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Murder In The Dark

This old favourite works well for kids of most ages, from about 5 upwards. It's also a great party game for sleepovers for pre-teens.

PREP
Make enough slips of paper for 1 each. On one write "murderer", on another write "detective", and on all of the rest write "suspect".
Put the slips in a bowl and let people take one each. You can not reveal to anyone what you are.

Note: Be sure to play this in a room where no one will bump into any sharp things.

PLAY!
Someone counts to three and turns off the lights. The game begins.

The murderer finds people and taps them on the shoulder. If you are tapped on the shoulder and are a suspect, simply fall to the ground, making a few dying noises.

If you are tapped and you are the detective, you say "detective is dead". When the detective is killed, the lights go on. All dead suspects must pretend to be dead, and even the murderer himself can play dead.

The detective then surveys the "bodies" and decides who they think is the murderer. If they guess wrong, the murderer has won, but if they guess right, the detective has won.

To make it easier for young detectives, people can call out "Murderer, murderer" when they are killed.

Comments

Just as I remember playing as a child. We had so much fun. <3

It's much more fun playing it in a fairly large upstairs area with a number of people, this way you add into the mix pillow fights (and possibly thrown toilet rolls). It is much more fun to have the detective stay downstairs - out the way, while everyone wanders around in the dark. The murderer whispers "you're dead" to whomever and the person has to scream loud enough to be heard by the detective. Once the victim has screamed, no one other than the murderer and detective can move (preferably the murderer will have rushed far away before the detective turns the lights on). The detective surveys where everyone is hidden and can dismiss people to go to one designated room (not used for hiding). The suspect must not speak, the murderer is the only person who can lie, and no one can say a name (whether it is the name of the murderer or not). The detective asks questions until they can guess the murderer. If the murderer is guessed then they must answer truthfully to the detective. More fun with more people!

i love it<3

My version of the game is called "Murderer in The Crowd". What happens is everyone who's playing closes their eyes and stands against a wall. Someone who isn't playing goes around and chooses 2 people by tapping them on the shoulder. Those 2 people are the murderers. After this, everyone walks around shaking each other's hand. The murderers will scratch the people's hands. After 3 more hand shakes, the victim falls to the ground "dying dramatically. If one murderer scratches another, nothing happens. If someone gets an accusation, they can raise there hand, but not if they've been scratched, if their dead, or if they are a murderer. The game is actually to help in drama class, but it's still fun no matter where you are.

I've played a game like that, but instead of scratching, poked people's palms for the murderer.

Well when I play this game with my friends, I play it differently. First of all, there is no detective or cop, anything like that. It's just the murderer, and that's it. So we meet in the middle after someone finds a body (by yelling "body" to say that someone is dead.) or by the 10 minute period passes. And then we discuss there who the murderer might be. It's intense after night one.

Play it all the time but once one of the suspects get killed they turn on the light and the mystery starts

lovin it!!!(;):)

awesome game....
loving it

I s vote counts. If the detective was killed than majority rules. Hope you enjoy:D;)

I'll do this one for my birthday next month

I'm doing it for my Halloween party coming up soon.

Great game in a big house when you all leave the room and wander round in the dark waiting for the murderer !

worse game ever i mean really this is like the "One and two many Deaths" So here is a real game. Everybody do the same think except make the d the cop. After the cop gets a water gun. Then everybody goes around the house and someone counts down to start. The murder tries to kill everybody even the cop. If murder kills everybody then he wins. After the cop shoots an person who got shot has to say if they were murder or not, If yes then innocents win but if not and its a innocent then cop dies. Any innocent can pick up the gun from dead cop and use to defend themselves. Same thing when the innocent shoots someone. So to name this game it is "TITANIC THE BEGINNING" I hope you give this thumbs up and i will come out with more murder games.

Looks like I'm doing this for my 13th <3

I've played this except when we found another body, we'd tap them twice. No response=Dead. We would then shout, "Body! Body! Body!" The rest is pretty much the same.8|:D

cool

awsome game!!! 😆😆😆

<3:D

Omg I am SO doing this!!!!!! :D

sounds SOOOO cool, cant wait to play it:D:D<3

wait but if the detective is dead he/she comes back to life?:/

I was confused too...plz help does the detective ACTUALLY come back to life?? coz u said that the detective then investigates?

if the detective if dead I usually do majority rules and if everyone is killed but the detective then the detective wins

Trying it at my party :)

If u didnt get tapped before the detective got caught u could be a witness if u want to make it more interesting

hey
thanks for it! it was fun!

its so fun we did it at a school trip <3:D:D

Nice

cool

amaziballs-love it!

Cool game I am totally going to play this at my party<3:D

I am so definitely gonna okay this game at my sleepover!! It looks so fun!! <3

This game looks really fun and interesting I'm totally going to play it at my Party!!!!!! :):D<3

Sounds awesome my sister is turning 10 years old so she said for her birthday sleepover she would play and I can play :)

it sounds like a good game!

sounds awesome!!!<3

sounds cool :)<3 going 2 use it at 12th b-day:)

so fun! i am gonna try it on my next birthday!:)

awsome:):D

Sounds fun but what happens when everyone is dead but the detective then it's obvious...

