Murder Mystery Party Ideas
After throwing around a lot of different sweet 16 birthday ideas, we settled on hosting a murder mystery birthday party!
Once we knew we wanted to host a murder mystery birthday party, it was fun to figure out what theme. There are so many great options out there. Here are a few great mystery party ideas youll want to check out!
- Roaring 20s theme flappers and gangsters are always a lot of fun! Check out this party!
- Downton Abbey theme Regency England, the manor house, upstairs & downstairs! Lots of fun! Check out this party!
- Super Heroes theme if your kid is into the Avengers, then a superhero theme might just be the right pick. Check out this party!
- Book themed party if youd like to try and match a party with a favorite book, like Alice in Wonderland or maybe Harry Potter, then check out these options! Check out these parties!
But, after much debate, my daughter settled on a Venetian Masquerade party. Check it out here!
My daughter and her friends had a lot of fun, and guess what, I didnt stress out! Win-win!! Eight teenage girls having fun and laughing ~ what an awesome night!
Host A Murder Mystery Party For Teens
If you are looking for a creative teen party theme, host, a murder mystery party is perfect for a teens. You can make your murder mystery party as intricate or as simple as you like. Create your scandalous murder mystery party invitations around your mystery party theme. Murder Mystery parties are great for teen birthdays or sleepovers. If you want to do a clue based murder mystery parties each guest is the suspect and everyone works together to solve the mystery.
Youll want to send out your murder mystery party invitations a few weeks in advance so guests can prepare for their role. Youll want to assign each guest a character before they arrive so they can show up in costume. As the party guests arrive, make a brief introduction as to how the game works but youll want to advise that thereafter, everyone stay in character. This will make the game more fun!
Murder Mystery Party Themes For Teens
- The Hills change character names but fill the same roles
- Football Team and Cheerleaders
Smores And Hot Cocoa Bonfire Party
The great thing about teen birthday parties is that they dont have to be perfect to be amazing. A simple, yet fun idea for guys or girls is a smores and hot cocoa backyard party. Its not too stuffy or over the top . A few ideas:
- Make it cozy: Offer a few soft blankets for guests to wrap around their shoulders if it gets chilly.
- Offer all the fixings for amazing hot cocoa: Chocolate chips, peppermint, whipped cream and caramel bits are all great add-ins for amazing hot cocoa.
- Let guests make their own toasted marshmallows and smores.
- Add mood lighting: A few well-placed lanterns can add ambiance and mood lighting to enhance the party atmosphere.
- Food ideas: Keep things casual by serving easy finger foods/appetizers that teens love. Pizza, potato skins, hot mac n cheese in mugs, and a variety of chips and snacks will keep them happy!
Image Credit + More Ideas: Todays Creative Life
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S Themed Mystery Party
Most teens love a glimpse of life for their parents, and our 80s themed game kit is perfect! What’s more, the 80s was the gateway for YA Pop culture, and much of the iconic movies of the time are still hugely popular today.
Inspire young adults with the original mystery detective, Sherlock Holmes. It can be played in a small or large group.
You are invited to the ailing Lord Victor Moorbourne’s last will and testament at Moorbourne Manor. The guests stay for drinks, but the evening takes a gruesome turn when Lord Moorbourne’s is discovered in his study! You won’t have time to wait as Detective Leslie Hughes arrives swiftly on the scene and will not rest till he catches a killer.
Wild West Cowboy Mystery Party
The Wild West! A time of mayhem, messes, and mystery games. You can be sure teens will love dressing up in hats, boots, and flannel. It can be played in a small or large group.
In 1870 in Dead Man, Kansas, USA, a big crowd is forming in the saloon as word spreads of a shootout on Main Street. But as the public moves outside, two shots ring out from behind back in the saloon. Deputy Drinkwater is shot through the heart. Who did the evil deed?
This is a hit with girls and boys alike taking inspiration from some of the world’s best carnivals. Take a trip to Venice in 1755, it’s carnival season, and everyone is dressed to impress at the masquerade ball. But all eyes are on the mystery guest in red! Then, suddenly a glass smashes, and they are dead. Find out each of the masked players’ secretes and unmask the murderer – literally.
You could make players DIY their mascarade masks or give out prizes for the best dressed for extra fun! This game is perfect for daughters, sons, friends, and family.
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Y Games For Tweens And Teens
Up until about age 10, most kids are happy if a birthday party includes balloons, a couple of games, and cake. But as children move into the tween and teen years, party planning becomes more complicated. Partygoers in this age group still enjoy celebrating with friends, but want more than a round of musical chairs.
