£49.95
Add intrigue to your next party with this murder mystery game, set at a Manhattan cocktail party.
You and your guests have been invited to the anniversary bash of Mr. Francis Fisk, a noted businessman. The attendees include a number of Fisk’s high-society friends, family members, and business associates. These high society sophisticates live in a world of intrigue, gossip, treachery and endless jockeying for social superiority.
Things take a turn for the deadly when a rolling blackout provides someone with the opportunity to advance their social agenda in a more brutally direct fashion than most of the guests are familiar with. When the lights come back on, a grisly crime is discovered!
Reputations are at stake and no one at the party wants to risk the scandal of press and police involvement. Now the guests must work together to sift through the evidence and identify the killer in their midst!
There are 25 primary suspects in this mystery, however only 10 are required to play the game. The host or hostess will play the role of Taylor Walker, the head caterer. Read the "How To Play" section for more information on how to play an expanded game with more than 25 guests.
* = Optional character
Follow these steps to host this mystery:
If you have extra players, there are two ways that you can accommodate everyone:
Both the standard and expanded games are included with the purchase of any game kit.
Read more about Expanded Games here
Visit our How to Host a Mystery Party page to get step-by-step instructions on how to prepare for your murder mystery party.
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E Morg –
Headline Too complicated
Nickname E Morg
I picked this mystery because it said it was appropriate for teens. This was way too complicated and involved for the group of 16-17 y/o’s we had envisioned this for.
Kathryn –
Headline Our first Murder Mystery event was a HUGE success!
Nickname Kathryn
Menu Highlights We wanted to serve heavy hors d'oeuvres to encourage mingling. We served black forest ham & swiss sliders, cranberry orange meatballs, chicken salad on naan bites, caprese salad skewers, vegetable crudite. For dessert we served strawberry shortcake skewers and chocolate & PB truffles. We served cranberry ginger beer mocktails and had sparkling cider.
Theme Highlights We used our formal dining room and living room/study for the event. We had 12 people attended so the space was completely sufficient. We purchased two large vinyl backdrops to place outside over two large windows in the party rooms to set the scene of a penthouse in New York. We used low lighting and had a lot of candles throughout. We had smooth jazz New York style music playing in the background throughout the party.
It was our very first attempt of hosting a murder mystery dinner. And only one of our guests had ever attended a murder mystery event ever. We had high expectations and Murder in Manhattan didn’t disappoint! The guide covered everything and was very easy to follow. We look forward to hosting another one soon and will return to this site for our next selection!
Lx3 –
Headline A Party to Die For!
Nickname Lx3
Menu Highlights Lamb Skewers Arancini Chianti Prosciutto & Melon Cannoli
Theme Highlights Wax Envelopes, all the candles, italian music, bloodied evidence
Everyone had such a great time. Party of 14 ages 7-70 and everyone showed up dressed to impress and in character! I wish there was a way for the host to assume more of an active role in the mystery, but I still had an amazing time watching the story unfold infront of me! Definitely want to do it again!
Hellohello –
Headline Halloween party
Nickname Hellohello
This party was super fun. I have never run a murder mystery party before (though I’ve participated in them), and don’t find myself to be particularly gifted in this arena, but even I could run this party with ease. It was a ton of fun for my guests, and people has a great time getting into character. It was also a great way to break the ice for a group of people that didn’t all know each other. So fun!
Alina –
Headline A Unique Birthday Party!
Nickname Alina
I hosted Murder in Manhattan for my birthday this year because I wanted to get my friends together for something different and had always wanted to throw a murder mystery party. Everything went so smoothly and I was surprised that everyone got really into it. I set the game up kind of like an escape room to add some more dimensions to it. It was challenging but not too difficult and everyone had a great time going through the clues to figure out the culprit!
Mark Z. –
Headline Awesome experience!
Nickname Mark Z.
Menu Highlights Brisket, potato salad, and nachos. We also had a cake made with a knife going down the center.
Theme Highlights We rented a hall located inside a 100 year old building to set the mood. We decorated with police tape, old candles and murder mystery books as center pieces.
15th Birthday Celebration
Awesome outcome. We purchased the Murder in Manhattan and made it a costume party as well. The party goers were excited and out going for the mystery and it made the dance afterwards even better. Thank you Playing with Murder!
JT –
Headline A celebration to remember!
Nickname JT
Menu Highlights A night of sushi and Taco Bell haha
Theme Highlights We stuck to black and gold, added wax seals to all the invites, and set the mood with string lights and candles.
Murder in Manhattan was a great way to celebrate my 25th birthday with friends! A murder mystery has been long talked about and everyone went all out for this first experience. Looking forward to another very soon!
