Are you a fan of detective movies? In this article you will discover our ranking of the best detective movies of all time (it wasn’t easy at all!).
We also invite you to play detective stories with our MYSTERYFY app, downloadable for free from App Store and Google Play! The app has a rich catalog of stories inspired by best detective movies! Discover them now!
DETECTIVE MOVIES: all the sub-genres of the crime fiction
Detective movies have always fascinated the general public. The atmospheres, settings and stories are always different. Despite this, these films, often based on wonderful novels, have the common feature of creating a suspense and tension that will not always recompose in the finale.
Each of the following films is inspired by a different sub-genre of crime fiction.
Now it’s time to discover the 15 best detective movies that have made this genre a must in cinematography and also one of the most acclaimed genres.
A scene with Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman from the movie Seven
BEST DETECTIVE MOVIES: the top 15
It is certainly difficult to draw up a ranking of the best detective movies ever. We tried to draft our own. Next to each title will be indicated the year, the director and the genre.
Enjoy!
THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (1991): directed by Jonathan Demme. Genre: crime, thriller, serial killer.
THE NAME OF THE ROSE (1986): directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud. Genre: crime, historical.
SEVEN (1995): directed by David Fincher. Genre: crime, thriller.
THE UNTOUCHABLES (1987): directed by Brian De Palma. Genre: crime, action.
Folk Horror is a horror subgenre that has been experiencing a lot of success in recent years.
In this article, we will discover the main characteristics of this genre and why it is liked by the public so much.
Certainly, if you are a fan of folk horror stories, we recommend downloading our MYSTERYFY app for free. In the catalog, among the many thrillers, you will also find stories inspired by this genre.
FOLK HORROR: settings, themes and typical elements
The term “folk horror” was first used in 2004 by director Piers Haggard to describe his old film Blood on Satan’s Claw. It represents a subgenre of classic horror and originates from macabre and mysterious popular legends.
Usually, the settings are desolate lands, marshes inhabited by witches, remote mountain churches, villages that hide unspeakable mysteries, farms in isolated countryside where grotesque individuals dwell and much more. In general, folk horror settings are inspired by peasant life and draw on many of the themes from extra-urban popular culture.
For that reason, the most frequent themes deal with ancient legends linked to specific places, esoteric rituals, heinous crimes committed in restricted communities, religion and paganism. Typically, the recurring narrative elements are superstition, the lack of communication between the characters, the silent demonic presence, the sense of isolation (real or metaphorical), the link with a distorted religiosity that often sees in the freaks or sinful women a source of evil.
An old cottage by a river… what dark secrets will it hide?
A rapidly growing subgenre
In a world dominated by frenetic urban life, the rediscovery of the space outside cities and its mysteries represents an “unknown” to be discovered. But in the countryside, far from technology and crowded streets, the horror of the isolation or the supernatural awaken our atavistic fears. In the last decade, thanks also to the splendid realization of some movies, there has been a rediscovery of folk horror.
TOP 5 FOLK HORROR MOVIES
We love folk horror and we think there are at least five movies you must watch, if you want to dive into this subgenre:
The last two movies are the most recent and represent the contemporary rediscovery of the genre. Unlike classic horror characterized above all by the jump scare, these films dig deep into human emotions creating tension and psychological discomfort.
All crime fiction is based on a mystery to be solved. But since the beginning of the crime fiction in the early 1800s to the thousands of contemporary authors this genre has evolved continuously, creating new sub-genres and crossovers.
But what are these sub-genres and, in general, why may it be so important to define these sub-genres?
Because it helps to understand what to expect or how to choose a book or a movie. And, if you are an author (or a wannabe author), it helps to understand your audience, what are their expectations and tastes.
CRIME FICTION SUB-GENRES
Crime fiction falls into a wide range of sub-genres and their definition is anything but univocal. Depending on the various critics or authors, the crime fiction is divided differently. Moreover, the main sub-genres have different styles and shades, creating further sub-genres. We also should consider that the crime fiction is in continuous evolution and new sub-genres arise from time to time.
Now let’s see what are the main crime fiction sub-genres… an some more unusual!