No b/coz the murderer gets to play dead aswell so the cop doesn't know!!!!!!So fun tho I love being the murderer its kinda like a step up from wink murder which I used to really enjoy. My friends and I love playing detective/murder/murderer games so does any body know any more?? plz help me its my sleepover soon!!😜😝😤😃😄😉😎😋🎈🎂🎉🍬 =/

<3 love the idea. turning 12 soon. my friends will love this.:D:)8| hope it is nice out!

so am I lol 🎂 happy b'day I hope ur party hoes well and it is nice out for you and ur friends!!!!😉 💚 good luck with the game. I turn 12 on July but my party is September 😢 :( sucks to be busy sometimes!!!!! Ok bye happy b'day

l<3ve:D

My Birthday is in about a month (Jan. 18) and I was looking for fun party games and i found this, and it sounds so fun!

awesome dude

F***ing fun!!!

wow my cuioson would love it

I USED TO PLAY THIS AS A KID!!!! My goodness!! Thank you! I want to play this with my baby cousins when they visit!!!

dlj

its was funn<3

connie

always play it

this is quite cool for a b-day party but for kids maybe 5-7yrs old!

try cutthroat mafia it is so fun

AwesomeMaka10

I was going to play this birthday party game with my friends!

emilyjane

sooo playing this! my birthday is in 6 days and im so happy that i can keep my mates entertained :))

best game i have ever played but its totally scary when someone taps you on the shoulder and none of your friends are awake later on omg!!! this actualy happened, ghosts haunt me guyyyss saaaaaveeee meeeeeeee

Name>Error<

Halloween game, great.

WhyDoYouCare!x

By just reading this it sounds fab, where so going to play it, thankss! =)) x

itsa good game to play with ur friends

??????

this is a great game

Ilike it

Demetra

ill play it at my party

I like it my mom said she used to play it

Me+my friends are gonna play this at my bday ive played it before, its so awesome i love it!

i having a fire and we always play hide and go seek tag so this is something new to play thanx

your explaning and how you said it was fab thx

yourdad

this game rocks im playing it at my bday

Haha :D This Game Is Brilliant For Kids Of All Ages.

awesome

graci

i loved this game we playes it out side tho.

Intedyonert

hi, new to the site, thanks.

Beenz

This sounds so awesome! I'm having a spa party but still want games because i'm not sure if everyone's going to like the theme, but this game sounds soooooooooo fun! I CAN'T WAIT TO TRY IT OUT!

cool games

i love this game we play it in school

what are the suspects supposed to do when the lights go off!?

i love this game! played it at my bday party, its a lot of fun, especially if you do it in a small place, like a bathroom or if you have a walk in closet! Everyone knocks into each other and its pretty fun!

I WILL PLAY IT AT MY SLEEPOVER ON FRIDAY MY FRIENDS WILL LOVE IT!

awesome game i played it yesterday at my sleepover it is my fav game

i do not understand the game,can someone explain to me.

ella

i think t his is a fab game and going to play it

What if the detective is killed first?
They stop, and the detective must simply take a guess.
A more innocent version could be Freeze Tag, and the play stops when the chosen 'detective' role is tagged. Of course, it can get difficult when the kids are frozen and you're trying to move around!
I played this at a family gathering with the kids...The detective guessed right because the murderer got her last!

tash

this game is awesome... playin it tomorrow might with the mates :)

wow im havein ga b-day party next weekend and we are SOOOO gonna play this .... thankz for puting it on here !!!!!!!!!

omg havin a party this weekend gonna be a fab game thnx xx

is there a more innocent version- like different words and name, just same type of game?

bobby

heyyyaaa this is amzingg i played yesterday at my sleepover! xx

bobby afrooo

OMG THIS SOUNDS MEGA GOOD IM GONNA PLAY IT AT MY NEXT SLEEPOVER!!!!!!!!! xx

i have a question. who surveys the suspects if the dectective is killed???!???

mystrious stranger :P

i lov it i will surely play it tmrw at mah b'day party
thanx

(optionnnnnnal)

This game is sooooo fun you should really give it a go!!!

Melody

omg i love this great idea!!!:) cant wait to try on my b day tomorrow!!! {12th b day 2morrow im so excited!!!}

I'm so playin dis at my sleepover b-day party sounds like so much fun

Gabi

it was so much fun i played it at my 12th birthday party everybody loved it !!!!!!!! i play it at home with just me my brothe and my sister (my cuz when shes here we always play it) its a great rainday type game or ever if u dont have any thing to do this game it cool

great game lovee it thanks xxx

awsome song we used 2 play it at camp

omg i love this game... gotta play it at a paarty

We did it with about 18 people, but we play it deifferently. No detective, and when someone stumbles on a dead body they call a town meeting and all the living people try to vote out the murderer, if not done the night contunies. This game is totally fun though, I love it. <3

abby

me and my friends are definitly playing it at my overnight birthday party WOOT

this game sounds good but doesn't really make SENSE!!!!