MurderMysteryMom –
Headline A 21st birthday hit!
Nickname MurderMysteryMom
Menu Highlights We did finger foods during act 1 and birthday cupcakes and sparkling cider during act 2.
Theme Highlights We decorated in black and gold. We had a photo booth where we used black tablecloths and gold streamers. We had ambiance music playing in the background.
Murder in Manhattan was our daughter’s 21st birthday party. It took a little prep ahead of time but the kit made everything so easy! The kids came dressed for the part and it was so fun watching them in character all evening! They had a great time learning about all the other characters and trying to figure out who the killer is!
MurderMom –
Headline Whodunnit!
Nickname MurderMom
Menu Highlights We served finger foods for the first act and cupcakes during act 2.
Theme Highlights We decorated in black and gold. We used black table cloths and gold confetti with candles in the middle for the blackout scene.
Murder in Manhattan was a success! It was my daughters 21st birthday and we celebrated with about 20 of her friends at college. The kit made it so easy! The prep work ahead of time made the evening go so smoothly! The kids came dressed for their part. It was so much fun watching them in character all evening!
PinkPartyPanda –
Headline DINNER WITH A SIDE OF SECRETS
Nickname PinkPartyPanda
Menu Highlights Tri-tip dinner with a sweet salad and rolls. Red wine, Jack and coke, and non alcoholic sangria to drink.
Theme Highlights Plenty of candles around the room as well as flashlights. Very high fashion attendees. Played New York Bar Jazz playlist on Spotify.
We had a reunion of friends and played out Murder in Manhattan. It was a blast and easy to follow. The scavenger hunt had everyone running around but unfortunately the killer got away!!
Heather R –
Headline Murder in Manhattan: A bloody success
Nickname Heather R
Menu Highlights We made Manhattan cocktails of course!
This was the second party kit I purchased from Playing with Murder and it was another hit. The info package may seem overwhelming at first but it really isn’t too complicated. The characters have great back stories that my friends loved and got really into. I would love if the character info and other info that I needed to print was in smaller font and easier to print double sided – I used a lot of paper and usually try to reduce my paper consumption. Other than, that I love these kits and would certainly recommend!
Kristian Keller –
Headline High Work but Even Higher Reward! 10/10 recommend.
Nickname Kristian Keller
Menu Highlights We served food in two courses. I created an extra "role" the chef Helga von Schumann to coordinate the caterers and the food. Our first course was appetizers including mini quiches, teriyaki meatballs, and garnished cheese and crackers. Our next course was dessert where the servers brought out some chocolate cake with whipped cream and berries on the side.
Theme Highlights We used a navy blue and silver color scheme for the party. Our goal was elegant but not heavy handed. We used blue and silver streamers, table clothes, and balloons (Including a half balloon arch made by one of my guests who knows how to make balloon arches). We accented this with silverware and silver platters for the servers as well as navy blue napkins for the desserts.
I hosted this party because my friends and I have always wanted to experience a murder mystery party. And let me tell you this did not disappoint. I ended up hosting the game with all of the characters in play which worked much better than I was expecting. All of the characters had compelling and interesting motivations and things to do. I would definitely recommend this for anyone looking for a higher level of murder mystery party experience. It took a lot more work on the part of the host and guests then any other product I have encountered, but all of that work paid off in making an unforgettable experience.
Rachel H. –
Headline Great fun for adults!
Nickname Rachel H.
Menu Highlights Finger foods And appetizers. Crostini, cause skewers, cheese and crackers plates, wine, mini pastries
We did Murder in Manhattan as a party for my husband’s 39th birthday over the summer. It was perfect for playing out on our patio, since we were concerned about having people inside due to Covid. There were 9 of us and we had a fantastic time! Our guests really got into character! The party kit was very simple to use, and included character descriptions, prompts, clues and audio clips, Which really gave the party the extra fun touches. We plan on doing more of these mystery parties in the future!
Nin –
Headline It brought us together as one team with one goal
Nickname Nin
Menu Highlights We had canapes with a cheese and biltong platter for everyone to snack one between scenes
Theme Highlights We prepacked and prepared props for each person to get into character since it was a surprise event
As part of our year end function we had a surprise murder in manhattan mystery event. The event encouraged all staff members to communicate with each other to try and solve the murder and to get to know each character. It was a great end of the year team building and communication exercise and we look forward to hosting the next one!
EG –
Headline Great night had by all, only a few suggestions!
Nickname EG
All in all, a great night was had for our Murder in Manhattan party. A lot of guests commented that they had been to other Murder Mystery parties before, but none had been this organized. There is a lot of work to go into planning this one out and you do need to take a few hours to read the story and the character backgrounds of all playing. Some guests will have studied their sheets, but others who want to drink and relax will come to you with questions on their character, so you need to know all backgrounds pretty deeply.
