Search our site:
Newsletter
If you'd like us to contact you when we launch new murder mystery games, enter your email address below to subscribe.
Click here to see our most recent newsletter.
Here's what people have been saying about Happy Birthday R.J.:
"I hosted Happy Birthday R.J. at Bellamy Manor & Gardens Bed and Breakfast in Enfield NC this past Saturday April 14th 2012. We had 14 people in attendance. All went smoothly and all had a great time. I was surprised that even though people had 2 pages of notes to read and understand (plus a 2 page introduction the night before) – everyone got into character and had fun with it. See here."
Darren, United States
"Ran Happy Birthday RJ last weekend. Excellent – everybody enjoyed it. I had to add the additional character (i.e. Ginger) and to add to the enjoyment, I provided him with a gold pen which was stolen by one of the characters at the party. The whole evening went down very well and after I've given my wife time to recuperate I will purchase another mystery from you."
F Grover, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
"Fun. Happy Birthday R.J. was an entertaining evening that is unique, something our friends look forward to every year.
We enjoy these games and choose them based on the number of people that we have to play (for an annual party that we've played for the last 5 years).
I like the flexibility that people have with their characters (to tell the truth or not), mingling during a buffet dinner and the twists that are in each game"
A Customer, United States
"We played Happy Birthday R.J. for our daughter's 16th birthday. She invited 14 of her closest friends and they had a blast. Many of the girls played male characters but that just made it interesting and they had fun hamming it up. None of the girls had been to a murder mystery party before so it took them a minute to get going but when they did anything went. It was a night that they all will remember and we hope to have another this summer just for the fun of it. Thank you so much."
Mae, United States
"Just a short note to let you know we held our Murder Mystery [Happy Birthday RJ -- below] last night and everyone had a ball. This morning I have had all my guests ring me without exception, to tell me what fabulous party it was last night and that they had never had so much fun at a party. So, thanks guys for the game. I have already had people ask me where I got it from, so I have given out your web site. Thanks again. "
Sue Morrison, Sydney, Australia
"Over the years I've had many murder mystery parties, and once I found Freeform Games
I never went back. I played Happy Birthday R.J. last year for my 17th birthday party and
I think it was one of my favorites. Freeform makes it so easy to have fun. My friends and
I are actors, so we love to dress up and improv, but anyone can do it. (I had my uncle, and
my 9 year old cousin in it too) It's so fun, and my friends and I look forward to it
every year. I'm planning on having another one next month for my 18th birthday!"
Louie Rinaldi, United States
"I played Happy Birthday R.J. for my own 25th Birthday last weekend, and all of my friends are still going on about it!
Everyone got involved in the Texan accents, and we can't wait to try out the next Freeform game!! Thanks so much for a flawless evening :-)"
Jennie Dixon, United Kingdom
"Last night I played your murder mystery Happy Birthday R.J. with some friends from university. I just want to thank you for having created such a wonderfully fun and engrossing game. Each of my guests said they had had a fantastic time and I had just as much fun as the host. I've played several 'scripted' Murder Mysteries in the past, but I have to say that yours was vastly superior and I'll certainly return to Freeform Games in the future."
Matt Clifford, Cambridge, United Kingdom
If you would like to tell us how your party went, please click here to send us your story.
Happy Birthday R.J. – a Texan murder mystery game for 11 to 15 guests and a host 
Costs £20.00 (about 30.42 US dollars)
Written by Lisa Butler
Download the free
introductory file
Happy Birthday R.J. is a dinner party murder mystery game for 11 to 15 guests and a host – download the free introductory pdf file.
Join us in a thrilling evening of scheming, double-dealing and big, big shoulderpads. You will be in the middle of the action and it will be up to you to wheel and deal with the other guests. Can you achieve your goals, keep your secrets hidden and survive Happy Birthday R.J.? It's up to you.
"...the game and evening was very enjoyable and it worked very well indeed."
Rob Ivory, Essex, United Kingdom
Happy Birthday R.J.
It is 1984 and the height of the oil boom. Harrington Oil is the most successful oil company in the state of Texas. Tonight is a lavish birthday party for R.J. Harrington held at his parents' ranch - SouthSpoon. What could possibly spoil such a joyous occasion?
Read Happy Birthday R.J.
stories See Happy Birthday R.J.
pictures Read the
Perm Creek Newsletter
Happy Birthday R.J. lasts for about four hours and is suited to an evening. It is often played over a meal – a finger buffet if possible to allow guests to circulate and talk in private.
"We played Happy Birthday RJ for a 13 year old's birthday party (with slight adaptations!). A group of teens who had never done an rpg before had what they described as the best party they'd been to and they are looking forward to the next time. Keep up the good work."
