Murder mystery party games with a difference!

Your murder mystery party stories

We love hearing your stories about our murder mystery games!

Here's a selection of stories -- if you've enjoyed one of our games, please let us know via the form at the bottom of the page.

People all over the world have hosted our games! So far we know about: American Samoa, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Cayman Islands, Cocos Islands, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Micronesia, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, St Helena, Sweden, Switzerland, UAE, United Kingdom and United States. If you're in a country not listed here, and you've run one of our games, we'd love to hear about it!

"Great game! After losing his gun, the doctor strangled someone with his stethoscope and we had a 5-person shootout in the kitchen, bullets flying but no casualty (yet...)"
Mark Tinnemans, Netherlands

"I just ran Court in the Act for my 21st birthday, and it was a huge success! Even characters that had no clue of what they were doing were busy watching the duels and confrontations of those more comfortable with their characters. Only one death occurred (surprisingly, it wasn't the Queen!) but plots and blackmail ruled the night! Our murderer stayed completely under the radar and not a single soul guessed -- too busy with courtly intrigues I suppose!! Thankyou so much for a fun game that all present enjoyed. We look forward to hosting another!"
Kellie Vickers-Willis, Australia

"We've just finsihed playing Happy Birthday R.J. last weekend and the night was very interesting to say the least! Everyone who came was dead excited and couldn't wait to get their teeth into their individual goals and objectives plus solving 3 crimes...
We did have an eventual winner in the woman who played Dolly Douglas which means the girls are beating the boys so far after playing 2 years worth of freeform murder mystery games. Girls 2 Boys 0!
When the victim (who I won't mention here as to not spoil it for the rest of you) was killed we created a great scene in doing so. The lights were turned out, birthday cake lit, candles blown out and then bang! A shot in the dark, the victim falls to the floor clutching his/her chest, fake blood oozing between their fingers! HEHE! Not to mention the innuendos about horses!
So thanks once again for a great night and see you next year! "
Nick Eccles, United Kingdom

"Thank you once again for providing us with an amazing storyline & fantastic product!! We have just had our second Murder with you & Casino Fatale did not let us down. When I first saw the many storylines I was amazed that you could provide something so complex & I thought everyone will just be confused, but it was so well written that the evening flowed beautifully. I loved the control I had as host compared to the other ones we've done! My decisions were law!! The power didn't go to my head it just made it so much easier to have fun! We had two more attempted murders, & Zara exerted some serious womenly charms on all the men present. The spies & detectives looked like a heavy mob circling the room & successfully solving most of the clues. My guests felt so pleased that most of them solved at least one of the mysteries!
My guests wore amazing costumes! I've never seen the men look so smart in their DJs & all the women looked stunning in evening gowns.
I decorated the conservatory as a bar & we served cocktails all night. The dining room was the Casino set up with roulette & blackjack. All food was French, along with some very dodgy accents!! Our inspector completing his outfit with a "peep"!!
We will be back for more."
Elaine Hartley, United Kingdom

"We had a wonderfully funny time last night at Under the Big Top. I have to say that some of the costumes we saw were not only imaginative, but wildly funny. I am so proud of all of my friends who went out of their way to make the evening a success.
Many of them expressed concern that they would never be able to learn all the information they were given ahead of time, but the party ran quite smoothly. The laughs never stopped and continued well into the wee hours of the morning. We just couldn't stop.
We used a white plastic tablecloth roll alternating with rolls of red wrapping paper on the walls to make it look like the inside of a tent. Rolls of red and white crepe paper went from the corners of the room into the center of the ceiling for the roof. We had a balloon arch, curtains hung in doorways, and balloons everywhere. It looked super and the decorations certainly added to the fun."
Debi, United States

"We just finished Hollywood Lies, and I thought I'd give you some feedback about how it went.
Everyone had a GREAT time, and I'm sending you the pictures that we took. Here, I'll describe what I did as a setting:
We had it in my father's union hall and decorated one of the walls with a Hollywood scene. We had a podium with a microphone also. I used Big Band sounds for the back ground music and had that playing in Windows Media player, while I used a 'cocktail party chatter' sound effect set for repeat on Real Player (So that I could play both at the same time. I didn't have time to mix them together like I usually do.)
I couldn't find any Oscar looking trophies, so I went to Party City and got these $4 gold trophies shaped like shooting stars. I custom made the voting slips with the picture of them, as well as the item cards, so that people knew what the trophies looked like.
Once it was over, we had an awards ceremony where people that weren't involved with the movies presented awards. After the votes were tallied, I wrote the winners on paper and put them in envelopes so the presenter could open them and call out the winner. The winners gave a thank you speech, in character, and then stepped down.
At this point, I gave my girlfriend one to read, but inside I put the phrase "WILL YOU MARRY ME?" and when she opened it I got down on one knee and proposed. THAT was fun!! Everyone cheered.
Anyway, it was REALLY fun!
A lot of people solved the murder, but the detective didn't. She tried really hard, and was stuck between two people, but guessed wrong.
All in all, I would say that it was very well made and everyone walked away talking about the evening, and emailing me to ask me when the NEXT one will be! So kudos to you and the writers for another job well done!"
Rob Newbold, United States

"The game [Casino Fatale Expanded] was really a HUGE FUN! A lot of people were telling that they would remember this evening for ever :-) Nobody had an experience in this kind of games, including me, a host (6 months pregnant at the date :-). (Actually there were THREE pregnant women involved in the game. And all of them enjoyed it and appreciated a little FUN break with friends on the middle of long, expecting period:-) It was a Birthday Gift to my husband. and he enjoyed it fully! For a long time after the game, the players were discussing all possible strategies and solutions, trying to replay and to rewind the game. It's difficult to hold an attention of 30 adult with different interests, but in this case, it was a piece of cake! Especial thanks to the creator of the game. That was fabulous and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is in the search of breaking usual routine of outing parties: drink, eat, dance :-)"
Nataliya Chabanyuk, Canada

"We did Way out West Expanded with our extended family between Christmas and New Years. It was fun. We spent two days decorating - we even made working saloon doors from cardboard and threw a giant sheet over the Christmas tree and made it a teepee. My husband was the host. He procrastinated cutting everything out, and was very stressed the last few hours before the game. It took a very long time to cut out everything and stick it all in envelopes. In our game, everyone thought that the Sheriff was evil. Everyone was trying to kill him. Poor guy! The Indians were poisoning everyone, and nobody knew where the poison was coming from. Everyone was running around blaming their allies. All they knew was that the Indians could heal them - so the Indians got everything they wanted. I got to play Ol' Barr, a crazy old trapper who was friends with the Indians. Supposedly the voices of spirits talked to me. Everyone thought I was crazy, and only the Indians knew I was mostly sane. Nobody figured out the solution to the murder mystery. One of the characters who knew the truth was poisoned, and the Indians told him that if he told what he knew, they'd heal him. He told everyone the answer to the murder mystery, but everyone thought he was lying and let him die. We were shocked when we found out it was the truth!"
Lisa Perez, United States

"We are already planning on hosting another muder mystery party this summer. I could go on and on about what a hit A Dead Man's Chest was with our guests. We had people ages 15 to 50s, some from our church group, and the game was appropriate for everyone. There were three things we will do differently next time. 1) I assumed everyone actually READ the information I sent ahead of time. Next time I would send just enough info for them to acquire the appropriate costume, and then REQUIRE everyone to sit and listen as we read the newsletter and instructions. Half way through the game I found myself explaining plot points to guests that were in the newsletter they did not read. We had too many engineers in attendance who do not believe in reading instructions - not a good idea with this game! 2) Next, we plan to give bits of information to characters as the game progresses, instead of giving them everything up front. Some people seemed overwhelmed with trying to absorb and use all the information at once. (Such as, hand out the secret at the beginning, then 15 minutes later, give an information card, etc.) 3) Finally, we had guests who arrived in full theatrical costume, totally in character. Others were more tentative. I plan to break up the cast into major and minor characters, and assign them carefully. Saucy Nancy was fabulous, and Cassinga was so realistic, she scared Hayapitl, who ran away from her the rest of the game. But Black Jack was lost, and when he discovered he could kill people, he did so randomly, and without any sense of plot.
Other comments - we planned to use our upstairs and downstairs, but two couples had to bring their little kids. We made them roving cannibals, and they entertained themselves pretty well, but the adults were scared to go downstairs for fear of being eaten. We plan to host the next party in summer, when we can use our backyard and deck. Also, people wanted a realistic set, such as an area representing each ship, etc. This party took a lot of planning, and I could have done even more, but it was definitely worth it. People were asking when the next party will be, before they left! Most of our guests only knew some of the other guests. This game is great for a group of people who do not know each other. I definitely recommend your games to anyone who asks. This was the first murder mystery party I have hosted. It was possibly one of the least expensive parties I have hosted, too! The cost of the game, a few decorations, and a potluck meal - it was cheaper than hosting a BBQ, and much more fun! "
Cathy Dilts, United States

