Welcome to Scene of the Crime
Welcome to the Freeform Games murder mystery newsletter.
As Christmas approaches, we talk about playing our games during the festive season, playtesters, and more! And we have a seasonal discount code!
Enjoy!
Mo and Steve
Christmas games
Christmas is rapidly approaching – and we have three specifically festive games:
While our Christmas murder mystery games have a specific festive theme, you can host any of our games during the festive season.
And with a few adjustments, you can make them Christmassy as well! (Even the ones that, strictly, aren’t held during the festive period.)
Looking for playtesters – A Haunting in Hartwick
Our next game is A Haunting in Hartwick, and we are looking for playtesters.
Here’s what you need to know:
It is 1958. Since its founding in 1782 by Beardsley Reginald Van Hartwick III, the quiet town of Hartwick, Connecticut, has been defined by the imposing Hartwick Manor. However, the manor, symbol of the family’s prestige, has stood abandoned since the death of matriarch Eleanor Hartwick in 1949.
Quinn Hartwick, Eleanor’s grandchild, is selling the ancestral home to Blake Crowley, an entrepreneur with unusual ambitions. Crowley plans to transform Hartwick Manor into the Crowley Spirit Sanctuary, dedicated to capturing, housing, and displaying spirits. With his protégé Skye Isis, he has developed a device (EGADS) to lure ghosts to the manor, where they will be kept in “gentle captivity.”
To demonstrate his proposal, Crowley and Isis have installed EGADS in and around the manor, using an old utility room as their workshop. They have invited selected guests to witness both the sale and the dawning of a strange new chapter. Hartwick’s quiet legacy is about to be overshadowed by its new role as a sanctuary for the supernatural!
A Haunting in Hartwick is a ghostly murder mystery for 11-13 players and a host. All but one of the characters are ungendered, and it is for ages 15+ due to adult themes and references to the supernatural.
If you’re interested in playtesting, we need feedback by the end of February 2026.
The game isn’t quite ready for playtesting, we are aiming for the start of January (if not before).
We need ten groups to playtest A Haunting in Hartwick and give us feedback – and we’re looking for photos that we can use to promote the game. (Don’t forget to check your friends are happy for you to share with us!)
Please complete this form if you would like to playtest A Haunting in Hartwick.
We’ll keep the form open until Friday, 12th December, and then we’ll choose ten people from those who have signed up.
Tips for Hollywood Lies
The People’s Theatre in Newcastle, UK, hosted Hollywood Lies and they shared their tips with us.
Tips include set dressing, starting the game, movie posters and scripts, and having three hosts.
Click here to read Tips for Hollywood Lies from the Peoples Theatre.
Murderers and their victims
We had a recent query about the gender of our murderers, as a customer was looking for games with female murderers.
We checked through our games, and we have a fairly even split of male/female/ungendered murderers (although, to be fair, there are slightly fewer female murderers).
But that got us thinking about the victims, and usually, our murder victims are male. We began to wonder what was going on there.
Click here to read Murderers and their victims in murder mystery games
Help spread the word!
If you’ve enjoyed our games, you can help us by telling other people about Freeform Games! You might:
- Writing a review – either on our game pages or on Trustpilot. (If you have a lot of photos you’d like to share, get in touch with us here.)
- Link to us on your blog or website or social feed.
- Mention us on your socials: Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, Pinterest – tell everyone you’ve played our games!
And remember, we’re also on Facebook and Instagram (although we’re better at Facebook than Instagram). Like our pages to hear the latest news.
Thank you for reading!
As a thank you for reading our newsletter, here’s a 20% coupon for your next purchase: DEC25
(This coupon is valid until December 31st, 2025, and applies to a single purchase, covering all games in your basket. Please note that it excludes our commercial license.)
And that’s it from us this time!
Mo and Steve
Freeform Games
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