Prep is key! The materials had everything needed, but I did find it a bit difficult to locate specific character sheets, and key story data in the long 170 page PDF. What would be helpful would be to have the pdf titled with sections on the left hand side in your PDF viewer that you can quickly click to when you need to locate something. I also think that a great document to include would be a summarized story for the Party Host on the backgrounds and motive for the killer to easier understand the arching story. I had to flip through the killers character sheets and few other spots within the PDF to actually piece together why the killer killed so that I could make it feasible for the guests at the end of the night. Make sure that everyone is pretty quiet when the lights go out! A few people gasped right away and started screaming and they could not hear the audio file for the murder. Best to play it on a good speaker, not your phone or computer. People immediately wanted to talk and ham up their character reaction during this part. I also found that the dead body clue is a bit redundant so feel free to leave that one out of the scavenger hunt. Guests are searching for things to give them more information, but at this point they have already seen the real dead body during the murder, so a few guests were confused that the dead body clue token did not have more information.
A few things I would do next time is prepare a real locked cellphone with notes in it on the 4 clues, a real file folder with the files inside, and perhaps a plastic play knife with blood on it. Guests REALLY got into this part and while the paper tokens were helpful, it was hard to pretend they were a real item with information on them. You could even go as far as to pre record Jo’s camera footage and play it for all the guests! So many ways to be creative with this one, and everyone really enjoyed it.
Anne –
Headline Fancy & Fun!
Nickname Anne
Theme Highlights Hired a bartender to make it extra classy! Upscaled “cocktail” attire to ball gowns! Laminated the name tags!
Murder in Manhattan was an absolute blast. Guests loved the opportunity to dress extra fancy and have drinks at their beck & call. Overall the game was easy to conduct and by the end of the night, multiple people were guessed as murderers which was fun!
Mrs. Lundy –
Headline Last day of school murder!
Nickname Mrs. Lundy
Menu Highlights cupcakes, fruit punch, and individual bags of chips
I used the party as a last day of school activity for my 7th graders. We were able to complete it in a 90-minute block. The kids had a blast!
Laura D –
Headline Sweet Sixteen Murder Mystery Was a Hit!
Nickname Laura D
Menu Highlights Fun finger food, set up a "bar" with "bartender" as per the script, catered pasta and salad for main meal served buffet style, and dessert birthday cake was white frosted and red velvet so when you cut in...murderous red is revealed!
Theme Highlights We had it in our home with a large window in the living room--pulled down the shade and voila--movie screen. So we projected film noir all night long. Also had black and white movie running on downstairs TV where we put up a backdrop for photos with paper props for posing. Dim lighting and little candles on window sill plus little lights strung out everywhere. Created different areas for eating, lounging both indoors and out. Outside we had chairs, fire pit, ping pong table. Everyone could mingle and have plenty of secret side conversations. Kids all came in costume. My younger son, husband and I dressed with white shirts and black aprons. We were the hired help "hosts" so daughter could play a role and she got an awesome red sequined dress online for cheap--the key to this party was PLANNING. So much in advance that I got most stuff on the cheap which made it all the better :) Best bit: drawing a chalk body on kitchen floor. We had JUST replaced it with slate tile so it was perfect.
Pre-Covid, forgot to post a review for our daughter’s sweet sixteen–we did this murder mystery and it was off the charts fun. She is in a theater arts program and that made up guest list–about 18 or so. I have done quite a few murder mysteries over the years. The one really worked well. We decorated to the hilt, getting creative wherever possible. The story is terrific though–and only 3 people guess correctly at the end. People were engaged and enjoying all of it. Very adaptable to any setting.
Tbrewt10 –
Headline The Best Time Every
Nickname Tbrewt10
Menu Highlights Served finger foods, i.e. chicken, meatballs, chips and dip, shrimp cocktail, chicken cheese dip, etc Made a batch of rum punch cocktail to make serving drinks much easier
Theme Highlights I did not have the 2 week lead way, I did it in 48 hours. Very doable. sent the information to print, separated into packets and when guest arrived had a packet with their character name on it. Made a VIP list and sent a text in advance stating if they were not on the VIP list they could not get in. They gave their character name at the door and we had a VIP list on clip board, just to enhance the excitement of the "penthouse cocktail party" Decorated with VIP signs and other appropriate decorations. did not have to use a lot
Birthday party for my son hosted at our home. We did Murder in Manhattan, everyone loved it. people were really in their character, we adlibbed a bit to make it more personalized. The special effects included in the packet were very helpful
CCB –
Headline Engaging for every character!
