The 11 Best Murder Mystery Games, From Clue to Party Kits
“Murder mystery game” covers four very different nights. There is the board game you buy once and replay for years, the detective case you solve once and pass on, the dinner party where every guest plays a suspect, and the crowd game where the killer is sitting in the room with you.
So this list is sorted by which of those nights you are planning. Every pick says whether you can play it again, because that is the question most buyers find out the hard way. Two of the eleven we have reviewed and scored on our Bamboo (quick to learn) and Pandas (fun) scales: Clue and Werewolf. The other nine we have not scored, and each entry says so and links its source.
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The Short Answer
- A board game to keep: Clue, the classic that still holds up, or Deception for a bigger table.
- One case to crack together: Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective.
- A dinner party in character: a boxed Murder Mystery Party.
- Ten or more people: Blood on the Clocktower, or Werewolf with a deck of cards.
- Kids: Outfoxed!, a whodunit with a fox instead of a murder.
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All 11 at a Glance
| Game | Players | Time | Play it again? | Our score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clue | 2–6 | 45–60 min | Yes | 4 Bamboo, 4 Pandas |
| Deception: Murder in Hong Kong | 4–12 | 20 min | Yes | Not scored |
| Mysterium | 3–7 | 42 min | Yes | Not scored |
| Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective | 1–8 | A case per evening | No, cases are solved once | Not scored |
| MicroMacro: Crime City | 1–4 | 15–45 min a case | No, cases are solved once | Not scored |
| Chronicles of Crime | 1–4 | 60–90 min | Limited, a set number of cases | Not scored |
| Hunt A Killer | Group | 90 min to 3 hrs a box | No | Not scored |
| Murder Mystery Party | 8 | Whole evening | No, one story per box | Not scored |
| Blood on the Clocktower | 5–20 | 30–120 min | Yes | Not scored |
| Werewolf | 8–20+ | 30–60 min | Yes | 4 Bamboo, 3 Pandas |
| Outfoxed! | 2–4 | 20 min | Yes | Not scored |
Player counts and times are the publishers’ or Wikipedia’s figures, linked in each entry. The replay column is our read of each game’s design.
Board Games You Can Replay
These three come back out of the box with a new answer every game, so they are the ones to buy if you want a murder mystery on the shelf for years.
1. Clue — The Classic That Still Holds Up
Clue is the whodunit everyone already knows: move around the mansion, make suggestions, and eliminate suspects, weapons and rooms until you can name the murderer. We scored it 4/5 Bamboo and 4/5 Pandas on our classic board games page, one of the few classics that holds up.
It seats 2–6, is rated 8+, and takes 45 to 60 minutes. The deduction is genuinely satisfying; the dice-rolling movement is the part that has aged. Hasbro still publishes it, and Wikipedia’s entry covers its history as Cluedo.
Who should skip it: groups that want a murder mystery with talking and accusing. Clue is mostly quiet note-taking.
2. Deception — A Murder Solved in 20 Minutes
Deception: Murder in Hong Kong is the murder mystery for a bigger table. One player is the Forensic Scientist, who knows the solution and may not speak. One is the Murderer, hiding among the investigators. The scientist points at the weapon and the key evidence using only clue tiles, and everyone argues about what the tiles mean.
Grey Fox Games lists it at 4–12 players and 20 minutes. We have not scored it; it is on our social deduction games list as a research-based pick for the same reason it is here.
Who should skip it: tables of four, where the Murderer has little cover.
Check Deception price on Amazon →
3. Mysterium — The Cooperative Séance
Mysterium is a murder mystery solved by the whole table together. One player is the ghost of the victim, who cannot speak and can only hand out surreal picture cards. Everyone else is a psychic trying to read those cards and work out the suspect, the location and the weapon.
Libellud’s rulebook lists the current box at 3–7 players, ages 10+, about 42 minutes. We have not scored it; our Dixit vs Mysterium page compares it with its sister game.
Who should skip it: groups that want a winner. Everyone wins or loses together.
Check Mysterium price on Amazon →
Detective Cases You Solve Once
These four are built around fixed cases with fixed answers. Once you have solved it, it is done, so they are best for a group that wants a long, satisfying evening and is happy to pass the box on afterwards.
4. Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective — The Classic Detective Game
Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective gives you a case, a map of Victorian London, a directory of addresses and a newspaper for the day. You decide where to go and who to question, read the matching paragraph in the case book, and try to solve the crime in fewer leads than Holmes did.
Space Cowboys’ current editions list 1–8 players and ages 14+, with ten cases in each box. Start with The Thames Murders & Other Cases, which collects the original ten cases from the first edition in the early 1980s. We have not scored it. There is no board and nothing to roll: it is reading, note-taking and arguing over a map.
Who should skip it: anyone who does not enjoy reading aloud. The case book is the game.
Check Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective price on Amazon →
5. MicroMacro Crime City — A Murder Hidden in a Giant Map
MicroMacro: Crime City is a crime-solving game played on one enormous black-and-white map of a city. Each case card asks a question, and the players hunt across the map to follow the suspect through the streets and find out what happened.
It won the 2021 Spiel des Jahres, Germany’s game of the year, per its Wikipedia entry, and it is listed at 1–4 players and 15 to 45 minutes a case. We have not scored it. The box holds many cases, but each one is solved once.
