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Don Carrasino and the Murdered Mobster
$39.95
Add intrigue to your next party with this murder mystery game, set at gangster’s hideout.
Format:
30 Minute Mystery
Setting:
Gangster's personal bar
Time:
30+ minutes
Ages:
Adult
Players:
Play with Printed Sheets or the App
Hosts have the choice of playing the game with printable documents or using the PWM Party Assistant app
View app gameplay guide
Play In-Person or Over Video Chat
You can host this game in-person or over video chat. The game is built to be run either way!
Someone killed the Don’s right hand man. He wants answers…
Backstory
Your guests will play the roles of one of the crooks, killers, mobsters, or gang-members employed by Don Carrasino, a notorious (and notoriously ruthless) mafioso. All of you are regulars at The Joint, Don Carrasino’s personal bar.
Murder!
The eight of you, along with the Don himself and his consigliere (or right-hand man), Danny “Chuckles” Luciano, were enjoying drinks, cards, and conversation at The Joint. The evening was shaping up to be quite festive when suddenly Chuckles stiffened in his seat, made a choked gurgling noise, and fell over dead at the bar, clutching at his throat.
Solving the Mystery
Now it’s up to all of you to figure out what happened to the Don’s right-hand man! Your guests will need to work together and use the game’s clues to determine who killed Danny “Chuckles” Luciano!
There are 8 primary characters in this game. Read the "How to Play" section for instructions on how to play this game with more than 8 people.
* = Optional character
Don Carrasino and the Murdered Mobster is suitable for 8 guests (or 8 couples), including the host or hostess. The available guests include:
- Gino Cabella, the Hitman: Well dressed, soft-spoken, and cold as ice, Gino is an expert at "taking care of" people who end up on the Don's wrong side.
- Catalina "Crazy Cat" Macciano, the Shooter: As quick with a smile or a ribald joke as she is quick to anger, Catalina is the Don's top gunslinger.
- Claudia Navarra, the Don's Girl: Beautiful, sultry, and salacious, Claudia is the Don's main squeeze.
- Antonio "Lefty" Bonocello, the Don's Bodyguard: Responsible for the Don's personal security, Lefty is a silent, menacing giant of a man.
- Lorenzo Pennino, the Driver: Talkative, likable, and quick-witted, Lorenzo takes care of the gang's transportation needs, whether that means serving as chauffeur or getaway driver.
- "Dirty" Vinnie Marino, the Conman: A smooth dresser and a smooth talker, Dirty Vinnie's good looks and silver tongue have always brought him good fortune.
- Roxie "Stiletto" Russo, the Thug: Beautiful and dangerous, Roxie is a street-wise, short-tempered lady who is good to have on your side when things get thick.
- Regina Guissepe, the Bartender: Only peripherally involved in the gang's affairs, Regina serves drinks and runs the till at The Joint, Don Carrasino's favorite bar.
Extra Players
- *Investigator: If you have more than 8 players, additional players have the option of playing the role of "Investigators". In this role the players are not suspects and do not have character backgrounds but can question the suspects and try to solve the mystery along with the other players.
This game kit includes:
- Hosting guide – Guidebook that takes you through all the steps for running the game
- Character sheets – Information sheets for eight unique characters and one generic “Investigator” character
- Name cards – Printable name cards that can be placed in front of players for in-person games (optional)
- Introductory Handout – A brief description of the game that can be sent to your guests ahead of the event (optional)
- Invitation template – Printable template that can be used to send paper invitations to your guests (optional)
Our line of 30 Minute Mysteries is specially designed for fast setup and easy play, whether your playing in-person or virtually over video chat.
All you need to do is:
- Gather a group of players
- Distribute character sheets
- Follow the party guide instructions
If you’re playing in person, you have the option of printing out the hosting script and character sheets, or you and your guests may view them on your electronic devices.
Best of all, the party facilitator can choose whether they join in the game and solve the mystery along with the other guests!
Playing the Game
While this mystery has 8 primary characters, it is designed to accommodate any number of additional players. See the “Expanded Game for Large Groups” section below if you have more than 8 players.
Each of the players will be assigned a character and given a character sheet that explains who or what their character is, what information their character knows, and how their character should respond to events that occur during the game.
The game will progress in rounds.
Round One will start with the party’s host or hostess reading a script that explains the nature of the mystery that is afoot. After the introduction is read, each player at the table will share a piece of information from their character sheet, which will often be met by a response from another player.
Round Two begins with the host sharing a clue that should shed further light on the mystery. After the clue is revealed, the players will once again go around, providing another piece of information.
Round Three, the final round, begins with the host sharing the last clue. The players then go around the table a final time, sharing their last piece of information.