"We hosted Hollywood Lies for our daughter's Sweet 16 birthday party. She wanted to do an Old Hollywood theme where everyone dresses up. We rented a venue and had a buffet meal so the kids could mingle. We played big band and swing music and decorated with the "dazzled to death" theme in mind... diamonds of course!!! Because our daughter is in the Drama club at her high school, we knew this would be a big hit. 24 of the Drama students attended, they had such a good time and said it was the best party they have attended and they want to do one again very soon... for New Years!! With the thoroughness of your games it will be no problem, the hardest part is deciding which game to play!! Thank you so much for making my job easier."
Dee Reed, United States

"My friends and I had such a blast. They were mostly impressed at how professional the whole set up was. From the e-invites, to the character packs, to the ability and item cards. But most of all, the storyline was so captivating."
Faith Toh, United States

"My daughter wanted to do a Murder Mystery Game for her 14th Birthday Party so she searched the web and came up with a couple of choices for me to view. I chose to buy The Night Before Christmas with Freeform Games, kids version, and it was a fabulous hit!
I had never done a Murder Mystery Game before so I had no idea how it was going to turn out. I was worried that the kids would be confused or not willing to participate but I was completely wrong. They took to it pretty fast after I handed out their character packets and that's when the laughs started... they also took to moving around the house in pairs while they questioned each other for clues & answers. (I'd find them giggling in the laundry room or pantry for example..) it was all great fun and there was a lot of improvising as we went along. Half the time I wasn't sure what I was supposed to say or do but I would either "make it up" as I went along or show the character my cards depending on if I wanted that character to know all my secrets, etc.
I would recommend this game to other Moms & Dads wanting to host a party for their teens. (We had 12 teens attend, ages 13-14.) They all dressed up in nice clothes (boy, I wasn't sure my daughter was going to be able to convince them not to wear jeans! but it worked) We had loads of finger food throughout the game and we even stopped at one point (prior to Aunt Priscilla's announcement) to sing Happy Birthday and light the cake. "
Valerie Delzer, United States

"We played A Dead Man's Chest on Friday, and it went really well. In our game, the Indians and the Colonials joined together. They even got some of the pirates on their side. They closed off an entire room as their 'office' and there was a huge line of people waiting to get in and talk to either the Indian Chief or the Governor. They were an unstoppable force, or would have been had the pirates not gotten to the treasure first. Nancy and Alice found the treasure, but they must have told someone about it, because the next thing they know they've been robbed by everyone and they have nothing, not even weapons. However, Nancy was still the most popular pirate captain. All the pirates wanted to be on her side, except Sawbones, who was with Black Jack. Nancy ended up getting wounded in the last 3 minutes of the game. No one would heal her, and none of her pirates had any pickpocketing abilities left. Nancy died, and Black Jack ended up with the second ship. Hal Overy had the other one. Even though Hal Overy got the ship, he didn't capture many pirates. Sir Percival had given out pardons like candy. The only one without a pardon was Billy Pistol, who also happened to have the Black Spot as well. So, poor unlucky Billy Pistol was captured. The Spanish didn't play much of a role in our game. No one liked them. (They all thought they were evil!) Everyone (both Captains, the Indians and even the English were trying to keep Elizabeth away from the 'evil' Don Inigo who wanted to marry her. They all practically forced her to marry Hal Overy, so she couldn't marry Don Inigo. Elizabeth wanted to be a pirate, and tried to convince Hal Overy that they could both be pirates, but it didn't work. That's okay, she decided she was pretty happy where she was when 15 of the 21 people ended up voting for Hal Overy. Everyone has been calling and e-mailing me asking where I got the game. My sister and brother-in-law are already planning to do one with all of us during Christmas break. I don't think I'll ever go back and play the boxed scripted versions. They're not nearly as fun!"
Lisa Perez, United States

"I have run a murder mystery birthday party every year for my birthday from Freeform Games for the past 4 years. All of my friends love them and year after year when it comes to fall, and then to December (when my birthday is) they ask me every day if I have chosen the theme yet. Everyone really gets into it and tons of lies are spread. It is great because it really plunges everyone in to interact with one-another - no icebreaker needed! Alliances and secret meetings and evesdropping are some of my favorite parts. Thanks, freeformgames.com for making the best parties ever!"
Sarah Nelson, United States

"I ran All at Sea as a cocktail party last Saturday night for my 33rd birthday. I had a cast of approximately 40 people and it was total chaos!! (in a good way) I had a few drop outs at the last minute so ended up running the game with odd extras and missing a couple of key characters i.e. David Whitlow and Albert Wiggins. But it all worked out okay.
People really got into the theme! Eldon Dunlop (dressed as the Monopoly man) was the director of Dunlop plastics and gave out condoms as calling cards with "Dunlop Plastics - to protect and serve" stickers stuck on the packets. [Censored] was shot at point range by [Censored]. [Censored] then came back as a dissatisfied sprit, possessed [Censored] who bribed [Censored] to kill [Censored] by attaching cheese to [Censored]'s high-heeled shoes and setting a rat with explosives tied to its back loose on the ship.
As I said total chaos! And total fun, thanks for a great game. "
Esther-Amy Bate, New Zealand

"I literally did hours of research on the internet searching for the perfect murder mystery game and I settled on A Dead Man's Chest because of the interactive nature of your games. What a great choice it turned out to be! Hosting the party was a ton of fun and all our guests had a absolute blast. Here's the blog and photos from the party. Thanks for providing a great game at a great price!"
Richard Russell, United States

"I thought you might like some pictures of our recent playing of Halloween Lies (on the occasion of a birthday party). It was great fun - astonishing amount of malicious gossip generated between the players as the game evolved. We did the 'film acts' after the ending of the game - and they were an absolute hoot."
Peter Rhodes-Dimmer, France

"Some of the great fun [in Curse of the Pharaoh Expanded] is in the later discussions, when everybody realizes just how close to failure they might have been at any moment, opportunities for advancement lost - based on the wrong person in the wrong place at the wrong time, or information coming out too late, finding a secret about a player or thing that you have no real need for... (or DID YOU? Did you sell the info? Trade the info to an interested party for something you might need? Was it knowledge about something illegal? Did you run to the cops? Try and blackmail?)
I gotta say we're going to try more of the games from Freeform Games, because this one was awesome, and going in with a little more experience will make the next even better."
Databob, United States

"Our first murder mystery party - a 14th B/Day party for my daughter. We found this very complex and had some difficulties working out what the money was for etc! The multiple endings defeated us - we had to simplify this. So not the best choice by me for a group of 14 year olds with no experience. However, despite all this they all had an excellent time, really got into character and made a lot of effort with their costumes. The evening was a great success and they all want to do it again! In short - we will be back for more and will make a better choice next time. My daughter was delighted that her party went so well. Thanks."
Audrey Todd, United Kingdom

"What a spectacular success!
I arranged this game for my partner's 40th for a small group of 12 (not everyone knew each other). It began at our house (for pre-dinner drinks and briefing) then we walked down the road to a small Asian restaurant for a banquet dinner.
I gave all the guests lanyards on which I had hung their items and ability cards (and had sent out their character info some days before). One late cancellation meant that I had to kill off Katanga (poor Katanga was unfortunately eaten by ferocious crocodiles whilst stopping to admire his reflection when dropping anchor) and recast that person in the role of Gabe Schwartz (but he still had a couple of days notice to prepare). The guests came dressed in character, complete with props -- I did not specify costuming, but let them dress up as much as they wanted. Very impressive effort by all.
The restaurant was forewarned of our intentions with this game, and was graciously accommodating. People milled about, spilling onto empty tables, hiding in corners and mingling around the table. It was very relaxed and people forgot they were in a public place. Other patrons watched us like we were a TV show, absolutely enthralled, some even asking questions.
The entrée was eaten buffet style, with people moving about freely, and the stop in Mansa Konko was declared as the mains started to arrive. Telegrams were exchanged then. When the main meal was over, it was all on. Alex evaded spider bites 3 times from Marie. Gabe ended up our only victim, as a revenge killing, for stealing the rubies from Connor just as a buy was about to go down.
No one talked about anything but the game for duration of play -- I was very surprised and delighted at the commitment of everyone. And everyone had a blast. Certainly a night to remember. I found some notepads left behind the next day, and had a laugh reading the notes eg Captain wrote "Alex wants off the boat!" I was very anxious about how it would all go, never having been to one before, or heard of first-hand experiences, but would love to do another -- perhaps as a character this time!"
Amanda Nixon, Adelaide, Australia