Here are five sure-fire party ideas that can be tailored to fit tweens and teens:
1. Glow-in-the-Dark Sock Hop. Turn down the lights for a fantastic party theme. Use black lights to illuminate your party space for a glowing good time. Decorate the room with white streamers and neon-colored balloons, and make the party table pop with a white table cover along with neon plates and napkins. Peruse party stores for everything from glow necklaces and bracelets to glow-in-the-dark makeup and nail polish. In the party invitation, let guests know that under black lights, anything white or neon-colored shows up, so they should dress to shine! Pick up a package of neon or black and white patterned socks, one pair per guest. Give each partygoer a pair of socks, put on music, and they can move those feet to the beat.
Send the zombies home with Zombie Apocalypse Survival Kits: Brown paper bags filled with fun items such as novelty Band-Aids , Zombie repellent, such as Silly String or breath-freshening spray, small flashlights, and candy.
Other game and activity ideas for an espionage-themed party
Games Suitable For Kids Aged 12+
These are murder mystery games but are suitable for kids aged 1299!
Last year we played Way Out West for my daughter’s 12th birthday. It was such a success that this year we played Hollywood Lies for her 13th birthday. Thank you for adapting the games down for the younger kids. Everyone I ran into for the next few days said their son/daughter had a wonderful time at the party. The kids even wore their name tags to school the next day. I can’t say enough nice things about your games. I only hope that you adapt another one by next year. Actually I need you to adapt two. My son wants to have a Freeform Mystery party for his birthday too. Jill Getchell, California
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Which Is The Best Murder Mystery Party For You
So you want to host a murder mystery dinner party. But which one is best for you?
“In a rush? Although one size doesn’t fit all, for most people our best selling game Murder at the Manor is a great choice.”Choosing a murder mystery might seem simple you just pick one that sounds fun, right? but the truth is theres a little more to it than that. Not all murder mystery games are created equal. Some are easy to play out of the box while others require a little more effort. Some work better if your guests mingle, others are designed to be played around the dinner table. Some are serious, some are silly and others are downright rude!Knowing what you want from your murder mystery game is the easiest way to ensure an enjoyable evening. So before you click off to buy the game with the nicest cover/silliest character names, take a look below to see which kit would suit you best.
Getting The Planning Going
If you think hosting a Murder Mystery Teen Party is going to the most awesome thing to do this year, get the ball rolling by contacting us to find out more. They will provide the game, and have endless ways to customise your party so your teens never forget it. If you are a teen looking for a different way to celebrate your birthday or event, this is one that will put you on the top of the mark among your crowd.
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Pirate Island / Trick Or Treat / Monster Mash
These three games are slightly different – they’re not murder mystery parties but are instead themed interactive parties that last about an hour and are suitable for including into a larger party.
In Pirate Island, pirate ships have gathered off a small Caribbean island to take part in the Pirate Games and quest for treasure.
Whoever wins the most doubloons is the winner!
In Monster Mash and Trick or Treat, gangs of monsters are competing to see who can become the best monster gang in the haunted county of Hallowshire.
The gang with the most gold wins!
The party games are for 6 to 24 kids and are suitable for ages 8 and up .
They’re all published by Freeform Games.
Why We Loved A Murder Mystery Birthday Party
- Inexpensive! As parties go, this was an inexpensive way to go. We spent about $40 on the murder mystery birthday party game package, which I think is pretty reasonable!
- Easy to plan! Because youre buying a prepackaged party, it gives you all the info you need to organize your party. But, even though its preplanned, the party is flexible enough to fit your needs.
- Natural flow to the event. As is typical for us, the party revolved around food. So, with the appetizers, we introduced the murder and let the girls mingle and discuss. And, with dinner, we implemented a no murder talk at the dinner table policy, which seems like a pretty reasonable policy! And, during dessert, the girls finished their detective work.
- Conversation and laughter! Obviously, conversation with eight teen girls is not going to be a problem! But, they made sure the clues were discussed and figured out.
- Good, clean fun! Because good, clean fun is always a great option for a group of teens! I think Ill be looking for more opportunities for these kinds of gatherings!
So, if you are looking for a good, clean, fun way to entertain a group of teenagers, a murder mystery dinner party might just be it!
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Here Are Some Of The Products We Used
We used shower curtains as our backgrounds because they were much cheaper and covered a lot of space! CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO
We bought some pretty, disposable cutlery, plates and cups to keep the clean up easy! LEARN MORE HERE!
Having this 3-tiered server made setting up the appetizers and desserts both easy and pretty! LEARN MORE HERE!
Another shower curtain backdrop set the scene of Venice, Italy for us! LEARN MORE HERE!