By this point, the players should have enough information to piece together a theory about who was responsible for the crime. Everyone will vote for the culprit, which the host will then reveal. Any player or couple who correctly guessed the identity of the killer is declared a winner.
From start to finish, the game typically requires half an hour to complete.
What Do I Need in Order to Play?
Our 30 Minute Mysteries are specifically designed to not require very much in the way of supplies. All you need is:
- Playing area
- In-person – Table to sit around or large playing area where the guests can sit in a circle
- Virtual – Video chat room (links to 3rd-party providers like Zoom included in game)
- A group of players (minimum 8 people)
- Access to a printer or electronic device (so you can distribute game materials)
Expanded Game For Large Groups
If you have more than 8 players, there are three ways that you can accommodate everyone:
- Investigator Role – Using this method, eight guests play the primary characters while the remainder of the guests each play the Investigator role. Players in this role are not suspects and do not have character backgrounds but can question the suspects and try to solve the mystery along with the other players.
- Teams – Each primary character can be played by 2 or more people that work together as a team. This works well if you’ve invited several couples to your event, but also works if you break up your guests into eight larger teams of 3 or more guests.
- Multiple Groups – If you have 16 or more guests, you can break them up into groups of 8 players and run multiple instances of the game on their own. This method is best for large events (e.g. fundraisers) where each table of people can play through the game independently. This method goes well with the Investigator method, which allows you the flexibility to add more than 8 people to any group.
Both the standard and expanded games are included with the purchase of any game kit.
Nancy –
Headline : Don Carrasino
Nickname : Nancy
Menu Highlights : Wine, Bruschetta, salad, lasagna and cannoli's!
Theme Highlights : played music from the Godfather, red tablecloth, great costumes!
We had a great time with this mystery dinner for my son-in-law’s birthday! I sent out the parts a few days early and everyone came dressed in costume. We had a 4 course meal topped off with cannoli’s and lots of laughter! It was easy to follow and just enough playing time! Enjoying dinner while doing the mystery, it probably took about an hour to complete! Lots of fun!
Renee –
Headline : Che style party
Nickname : Renee
Menu Highlights : We served Cuban style pork and beans and rice with rum punch. Perfect.
Theme Highlights : Everyone wore costumes and we had Cuban posters and chocolate cigars. I even had the bakery make a Che Guevara cake. So much fun.
We re-wrote the mobster murder for a Che Guevrra theme, with Castro and other Cubans as the characters. We used the main script as a guideline and it was perfect. We had about 40 people for a cocktail party so we waited until all characters had arrived and then they dispersed the information one on one. That forced people to mingle and gave them something to talk about. It was perfect. No one suspected the murderer and it lasted for hours.
Rachel –
Headline : Don Carrasino
Nickname : Rachel
I used this with my middle school theater classes. They had a great time getting into character and solving the mystery. We doubled up and had two people playing each character and the rest of the class were investigators
Kay –
Headline : Saxo- phony Jazz Club 21st aprorx 120 guests
Nickname : Kay
Menu Highlights : Nibbles and supper ( cakes and slices)
Theme Highlights : Set it up like a 1920's jazz club with table and lamps. Had a 1920's play list . Everyone dressed up with 1920's costumes. Had a band play a few jazz numbers at the start of the night. We found a giant poster of a jazz band and some large music notes and records that we hung around the room. Most found online.
We had a band play a few jazz numbers at the start. We had someone act out the death and actors for the suspects. We made and extra script for a ‘ senior detective’ who happened to be at the club and he hosted the murder. There were tables of about 10 people who were groups of ‘detectives’. We made ‘case file’ sheets for them to write on when the suspects were telling the clues.
After the 3 rounds the tables had to submit who it was and why. 2 of the tables guessed the murderer. Some people found some holes in the evidence – but it didn’t seem to be a big deal. We got good feedback from the guests from the evening. We had most of the food already on the tables, and some hot finger food in the breaks and drinks at the bar. Also a 1920’s music playlist.
Saxo – phony jazz club –
Headline : 21st party - about 120 people- 1920's theme
Nickname : Saxo - phony jazz club
Menu Highlights : nibbles and supper - kept it simple
Theme Highlights : the people acting did a great job!!
We had some friends act out the death and be the suspects. We made an extra script for a senior detective who led the night. Everyone else was in tables in teams of ‘detectives’.
We made some case file sheets so that they could take notes as the suspects spoke. The clues were not water tight, but it worked out OK.
2 tables guessed the murderer. Lots of positive feedback from guests.
Shirley –
Headline : Dinner
Nickname : Shirley
Menu Highlights : Pizza Tiramisu
We had a fun dinner, talked about a mystery dinner for awhile and finally made it:)
It was good.