THE CLASSIC CRIME FICTION (CLASSIC WHODUNIT)
The classic crime fiction is the detective fiction, where the deduction skill of the detective is the key element. In fact, this sub-genre is based on the difficulty of the investigation, on the deduction and on the precision of the resolution.
Mysteries of this type prefer the complexity of the mechanics of a crime over the in-depth study of the characters and the meticulous description of the setting. Central importance is also given by the display of alibis and motives of the suspects. The suspects’ alibi is often crucial and must be meticulously analyzed.
Therefore, this kind of crime fiction is like a game, a challenge, where the detective has to solve the intricate enigma with the power of his mind. As a result, there is a “virtuosity” of the author on how, where and when deploy the pieces of the puzzle and there is a transfer from the detective to the reader so the real challenge of intellect and deduction is between himself and the author.
At the end of the story, the detective exposes the solution of the crime to the suspects, answering the two famous questions: Who did it? And how?
The story has a conclusion defined as “reconciling”, that is, it ends without particular consequences for the characters.
THE LOCKED-ROOM MYSTERY
A theme that has been used by many authors is the so-called “Locked-Room”.
A murderer managed to kill a person in a seemingly impossible way, inside a virtually sealed place where no one, apparently, could have managed to get in or out.
The discovery of the body plunges the investigator into a sort of illusionist show in which not only deduction but also lateral thinking can help transform the impossible into real, and finally solve the mystery.
Noir (black in French) fiction put greater emphasis on the psychology of the characters and the setting. In fact, in noir stories the centrality of the narrative is represented by the events that happen, the context where they happen and what they determine on a psychological level to the characters who experience them.
The protagonists are either victims, suspects, or perpetrators, and they often have a self-destructive attitude or make self-destructive choices. Even when the detectives are the protagonists, they’re more like anti-heroes, troubled by their past or their personal demons.
And also, the situations they experience try to push them to the edge, forced to deal with a corrupt system where they may become either victim and/or executioner, designated for a lose-lose situation.
Can the crooked cop be the good guy and the kind doctor the victimizer? Yes, of course, because “noir is different. In noir, everyone is fallen, and right and wrong are not clearly defined and maybe not even attainable” (Megan Abbott).
MEDITERRANEAN NOIR
The main themes of these stories have a strong connection with reality and generally the stories have important social implications. The themes dealt with are those of the underworld, organized crime, poverty and the general underdevelopment of the southern regions in contrast with the mildness of the climate, the beauty of the landscapes and the goodness of the typical food and wine.
AMERICAN HARDBOILED
Hardboiled is the typical style of American thrillers.
The difference between hard-boiled and noir mysteries is subtle. Consequently, some critics associate hardboiled fiction with the noir genre, while others tend to consider them as two distinct genres. Both genres feature violence, sex and have a rough and gritty tone, but in noir, the protagonist isn’t a detective, but a victim, a suspect, and/or a perpetrator of crime.
The main feature of the hardboiled stories is that they are very focused on the figure of the detective (a private eye or an ex-cop), on his rude ways and on his tormented psychology.
The settings are the American metropolis, with their crooked cops, corrupted politicians and violent mobsters.
Historical crime fiction captures the details of the time period as accurately as possible for authenticity, including social norms, manners, customs, and traditions. Many novels of this genre tell fictional stories that involve actual historical figures or historical events.
So, the plot is a combination of historical episodes (and persons) and fictional events. Consequently, historical crime fiction is able to transport the audience into the narrative of the selected.
The protagonists are usually highly educated and smart, such as curious renegade monks, lawyers and scholars.
Spy stories involve espionage, clever spies, intelligence agencies, rogue states, ruthless corporation and evil masterminds. The context of the story is very important, because usually there is a high stake involved that can change the world or the lives of millions of people or their freedom.
In spy fiction, good and bad parties are clearly defined. The protagonist is on a mission, so the story has a lot of action. An articulate plot is also fundamental in a good spy story, so there is usually a complicated plan of the bad guy the spy has to stop, double agents and twists. The spy crime fiction is definitely adrenaline and the readers are called to solve the mystery along with the main character.