"Hi everyone!
Just wanted to tell you how great last night was. We put on Dazzled To Death (the first Murder Mystery I've ever hosted!)and it was fantastic!
Everyone said how much they loved it and it was a huge success. At first my guests didn't know what was going on but they soon got into the swing of things! We made photographs to hang on the wall, family tree, family portrait and a lovely buffet. It seems as though the general consensus is to do one again but everyone wants me to do one sooner rather than later! So who knows I might be writing to you again around Christmas & New Year with the next story!
I highly recommend to people to give Dazzled To Death a go because it was excellent!
Thanks a lot Freeform Games!
Nick aka The Waiter!"
Nick Eccles, United Kingdom

"Last night we finally had our Murder evening! Way out West on the 4th July!! How appropriate! WOW, WOW, WOW!! We have done so many boxed versions over the years & were looking for something that would allow more flexibility to allow my friends to fully express themselves & their fantastic costumes!! At long last we have found it! Over the years our group has got bigger & bigger & your games seemed to fit the bill! We certainly were not let down. Credit where credit is due! You are all amazing to come up with the whole concept that you have developed. These really are what murder dinners are all about. THANK YOU! All my friends were fully intrigued for hours & as host I found it all so easy to sort both beforehand & on the night. Our Judge was rather ingenious. When Clem showed him her evidence he refused to give it back & nicked it!!! He then made judgement later by awarding the mine 50/50 to share with Ruby & Lucy!! Where he got that from... Was so impressed that 20 friends could be so inventive & attentive for so long. All down to this wonderful game. Having shown the photos around already we now are being asked when the next one is?? So that's why I'm back on your site again!!!....So let's see what do we fancy this time???... "
Elaine Hartley, United Kingdom

"We've played a couple of your games and enjoyed them a lot. They are certainly much, much better than any boxed murder mystery I've used!
We played A Dead Man's Chest at my 10 year old son's birthday party and it was a great success! The kids really liked studying, preparing, dressing up and plotting for their characters ahead of time. Some surprising things happened in the game that I don't think adults would have done. Hayapitl got married to Hal Overy. I conducted the ceremony.
We had two adults assisting and we would each take the kids off to a private room and suggest things their characters could do, so that they were never stuck.
I was worried before the party that 5 hours with 16 ten year-old (mostly) boys would descend into anarchy and chaos but was amazed and surprised that the kids were so busy completing their tasks that they didn't have time to make mischief. Although the pictures were taken outside, the game was played entirely inside. The time just flew by! None of the kids had ever been to a party like it and loved it. It was much cheaper than the usual pool, skating, etc parties that kids ususally do."
Juju Vail, London, United Kingdom

"Hi, just thought I'd ping some photos from my son's 12th birthday party, with the Casino Fatale murder mystery we bought from you in December. Although this was an 18+ game, they all had a fab time -- fizzy apple drinks were served in plastic champage flutes -- all guests came dressed-up and had a ball. Many thanks!"
Gill Chadbon, Kent, United Kingdom

"My daughter celebrated her 18th birthday this past Saturday by inviting 13 of her friends to join her in enacting the Curse of the Pharoah Expanded. It was a great success! Each participant dressed their part and kept in (frequently very amusing) character. We were initially a bit intimidated by the apparent complexity, as it was going to be played by a group of 16, 17 and 18 year olds. But from the introductions onward everyone remained engaged for three and a half hours. Thank you for creating such an intricate, engaging, exciting game. The flexibility adds challenge, but it is well worth the effort navigating its twists and turns. I recommend your games as a great activity for teenagers."
Lynn Robb, United States

"Wow. This [Way out West Expanded] had to be the best graduation party anyone ever had! I had been thinking about doing a themed party for a while, and when I stumbled across your website, the affordability of the game, the youth-friendliness (my party was for all of my friends from church) and the many other delighted customers you've had convinced me that this was the one. It was much fun and easier than I had expected to host... and I even became Three-Feathers, the indian shaman, which I pulled off very successfully, even though I knew everything about everyone. I let my mother be the bar-tender, and we had a great array of western-themed snacks. I was amazed at the pains most of my friends went through to come dressed authentically. The ones who I imagined wouldn't go for dressing up actually came dressed the best! Everyone had a good time, and talked about it for weeks afterwards. Several were so inspired that they attempted themed parties of their own shortly after. We also had an auction afterwards. I had asked everyone to bring a small gift (wrapped), and we used the money we had gained from blackmail etc during the game to bid for the gifts. We also had a secret vote for best costume (boy / girl) and best actor / actress, and gave out small prizes which really delighted some of them.
So, overall, it was one of the best days of my life, and I can't wait until I have an excuse to do another!"
Tai Polczynski, United States

"As promised I thought I'd drop you a line to let you know what a FANTASTIC success our Death on the Gambia evening was!
10/10!
I followed the guidance of some of your web contributors and put the poisonous spiders in a glass jar with leaves, etc; made up proper Passports - how easy (frightening!!!) it is to get them from the internet; created phials of poison, etc ,etc.
Our battle-hardened team (this was our 8th Murder, Mystery - though 1st from your company) REALLY enjoyed your way of doing things. The only comment which agrees with others on the web-site is that everyone wished they had their character info earlier. As recommended I gave this info out 1hr 30 mins prior to "start" but think (with hindsight) that it would have been better to send out with the invites. But then again - perhaps the characters WOULD have let things slip before the day ,,, who knows!
Anyway, we can THOROUGHLY recommend your company to our friends and will certainly try another of your titles later in the year.
Many thanks for all the hard work that must go into creating these!"
Darroch Harkness, Renfrewshire, United Kingdom

"We played Curse of the Pharaoh for my husband's 29th B-day last night. It was awesome!! It was actually a surprise party for him, and when he came in, our living room / dining room was transformed into a Middle Eastern tent (I hung Indian sarees on the walls and from the ceiling, had Egyptian art on the walls and was playing Middle Eastern music). We were all in costume when we yelled "Surprise!" He was so excited! I gave him the role of the detective and about half an hour to change and read his character sheet. Everyone had an amazing time! I served olives, samosas and a Mediterranean mix of appetizers as the guests familiarized themselves with the rules and had a rice, chicken and beef kebabs with flatbread for dinner when the game started. I went to the dollar store and bought real items for each of the characters' item cards and made a scarecrow with a crimson sash to lay outside the room as the murder victim. We sooo can't wait to play another game over the Christmas Holidays!!"
Alcina Prezens, Canada

"I ordered Curse of the Pharaoh Expanded for a Night of Mystery we hold with the youth group I work with at a Mennonite church. They're a largely creative and artsy group, with a love for enchantment in their fiction -- they love Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Garth Nix's works, etc. Freeform Games' approach of having abilities, items and personal goals for each character made the night so much better than the last time we did this... just having a whodunnit doesn't cut it!
"While I wouldn't recommend this one for every church group (a little too much magic for most evangelicals I'd wager) the FFG approach is hands down the best way to do a night of mystery with a large group. I think halfway through the night some people had forgotten they were supposed to be solving a murder!"
Mike Perschon, Canada

"We hosted Way out West last night for my husband's birthday party, and we had a fabulous time! We've tried MANY different brands of murder mystery games, and we have never had this much fun!
"Not only was I impressed with the plotline and how everything played out, but I was amazed at how easily everything was laid out in the host's packet. We had one couple cancel the morning of, and we easily filled their roles. One guy couldn't find a date, and one couple came and left within five minutes. The host's information was so well written that I went to my binder and I had everything solved within two minutes. Runs Like A Deer was given the extra information sheet (she even put on the name tag for both Indians -- one on each braid) and the trusty sheriff was turned into Slick O'Hare and he had a ball being evil!
"Props to you guys for writing such great mysteries for us to play. I'm already planning our next party!"
Carrie Jacks, United States

