How to Assign Characters for Your Murder Mystery Party

Aug 2

Planning a murder mystery game is easier than you think! You’ve got your Foulplay murder mystery game downloaded, you’ve read through the host guide, and you’ve put together your guest list and invited your friends and family. But how exactly do you tackle assigning characters? We’ve got some tips to guide you through the process!

By this point, you have invited your friends and confirmed the number of players you will have for your game. For more information and tips on this process, see Part 1 of our How to Host a Murder Mystery Game Blog Series). If you haven’t purchased your game yet, you can browse our murder mystery party games here: https://www.foulplayco.com/murdermysterygames.

All of our murder mystery games have a minimum character count (where you need to have at least the smaller number of players to play the game as intended) and a maximum character count (the largest number of in-game players the game accommodates). We use “Major” to designate characters that are more integral to the story, and “Minor” to designate characters who add depth to the story but who are not needed to move the general plot along.

Now that we’ve covered the basics, here are 5 tips for assigning characters for your murder mystery game:

To get started, it helps to have a spreadsheet of your players and the characters (which is why we recommend sending out a form with your invites!) so you can see who wants to be which character and who doesn’t have a preference. If you asked people for their top character choices, you will have that information ready to go! We also include a character spreadsheet in all of our murder mystery games you can open on your computer or print on your host guide.

However, if you don’t have a spreadsheet, good old-fashioned pen and paper works, too!
In our games, the person who plays the victim will play a new character after the murder, so be sure to leave an extra slot for them to return to the game! You should write their name by both characters they will be playing on the character assigning sheet so you remember who they are assigned to. Remember to keep it a secret from others as well so they are surprised by who dies!
As you are assigning, make sure you have enough players all playing the “Major” characters. One great feature of our games is as the Host, you do not need to know the murderer’s identity unless you want to. The murderer is one of the Major Characters, so it’s important to fill all of these spots.

We work hard to integrate all of our characters into the story, so just because a character is labeled “Minor” doesn’t mean they won’t have plenty to do during the game! It can be a good idea to assign any guests who are unsure if they can attend to a Minor character.
Depending on your group, you may find that some characters are more popular than others, so there may be certain characters that have more people vying to step into those shoes than some others. Don’t worry though if people can’t get their top choices—most people are happy to be able to play! Don't worry too much about making sure people get their top choice, as all characters have exciting goals and backstories.

Also, sometimes a choice will come right down to two people who would be great for a role, but you just can’t decide! For the sake of saving yourself time and grief, we recommend flipping a coin for those moments when you are in doubt!
When assigning roles, consider the personalities of those in your group. Generally, you want to assign more extroverted people to Major characters and the introverts to Minor characters, but that can vary from role to role. And remember, some people may surprise you!

Also, consider who among your group could make a speech or get up in front of people. Some characters need to read a short (but not difficult!) presentation after the murder occurs, so make sure anyone you assign to those roles is aware and comfortable with that.

We understand that you may feel pressured to throw the perfect party and make everyone happy—we’ve definitely been there! But after over 10 years of hosting various parties and murder mystery games, we can assure you that once you get the game started, your players will have a blast!