Psychological thrillers share many of their key elements with mystery and crime fiction, but the investigation, rather than being based on the search for evidence and clues, is focus on the psychological motives of the characters. The suspects have very defined personalities and generally a difficult past, perhaps repressed or unknown.
The story is often told through the eyes of psychologically stressed characters, so that the narrative may be distorted by their flawed perceptions.
Therefore, the irrational impulses, the unspoken desires and the psychological deviations of the characters are at the center of the story, and only understanding these characters the mystery can be solved. Consequently, the protagonist, like a psychologist, must delve into the mind of the killer to solve the case.
GRIP LIT
Grip lit is a combination of the crime fiction with the chick lit sub-genres (or literature for girls). Therefore, we can consider grip lit fiction (also known as domestic thriller) as a sub-genre of the psychological crime fiction, generally with female characters and domestic settings.
The Grip Lit novels can be considered “feminine psychological detective stories” as the protagonists of these stories are tormented women struggling with sentimental or family dramas added to the psychological problems of the protagonists.
The protagonists of these stories, generally victims and heroines, live within unrevealed mysteries, dangerous secrets and repeated lies.
SERIAL KILLER
One of the most jaw-dropping sub-genre of the crime fiction is for sure serial killer fiction.
Most fictional serial killer narratives employ the serial killer as a plot device, and sometimes they relegate the character to the secondary role of antagonist. However, sometimes authors choose a first-person serial killer narrative, using the story as a vehicle to explore the psyche of the killer, a real “human monster”.
In any case usually the investigation is focused on defining the killer’s modus operandi, trying to profile his deviance by relating the psychological motives to the evidence discovered.
Probably there is no univocal definition of thriller fiction. According to International Thriller Writers, a thriller is characterized by “the sudden rush of emotions, the excitement, sense of suspense, apprehension, and exhilaration that drive the narrative, sometimes subtly with peaks and lulls, sometimes at a constant, breakneck pace.”
In short, thriller fiction is designed to hold the interest by the use of a high degree of intrigue, suspense and action.
LEGAL THRILLER
The legal thriller is a sub-genre of thriller and crime fiction which combines the heart-pounding suspense of the thriller with procedural and crime elements.
The system of justice itself is always a major part of these works, at times almost functioning as one of the characters. In general, “Justice” itself tends to be the main theme of the story and the characters are often driven by an overwhelming need of justice.
The protagonists are always key players in a court of law such as district attorneys, defense attorneys, corporate litigators, personal injury lawyers, judges, and jurors. In most cases they are willing to sacrifice everything, even their own lives, to bring justice.
MEDICAL CRIME FICTION
Medicine is a powerful narrative tool because it is in itself mysterious. Not by chance medical mystery is one of the most popular sub-genres.
Hospital or labs are obviously a key element of the setting. In most cases the protagonists are coroners who, based on the clues found on the victim’s corpse, are able to reconstruct the dynamics of death, the time and place where it occurred and any traces left by the killer.
In conclusion, medicine and crime are a very effective match!
Can crime fiction be horror? Why not! Nowadays all the genres are promiscuous, there are almost a hundred of sub-genres. However, crime and horror is not an easy crossover. For example, someone may argue that novels like Misery or American Psycho may be thriller horror. But probably they aren’t. Because they don’t have a key element to be a horror: the supernatural. The supernatural may be either part of the setting and/or a key component of the plot.
Most probably the father of the current thriller horror fiction is the Gothic novel, with books like The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Among today’s authors we suggest you read Falling Angel by William Hjortsberg and the Pendergast series by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.
Are you looking for online mystery games that can simulate a real investigation? Do you want to be a detective dealing with a heinous murder to be solved? All this is possible today.
Let’s discover the best online mystery games on Google Play and Apple App Store.
Mysteryfy is the app dedicated to mystery lovers and crime-fiction enthusiasts. This app allows you to investigate intricate crimes: in the role of a detective, you have the entire file of a murder case at your disposal.
You will be able to interrogate suspects, analyze the evidence of the crime scene, question witnesses, collect info in the newspapers and much more.
This detective game contains a selection of the best crime murder parties and allows you to either investigate alone or with your friends in multiplayer mode. Mysteryfy has created a new genre of detective stories: the crime dossier murder mystery game.