I've been playin this for years! My friends and I called it something else though. It's loads of fun! And funny!

OMG its awsome, not, jk but it doesn't sound that fun. it needs work

dom....

this is an AWESOME game me and my bffs ALWAYS used to play this game when we were younger. :] we used to LOVE this game you SHOULD play this game its so good for slumber parties and sleep overs with alot of people over !!!!!!!!!!! :D

I Am Going To Play This With My Friends At My Next Sleepover! Im Hoping I'm The Murderer So When The Detective Dies,I Can Pretend To Be Dead!

me and my friends luv it

prettyprincess8475

i can't wait to play!! mi friends wil loe it :}

victoria rox!!

my fav game eva!!!

I'm going to play this game on my sleep over tomorrow.Thanks for the idea.

this game is the best halloween game ever!!!

swicked!!! sweet and wicked!

its ok. but i have played better games of murder in the dark. ):(

VERY KOOL!!! THIS WEEKEND HAVING FIRST SUMMER PARTY WITH BOYS!!!! IT WILL B A GREAT HIT!

M-T

This is an awesom games i luv it!!!!!!!

i cant wait to try this i suggested it to a friend and she's going to use it for her sleep over!

TIFFY

THIS GAME IS JUST RIGHT FOR PRETEENS LIKE MYSELF

this game sounds quite fun and I am gonna play it @ my sleepover!

Great game, i am going to play it at my next sleepover

lizzy

i played it at my birthday party last year it was great

This is the most perfect game for my birthday party and sounds like tons of fun.

Its really fun! I play this a lot whenever I am bored! I am so happy I found this website!!!!!!!!!!

Very creative!!!

A great game (even for 3 people)! It was fun! Thanks1!!

keegan

sounds sweet

OPT Tim from next door

We are definitely going to play this at our next sleepover (tim's first ever sleep-over!) Make sure you don't lose the game.

omg so kool

bec

i finally no how 2 play. im playing it at my slumber-party

Misa

sounds cool for teenagers

Court

gthis game played so many time love it and all my friends do to.

sounds like fun!!!!!

uncle nob head

this game is mint I tried it

funky chicken

i play this game with my frineds at all my sleepovers! I totally love it! So does everyone else. Whenever my friends come over they are like 'omg! When are we gonna play that murderer game?'

it sure sounds fab to me who ca fault
it

this game is top i havent played it but it sounds great

It's a great game. When we used to play it at parties in England, the detective would ask everyone what they were doing at the time of the murder. They would make up silly answers. That way the detective could have a better chance at guessing by seeing how guilty they looked or whether they giggled when answering.

Katie

MURDER IN THE DARK IS FAB!! I PLAYED WITH MY GRANDMA!I DIDNT THINK SHE WOULD REALLY DIE THOUGH MAYBE I DIDNT QUITE UNDERSTAND THE RULES?!

THIS GAME IS REALLY FUN AND I WOULD LOVE TO PLAY IT AGAIN.I PLAYED IT WITH MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY.

amanda

this game rocks.

Ella

Me and my whole family play it in my grandparents hotel at Christmas as it's closed to guests in autum...awesom fun!

Maddie JAckson

THIS IS THE BEST GAME!!!!!

jj

It's like so cool it great for halloween

ohh, i can't wait to play that with my friends tommorow night!

katelyn

yea it sound like great fun i may play it at my 13th party later this month!! we play games sorta likeit at my school

lauren

This game sounds like s00 much fun! I bet my friends will love this game!

its looks fun and it is anyone who is anyone should play it

this is the best game ever!!!!!!

Rae

Thats a great game to play with the kids I babysit!!!

i love this game!!.i even play it just with my little brother and sistersi kind of stopped playing after the fan fell on my foot and cut it open....but i guess that makes murder even more bloody!

i use to play this wen i was like 10 then totally forgot about it except the detective would go out of the room while the murder happened and every1 had 2 make up an alibi

this game sounds awesome! im going to a sleepover today and we are for sure going to play it!

This game's awsome, I always play it!!

i <3 this game. it makes me so happy. hours of fun, makes a great party theme. get your friends together, dress up, and have a murder mystery party!

absolutly stupid (not)

this game loos cool i might play it at my slumber party

the best game ever

I alway's play it at my sleepovers, it's getting a bit old now.

f.n

i like this game its good for young kids and im sure older kids will have fun playing this game also

keshia

kool game

wow, that sounds like woah funn! i`m gonna try that!

chelsea

Sounds really cool I might play at my sleeepover.

crystal b.

this game rocks

Nicole

This game is awesome. It is a great time consumer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

melissa

cool sounds like a fab game thanks i cant wait till my sleeepover now ill defentily play that game

i love this game.