Characters were great! Motives were good.
I was missing more/ better clues! It was a bit repetitive. And it could have made it more exciting if more/ different clues were given.
I played different ones (for the same price) that were better thought through! And each person had a bit of reading and a story line as supposed to a "one liner" between the discussions.
Otherwise we had a fun evening playing this game.
Leslie Inderwies –
Headline : Murder on the hill
Nickname : Leslie Inderwies
Menu Highlights : Chocolate dipped pretzel sticks with red sprinkles to look like lit cigars.
Theme Highlights : Paste-on mustaches Plastic fedora Bow ties Fake cash Boxes of bootleg Guests dressed in suits and fancy hats We played swing music
We do game nights most Fridays but wanted something special for an 18th un-birthday. We only had 7 people but one our members was an aspiring actor so he took two parts with hilarious results! It was fun to get into character, we had lots of props, costumes and game themed food. I liked where we all went around the table and said who we thought was the killer and why.
Dolly –
Headline : Don Carrisino and the Mob
Nickname : Dolly
Menu Highlights : We dd appetizers for the first hour, then had the Murder and clues, and then after - had some real food.
We had a real blast. This is a great murder mystery with little to no rehearsal or script memorization. We had 8 characters plus one extra we made up which was a personal mad to THE DON – and we use The Don and had Chuckles die. It was absolutely great. Thank you so much.
Jo O’Sullivan –
Headline : A Jolly Journey to The Joint!
Nickname : Jo O'Sullivan
Menu Highlights : We just provided cold meats and salads as we wanted to keep everything low key and casual.
Theme Highlights : Most of the mood setting went into each guest providing his/her own costume and props as you'll see from the attached photo. We played an album, "Hits of the 30s" during the evening.
Video : Dublin
My resolution for 2017 was to get the family together socially more often, so I thought we’d try a Murder Mystery. While my husband and I are old hands at participating in such events, some of the younger relatives were a bit hesitant – fearing they would be expected to be top class actors! I felt a 30 minute event would be a nice introduction to the genre and I was absolutely right! Everyone admitted they had great fun putting their costumes together, and got a great laugh out of seeing each other as flappers and mobsters!
One of things I enjoyed most was the variety of American accents or Irish family produced – some seeme to be an odd mixture of Deep South and the Bronx, while others could have been Chinese/Australian!
I’ve used other murder mystery providers in the past, and Playing with Murder is the most comprehensive, easy to follow, package I’ve found to date. I look forward to downloading and playing the next one!
game lover –
Headline : Don Carrasino murder mystery
Nickname : game lover
Menu Highlights : No menu for us
Theme Highlights : I brought out the old hats and nerf guns, quick & easy.
This was played after Thanksgiving,
Our age range was from highschoolers to seniors, 11 of us. We had a great time b/c we could act in character, the answer was not obvious, and we knew it was only 30 minutes long. 🙂 The kids love mysteries, so I knew it would work.
Monica Granger –
Headline : The Halloween Murder...At the Joint
Nickname : Monica Granger
Menu Highlights : We served itilian affair...with meatballs, bruscetta, antipasto bites and pizza. Dons Drink of the day was Gin Fizz which I googled what was poplular with Mobsters. Also served Bloody Mary's which is Reginas specialty drink and our shot of the day at the Joint was Jack-O-Chata which had whiskey in it for a mix of bootleg beverage and halloween flare.
Theme Highlights : I set up.my garage like a prohibition bar.. Naming it the Joint. Had a bar set up for the drinks of the day...4 or 5 little tables set up with dark coverings with little lamps on each one for low lighting. With a deck of cards on a few of them and dish of peanuts on each. I had chairs labeled as to where each character was to sit. We played big band music as guests arrived and mingled. My husband played the Don and I was Chuckles.....about 20 minutes into party I choked and I fell over dead.
We chose to do the murder mystery for our Halloween party. It was a great success!! Everyone dressed the part for their characters and even memorized their lines and thru in a gangtser accent! Some even did some ab lib to make it more interesting.
Josh Moxon –
Headline : Youth club murder mystery
Nickname : Josh Moxon
Menu Highlights : Chocolate fondue
Theme Highlights : Mood lighting, like a western bar vibe
Youth club
Loved the storyline and characters
People getting into character and aiming for all sorts of funny impressions and accents
Hannah B –
Headline : 30th Bday Party
Nickname : Hannah B
Menu Highlights : This time I didn't make anything theme-specific, but I think next time I would get really into it and have "bar food" and drinks to set the mood.
Theme Highlights : This time I didn't make anything theme-specific, but I think next time I would get really into it and have "bar food" and drinks to set the mood. I would definitely have props next time as well!
