scene description within the first couple of pages, usually as a Chapter One introduction. After you have the details, set up a large part of the room or perhaps a whole room because the murder scene. Use a dummy for that body, or just lay out a chalk outline. This gives these potential customers a visual, then one to talk about as they mingle before the murder mystery game begins.
- Give your visitors notebooks The cheapest and simplest way of doing this is to go to a dollar store. Dollar stores have plenty of stationary in all sizes, and the small notebooks (3”x5” will do) are inexpensive. You could even go as far as to achieve the notebooks specially printed if you chose! The notebooks function as a good way for suspects and extra guests to maintain track of clues as the murder mystery game unfolds and it is a great keepsake for after the party. Don’t forget to supply pens!
- Place the murder weapon in a Ziploc “Evidence” bag By the pool Hall Pummeling event Recently i facilitated, I visited a billiard supply store and asked them for a single cue ball. These were pleased to oblige and gave me many used cue balls to choose from. I picked the oldest, most worn cue ball, plus they became curious why I picked that one. I told them it was to be used as a murder weapon. Through strange looks, they explained just to go, that I didn’t have to pay for this. I went home, squirted some red paint on my Halloween pumpkin and pummeled away! It designed a great prop for the party, and because the Detective browse the opening clues, he passed round the “bloody” cue ball inside a Ziploc bag for everyone to see part of the evidence.
- Print off “I Accuse” sheets The finish of the murder mystery game includes a section where everyone reaches accuse a suspect and explain why they think that individual was the murderer. Printing of “I accuse” forms allows everyone to write down their vote (a la Survivor) and then, as it pertains their use accuse, flip their sheet over and show everyone who they believe may be the killer.
- Encourage your friends and relatives to dress their character Characters come with descriptions, and taking advantage of that description it’s not hard to assume what each character might wear. For extra characters, they can stick to the theme. For instance, while playing Murder on the Mound, possess the suspects dress their character. The additional guests may come dressed as ball players, as well as fans sporting foam fingers!
- Create Nametags It’s a common school of thought nowadays that name tags in a party really are a pretty lame idea (think Ross from Friends as he threw the party in the new apartment). The only real time that it IS acceptable to have nametags happens when hosting a murder mystery game party. At first, while guests are becoming to understand the suspects, the nametags will be handy. Obviously, you aren't labeling these nametags with their real names, but the names from the character they play. Nametags is often as simple because the sticky “Hello My Name Is” ones obtainable in stationary stores the world over, or as complex as tags you earn yourself on your computer, to professionally made name tags.
- Create forensic props This prop idea works especially well for the Death Scene Investigation games, where forensics would be the main focus of the game. But forensic props could be put into any murder mystery game you choose. The best place to find forensic game props are, surprisingly, toy stores. Forensic Labs, Handwriting Analysis Kits and DNA Laboratories are typical in toy stores or any store which has a game section. I recently acquired a Fingerprint Examination Kit, which came with evidence bags, another light source, fingerprinting brush and mud, crime scene tape and much more. Whenever I facilitate a game title, everyone oohs and aahs over my evidence bags and ALS. I don’t tell them where I got it, but I’ll tell you if you promise to maintain it between us.
For those who have an imaginative idea you’re contributing to your personal Shot In The Dark Mysteries Game, please share it with us! And don’t forget to transmit us pictures of your event for our upcoming picture gallery!
Mystery Maiden writes and facilitates murder mystery, general mystery, forensics and custom mystery games for Shot In The Dark Mysteries.