Nickname CCB
Menu Highlights We served appetizers with a New York twist- reuben, pizza, mini hot dogs, etc.
Theme Highlights A pillar candle with the Manhattan skyline on each table on an upended wine glass ( see photo) with an apple ornament. (The candles were battery operated from discount store)
This mystery was the theme for my 60th birthday party five years ago. It was a great success. I am glad the theme has held up over the years!
Searching for a new party for this holiday I decided to share my review and photos.
Taylor Walker –
Headline Murder at a 50th birthday
Nickname Taylor Walker
Great way to celebrate turning 50 – a fun and silly night for all. Easy to follow and we were even able to involve kids who did really well too.
Gemma –
Headline Eager to try another theme!!
Nickname Gemma
Menu Highlights We did mostly finger foods: sandwiches, quiches, cakes etc. Lots of red wine and champagne!
Theme Highlights The setting is very simple so I did minimal, nice paper decorations, lots of candles and posh glasses.
Fab evening with the game Murder in Manhattan! I live in Paris so I had to translate the whole game (Google translate did the trick,) and customize/remake all of the printable material. The pack made this very easy to do and as a newbie I found the instructions simple to follow and organise. We had a wonderful evening and the guests loved it! The murderer got away scot-free, little bugger!
ecrawford –
Headline Great for a family event!
Nickname ecrawford
Menu Highlights cocktail style finger-foods (shrimp, mini sandwiches, etc)
Theme Highlights Costumes and props!
My family was all together for Christmas last year. I handed out their character sheets as gifts for everyone, and they were all so shocked and excited! A couple of days later, everyone showed up with props and costumes. We had a blast!
megroz36 –
Headline A great success
Nickname megroz36
Menu Highlights I made a ton of finger foods-think charcuterie. Lots of meat, cheese, fruit and veggies. We made lemon drop martinis and gin martinis.
Theme Highlights Silver and gold theme with lots of fairy lights
We had this murder mystery party just because. Our friends really got into their characters and went all out with their outfits and acting. We had an absolute blast. The information they “knew” about other characters made the game so much fun. My guests really enjoyed spilling secrets about other people while trying to keep their own on the down-low. They surprised me by really getting into hunting for evidence and making accusations. Our ages ranged from 23-45. Part of what made this party a success was that I matched my guests’ personalities to the characters. They didn’t have to do anything they weren’t comfortable with and were able to lean into their character a little more. The highlight of the evening was all of the funny conversations that could be heard between characters. It was a wonderful evening.
Charlotte –
Headline Murder in Manhattan
Nickname Charlotte
I highly recommend purchasing Murder in Manhattan! I hosted a murder mystery party for my birthday this year, and it was an unforgettable experience. All of my friends dressed up as New York elite. If you purchase this, I recommend going all out with decorations and props. It makes the evening feel more “real.” I purchased a mugshot photo backdrop, so my friends and I took “mugshots” in front of it to create a suspect board. It’s fun to get into character, and I would definitely purchase another kit in the future.
Dutchman in Tennessee –
Headline The most fun we have had with family in a long tim
Nickname Dutchman in Tennessee
We had a family (14) 70th birthday party for my wife.
We used the Manhattan Murder Mystery dinner party and loved it
It was well worth the money, we purchased the full version and was glad we did.
The package of materials was a download, it was was well done and very thorough. There was a lot to print, so that will be an extra expense for paper and ink.
We did a lot with decorations to make our open floor plan look like a Manhattan suite.
Everyone had a blast, they dressed the part and played their characters well.
It was a lot of work to pull off, but the memories will last forever.
Brame versus brains –
Headline Brains and beauty
Nickname Brame versus brains
My party is not until September and I am thankful I have all of this planning time. There will be 16 family members together for 4 days so we will have time for the excitement to build.
Yeast Witch –
Headline CANCELLED due to Covid-19
Nickname Yeast Witch
Sorry, we had to cancel our event due to the Covid-19 crisis. Hope to reschedule.
Jessica –
Headline one man's death is another man's party!
Nickname Jessica
Menu Highlights make your own moscow mules!
Theme Highlights lots of battery operated candles, black and gold table clothes, confetti on the tables, and plenty of drinks!
my first time using “playing with murder,” and my first time participating in a murder mystery party! the character stories were easy to understand and made the game even more interesting! im glad there were so many character options so all our guests could play, even the character who died could return in act 2!
Ruairi –
Headline My friend Maebh's 30th birthday!
Nickname Ruairi
Ah we had a fab night with Murder in Manhattan. It was for my friend’s 30th birthday party. Just playing the characters was so much fun and the discussion around who it did was great also. Thanks so much. I highly recommend it!