For sure one of the best investigative games in circulation!
WHO IS THE KILLER (episode 1)
The Old Sins is the first episode of the investigative series Who is The Killer. This app recovers the atmosphere of the classic crime novel.
Stuck inside a castle due to a snowstorm, you will investigate a series of suspicious deaths. The culprit is hiding among a series of suspects, each of them has a motive, and your task will be to find the killer within a week.
CRIMINAL CASE THE MOBILE GAMES
This app allows you to enter the world of the Criminal Minds TV series. Lead the investigations to track down the world’s most brutal serial killers with the help of the BAU team.
With a plot designed for crime lovers, each case will have unique objectives and tasks that help you profile, hunt, and capture the UnSub.
CSI: HIDDEN CRIMES
This game, written by the screenwriter of the long-running CSI TV series, recovers the atmosphere of the TV series. Together with the famous detective team you will have to solve heinous crimes.
The proposed setting is that of the eccentric city of Las Vegas, with its splendid hotels and rich casinos. The analysis of the crime scene will allow you to find the culprit among a series of suspects. An unmissable game for fans of the internationally successful series of the same name (but unfortunately only available on Google Play).
MURDER IN THE ALPS
It is a detective story structured as a graphic adventure, set in the 1930s in a hotel in the Alps. As a journalist, you will have to find out who among a series of suspects is the killer.
Beautiful and detailed designs will immerse you in alpine scenery, underground tunnels and much more. In addition to investigating, you will also have to solve puzzles, visit mysterious places and interrogate eccentric suspects.
ONLINE MYSTERY GAMES: MORE
These five investigative games are just a small example of the many mystery apps you can download on the online stores. In addition to being a pleasant entertainment, they also allow you to develop important skills such as lateral thinking, problem-solving, and they are real intellectual challenges between authors and players.
You just have to download them, turn yourself into a detective and start the investigation!
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Would you like to host a special evening with a murder mystery party?
Mysteryfy is the perfect tool to organize a great evening with your family or your friends. You can investigate altogether a vicious crime, solve the mystery and bring the criminal to justice.
However, there are a few tricks and details you can prepare to make your game experience unique. Let’s see some of them!
The recipe for a special murder mystery party
First of all, you can prepare or order a tasty dinner, perhaps made up of several courses. You can accompany each course with some clues of the crime file, so you can play and eat talking about the case. If you are a perfectionist, make sure that the dinner matches the setting and the atmosphere of the story you are playing: for example, French cuisine for “The Portraitist”, Italian cuisine for “The Portrait of the Death” and American cuisine for “The Woman Who Knew Too Much” and so on.
Similarly, you could prepare a music playlist to go with the theme of the game setting and atmosphere. If you love music, you can create the playlist yourself or, if you prefer, you can use the Spotify playlist we prepared for you. You can find the relative link in the pages of our website dedicated to the stories.
Above all we believe it’s very important for a great murder party to let all the player tell their theories. You should discuss them altogether and you should not dismiss any idea without a proper analysis because sometimes in our stories the perpetrators are evil geniuses and they may have excogitated an intricate plan.
All of this will help you and your friends put yourselves into the story and play perfectly your role as a detective.
This is the perfect recipe for a special murder mystery party!
Are you looking for cool detective stories to investigate alone or with your friends? Are you looking for intriguing stories to play a thrilling murder party game? Find out the our Best Stories!
In this article we present the synopsis of the best stories you can find in the Mysteryfy app, which can be downloaded for free on Google Play and App Store.
Mysteryfy contains only original stories you cannot find elsewhere and they are written with great attention to the settings and the structures of the plot and characters.
If you are curious about crime dossiergames you can also read this article. We really love crime dossier games because this is the best way to fully enjoy the charm of investigating a crime story.
The Woman Who Knew Too Much is available on the Mysteryfy app completely for free. A story of journalism and power, inspired by the Grip-Lit literature, where the protagonist and victim is a courageous and determined blogger…
SETTING
New York, November 2020.
