Melissa Midcap hosted Vanished in Vegas back in August.
She writes: “My husband (assistant host) ran a blackjack table while he wasn’t doing anything. He suggests having some extra cash incorporated into the game to do something like this and let the players actually win something. To settle duels, we had players roll some big fuzzy dice.”
Vanished in Vegas is also available in French as Nuit Blanche à Las Vegas.
Melissa Midcap sent us some photos of her The Food is to Die For party.
She writes: “For The Food is to Die For, we held it in the back room of a restaurant whose owner we know. It really added something to the setting to be in an actual restaurant! For deciding duels (of which there was surprisingly only one!), we had players draw bottle corks that were numbered on the bottom. Higher number won.”
The Food is to Die For is available in French as Panique au Restaurant.
Steven Kok recently hosted Hollywood Lies in Amsterdam.
Here’s what he had to say:
“Blood was SPILLED! We finally hosted our first murder mystery party yesterday! Thanks to all of these way too cool people, it was the best. Time. Ever.
“People formed alliances, made promises, broke promises, got hypnotized and made movies — all the while trying to figure out who among them committed a heinous murder.
“I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed running Hollywood Lies. As a first-time murder mystery host, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But it’s been one of the most fun experiences I’ve ever had with my friends. It was so cool seeing them all get into their characters — even the ones that were a little nervous — and losing themselves in the game. It was hilarious, exciting and super creative.
“If you have a group of friends that is even remotely interested in tv, movies, or role-playing games, I wholeheartedly recommend playing this game. It created a memory I’ll never forget. Now, to figure out which one I’ll host next!”
Hollywood Lies is available in German as Hollywoods Lügen.
Earlier we mentioned Melissa Midcap using A Dead Man’s Chest for a Spanish exam. In 2022, she used Spellbound:
“This year (2022) we were allowed to have the full dinner/game for the final exam for my upper-level Spanish classes. So, Spanish 3 and 4 had an absolute blast with Spellbound (‘Hechizados’).
“The casting worked out perfectly! The professors were my Costa Rican international college student, a Spanish teacher friend who was a former student, and another former student. The two officers were students who graduated a couple of years ago and missed their mystery dinner because of covid – they were thrilled to come back from college and play! All of the student characters were played by my students and it was their final exam. Spellbound is so much fun!
“Here’s how we handled fights for this game: My husband created a hierarchy of three spells. We had two velvet bags, each with slips of cardstock having the spell names on them. Each drew, and the higher spell won (like rock-paper-scissors but with spell names).
“The students did well on the conversation part of their exam. When we get back to school (and after they have had time to yell at each other for deceptions and offenses committed during the game), they write me an essay (in Spanish) about the evening from the perspective of their character. That’s always an interesting read!
“Thanks again for some great games!” Melissa Midcap, USA
Spellbound is also available in German as Dunkle Mächte in der Magierschule.
Alice Mottola sent us some wonderfully atmospheric photographs of her Court in the Act party.
Click here to learn more about Court in the Act.
Court in the Act is available in French as La Reine est en Danger.
Bev Postma hosted Casino Fatale in Singapore for New Year’s Eve.
She writes: “Happy New Year to all at Freeform Games! We had a fantastic night on New Year’s Eve thanks to Casino Fatale. We staged the game at Brasserie Gavroche (aka Hotel d’Etoile) with a real Parisian Chef and a real Parisian Casino Manager. We even played a recording of background sounds from a real casino to add extra authenticity. We had a blast. Thank you!”
Jazlynn Steed recently sent us some photos of their A Dead Man’s Chest murder mystery party.
Jazlynn says: “We loved A Dead Man’s Chest! It was my first murder mystery and I hosted! Many of our guests had done murder mysteries before and they all said this was one of their favorites. The game was fun and ran smoothly. I really love how these games are written so that each individual can make the character their own. We’ve decided to make it an annual Halloween party to do a murder mystery. The hardest part is deciding which game to do next!”
And some great decor and prop ideas:
A Dead Man’s Chest is also available in German as Des toten Kerls Kiste.
A Dead Man’s Chest is also available in French as Le Trésor du Pirate.
Kellie Rose in Australia told us about her recent Curse of the Pharaoh party:
I sent in a story almost 15 years ago as we had done Court in the Act for my 21st. Since then I did Davy Jones’ Locker for my 30th and now Curse of the Pharaoh for my 35th, and I am still hooked all these years later!
This time around we had a whole new cast of people playing, and everyone had a blast enjoying Egyptian finger food like falafels and koftas, and scheming all night long. In the end, many of us were foiled in our goals, but I think we enjoyed it nonetheless.
Super looking forward to the next one!!
And here’s are photos from Kellie’s Court in the Act:
Click here to learn more about Curse of the Pharaoh.
Click here to learn more about Court in the Act.
Curse of the Pharaoh is also available in German as Der Fluch des Pharao.
Court in the Act is also available in French as La Reine est en Danger.
Lorraine Shaw sent us some photographs of her A Heroic Death murder mystery party.
She writes: “We had an awesome evening playing A Heroic Death! It was my daughter’s 17th birthday party. This is the 3rd freeform game we’ve played and we love them (we are in Zimbabwe). Such fun for everyone!”
It looks like they are having lots of fun!
A Heroic Death is also available in German as Ein heldenhafter Tod.
Laura Breeding recently told us about her Way out West party:
“We have enjoyed sharing murder mystery games with family and friends in the past, but our guests have made comments about having to read all night with box games – and one said maybe we can find a western!
“I went on the hunt for a western and found your Way out West, which allowed us to interact with another to create a production, versus the scripting in other mysteries. This murder took place not only in a western scene but at the silver dollar saloon and we had just added a bar to our home which was a great fit for our rowdy bunch who really immerse themselves in the role they’ve been casted for. There were challenges, moments of passion and excitement, swindling, dealings, an arrest tor two, and even a shootout at high noon! Our bunch had an amazing time on this murder mystery night – I will continue to do our murder mystery hosting through this company!
“I do recommend sending character details ahead of time, if your murder mystery, guests are used to either box murder mysteries, or never played at all.”
Great ideas for costumes and decor here!
Click here to learn more about Way out West.
Way out West is also available in German and in French (as La Ruée vers Cactusville).