"We played Way out West on the last night of a weekend away that we had to celebrate my parents' 25th wedding anniversary. We are veterans of the boxed dinner-party games but used a Freeform to accomodate the large number of people we had -- we'll never go back to boxes again! What a fantastic time we had! I decked out our rented farmhouse like a saloon -- very authentic, and we had duels outside in the rain! Everyone really got into their characters and were determined to achieve their goals -- was really satisfying to see how much everyone enjoyed themselves; much more than the dinner party games. And, as usual for us, no one guessed the true culprit! We'll be having another party in November for my 18th birthday; Casino Fatale I think, although I won't be hosting -- I really want to take part! (Even though hosting was fantastic fun.) Thank you!"
Phil Murray, United Kingdom

"I hosted Way out West in honor of my daughter's 12th birthday party. I was uncertain about how it would work out for such young kids, but it was a smashing success! All of the kids really threw themselves into their parts, right down to phony "western" accents. We turned our basement into the Silver Dollar Saloon and stable, and served food and drinks as the story played out. I substituted gold foil wrapped chocolate coins for the money and other props for the items instead of just the cards to make the game more realistic. It was incredibly funny to watch all of the action and I hardly had to help or advise them at all. My husband and I laughed so hard we cried. I gave out prizes for the best actor and actress and for best costume. My son's girlfriend videotaped all of the action and made a great mini movie which we then sent to each guest. The kids and many of their parents are begging us to host another party. The only advice I have is prepare prepare prepare, and make sure that the kids have a good grasp of their characters before they arrive at the party. This is by far the best party we've ever had! Thanks so much for a great game!"
Di Arsenault, Canada

"I hosted Curse of the Pharaoh last week with a group of people from work. This is the fourth game I've purchased from you, and I've enjoyed every one! (I've also played Death on the Gambia, Way Out West, and Casino Fatale.) I've used it with random groups of friends, as a bonding activity for work, and as an R.A. in a freshman dorm. It's amazing how quickly people get into it, and how my quiet friends open up and jump right in (and the fun you can have as the host)! I just got back from a shift at work, and people are already talking about doing another one! Thanks so much.
"A quick note about Casino Fatale as well -- although my character had no interest in the poetry, I purchased the poem that was being auctioned off, and one of my residents wrote the poem immediately -- it was the unexpected hit of the party!"
Jessica Cox, United States

"Way Out West -- Our WOW party -- how appropriate! A 'spur of the moment' idea. Wishing to hold the party during a pre-booked holiday, my daughter left us only one week to prepare!!! We did manage it, but next time we will definitely start much earlier!! Despite that, I'm glad to say the party seems to have been a huge success -- judging by the response of our guests!
"This was the first Murder Mystery Party any of us had been to, let alone hosted. We very much liked the 'easy to follow' format, so simple to organise, with plenty of useful tips like the costume suggestions for all the characters -- I imagine this must be one of the easiest themes to kit out, especially for the men as most have either a suit or jeans and shirt. I found some old saloon type piano music by Scott Joplin on the MSN Music site, which I was able to buy, download and burn to disc with ease. We took your advice and did a buffet so that guests could help themselves during the evening. My daughter made 'authentic cactus nibbles' out of cucumbers with cocktail sticks for the spikes. My husband made a great wooden town sign to hang above the gate, and a cactus shaped sign for The Silver Dollar bar. I made several 'Wanted' posters to stick around the house and garden (luckily we were blessed with a sunny summer evening).
"Our guests ranged in age from 18 to 50, and everyone made a big effort with their costumes, the attention to detail was beyond our expectations. Slick adorned a fine facial scar (the only time he's been known to use make-up) and Deputy Dan even sported spurs on his boots! My niece, who on the day of the party, made the skirts for both Kate and Blaise, also made their garters and 'mini pockets' to hold their cards/items. Everybody got into character, even down to the family dog who was given the part of 'Starr Fairweather' -- Deputy Dan's faithful mutt. Wearing a natty blue neckerchief, she dutifully followed Dan around as he carried out his duties, although I believe she spent more time gratefully accepting titbits from other guests than actually assisting the Deputy!
"In keeping with the game era of 1884 we decided to take most the photos in sepia mode. They look really authentic, particulary when printed out.quot;I'm sure this won't be the last time we hold a Murder Mystery Party, there was great hilarity throughout the evening from start to finish! There is so much to do within the game, there's something for everyone! I would certainly recommend these to anybody and will be back to peruse your other games.
"Thank you for all your help both on the web site and via e-mail. Your after-sales support has been phenomenal, a great example of real customer service!"
Kay Lovell, Devon, United Kingdom

"We played A Dead Man's Chest in honor of my 21st birthday and had SUCH a great time! I'm a veteran of the dinner murder mystery games, but was always annoyed by the limit of 8 to the invitation list, as well as the lack of spontaneity (and some poor editing jobs occasionally!). Your game fixed both of those issues -- not only was I able to invite eleven theatre friends (Our Captain Nancy got the flu at the last moment -- unlike the dinner games, I was able to simply declare that Alice Tremain mutinied and took over the ship, then gave her both character sheets -- worked out great!) and it put all our improvization skills to the test!
Surprisingly enough, I had a really, really fun time hosting! I thought that, as I didn't have a "character" to play or secrets to keep concealed, I would be bored -- not at all! I wandered around, dispensing advice, keeping people to their goals, overseeing fights, etc. It sounds lame, but I had a huge amount of fun!
If I could give one recommendation, we did our murder mystery in the front living room of my parents' house, as well as the hallway and master bedroom/bathroom. This worked fanatasically, as all the major activity (fights, Hayapitl's "chair", the buffet table, discussions, etc.) could happen in this large room, but private plottings and reveals could happen in secret. (There was occasionally a line for the bathroom, that had nothing to do with the room's real purpose!)
The next day, the game was the ONLY thing being talked about in the theatre department -- everyone was telling everyone how much fun it was, all the funny jokes, everything -- it was quite a hit! Expect to sell a few more games in the near future to SPU Theatre -- we had a great time!
I'm including a picture of our full group -- top row from L to R is Bill Pistol, Don Inigo, Elizabeth, Captain Hal, Alice, Jack, and Percival -- bottom row is Tokeleth, the Bonney Host, Tom, Sawbones, and at the very bottom Hayapitl."
Bonnie Prather, United States

"It was difficult to decide what to do for New Year's Eve. We were 4 families from different countries. Range age from 12 years old to 65 year old. I had to host the dinner for our friends but they hardly knew each other. It was a great choice to do Dazzled to Death. Everybody had a great time; we had not much time to prepare any elaborate costumes, especially the families visiting. But they were all into their parts. Even when we took a break for dinner, they could not stop talking about it. My soon who is 12 was the winner of all prizes -- he was Reggie, and played wonderfully. I would love to write all the details but it will take me forever, there were so many great moments that I only want to thank you for a great game. I only regret that you do not have them in Spanish, I would like to do some more for my Mexican friends."
Ana Riva, Mexico

"New Year's Eve -- what should we do??? We are 8 couples (all with 2 or 3 kids) aged 30-something and feel too old to go out to clubs, too old to have a traditional disco party and too young for a formal sit-down dinner party. Murder Mystery -- what a good idea. Only decided a few days beforehand and had an absolute ball. We ordered Casino Fatale. Fantastic... everyone had an amazing time, never had to think about seating plans or who would talk to whom as the game forced everyone to interact. The best sight of the night was when The Inspector had his own special way of drawing out information from the host -- refusing her access to the kitchen, and threatening her that the dinner would burn! She soon gave up her secrets! Thank you very much."
Daniel Hamburger

"I started having a Christmas party last year with a murder mystery, one you had to read a script and we all had a good time, but this year I tried a freeform game [The Night before Christmas] and everyone loved it. Everyone really got into costume. I sent out everyone's part to them well in advance I knew everyone was coming. I myself gave the welcome speech and a toast I had Dinah the cook set up to scream as soon as I said cheers and everyone came rushing into the kitchen to see why she was screaming and discovered the dead body. Someone said where is the Dr and of course the Dr came rushing in and pronounced our dummy dead, and this was the start of the game. They all absolutely loved it. Before I knew it John was telling Rose how he just didn't know the woman he married and someone called her a slut. I had so much fun myself just watching them acting out their parts. There were times I was laughing out loud and had to cover my mouth. Some of my guests were already talking about next year's party. This type of game is much better then the type you read. We loved it and will play again."
Robin Goracke, United States

