A Buyer's Guide: Murder Mysteries

You found our guide to buying a (downloadable) murder mystery.‍

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Murder mysteries are fun! There's just something amazing and fun about assembling a group of your closest friends or co-workers, dressing up in themed outfits, and acting out ridiculous scenarios while attempting to deduce who among you is a cold, vicious killer. But where to start? Dozens of websites offer up thousands of murder mysteries (if not more). An overwhelming feeling of "which is best for my group" can set in fast, until suddenly it's party time and you haven't made a decision. Well, let us help! We've cobbled together a guide containing questions people should frequently ask before buying a murder mystery online.

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Questions You Should Ask

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From avoiding spoilers to understand the format of the game, and everything in between, here are 11 questions you should ask before buying your next murder mystery.

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1. Can The Organizer Also Play?

As the organizer of your murder mystery party, you may be wondering if you're stuck merely emceeing the festivities, or if you can join in the fray as a player. Murder mysteries have spoilers, and if the writer has not taken special precautions to protect the organizer from finding out who the murderer is while they’re planning their party, then it’s likely your experience could be ruined before it even begins. Your murder mystery vendor should state up-front if the organizer can also be a player. If they haven’t, you should ask.

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2. How Long Does the Game Last?

Depending on the format (and number of suspects), murder mystery typically last anywhere from 30 minutes to four hours. The vendor should provide an estimate of the game’s duration so you can make sure your lead suspect doesn’t need to leave half-way through the game to put their kids to bed.

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3. Does The Murder Occur During The Game?

Depending on the murder mystery you're playing, you may be working to solve an “off-screen murder” (ie. the speakeasy owner got shot last night, let's find out who did it) or the victim might be one of YOU, dropping dead from poisoned champagne halfway through the festivities.

You should know, in advance, if one (or more) of the playing characters will be murdered in-game so you can set everyone’s expectations are set appropriately - especially the person that’s about to be transformed into a ghost.

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4. What’s The Format?

Murder mysteries typically wind up in one of three formats. A murder mystery designed for a Zoom call is not going to work well at a house party, and visa versa. A murder mystery that relies heavily on improv might not work for a room full of introverts. Possibly more important than anything else on this list is knowing the format of the murder mystery you’re about to download, and ensuring that it’s suitable for your party.

Murder mysteries typically wind up in one of three formats. Here are those formats, as well as the audience they’re best suited for. If your murder mystery vendor doesn’t give any information about a particular game’s format, you should ask!

• Fully-Scripted (aka “Table Reads”): These murder mysteries feature pre-written dialogues and questions. In fully-scripted games, nothing is left ambiguous and your players will not have any acting or improv responsibilities…all they need to do is follow the instructions and read when it’s their turn.‍
  • Best For: Zoom Calls / Newbies. While not for everyone, this format is actually great for games run via video conference where mingling and side-conversations just wouldn’t be possible.

• Semi-Scripted: These murder mysteries will provide some pre-written content (like monologues and pre-written interrogation questions), but more emphasis will typically be placed on providing characters with a detailed backstory that includes their motivations and objectives for the game in order to let them improv their way through the investigation. These types of games will typically be divided into ‘Acts’ (or rounds) and the characters will be given a set of directions for that Act.‍
  • Best For: Most In-Person Parties. This is the go-to format for those hosting a typical in-person game night amongst friends.

• Unscripted: These murder mysteries are all about the acting! In addition to a very comprehensive backstory, characters will receive a detailed list of objectives, directions, and prompts to guide them through the game. Characters will then interacts with each other to create a script-free story from scratch.‍
  • Best For: Experienced Players. This format is best for experienced players that want to add their own flair to the game, and can be trusted not to veer too far off-plot!

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Tip: Many websites let you download a sample of the script for free — definitely take advantage of this opportunity!

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5. Was The Murder Mystery Written For In-Person Or Virtual Play?

Virtual murder mysteries grabbed a hold of our hearts when lockdown confined much of the world to a Zoom call. And because of this, most of the best-selling murder mysteries generated on sites like Etsy were designed to be played virtually (think less acting and more script-reading).