We threw a big party for my husband’s 30th and did the murder mystery game as part of it. We had a blast using accents and over-acting our parts! We laughed a ton! I am glad we did a more scripted game for our first time; I think it helped our friends to feel more comfortable, even the more shy ones got into their parts! I definitely recommend the game and will be using another one some time! 🙂
Magdeline Bacchi Mafiosa –
Headline : Best Mafioso Murder Mystery Ever!
Nickname : Magdeline Bacchi Mafiosa
Menu Highlights : - wine - antipasto, breadsticks - lasagne
Theme Highlights : - Pandora: traditional Italian - party favors: cigars for the men, gaudy costume jewelry for the women - great costumes: hats, glasses, jewelry
I organized the Don Carrasino murder mystery game as a surprise birthday party for my husband. We had a fantastic time!
I invited four couples. After confirming all the guests could come, I sent them a group email, assigned them their characters and provided them a short character description from the Character List sheet. Additionally, I personalized their roles by adding a few sentences to the character descriptions that reflected each individual’s personal interests. For example, for Lorenzo Pennino, the Don’s chauffeur, I added, "Has a penchant for sailing and skiing. Has an obsession for stilettos. In real life, Lorenzo is coupled with Roxie "Stiletto " Russo. Her personalized lines included, "Skis and plays tennis like a demon. Has a thing for limousines and chauffeurs. "
I sent my husband on an errand. The guests arrived before my husband returned home as planned. As the guests arrived, they received their party favors: the men, cigars and the women, gaudy costume jewelry with the theme from " The Godfather" playing in the background. After my husband came in and we greeted him with "Surprise" and around of applause. I had a hat, a fedora, and a vest ready for him to wear. We had drinks and antipasto and then got started with the game.
I had folders for all with their name tags on them. Inside each was the respective character sheet. There were 10 of us at the party, my husband and I and our 8 guests. I served as the narrator/hostess and didn’t have a role. One of the male guests was the investigator. The remainder were assigned the 8 characters of the game.
The game took 30+ minutes. The length of time was perfect. Long enough to have a good time with the plot and the characters, but not too long that guests were bored. Everyone got into character. We never stopped laughing.
We followed the game with an Italian dinner of lasagne. After the birthday cake, remember that it was my husband’s birthday, the men enjoyed their cigars on the deck.
It was the best mystery party I have ever given and I’ve hosted many. My guests, who have attended them all, unanimously agreed!
Sarah H –
Headline : Mobsters Murder and Mystery!
Nickname : Sarah H
Menu Highlights : We served appetizers. Fruit, cheese & meat, desserts juice, coffee, tea
Theme Highlights : I used 1920's inspired props; feather boas, fedoras, bow ties, suspenders, cigarettes, pearls, gun, etc. Several staff wore great 20s themed costumes.
We ordered the Mini Murder Mystery for a volunteer appreciation event. We had over 35 people attend, so we set up 8 tables, and each of the characters were represented by a table of 4-5 guests.
The event went very well.
The character sheets could have been written in first-person narrative; it was confusing to guests to read “you saw…” and may have been a bit easier to follow if they read “I saw….”
Once the first round was completed, the guests became more comfortable with the game and got more into character. The revealing clue wasn’t read as guests weren’t comfortable with the wording, although they were informed they didn’t have to read verbatim – so when we got to the big reveal, the rest of the group were a bit confused.
Only one table was able to guess the true killer correctly.
Erin M. –
Headline : Mob Murder Mystery Massacre!
Nickname : Erin M.
Menu Highlights : We just had popcorn, cookies, and punch.
Theme Highlights : We played a lot of jazz music, and used a mafia-esque themed powerpoint to help highlight important people and clues.
We played Don Carrasino and the Murdered Mobster as a part of our Usher Appreciation Social fall event. We had about 30 guests, and chose to run the party as 8 tables with each table representing one character.
Things ran pretty smoothly-it did help that as a theater we had microphones handy to pass around, and good acoustics-it could have been hard for every table to hear the others otherwise. We also used a projector to have a power point running with important character and clue recaps for each round.
Our ushers are an older group, and it took them a little bit to really get into the game, but by the second round everyone seemed to be really enjoying themselves. Each table had a spokesperson, which helped the quieter guests enjoy themselves without feeling put on the spot. We had some surprising acting talents revealed! After reading other reviews, in preparation for the event we went through and changes some of the stronger language, and re-wrote all the clues in the first person. It seemed to help our guests to be able to just read the clue without trying to reword third-person to first.
We had five of the eight tables guess the correct murderer-two of the others thought it was a second person, and the last table was convinced they were the murderer.
Overall it was a fun afternoon for all. And the shorter length was nice as the main event paired with a couple smaller activities.