"I thought that when I did Snow Business last year that that was the most fun 13 people could have. Well, Hollywood Lies was the most fun 30+ people could have. This time it was for my birthday. Everyone of my sisters and brother, sister-in-law and brothers-in-law attended (I'm the baby of six, 41 and the youngest of them is 48), a bunch of my friends from church and work also attended.
[Incidentally, we've written Hollywood Lies for 16-22 guests -- Doris added some characters of her own. Mo and Steve]
"My son, daughter and a number of my nieces and nephews helped out as well. Those who were old enough to take parts did and the younger teenagers agreed to act as hosts and hostesses. I made up names (and nametags from 'Spangles Hotel') for them and they helped with the food, ran errands, made sure the guests stayed in character and even judged the best actor/actress competition so it wouldn't be biased.
"I don't know when I've had so much fun. Everyone talked about it for weeks afterwards. Actually they're still talking and it was more than two months ago. They talked about it so much now my pastor wants me to do one with the 'Marriage Enrichment' ministry at my church. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard. Everyone (including my very straight-laced, serious brother) had an absolute blast laughing and trying to stay in character. A couple people asked me 'can't you just have a normal birthday party?' and since I'm nowhere near normal, of course I said no. They had a good time too though. I loved Hollywood Lies and I love Freeform Games. I made a scrap book and I'm always shoving it in someone's face. :-) I'm HOOKED!!!!!!"
Doris Arnett-Gary, United States

"We played A Dead Man's Chest with the full 16 characters. My little sister played Crazy "Billie Pistol" really well! (she flew into Austin from Salt Lake just for the party) She was crawling all over the lawn muttering to herself, inturrupting conversations with babble about cheese and generally weirding out people -- it was HI-LARIOUS!
"We also had one of our friends build two godzilla air cannons (basically potato guns on steroids) that shot out styrofoam balls. They were very loud and we were sure we were gonna have the cops called on us the last time we shot them, as someone forgot they'd already been charged and double charged them. KA-BOOOM!!!
"The first pic is of my sis and a friend playing Dr. Sawbones -- note the stethoscope made out of cut bamboo links and rope (he'd go up to the woman and get them to ask how it worked so they'd put it to their chest -- one time, on me actually, Hal said "that's not working" and Dr. Sawbones looked up with a grin and in his best pirate voice said, "Arrrghh, it be workin' FINE!") and the cannon in the background. Besides the cannon, we had a store-bought game that you'd hold onto and was like musical chairs, if you let go too soon it would shock you and you lost or if you were the last one after the music stopped it shocked you and you lost.
"The second is James and me and I want you to take special note of James' codpiece -- we made it out of an ornamental eggplant you get at Gardenridge and painting it gold and adorning it. It was a hit at the party.
"We were both going to be moderators but at the last moment someone bowed out so I became the ship's first mate on the Woman crew. People would come up and ask, "Do you know..." and I couldn't remember if "I" knew or I knew....
"I've included the invitation and the map. We actually made all the Items and Treasures which added to the party as well. The Black Spot was a black rose (I gave it to Sawbones at the beginning of the party and he never was attacked so poor bugger ended up with it)
"Sorry I'm going on and on about the party, but I guess you can figure out it was an incredible success.
"One last thing, in case you're interested. How it ended for us: Saucy got off and got most of the votes (actually almost everyone) Up till about three minutes before the game ended, it was going to be Black Jack and Saucy Nancy (Nancy having most everyone with her and them not caring WHO took the other ship and so I was facilitating Black Jack and me running off with the other one -- somehow we ended up as on again off again lovers in our plot) but Hal Overy made alliances with BOTH Sawbones AND (go figure she'd be so important) Cassinga, the shaman, so he couldn't die! Silly, pompus Black Jack didn't want to just not loose, he had to win and challenged Overy to a battle and won but lost when Overy didn't die AND counter-attacked and killed him at the last minute. Everyone who was in alliance with me then played our loyalty card to Saucy and got off on her ship. Black Jack was the only one to die.
"Once again thank you for a wonderfully thought-out, ginourmously entertaining evening!"
Amy Bené, United States

"I'd just like to drop you a line to tell you our experiences of The Night before Christmas.
"I was part of a group of sixteen friends who had hired out a manor on the south coast of Dorset over New Year, and for one of the evenings we played the game. Whilst it wasn't actually Christmas Eve, the house was still decorated, and was obviously ideal for the game. (Antlers on the walls, roaring fires, that sort of thing. It also had still functioning servants' bells that were connected up around the house.) This was the first time that any of us had taken part in a freeform version of the murder mystery (some of us hadn't played out one at all) but everyone threw themselves into it. I had an enormous job on hand to try and keep everything under control, especially with the acting and drama backgrounds of a lot of the group.
"It did come to a head, however, when I was called into the hall. I'd decided to let people have the whole use of the downstairs, so there was much to-ing and fro-ing from room to room. When I got to the hall, there were [Character A] and [Character B] standing face to face with two pistols raised at each other that they had taken out of one of the display cases! Whilst I managed to talk them out of waving the guns around, they were insistent on a gun fight to the death, so we had them walk ten paces and turn round and shout bang. [B] being the underhand guy that he is turned round on 6 and shot [A] in the back.
"Whilst this had been going on, [Character C] and [Character D] had been playing a game of 'swap the painting'. I had three postcards of The Mona Lisa, and had signed them differently as suggested, giving one each to C and D, and placing one on the mantelpiece in the lounge area. The original went missing, and C arrested D thinking he had done it, found the second fake on him and kept that for himself. I told them that he couldn't really be arrested for taking something that's worthless, so they got let go. C then swapped fake 1 for fake 2 on the fireplace, which D found out about, then he got possession of the original thinking it was a fake, and swapped it with the one on the mantelpiece. So now both D and C had fakes, and the original was back where it had been for all these years.
"After this, there was not an awful lot left to mediate on, No-one was left poisoned, so there was no dying swan acts (which I was fairly thankful for after everything else). With a dead Character A, there was no-one to pin the murder on, but most people had guessed it was him after his pockets were turfed out to find a bottle of poison when he was shot. The non-fake necklace was returned to its rightful place (it was a quiet night with this) and given to [Character E]. [Character F] had a bit of a sulk and stormed out, disowning her family, the world and anything else she could think of.
"All in all, everyone really enjoyed it, and we didn't get finished up 'til gone midnight. (We did have a couple of 'sort the children out who were in bed' breaks, though.)
"I really think we benefited from being in an environment such as the one we were in. I did 'um and ah' about the original purchase, as there are similar ideas that can be downloaded free from the net if you look hard enough. I have to say it was worth paying for, as the free versions do not tie in as well / less planned out, etc. Thanks again, and we'll definitely be buying another, though we might have to tone down for our more humble surroundings."
Russell Peters, United Kingdom

"...the best thing about this game is that everyone has clear objectives for the night and a clear idea of what character they play. This allows them to semi-role play through the night, interpreting situations and questions and trying to achieve their objectives while assimilating new information they gain. Also, not having a murder previously committed was novel and very cool. It's dull to have a murder and try to solve it."
Robin Duxfield, London, United Kingdom

"...it was excellent. The fact that no murder had taken place was a refreshing change. The aims and objectives of the characters were really well thought out and it turned us all into mad people trying to meet all our goals."
Jo Holcombe, London, United Kingdom

"We did this for my daughter's 14th birthday and she had already chosen 'Hollywood' as the theme of her party. Since I did this for young teens, I changed all the references to the nude photos (we made them photos of Crystal picking her nose!) One thing that I really liked is that since each of the characters had their own goals that they were trying to complete, it made the evening move along smoothly. I was really worried if kids this age would actually get into it, or if they would be bored, but it really helped having the plays to work on. The plays were really a HUGE hit for the climax of the party."
Janet Reese, United States

"I have just organised and run Death on the Gambia for the leaders and wives of Exeter's Riverside Christian Centre. The game went very well and was well written and planned. A few comments:
"(1) It was unclear to us until after we had received the full instructions that this particular game is not suited to a sit-down meal which we had already planned, together with an overnight stay, at a local hotel. It might be helpful in future if potential customers are informed of this before they purchase the game! [We agree -- and we'll be making that clear in the future -- Mo and Steve]
"(2) However, as it happened we found the perfect way to overcome that through the co-operation of the hotel management; They had given us their 'function room', a perfect size for the dozen of us. The guests we all frantically busy until the lunchtime of the day itself and so arrived at the hotel exhausted. Few of them had had the chance to go though their detailed character notes I had sent out a week before and the rest found the notes, plus the costumes (I'd hired from a local theatrical costumiers) waiting in their hotel rooms when they arrived early in the afternoon.
"I'd got the hotel to lay up three tables for 4 players each, and place three other, but bare tables around the Function room so guests could pair off, take their plates and drink and chat/scheme quietly throughout the evening.
"(3) I also timed it differently; I got them all to meet me at 5.30pm for a full briefing and questions. This lasted for half an hour. I then released them to get changed, read through their (copious) notes. They reappeared in costume to be greeted by me (Captain [the host of this game used to be the Captain, although now they are the Deckhand -- Mo and Steve]) at 7.00pm. as per the game instructions.
"The hotel served the starters at 7.20 and the main course 25 minutes later. I then allowed an hour and a quarter before the Christabel arrived at Mansa Konko and fifteen minutes later dessert arrived as we 'departed' M.K.
"I wrapped up the game a 10.00pm and did the Epilogue cards for a further 15 minutes.
"Organising the game this way made it perfectly possible to play it with a sit-down, three-course, Christmas meal. The group were ready to throw themselves into the game and saw nothing odd in taking their plates, cutlery, drink etc. off to another, bare table.
"(4) One additional tip I gave them was to come to the evening with pen and notebook, and most of them wrote notes during the evening.
"(5) I also used dice instead of stone/scissors/paper which worked far better for us.
"A good game."
Max Carpenter

