What’s New at Foulplay: Updated Host Guides, Investigator Roles, and 2026 Sneak Peeks
We’ve been listening closely to your feedback and questions this year–what you loved, what confused you, and what would help make your hosting experiences smoother. We’re excited to share that we’ve rolled out several updates to our Host Guides across all of our Foulplay games!
Here’s what’s new:
🔍 Investigators in every game
If you’ve played with us at PAX West or Emerald City Comic Con, you may have seen or played an Investigator character! We are excited to now offer investigator profiles and instructions in all of our games! Investigators are an alternative option for players to increase flexibility and character count for you as the host! Investigators are different from suspects in that they are there only to investigate the murder and cannot be the culprit. While they do not have secrets of their own per se, they work together with your main Investigator using clues and extra money to help solve the case. Investigator roles are perfect for kids, last-minute additions, shyer folks who may want to participate but in a more indirect role, or those who need to leave early or are unsure if they can join.
How many Investigators you can add depends on your game size:
Mini Games: 1 - 2 Investigators
Small Games: 2 - 3 Investigators
Medium Games: 3 - 4 Investigators
Large Games: 4 - 5 Investigators
👶 Including Kids & Teens
We added a new section with guidance on how to include kids in your game, plus suggestions for the best roles for younger players. While our games are written for teens and adults, we know many Foulplayers use our games for family events, so we wanted to make it easier to know where to place them. We’ve seen kids get really into their roles and have a blast!
💸 Clearer Instructions for Money & Items
We heard that hosts were unsure how the in-game money and items factored into the game, so we rewrote these sections to make it clear how they fit into the fun!
🎶 Curated Spotify & Pinterest Boards
A little ambiance goes a long way! You’ll now find direct links to theme playlists and aesthetic inspiration boards to help you set the tone whether you're going full immersive or keeping things low-key.
Updates on Gather Town and Virtual Hosting
We have updated our online guides to reflect some changes to the various online platforms we recommend for virtual parties. One of our favorite platforms, Gather, has made a few updates to its pricing plans and services. Meanwhile, Zoom and Discord have greatly expanded their options, making hosting even easier!
And while holidays are our busiest time, we have big plans for Winter 2026 to continue making improvements on our games!
We’re working behind the scenes on:
Multiple expansion packs: We have expansion packs for our ‘90s game, Die 4 U (15 suspects up to 20), the Curious Carnival (24 suspects up to 30), and Murder, She Vote (24 suspects to 30).
New Games: New themes and maybe a prequel coming in 2026!
We’re always trying to make hosting feel easy, intuitive, and fun, so tell us:
What else would make hosting more enjoyable and easier for you? Email us at foulplaycompany@gmail.com!
Thank you for being part of the Foulplay community. We truly love seeing the fun and joy you create with our games!