The Big Apple is a place of business, a temple of power and a theater of unbridled passions. Among the skyscrapers and the great metropolitan arteries, a drama takes place with the death of a young man during a party at the home of a well-known blogger.
The life of the blogger is hanging by a thread, so there’s not much time to close the case.
DESCRIPTION
It is the day of the 2020 presidential election when an unexpected phone call shakes the journalist Dylan Dewey from the monotony of his daily job. The caller is a frightened and agitated woman, Mary Ward, sister of the well-known blogger-columnist Ellie Ward.
A few days earlier, on October 28, Ellie Ward had gone into a coma, caused by an overdose of heroin taken during a party hosted in her Manhattan apartment. On that tragic evening, the blogger’s boyfriend, the young Noah Moore, died of an overdose.
Mary Ward is desperate and believes her sister was framed by someone. Dylan Dewey, convinced by Mary’s sincerity and the bizarre dynamics of her case, decides to help the young woman.
As investigative reporters, will you be able to reveal the secrets of a “woman who knew too much”?
You’ll have the chance to analysis of digital devices of the blogger and talk with her friends. One of them is the killer!
THE PORTRAIT OF DEATH
This story is inspired by Urban Legends where modernity and folklore blend into a contemporary tale, set in Northern Italy in 1980.
SETTING
The investigation will lead you inside “Villa Amiltoni”, an austere and full of mystery mansion, to discover the truth about a strange death that took place within those walls.
In this murder mystery game, with dark and gloomy hues and where nothing is really what it appears, you will have to avert an ancient and powerful curse and stop the chain of deaths that it carries with it. A horror- thriller story, in full 80’s style.
DESCRIPTION
Milan 1980. A group of eccentric friends, art experts and collectors of rarities, decide to embark on an expedition to the Polesine to find an ancient painting that is said to carry a powerful curse. A few days after their departure, following accurate and detailed searches, they manage to find the mysterious painting buried in the marshes of the Pò delta.
The painting is the portrait of a young woman, Angelica, who died centuries ago in macabre and gruesome circumstances. After being found, the painting unleashes a series of disturbing and inexplicable deaths.
A séance conducted by a medium could provide important clues, but be careful never to make eye contact with Angelica! On the other hand, as Ian Fleming wrote, “You only live twice: once when you are born and once when you look death in the face”.
What secrets does the “Portrait of Angelica” hide? In this murder mystery game in a thriller-horror style supernatural and logic come together to confuse you and make you stray from the truth.
THE PORTRAITIST
This investigation, which will test your deduction skills, is inspired by the tradition of deductive crime stories (whodunit).
SETTING
The Portraitist is set in the Paris of the Belle Époque, Art Nouveau, street artists, fashion and excesses.
In this Eden-like atmosphere the mysterious crime of a young and promising portrait painter from Montmartre upsets the entire Parisian society.
DESCRIPTION
Paris, 1896, a late winter day.
The body of a young portrait painter called Antoine Discart is found inside his apartment. The Police begin to investigate but for now they are clueless.
Given the “bohemian” lifestyle of the young portraitist, the suspicions of the Parisian Gendarmerie focus on the premises of Montmartre, on the artists, actors and dancers of the area, but also on more exotic and sinister characters who roam the Paris of the time.
Preliminary investigations yield some results.
On the day of Antoine’s death, several people came to visit him in his atelier and the police suspect them; unfortunately there are no witnesses to the heinous crime besides a neighbor, an elderly woman bedridden by a serious illness that continually repeats a strange and disturbing rhyme…
Now it’s up to you to discover the culprit and restore serenity and tranquillity to the Paris of the late 19th century, shaken and deeply concerned by this murder.
BLOODLINE
This story is inspired by the classic thriller-horror movies and novels, where the detective strive to find the murderer despite evil omens and supernatural menaces.
SETTING
An isolated cemetery between the mountains, hidden by a thick blanket of snow. In front of a tombstone the snow is red as blood…
Evil omens, supernatural forces and strange people will try to stop you from solving the mystery behind the disappearance of a young girl.
DESCRIPTION
Despite the skepticism of your fellow colleagues of the Police Department, you are sure the disappearance of a young student it’s not an isolated crime, but it’s part of a larger (and darker) scheme.