Pam Everitt-Bronze, Essex, United Kingdom
The free introductory pdf file contains an introduction to the game, a list of all the characters, an invitation to send to your guests, a copy of the Perm Creek Town Newsletter – plus details of how to buy the game.
These are the characters in Happy Birthday R.J.:
- Ali Fields – Crystal's sibling, a city lawyer
- Billy Joe Butler – Jack's best friend and neighbour.
- Bobby Harrington – R.J.'s half brother, a sweet and caring southern boy. Recently returned from university and started in Harrington Oil.
- Crystal Harrington – Jack's wife and R.J.'s step-mom, glamorous and gorgeous with the best shoulder pads in town.
- Deedee Taylor – Sweet Deedee is Dixie's best friend.
- Dixie Green – R.J.'s lovely girlfriend, a pretty little southern belle.
- Dolly Douglas – A school friend of Lucille's.
- Drew Morrison – Drew used to be a doctor in Houston and has recently moved to town.
- Jack Harrington – R.J.'s dad, suave and sophisticated oil tycoon and old cattle ranching money.
- Lucille Harrington – R.J.'s half sister, beautiful, buxom but petite little Lucille, butter wouldn't melt!
- R.J. Harrington – The birthday boy himself, a slick southern boy with a cheeky look in his eye.
- Randy Coltrane – A friend of Bobby's and the Perm Creek Deputy Sheriff.
- Rick Harper – An old friend from school and one of R.J.'s most handsome friends.
- Sam Bond – A good family friend.
- Sue Helen Butler – Billy Joe's wife, an expert horsewoman.
| Number of guests | Male characters | Female characters | Characters that can be played by either sex |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | 5 | 4 | 2 |
| 12 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| 13 | 5 | 5 | 3 |
| 14 | 6 | 5 | 3 |
| 15 | 6 | 6 | 3 |
How Freeform Games Murder Mysteries Work
Happy Birthday R.J. is unlike many murder mystery games. When the game starts, a murder has yet to be committed. However, by the end of the evening it is unlikely that everyone will survive!
Happy Birthday R.J. is played just like a murder mystery game. You may be trying to solve the murder, but primarily you are (initially at least) concentrating on your own goals and objectives. Unlike most boxed murder mystery games, Happy Birthday R.J. lets you decide how to achieve your goals and thwart your enemies.
"Happy Birthday R.J. was a thoroughly good night's entertainment for all. Young and old!"
A Customer, United Kingdom
On the evening of the game the guests are met by the organizer, the Harringtons' butler or housekeeper. They then receive their detailed backgrounds - including dark secrets, objectives and money. When everyone has arrived, Jack Harrington welcomes the guests to his dear son's birthday party. The fun then begins as everyone questions, bribes and blackmails each other. As the evening progresses they may even try to murder one another! Along the way they may uncover some of the Harrington family secrets. What is contained in Eli Harrington's will? Why are Sue Helen and Billy Joe barely speaking to each other? Why does Dixie alternate between looking ecstatic and miserable? And what is Lucille up to? Finally, the party draws to a close and everyone finds out how they did, and what secrets everyone else was concealing.
Extra characters
Sometimes you have too many guests and you need more characters. So we've written a free extra character for each of our games that you can add in, and some of our customers have created their own characters for their parties and are kindly willing to share them.
Please note that we haven't tested these and they may not tie in exactly with our games.
IMPORTANT – if you've bought the game, you can download the files for these characters from the download page where you got your main game files. Contact us if you need the link and password to get back to that page.
- 'Ginger' Roberts – freelance reporter in search of the Big Story. (M/F)
(by Freeform Games) - Robin Brown – gym instructor. (M)
(by Emma Margrett)
Purchasing Happy Birthday R.J.
Happy Birthday R.J. costs £20.00 (GB pounds). That works out at about US$30.42 at today's exchange rate, although the rate charged by your credit card may vary slightly.
To purchase Happy Birthday R.J., follow these three steps.
Step 1: Download the free introductory pdf file. You will need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to read this. If you do not already have Acrobat Reader, click here.
Step 2: Read our terms and conditions of purchase. Then come back here and click on the button to buy the game!
Step 3: Our orders are processed by WorldPay – we don't actually see your credit card details. After you have entered your credit card details you will be emailed the location of the main pdf files, plus the password required to unlock them. You can then download those files and enjoy the game!
Or, buy now!
Cards we accept
We accept the following credit and debit cards:
Cast Iron Guarantee
We offer a Cast Iron Guarantee on all our murder mystery games. If you're not completely satisfied with Happy Birthday R.J. then please let us know within 30 days and we will refund you.