As we mentioned in #4, virtual murder mysteries typically don't always translate well to live play (and visa versa). So make sure you know if the murder mystery was written with the intention of being played in-person or virtually.

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6. Is The Murderer Fixed Or Randomized?

Some murder mysteries feature one fixed murderer and that’s that. Every set clue either exonerates a suspect or points toward their guilt.

Others randomize the murderer, keeping the clues open enough that any player could theoretically be the killer. In randomized murderer games, all players are usually required to draw a slip from a hat at the start of the game to find out whether or not they’ll be the game’s killer.

Generally speaking, games with a fixed murderer trade-off replay-ability for a stronger story and more concrete motives. Since it’s very unlikely that most people would replay a murder mystery, we tend to recommend murder mysteries that have a fixed murderer.

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Tip: If you’re the Organizer and intend to participate in a murder mystery with a fixed murderer, please be extra cautious to avoid spoilers…because once you know, you know forever!

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7. What’s The Game’s “Rating”?

Most murder mysteries provide either an explicit rating or an age range. If not, you may want to contact the vendor to ask about any “adult topics” the game covers (besides murder, which is fairly obvious).

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8. How Many Characters Are There?

Most downloadable murder mysteries can accommodate groups of 4 to 30+ players, and most vendors are savvy enough to offer multiple ‘editions’ of their murder mystery targeted to specific player counts. For example, a murder mystery might have one edition with 4-9 characters and another (sold separately) with 10-20 characters. Another might come with 10 characters built-in and then charge extra for each additional character up to 30 total.

For larger groups, making sure you have the right number of characters is one thing, but what’s really important is for you to understand how the murder mystery was written. In many cases, the edition with more players is likely just the exact same game as the smaller edition, but with extra “Secondary” (or Supporting) characters written into the original story, after the fact. This is not ideal, since most of the action is likely to be centered only around the Primary characters. However, murder mysteries written specifically for larger groups are exceedingly rare (most folks who write murder mysteries usually do so as a side-gig and don’t have the sales volume and/or the skill to justify writing murder mysteries that are perfectly optimized for 20+ characters).

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Tip: In any case, when purchasing an ‘extended version’ or ‘expansion pack’ of a game…you should check to see if the plot has been rewritten to accommodate the extra characters (green flag), or if the extra characters have simply been written in without changing the overall plot (red flag).

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9. Is There An Optional “Inspector” Role?

Many murder mysteries feature an optional role for players who want to join in on the fun, but don’t want to commit to being a full-on character - enter, the Inspector. The inspector’s role is usually to assist in the investigation - helping interview suspects, and casting a vote at the end of the game to bring the killer to justice.

Tip: If your group has slightly more participants than the number of characters written in the murder mystery you’re considering (say you have 9 participants but the spy-themed murder mystery of your dreams is only built for 8 characters), check to see if the game comes with an optional Inspector character. If it does, it could be a sign from above!

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10. Are There Any Fun Minigames or "Side Quests" in the Game?

In addition to solving the mystery, some games feature optional "side quests," where you set out to accomplish something along with your main goal. Ask the game’s publisher if they’ve built any side quests into their game. Participation in a side quest is usually optional, but most people enjoy MORE fun things to do rather than less, so offer up the option and watch your guests make the most of it!

One 80s themed murder mystery we love provides every character with $200 fake money at the start of the game. In the rules, they say “when the game ends, whoever has the most fake money will win a special award.” Let the extortion begin!

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11. Should I Present Awards at the End? If So, What Kind?

Many murder mystery parties end with the doling out of special awards. Many murder mystery vendors will include awards in their download…but if they don’t, you can make your own!

If you choose to pass out awards at the end, they could be for anything and everything. Some popular awards include:

• Best Dressed
• Most Suspicious
• Best Acting
• Best Improviser (for guests who best take basic prompts and turn them into improvised masterpieces)
• Best Sleuthing (for adding the most value to the investigation)

These awards could come with prizes — gift cards, goody bags, delicious food, and so on — or it could simply be recognition of a job well done. Either way, fun awards at the end of a murder well-solved all but guarantee everyone goes home happy!

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