In this countryside the local community seems not to like a detective sniffing around and making questions. Even the local parish priest looks at you in an odd way…
What do these people hide behind their harsh attitude? There is something supernatural pressing you to find this poor girl and you have a strange feeling of unfinished business on this land!
Crime Dossier is a type of murder mystery game, which involves the resolution of a crime through an intriguing process of analysis and deduction.
In a crime dossier game, the players have at their disposal the complete file of a crime, divided into various investigation tracks, containing all the useful elements to solve the mystery they are investigating.
Thereby the difficulty is to link precisely the various clues together in a coherent way. Only by using logical reasoning and lateral thinking it will be possible to reach the solution and frame the culprit.
CRIME DOSSIER GAME: WHAT ARE THE MAIN FEATURES?
Crime Dossier Games, unlike those held by theater companies, have as their central focus the plot, its complexity and the elegance of its resolution.
FIRST PHASE: ANALYSIS OF THE ELEMENTS OF THE CRIME
The clues needed to solve the crime are presented as if they were contained in an actual police file. The story unfolds through testimony, coroner’s reports, evidences found at the crime scene and much more.
Therefore the players have at their disposal a complete investigation dossier containing the elements of the story which provides them with a general picture of what happened.
SECOND PHASE: DEDUCTION AND SOLUTION OF THE MYSTERY
At this point the deductive phase can begin. It is time to reconstruct what happened, to find out who among the suspects committed the crime and how he managed to do it.
The players will have to rebuild the mechanics of crime using only their deductive skills. As in the best tradition of classic thrillers, they have all the clues to sift through and only their “little gray cells” to reason.
CRIME DOSSIER GAME: STRENGTHS
THE VERSATILITY
With a crime dossier game the plot can be set in any historical period or any location. Moreover the story can be inspired by any literary genre (or subgenre), such as detective fiction, American hardboiled, whodunit, police procedural, spy stories and many others.
Since all the clues are always available to the players in the case files, they can reason on the crime in complete tranquillity without the risk of missing some joke, perhaps fundamental, recited by an actor.
The settings can be of any type. However, each detective story must be immersed in an accurate setting whose veracity is also given by the beauty and contextuality of how the clues are sowed into the story.
MULTIMEDIA
The various clues can be displayed in many ways such as, for example, text, images, comics, audio, photos and videos. The criterion for choosing how to provide the clue depends mainly on three factors: the type of clue, the setting and the sub-genre of the crime fiction.
Certainly the accuracy of the context, the aesthetics of the clues and the precision of the mechanics of the crime are the right ingredients for a compelling intellectual challenge.
CRIME DOSSIER GAME: A GAME FOR THOSE WHO TRULY LOVE CRIME STORIES
The Crime Dossier is probably the most satisfying method to play a murder mystery game for those who truly love the intellectual challenges that only in-depth and well-articulated thrillers can provide. In these crime stories there is not too much room for comedy or for the actors’ “skit” since the focus is on the investigation.
Certainly these crime dossier games arouse a great deal of involvement from the players. In fact they can slowly enter the story, discover the characters and eventually can solve the crime… from the comfort of their homes!
A Murder Mystery Game, a derivation of the murder mystery fiction genre born in the first half of the nineteenth century, is an entertainment event where the players, in addition to being diners, take on the role of investigators to solve a mystery or a murder.
This kind of game gives to the players the opportunity to live the experience of a police investigation in first person. The solution of the mystery behind the crime will be therefore a real intellectual challenge between the players and the perpetrator.
MURDER MYSTERY GAME: HOW DOES IT WORK?
There are many kinds murder mystery games which involve the use of props or even entire theatrical companies in the role of witnesses, suspects and investigators.
All these types of “murder mystery games” do not allow a univocal definition of the game, so there are dozens of versions: for example, some focus on the interpretation of the players, following a live role-playing model, other focus on deductive reasoning and on solving puzzle and riddles or on finding the clues.
In the most popular versions, the players are tablemates who, during a dinner for example in a restaurant, attend a series of theatrical scenes and, on the basis of them, must try to solve the mystery.