"Just ran Death on the Gambia, and wanted to let you know that everyone had a lot of fun. By the end everyone was turning on each other trying to accomplish their goals in the last few minutes before the riverboat docked!
"I used prop books for the Death on the Nile cards, and a great time was had by all stealing books and hiding them in various places. Our local library didn't have eight identical copies, so I went to http://www.vintagepbks.com/adamscovers.html and printed out the cover art for a paperback Death on the Nile, then resized the image in Microsoft Word and taped together my own book covers and put them onto various other hardback books.
"We had some last-minute cancellations, and had to run without the character of Jane Carter. It worked pretty well... the story was that Jane was on board, and was hustled off by some unidentified men leaving all her baggage. I gave Jane's items cards to her roommate, Emily, and everything went smoothly."
Jay Shaffstall, United States

"We had so much fun with the Way Out West game. We used it as part of our annual costume party so everyone was in the proper attire. We decorated the rooms in order to give them a real Western flavor. Prior to the game, we had a professional dance instructor to put us in the Wild West mood with some hilarious and tricky dance steps and routines.
"After a solid hour of dancing, we were all set to play the game. I planned it as a surprise for the guests so no one knew about it except myself. As it turned out, we wound up with the perfect costumes for all the roles. It would be hard to describe just how much fun we had. The roles are wonderfully written with their own goals, secrets, powers, objects -- every one got into the spirit and the characters were played to the hilt. A lot of combats, pick-pocketing, accusations and bribing went on. The plot twists had us in stitches. We enjoyed it up to the very last second as the conclusions were a riot to read, especially for the characters who failed to achieve their goals. We had an elaborate buffet dinner afterwards with over 15 recipes taken from original Old West cookbooks.
"This was, for all of us, our very first experience with a freeform mystery game and I would recommend it to anyone. In our case, as we are from the province of Québec, we played the whole thing in French (our mother tongue) and it goes to prove that the appeal of the game is universal. As part of the Tips for Beginners, I added a personality trademark or habit for each character to give everyone a chance to know how to approach their roles -- that proved to be a great asset to get us started as 'first timers'. We also used real objects instead of item cards and I drew the required maps with the Indian inscriptions and signs. We even rented a real cactus (the town being Cactus Gulch) and an old telegraph.
"We had signs marking the 20th anniversary of the city and a Saloon sign on our front door so that the guests literally stepped into the saloon the moment they came in, long before starting the game itself. In Act 2, we did a full 10 minutes of 'singing the dialogue' [see below], an idea which perhaps freeform purists will object to but which was a great element of surprise that turned into a genuine laugh-athon.
"There's no need to say the costumes and music helped to create an unforgettable atmosphere. We played it across 4 rooms which gave us all the space we needed whenever 'private' conversations were required or when someone wound up in jail! There was a bowl of Mexican-style punch in the kitchen throughout.
"But it's the game itself that really took us by storm -- even for me, as the host, every moment was a genuine surprise. All the plot elements are cleverly intertwined and integrated to make up a fabulous story we are not likely to ever forget. I also loved the flexibility with regards to the characters, many of which could be either male or female. You were so kind so as to answer my numerous questions while I was planning the game -- your helpful tips really helped to make our evening a rousing success. Thank you so much!!!!!
NB -- we didn't know what "singing the dialogue" meant, so we asked...
"The "singing the dialogue" part was an impromptu idea of mine, meaning that I asked everyone to continue the game but to sing their improvised dialogue instead of speaking it. I have always been musically inclined so it hit me that this could be fun and it certainly was. Thus all the various conversations were sung for a full 10 minutes. Some people used a well-known melody (like "Red River Valley" or "Turkey in the Straw") to sing to, others improvised the melodies as well. All you could hear across the 4 rooms was singing -- those who improvised the melody made it sound like a western operetta, except that the voices were not all of "Oklahoma" calibre :-) . It was most delirious as much action went on during that time as well."
Karine Philippot, Montréal, Canada

"Thought I'd write and let you know that Way out West was a great success on Friday for our Church activity. I bought Way out West thinking only about 20-25 would come, along with its suitability for a church group. We actually had 44 players so I had to write some more! Mel Easton and a couple of others had spouses, Slick had a belle for the night, and Dan a spinster schoolteacher for a sister! And complete with Blacksmith, Farmer, postmaster, photographers from the newspaper and a couple of extra cowboys and Indians we were ready. Couples played together to try and fulfil their aims and it worked well. All the parts I added had health cards, a revolver or 2 for the cowboys and the goals to find out who were the good/bad guys, the murderer and what everyone's hidden agenda was. I also had 4 of our older ladies play town gossips -- they did a bit too good of a job... No talk of football, family or work -- we really WERE in Cactus Gulch in 1884."
Judy Beaumont, Teesside, United Kingdom

"I and a group of 9 friends decided to try a murder mystery game [Death on the Gambia] this year on New Year's Eve. Our New Years celebrations are always good so, as nobody had ever done anything like this before, I was a bit apprehensive.
"I would like to say that I have never laughed so much, and saw my long-standing chums in a completely different light! They were all a bit worried too about how it would work and if it would be fun but after the Christabel had set sail, there was no going back (and no stopping them). On the second leg of the journey to Bathurst, one murder was committed, two passengers were unconscious and the captain (me) [the host of this game used to be the Captain, although now they are the Deckhand -- Mo and Steve] was constantly being harassed to referee combat. When we docked at Bathurst, one of the 'passengers'even asked if we could keep cruising for a while longer!
"We all thank you for helping make our New Year party the best yet. Please, please, create some more of these games, you have found a group of murder mystery converts!"
Cathy Reardon, Berkshire, United Kingdom

"My son, Alec, hosted an end-of-school party using Hollywood Lies in June for high school friends. They had a great time. We had 17 guests arrive dressed for the post "Eric Awards" party to find a red carpet, movie-theme decorations and trophies for the award winners, sparkling grape juice and mock cocktails. It took them a bit of time to get into their roles with the excitement of the end of the school year. But they did settle into their roles and, with some help from my husband, they got their tasks figured out and started mingling. Hollywood Lies was great because, not only did they have to solve the murder-mystery, they had to organize skits to perform at the end of the evening.
Even though the party took a lot of advanced planning and shuffling of roles when a few people couldn't attend, they enjoyed themselves immensely. I am planning another Hollywood Lies party this year with work colleagues. This is a great idea for a fun party and the information we received was very helpful!"
Pam Janson, United States

"I decided to have a belated birthday party for myself and, after discussing the matter with Mo at Freeform Games decided that I would prefer to get a friend to host the game for me so that I could play a part. My friend came to me and printed off all the necessary files and took them away and I just did the casting from the basic cast list. We had a number of people drop out, and some, to my dismay, at the very last minute, but thanks to my 12-year-old and her friend stepping in (they were meant to be waitressing!) we all had a fab time. Everyone thought it was great -- it was just a 'different' way to spend an evening with friends. Our host was shrewd enough to bring the proceedings to a end before anyone had the chance to tire of their roles and we all expressed disappointment that it was over! It turned out that our youngest member (our 12-yr-old ex-waitress) was the Super Sleuth of the evening (maybe a lack of alcohol gave her the advantage!) When the game was over I quickly handed out some fake chips and started up a blackjack game and the fun continued into the early hours. I cannot recommend your game enough. It is well planned and thought out and three separate couples questioned my host about what he charged per evening and how often he ran the games -- they assumed he and his wife were professional party hosts! My host himself felt that this was a huge compliment to you at Freeform Games as it shows that your games are so well put together that a total novice can host the game professionally and pass himself off as an expert! Thank you so much -- we will be back for more!"
Stacey Aris, United Kingdom