Each girl wore a masquerade mask for the evening. LEARN MORE HERE!
Pirate Murder Mystery Game
Though the Pirate of the Caribbean movies were a while ago, pirate literature remains hugely popular in YA. And I bet you can already picture a son or friend decked out as the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow. The theme is excellent for virtual play through zoom or in-person and can be played in a small or large group.
We recommend this game for ages 16+ as there are references to alcohol. You can be sure that teens will enjoy playing our colorful characters from The Bouncing Barnacle pirate ship. It is their job to figure out who murdered Pop DeKegg, the tavern keeper. And, is there treasure to be found?
Who doesn’t love a good spy movie! Check out this ultimate James Bond Inspired, Spy-themed, murder mystery game. Monte Carlo’s fancy casino setting in the 1960s is a perfect excuse to get dressed up in Tuxedo or formal Dresses.
But don’t forget there is a killer on the loose.
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How To Plan A Murder Mystery Dinner For Teenagers
Help your teen exercise her whodunit skills by hosting a murder mystery party. Mystery games date back to the 1930s and the first murder mystery party games appeared in the 1980s. Today they have evolved into a type of role playing game available in both boxed sets and online downloads. Mystery parties are available in virtually any type of physical or historical setting. Your murder mystery party is limited only by your imagination and the size of your home.
Murder Mystery Dinner Party
There are several different ways to go about hosting a murder mystery dinner party. One is to throw a costume party and have your guests come dressed in character a second option is to get the murder mystery started when the guests walk in.
You can do this by creating a timeline that you can follow which starts with initial clue envelopes being given out to everyone as well as cocktails and appetizers. This will allow mingling among all the guests and is a great ice breaker as well.
During dinner a second envelope or second round of clues should be given out including the announcement that there has been a murder and a “killer is among us”! Let the time between dinner and dessert be spent trying to solve the murder.
You might want to consider giving a prize for the guest who solves the murder mystery and dessert time should be spent talking about the various clues and how the murder was solved. This is one dinner party your guests won’t soon forget!
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Murder Mystery Games For Kids Aged 15+
These murder mystery games weren’t written specifically for kids, but we believe they should be fine for the mid-teen age group to play. We’ve included a note of what might be considered sensitive material.
- Murder on the Dancefloor: Includes teen romance, gang fights, and a pregnancy
- The Night before Christmas: Refers to a child born out of wedlock, although this is handled delicately
- The Spy Who Killed Me: Two of the characters are rival suitors for the hand of another
- Under the Big Top: Several characters are romantically involved with, or interested in, each other
- Way out West : One character is an alcoholic and saloon madame
Dazzled to Death Thank you so much for supplying my birthday with a bit of dazzle! As a 12 year old, all of my friends enjoyed it so much! I enjoyed playing the part as waitress, as I was very resourceful for all my friends in need, thanks to your simple information!
We’ve played your games with great success. We use them for our teenage kids’ birthdays, and they and their friends really enjoy dressing up and playing. We have to end up cutting the party short they are usually still locked in secret conversations, plotting to kill someone, stealing each other’s money, and a variety of other tomfoolery. Richey Rivers, Texas, USA
Freeform Games LLP, 69 Brooks Hall Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 4BZ, United Kingdom
Teen Idol Awards Murder Mystery
- SKU:
- Instant Download Upon Purchase
$46.95
Teen Idol Awards murder mystery
Description
Get your glam gear ready for an exciting night of murder and mayhem at the Teen Idol Awards! A super fun teen murder mystery party for 8-16+ celebrities, 13 years and up. There are two 8 character expansion packs available, and this game can be expanded to over 60 players by using expandable teams . The story is set at the Teen Idol Awards and VIP After Party in the lovely city of Anonville. Host this party if you are up for loads of glamour, deceit, intertwining story lines and murder – all packaged in a fun celebrity murder mystery party! This is the instant download upon purchase version of the game – no waiting, no shipping fees! Everything you need to host the game is included in the PDF file.Easy to host, easy to prepare.
You will receive a host instruction file, printable file, and a solution file. You already have access to the free invitation and pre-game player site below, under helpful links.
The game was last revised on 9/15/21
If you are looking for a virtual mystery party to be hosted on Zoom or other video chat platforms,
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Murder Mystery Game For Teen Parties
If you are thinking of hosting an event for a teen group, you may want to consider having a Murder Mystery Teen Party. Murder Mystery games are fun, engaging and definitely memorable. There are so many opportunities to put your own stamp on the evening with one of them that you will be sure to create a night to remember. More importantly, this type of event is one that always appeals to the teen crowd.