The classic murder parties, on the other hand, require the players themselves to play a role, perhaps as invited to a party by a mysterious landlord who will then be found dead. This type of games are more like the so-called L.A.R.P. (Live Action Role-Playing).
Another type is that of the Crime Dossier Game, in this case the tablemates during dinner receive clues as if they were policemen dealing with the file of a murder case.
At the end of the event, after analyzing the evidence, listening to the testimonies and questioning the suspects, the players will have to answer some fundamental questions that obviously vary from history to history, but the three most common are:
Who is the murderer?
What’s the motive?
What’s the dynamics of the murder?
THE GENRES OF CRIME STORIES
Before analyzing in detail the key elements of an investigation of a crime, it is important to mention the many types of detective stories that exist in fiction.
Choosing one of these sub-genres already introduces a first element to compose the plot of the story.
Let’s see some of them.
A whodunit (a colloquial elision of “Who [has] done it?”) is a complex, plot-driven variety of a detective story in which the puzzle regarding who committed the crime is the main focus. It’s the most traditional type of crime story, where the audience is given the opportunity to engage in the same process of deduction as the protagonist throughout the investigation.
Another genre is the Hardboiled: unlike the classic thriller, in this case the criminal reality is represented in a crude way and the investigator is a dark character with a dark past who prefers action and does not like too complex reasoning.
In the historical thrillers the plot takes place in a setting located in the past and it pays attention to the manners, social conditions and other details of the depicted period.
In the “locked-room” or “impossible crime” mystery the crime (almost always murder) is committed in circumstances under which it was seemingly impossible for the perpetrator to commit the crime or evade detection in the course of getting in and out of the crime scene. These crimes are a hard challenge even for the most expert detectives.
KEY ELEMENTS OF A MURDER MYSTERY GAME
A thrilling crime story, as well as an effective interweaving of the plot, is always characterized by a series of key elements (repeated more or less constantly in the plot) and by an engaging setting.
The Setting
The research for the most suitable narrative contexts for the setting of the plot must not be superficial but rather rich and detailed, in such a way that it is able to engage the players and immediately catapult them into the proposed story.
Therefore a well-finished settingis essential to make the players experience the atmosphere of the proposed story.
There is a huge variety of settings: they can range from historical ones, for example in the Victorian Era or during the Parisian Belle Epoqué, to the dark atmospheres of hardboiled crime story, perhaps set in a gloomy Los Angeles of the 30s, passing through the thick fog that envelops the small villages on the British moorland shocked by an elusive serial killers. The limit is obviously only the imagination.
The Investigation
A murder has been committed. The police are still fumbling around in the dark and only a small group of detectives can solve the case: you and your friends! How will you set up the investigation? Which elements will you consider important and which not? To solve the mystery it’s important to outline the facts well, build a clear context and define how the investigation can be articulated: which witnesses will you be able to hear? What elements of the crime scene are important? What possibilities and what limits do the players have in carrying out the investigation?
The Crime
Defining the nature of the crime that happened is crucial: is it a murder? Was there a theft? Usually the crime took place before the game night and there are some pieces that have never been fully clarified. The task of the players will be to fill in the gaps through deductive reasoning in order to unmask the culprit. However, it is possible that the crime was committed during the game night, in this case it is necessary to take into account not only past events but also for example the conversations between the guests during the dinner, since the culprit is hiding among them.
The Victim
The victim or victims are the focus of every murder mystery game. Knowing who the victim was, knowing her relationships with third parties or her secrets is very important to unravel the mystery about her death. Usually the victim has unclear links with the murder suspects and being able to reveal the nature of such relationships can certainly help in the investigation.
The Detective
He is the second central figure of every crime story. The players could be the detectives or they will help the detective to solve a case, other times they will compete with him for who gets to the solution first. There are multiple types of detectives: from the classic and famous Poirot and Sherlock Holmes to the most tormented detective figures typical of American literature of the 1920s, in which the detectives are more inclined to solve problems abruptly rather than indulge in reflective and cognitive thinking.