Who should skip it: players who want suspects to interrogate. It is a search-the-picture game.
Check MicroMacro price on Amazon →
6. Chronicles of Crime — The Detective Game With an App
Chronicles of Crime is a cooperative investigation run by a free app. You scan QR codes on location, character and evidence cards to question people and search crime scenes, and the app tracks the story and the clock.
Lucky Duck Games publishes it, and Asmodee’s listing and other retailers put it at 1–4 players, ages 12+, and 60 to 90 minutes. The app needs to be downloaded but not online during play. We have not scored it. The box includes several scenarios, and more come with the expansions.
Who should skip it: groups that want phones off the table. The app is central.
Check Chronicles of Crime price on Amazon →
7. Hunt A Killer — Evidence in the Mail
Hunt A Killer sends the case as a box of physical evidence: letters, photographs, reports and puzzles. The subscription arrives as six monthly episodes per mystery, and the one-box cases are built to be solved in a single night.
Hunt A Killer sells both formats, and retail descriptions put a single episode at roughly 90 minutes to three hours. We have not scored it. It is the closest thing on this list to a true-crime podcast you play.
Who should skip it: anyone who wants rules and turns. It is a pile of evidence and your own theories.
Check Hunt A Killer on Amazon →
A Dinner Party in Character
This is the format most people mean by a murder mystery party: no board, just guests in costume and a script.
8. Murder Mystery Party — The Whole Evening Is the Game
A boxed Murder Mystery Party is for the year the murder mystery is the dinner. Each guest is cast as a suspect ahead of time, arrives in character, and spends the meal questioning everyone else until the murderer is exposed.
University Games launched the line in 1985. A box holds the invitations, a party planner and the solution, and the long-running titles are written for eight people: six suspects and two extra guests. We have not scored any of them.
The catch is the guest list. You need the number the box calls for, every one of them has to show up, and once the story is solved the box is finished.
Who should skip it: open-house parties, and hosts who do not want to assign homework with the invitation.
Check Murder Mystery Party games on Amazon →
For a Crowd
These two put the murderer in the room. Nobody reads a case; somebody at the table is lying.
9. Blood on the Clocktower — The Big-Group Murder Mystery
Blood on the Clocktower is a storyteller-run social deduction game. A demon is killing the town one night at a time, every player has a role with a power, and the town has to work out who the demon is before it is too late. Dead players keep talking and keep a vote, so nobody is out of the game.
Its Wikipedia entry lists it at 5–20 players, ages 14+, and 30 to 120 minutes, and the official site has the rules. We have not scored it; it is also on our social deduction games list.
Who should skip it: groups without someone willing to run it. The storyteller does a lot of work.
Check Blood on the Clocktower on Amazon →
10. Werewolf — The Free One
Werewolf, also played as Mafia, is the classic murder-in-the-village game. A few players are secretly wolves who kill one villager each night, and everyone argues by day about who to vote out. It runs on a standard deck of cards with one person as moderator.
We scored it 4/5 Bamboo and 3/5 Pandas in our Werewolf review. It is 8–20+ players and 30 to 60 minutes; the missing Pandas are the moderator who does not get to play and the first-night victim who watches from the couch.
Who should skip it: groups under eight.
Check Ultimate Werewolf price on Amazon →
For Kids
One pick for younger children, with the mystery and none of the murder.
11. Outfoxed! — A Whodunit Without a Murder
Outfoxed! is a cooperative mystery for young kids. A fox has stolen a pot pie, and the players move around the board to collect clues and use a decoder to rule out suspects before the thief escapes.
Gamewright lists it at 2–4 players, ages 5+, and 20 minutes. We have not scored it; it is also on our best board games for 5- and 6-year-olds.
Who should skip it: kids past about eight, who will want Clue instead.
Check Outfoxed! price on Amazon →
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best murder mystery game for adults?
It depends on the night. For a board game you can replay, Deception: Murder in Hong Kong handles 4 to 12 players in about 20 minutes. For a single case to crack together, Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective is the classic. For a dinner party where everyone plays a suspect, a boxed Murder Mystery Party kit runs the whole evening.
Can you replay a murder mystery game?
Some, not all. Clue, Deception, Mysterium, Blood on the Clocktower and Werewolf play differently every time. Detective games like Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective, MicroMacro and Hunt A Killer are solved once, because the answer does not change, and party kits are written for a single evening.
What is a good murder mystery game for a big group?
Blood on the Clocktower seats 5 to 20 with one person running it as storyteller, and Werewolf runs for 20 or more with nothing but a deck of cards. For a seated group of up to 12, Deception: Murder in Hong Kong is the shorter option.
Are there murder mystery games for kids?
Yes. Outfoxed! is a cooperative whodunit for ages 5 and up where the players catch a thieving fox together, with no actual murder. Clue is rated 8+ and is the natural next step.
Can you play a murder mystery game with two people?
Yes. Clue, MicroMacro: Crime City, Chronicles of Crime and Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective all work with two, and the last three can even be played solo. Deception, Blood on the Clocktower and the party kits need a bigger group.
Want more games where someone at the table is lying? Our best social deduction games has twelve more, and our best cooperative board games covers games like Mysterium where everyone is on the same side.