"Wow! This was my very first Murder Mystery party and A Dead Man's Chest was probably the best murder mystery I could have ever done! I did the mystery for my 14th birthday, and even though I had to cut out some parts, everything went pretty smoothly. "Crazy Bill Pistol" cancelled 2 hours before the party, but I got a friend's sibling to cover for them. I got some of the party on video, and people kept chasing me away when I had the video camera, especially when they were having a private conversation. Whenever there was a storm in the game I would go to my piano (which makes some awesome sound effects) and turned it way loud so that the storm could be heard throughout the house.Everyone came dressed up. My Black Jack and Alice Tremain went all out to design their costumes, and we took pictures at the end of the party.Overall, this game was so much fun and the party was the best party I had ever done. I will definitely be getting more murder mysteries from Freeform Games very soon!"
Jessica, United States

"My 11 year old son Daniel summed it up. "The best party I ever been to -- and it was mine!"
Way out West was a huge success! At the beginning the kids (aged from 11 to 14) struggled to take in all the information, but I spent the first hour or so answering questions. Once the second envelopes were handed out and a few more questions they really got into it very quickly. There were dodgy deals, scheming, and suspicions all around. Some learnt a few quick lessons about the value of information, negotiation and recognising who their friends were. When we took a break (when the Telegraph was fixed) the kids were so involved in their characters that hardly any birthday cake was eaten!
I cannot thank you both enough for the support you gave me in the beginning and all the parents were asking about how we did it so now everyone now knows all about Freeform Games. Without doubt it was the kids' party of the year. You must do more kids' versions, so the other parents can copy us."
Dave Pollock, United Kingdom

"My friends really enjoyed it [Way out West] and so did I. The format is really good as it is not like other murder mystery games where there is a lot of dialogue read off a page. The improvisation was much more fun."
Kate Ingram

"We used Way out West, the kids' version, for my daughter's 13th birthday party. It was a grand success. The boys and girls all got into their parts, came dressed up and really enjoyed themselves. Some of the kids worked really hard on their goals, and others just spent the whole time in "shoot outs" and recovering from being unconscious! Having something to do and a role to play made it easy for lots of interactions -- which is important for the socially awkward age of 13. I just wish you had more games adapted for the kids! As a parent giving the party, it was nice to not have to worry about sending home the kids with age-inappropriate story lines (although we will be giving another murder mystery party for our adult friends and we look forward to an evening of mayhem and murder!)"
Leslie Blackie, California, United States

"Well, my husband's 40th birthday party [Curse of the Pharaoh Expanded] was a big success. I couldn't even keep people seated and eating! Everyone was up and interacting and staying in character the entire evening. We rented a tent, and with my sister-in-law's extensive collection of Arabic décor we were able to create an amazing atmosphere! Everyone received a black box of secret information upon arrival, and we even included real props such as snakes, scorpions, the black staff and many many more. We has actual 'antidote' (Hersheys kisses) and sour candy for poison pills. People seemed to enjoy themselves quite a bit. Thanks to you all at Freeform Games."
Joyce Dales

"It [Way out West] was great fun. Everyone got into their role. They were still discussing the various intrigues and actions a week later. I don't think I'll have any problem finding participants for the next game."
David Schwalm

"My church "youth" group (ages 15-30) recently played A Dead Man's Chest, and the game was a big hit! My husband and I decked out our apartment to look like a tropical island, and we ate lunch together and launched into the game. I was surprised at how much everyone got into their characters; forming teams and then double-crossing each other, speaking in funny accents, holding emergency meetings in the bathrooms, and so on. The British rocked the game in our particular version -- they allied early with the Indians and several of the pirates to make sure they met their goals. Bill Pistol crawled under the dining room table in fear whenever a nobleman approached him, Cassinga managed to scare several people into actually volunteering to be sacrificed to the volcano, and the "Governor" had a great time making everyone bow to him and compliment England before approaching to speak with him (which of course ruffled Don Inigo's feathers). About half of the players knew who the murderer was by the end of the game, but no one dared lift a finger against them; this person had gotten themselves so well-allied that they were quite untouchable!
We appreciated that the game was family-friendly, and that it had a good mix of complicated and less-complicated characters to accommodate the players' varied acting abilities. This game was more than worth the cost, especially since I now know where to find an engaging party game whenever I need one! I have a lot to learn about being a good Host, and it seems that I'll have another opportunity soon -- my friends are already asking when the next game will be!"
Tara Laben, United States

"Hmmm... 50. What to do to celebrate reaching that age? I don't feel 50 -- and my friends tell me I don't look it. (That's what friends are for!) Do I let it slip quietly by and pretend it's not happening, or do I have a huge (and expensive) party for everyone I know? When a friend suggested a murder mystery party, it sounded perfect. I could invite a dozen or so of my closest friends -- some of whom had never met each other -- and it would be something quite different. The guest list grew to 16 quite quickly and I searched around to find something suitable. Happy Birthday R.J. seemed ideal -- who doesn't fondly remember the Dallas era? It would be easy for the guys to dress the part (suits or jeans + cowboy hats) and, as us gals were all of a certain age, we found that most of us, rather embarrassingly, had kept a few shoulder padded outfits in our wardrobe. I'd never run a murder mystery before and I was a bit daunted by all the info -- but I took the advice of old hands on the internet and printed everything off well in advance and sent each guest a 'pack' of information. I also made up notebooks for each guest -- and covered the fronts with a picture of SouthFork Ranch!
"Real panic set in when six extra people wanted to join in -- I used Ginger Roberts and then wrote in 5 extra characters -- which gave me a bit more insight into how the game would run and, although it was a lot of work adding extra notes and cross referencing everything, it was great fun in itself! One last-minute guest had to come as a 'maid' who had no real part other than to help me serve the champagne and food (all Texan of course) -- and she was so enigmatic (not having any part written for her) that everyone thought she must have done it!
"Half the fun seemed to be the anticipation -- local friends who'd been invited were comparing shoulder pads, diamonds and blue mascaras for a couple of weeks beforehand and the guys were apparently using their commutes to work to 'swot up' on their characters!
"I decorated my house to look like SouthSpoon with lots of over-the-top cheap crystal and candelabra and chandeliers. I also printed off pictures of Dallas and Dynasty characters (like JR and Sue Ellen's wedding photo!) and put them into spare frames and casually placed them around the house among my own pictures!
"I was a bit worried that the reality wouldn't live up to the expectation and had a panic as the big day dawned. But what a blast! From the moment the first guest arrived -- a friend of 30 years whom I simply didn't recognise in her guise as 'Sue Helen' -- to the moment the guests and Sheriffs tried to solve the murder, I can honestly say I have never laughed so much nor been so entertained. I couldn't believe how well everyone played their part -- right to the end. I gave out prizes for the best wig, worst accent, most outrageous outfit and most enthusiastic approach. The other great thing about the whole evening was that it meant everyone had to talk to people they didn't know -- and in character they could do it enthusiastically without worrying about being judged. My sister summed the evening up when she confessed that she had been dreading it (if you've not done one before the information you get does make it seem somewhat daunting). She's quite shy and had been terrified of having to 'act' in public. After just two minutes she was so 'in character' and enjoying herself as Dixie that she quite forgot her inhibitions and was really involved in the game. She said at the end that she couldn't remember when she had last enjoyed herself (or laughed) so much.
"I poured the last guest out at 3.00am and am still getting the thank-yous days later.
"A huge success all round and certainly a 50th birthday to remember for all concerned!"
Lin Johnston, United Kingdom

"We have all kinds of birthday parties. Some of the favorite ones have been scavenger hunts until now. Everyone enjoyed Happy Birthday R.J. so now they want to know which one is next. It was a lot of work to put it together because I like to use a lot of props. I even made real invitations. I think the best part was they had to be someone else. So they forgot all about their own worries and had a great time. I have never seen so many people just slip right into character. We ended up having 17 players. I used most of the ideas that were given and I would suggest to use them. They were helpful. I found some little trophies and put the occasion, date, and praises on them (great job--wasn't as bad as you thought--superb job). They like getting a memento of the occasion. I just want to thank you for putting together a great package. I would recommend it to anyone."
Terry Vann

"Had a great time on the whole and was enjoyed by all... excellent story."
Phil Hatherley, Exeter, United Kingdom