The Suspects
Only one of the suspects could have committed the crime. Which one is the killer? There are any accomplices? Generally the suspects of the murder are people who knew the victim, and they probably had had some quarrel with him or her in the past and have secrets that they would never want to be revealed. Therefore the task of the players will be to read or listen to the testimonies, verify the alibis and confessions of the suspects knowing that obviously not all of them will tell the truth.
The Culprit
The perpetrator hides among the suspects. The murderer is the character to be discovered, the mysterious figure around whom the whole investigation revolves. He always has a motive that led him to the murder, being able to discover the motive is a crucial step in solving the crime. The motives can be of various kinds but generally they can be traced back to money, love, revenge, madness, jealousy and power.
The Clues
The evidence are the pieces of the puzzle to be completed. Every clue is like a little compass heading toward one of the suspects. No assassin or thief is skilled enough to leave no trace: finding these clues and giving them meaning, is the task of the players. The clues can be of many types: audio, video, images, texts, objects, footprints, dialogues, etc. There are many places to find them and they will certainly be present at the crime scene. In a murder mystery game, the clues can be delivered as props, such as a gun, or as part of a case file, such as photographs and reports.
The Epilogue
The conclusion of a murder mystery game is its revealing moment as the players will have to indicate the outcome of their investigation by answering the fundamental questions: who is the culprit? Why did he act? What was the dynamics of the events that led to the crime? Often in the movies or mystery books at the end of the story there is a twist, in a murder mystery game instead the final moment is unitary and leaves no room for something later but represents the crowning of the intellectual challenge that accompanied the development of the whole investigation. It represents the peak of the game experience, the final moment where the mystery is unveiled and solved and the players discover if their hypothesis are correct.
WHY PLAY A MURDER MYSTERY GAME
Murder mystery games have always been very successful and this is due to several factors. Spending an evening, perhaps in the company of your friends, investigating a mysterious crime together, is a smart way to have fun and develop socialization. The charm of a well-rendered setting and a compelling storyline stimulate creativity, lateral thinking and problem-solving skills.
Do not miss the opportunity to become a Sherlock Holmes novice, play a murder mystery game and test your “little gray cells”!
Do you want to spend an evening dedicated to investigation and mystery?
Today it is possible thanks to the Mysteryfy app, developed by a dedicated team of murder mysteries writers!
This application collects the best murder mystery stories, optimized for mobile devices, to be played both in single player or multiplayer mode.
THE MURDER MYSTERY GAME ONLINE: Investigating at the time of social distancing
The murder mystery is a well-known game format; it originates from the Anglo-Saxon murder party and over time it has transformed, becoming today a real playful entertainment.
There are different types of Murder Mystery Games and in this previous article we explain in detail what they are, illustrating their characteristics and peculiarities.
Murder Parties or Murder Mystery Games usually take place during an evening, perhaps in a restaurant or in a place dedicated to the event. Usually they involve the participation of actors who stage the representation of a murder and the guests, in the role of witty detectives, have the task of discovering the culprit.
In this period, however, in which it is still difficult to glimpse the possibility of creating events with the physical presence of many people, our creative team has developed an innovative way to allow everyone to try their hand at solving intricate mysteries, becoming real detectives within the walls of your house.
MYSTERYFY: the app that allows you to be a detective
The Mysteryfy app allows you to play and investigate, in complete tranquility, heinous and complex crimes. The application contains various “case files”, each representing an original story, organized by difficulty and setting.
In the Mysteryfy stories all the elements to solve the case are available to the players.
Every story contain the complete file of the case in question, where there are various lines of investigation. It will then be possible to find out who the suspects are, read the statements of witnesses, analyze the clues present at the crime scene, solve puzzles, view the police and coroner reports and much more.
MURDER MYSTERY GAME: the deductive thriller is finally online
Mysteryfy is different from all the other games.
In fact Mysteryfy simulate a real investigation. All the clues present in the story are useful to give the solution and frame the culprit. The game mechanics recovers the spirit of the classic deductive thriller, that of the challenge of intellects between the author and the reader.
Thanks to a creative mix between technology and the tradition of crime novels Mysteryfy will transform you into a new Poirot or Scherlock Holmes, making you experience the thrill of a real investigation conducted in comfort and tranquility with your smartphone or tablet.