"We hosted Death on the Gambia as our pottery class end-of-year party. We are usually just six women, and needed something which would also engage four husbands, who don't know each other very well.
"We cast Alex Thomas as a woman in our story, and we added in a female Ginger Roberts character to make up numbers. Ginger had more fun than the rest of us put together -- and since she was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, it was great to see her having so much fun!
"I left the costumes up to the individuals and they all did wonderfully. We used a lot of props: toy guns (we're not in the UK!); books covered in identical photocopies of DOTN covers; cameras; all sorts of bottles of multi-vitamins and jars of arnica and vaseline from my medicine chest, labelled appropriately; boxes of dried twigs and grass for the spiders to jump out of; red mosaic tiles as uncut rubies; toy handcuffs; and so on. I managed to find a large bag suitable for each character's costume and placed their props and cards into it. Soon after the Christabel's departure, Katanga handed out the luggage that 'had been left on the quayside' by mistake and everyone was encouraged to take it to their cabin to check the contents.
"The first aid kits were great fun: I filled Tupperware containers with some of the usual items (scissors, plasters, tweezers) and added hilarious items such as HUGE syringes (needleless, of course!), rubber gloves, laxatives, aphrodisiac concoctions, hair-loss preparations, condoms, etc -- I got very strange looks from the pharmacist the day I shopped for the kits! The contents obviously caused great mirth amongst the players.
"We had a lot of death: Alex Thomas was the first and most prolific victim, who we saved a couple of times but eventually died quite early on. (Might be nice to know this when planning, so that you don't cast your most enthusiastic guest in this role!)
"We also had two weddings -- the Ginger Roberts married Katanga, Caroline Tanner married Joseph Keene. I think there was a divorce too!
"In general, I think the women embraced their characters far more than the men -- although this might be because the men were already 'semi-outsiders' to the group. Having said this, they enjoyed dressing up and still managed to drink copious amounts of 'peanut beer'! Unfortunately, this was sometimes to the detriment of the plot ... (We never found out who Mr Red was ...)
"All in all, we had a great evening."
Lorraine Nevin, South Africa

"I did a lot of research on mystery parties before I found Freeform Games and the appeal for me was that it is so interactive. I bought Way out West for our church Young Adults group and it is easily the best activity we have ever done!
"Everyone was talking about it for weeks -- this is a great idea for groups that want to get to know each other better and bring people out of their shells -- some of our most active and entertaining participants were people we normally thought of as quiet. Everyone dressed up (which was a surprise) and took their parts very seriously.
"We're planning All at Sea now for the Christmas holiday party. Thanks Freeform Games!"
Elaine Guikema

"I hosted Death on the Gambia for a New Year's Eve party, and my guests loved it! It was our first time playing an interactive murder game, and they were all surprised at how much fun they had. They all marvelled at the complexity of the game, and they talked for quite some time, and are still talking about it several days later! Great game!"
Jennifer Vals, United States

"Snow Business was GREAT!!!!
"I can't remember the last time I've had so much fun or laughed so hard. The 'singles' ministry at my church participated (as one of our monthly activities) along with some single friends from my job etc. It was an absolutely wonderful evening! Everyone involved, including myself, had never participated in an event like this but it went over so well you would never have known. I had to fight to stay in character I was laughing so much. There are a few things that I will definitely do differently next time but I guarantee you THERE WILL BE A NEXT TIME!!! I was so pleased with the entire set up, my friends were so excited to participate and I went ALL OUT rearranging and decorating the chalet (my children almost didn't recognize the place).
"I tried to be as authentic as possible, using actual props instead of the item cards. I even found a photograph on the internet to use as a photograph of 'Mariella Harrison'. Nobody wanted the game to end! I gave out trophies for the 'Best Costume', 'Best Actor', 'Best Actress', 'Best Secret Revealer', 'Best Secret Keeper', 'Best Crime Solver', & 'Top Goal Achiever', I also gave out certificates of participation to EVERYONE! No one leaves a singles ministry event empty handed so they also received a little gift. It was wonderful! My daughter (12) had such a blast helping me choose who would play each character and helping with other things during the evening, it was simply fantastic.
"Now all of my married friends and family want to do it too! I've decided that I'm going to do it two or three times a year, just because!!!!! Even my teenage nieces and nephews want to try it. I can't wait to do it again, I've been raving about it all week!
"One thing that I think helped a great deal and was extra fun for me was (an electronic genius) friend of mine helped me put together a CD of me reading all of the instructions and the character sheets for each person (with mood music and everything). Even though the participants received their information in plenty time to read through it they really didn't have to. They could listen to it all at home, in the car, wherever!!! When they arrived and picked up their envelopes (at the check-in desk :-) they were well prepared and all they had to read were their ability, info and secret cards!!!! Again, It was just great!!! I can't say enough and I will be recommending this game to everyone I know!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for a great time!!!!!!!"
Doris Arnett-Gary, United States

"We wanted to host a party in the new year and decided a freeform murder mystery was the way to go. We had tried other box type games and had been very disappointed. That was not the case with Death on the Gambia. Our guests were thrilled that they could determine the plot. Everyone got into character and the scheming began. We had so much fun plotting against each other and planning alliances!! The guests did not want the night to end.
"We decorated the entire house like the Christabel -- staterooms, decks, galley, bridge, map of Gambia, helm, African huts etc, the guests loved the details. The only trouble was too much leftover food -- people were too busy scheming to get a plate of finger food. No one wanted to stop, even for a minute. We all decided that we will do another game soon!!
"Thanks so much for such a great evening of entertainment. I can hardly wait until next time!"
Dana Loewen, Canada

"Oh my gosh, we had too much fun. Thank you for this game [Death on the Gambia]. The characters were fantastic. We ended up having enough people for all of the characters and my wife, as the deckhand, had an assistant deckhand, which she says was invaluable during the last section of the game. this was fabulous. I am telling all of my friends about this. I will be back again."
Eric Christensen

"Thanks very much - I've got it [Death on the Gambia] off the web page and read it and it's just great! The themes are very different and I think my friends will enjoy it. I'm really looking forward to putting it on -- thank you very much for all your help :) (and sorry for being such a difficult customer!)"
Becky, London, United Kingdom

"What a great time for all! They are still talking about it [Curse of the Pharaoh]. Thank you and I would definitely recommend this one to someone else. They created alliances and wanted to swap abilities and team up against each other. What a hoot! Thanks again."
Rhonda Dinsmoor

"Thanks again for a great evenings entertainment, we played it [Death on the Gambia] whilst on holiday in Devon in a big renovated farmhouse with lots of wooden panelling which added to the 1930s feel of the evening. Also Fajitas for main course and crème brule for pudding worked well as people were free to mingle."
Jon Perkins, Berkshire, United Kingdom

"I loved Death on the Gambia. It was very refreshing to be playing something where there wasn't a murder to solve and the ending was completely up to my players. Everyone told me for days and days afterwards what an incredible time they had at the party -- so much that I am setting up a second one!"
, Rhode Island, United States

"Just a note to say that we successfully played Curse of the Pharaohon New Year's Eve this year and it was a fantastic success, everyone had a really good time and enjoyed themselves immensely. Thanks very much for your help getting sorted when I messed up the purchase slightly, you were very helpful and understanding.
Thanks again, this is the second freeform games I've played and they've both been superbly written and cleverly designed, I have Way out West to play hopefully in the next month or so and am confident it'll be as good as the others. Keep up the good work!"
Tom Bates, Cheshire, United Kingdom

"Thanks for your quick reply. I'm excited that you have another game for our number of players. We're going to play Death on the Gambia with another group in a few weeks and then I think we'll try Curse of the Pharaoh. This was so much more fun than the boxed, scripted sets we've played in the past. I hope you'll find time to write more of them in the future. :-)"
Kristin, United States

"Death on the Gambia was fantastic. Thank you very much. Evening went far better than I'd dared hope. I was concerned that all the information would be overwhelming. Ten minutes in and I needn't have worried: furtive plotting, bravura, blackmail, paranoia and ultra-violence (disappointingly we only had one death.) Everyone said that they hadn't had so much fun in ages (big brownie points for us as hosts). People were too busy having fun even to drink!"
Neil Hopkins, United Kingdom

"I hadn't realised how back-stabbing some of my friends could be. In one player we had black-mailing, murdering, lying, fighting, threatening and cheating... I'd recommend this [Death on the Gambia] to friends for a good night."
Rob Steen

If you would like to tell us how your party went, please let us know via the form below. If we like it we'll add it to this page! (If you want to send us a photo, tell us in the story, and we'll tell you how to send it through.)