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🎃 Halloween 2026

The Halloween murder mystery party that runs itself.

Costumes assigned in advance, evidence hidden around the house, interrogations on everyone’s phone and a midnight confession. Here’s the complete plan, plus a free game to run it with.

Plan my Halloween mysteryThe free Halloween case
  • Free for up to 6 players
  • No app download
  • Ages ~10 to 100

Two Halloween cases

Pick your haunting

Start with the free masquerade, or go full gothic with a séance gone wrong.

Blackwood Manor at night with jack-o-lanterns on the steps
🎃 HalloweenFree

The Blackwood Masquerade

Everyone wore a mask. One of them never took it off.

A Halloween masquerade ball at a crumbling gothic manor. The family solicitor is found dead minutes before reading a newly changed will at midnight — and every guest had a reason to stop him.

Open the case file →
Miss Seraphina Vale, a spiritualist medium, by candlelight
🎃 HalloweenPremium

The Last Séance

The candles went out. When they came back, she was gone.

A midnight séance in a haunted country house. England's most famous debunker of spiritualists came to expose a ghost — and was murdered in the dark. Was it the spirit of the house, or someone at the table?

Open the case file →

The plan

Your three-week Halloween countdown

  1. 3 weeks before

    Pick the date and the case

    Halloween weekend fills up fast, so lock in a date. Choose your mystery: “The Blackwood Masquerade” is free for up to 6 players; “The Last Séance” is the spookier premium case.

  2. 2–3 weeks before

    Send the invitations

    Include the theme, the dress code (“1920s gothic, costumes encouraged”) and the game’s invite link, so guests get their suspect and a costume idea right away.

  3. 1 week before

    Nudge the costumes

    Post a reminder in the group chat with everyone’s character. Suggest a thrift-store trip; most of our costume ideas cost nothing.

  4. 2–3 days before

    Print and shop

    Print the evidence kit (ordinary paper is fine), buy LED candles, masking tape for a chalk outline and anything for the menu.

  5. The day of

    Hide the evidence

    Twenty minutes: tuck the numbered placards around the house at eye level, put the join poster by the door, dim the lights, start the playlist.

  6. The night

    Let the manor do the rest

    Schedule the start time and play alongside your guests. Twists fire on a timer, interrogations pair people up, and the night ends with a confession on every phone.

Costume ideas

Spooky suspects anyone can dress as

Every guest gets one of these when they open your invite link. All of them can be pulled from a closet or a thrift store.

All 30 costume ideas
Madame Celeste, a mysterious fortune teller with a dark past

Madame Celeste

A mysterious fortune teller with a dark past

Costume A long skirt, a fringed shawl, a headwrap, and as many bangles as your wrists can carry.

Miss Seraphina Vale, the medium who communes with spirits

Miss Seraphina Vale

The medium who communes with spirits

Costume Flowing layers, a velvet cloak, a crystal pendant, and a faraway stare.

Dr. Mortimer Graves, the coroner with a morbid fascination

Dr. Mortimer Graves

The coroner with a morbid fascination

Costume A black suit, a measuring tape around your neck, a notebook, and a slightly too-cheerful smile.

Mr. Ambrose Raven, the taxidermist with a macabre hobby

Mr. Ambrose Raven

The taxidermist with a macabre hobby

Costume A dark waistcoat, a stuffed bird or plush animal perched on your shoulder, and a jeweller’s loupe.

Lady Cordelia Ashworth, the widow with a vendetta

Lady Cordelia Ashworth

The widow with a vendetta

Costume Head-to-toe black, a veil or fascinator, black gloves, and a handkerchief for dramatic dabbing.

Mr. Silas Crowe, the groundskeeper who sees everything

Mr. Silas Crowe

The groundskeeper who sees everything

Costume Muddy boots, a flat cap, a flannel shirt, and a lantern or flashlight held at a menacing angle.

Mrs. Ophelia Marsh, the herbalist with poisonous knowledge

Mrs. Ophelia Marsh

The herbalist with poisonous knowledge

Costume Earthy layers, a straw hat, a basket of herbs or flowers, and a pocketful of little paper packets.

Mr. Lucian Shadow, the private investigator

Mr. Lucian Shadow

The private investigator

Costume A trench coat, a fedora, a notebook, and a magnifying glass you never put down.

Why a murder mystery is the perfect Halloween party

Halloween parties have a problem: after the costume compliments, everyone ends up in the kitchen. A murder mystery gives the night a shape. There's a dramatic opening, an hour of sneaking around the house with a reason to talk to everyone, and a finale where somebody's costume turns out to belong to a killer.

It also works for every kind of Halloween crowd: adults who want something more interesting than a drinking game, teens who'll compete ferociously, and families who want spooky-fun rather than scary.

How to set a gothic scene on a budget

  • Light low. Lamps and LED candles instead of ceiling lights. One orange or red bulb makes an instant "crime scene" corner.
  • A chalk outline. Masking tape on the floor near the front door, a fallen glass and a single pearl necklace beside it.
  • Pumpkins by the entrance. Carve one with a magnifying glass or a keyhole instead of a face.
  • Cobwebs and candlesticks. Thrift-store candlesticks spray-painted gold double as the winner's trophy.
  • Portraits. Print a few suspect portraits from our character gallery and frame them on the wall. Guests love finding "themselves".

A spooky menu

  • "Poisoned" candy apples
  • "Graveyard" chocolate pots with cookie-crumb soil and biscuit headstones
  • "Blood orange" punch (with and without alcohol)
  • Pumpkin soup in tiny cups, labelled "Exhibit B"
  • "Fingers" sausage rolls with almond fingernails
  • A "Last Supper" sandwich board

Label everything with folded cards. More ideas in our food and decor guide.

Invitation wording you can copy

Running the game on the night

  1. As guests arrive, they scan the join poster by the door. Latecomers can scan in at any time.
  2. At the start time, dim the lights. The case opens on every phone (and on the TV, if you put the live view up).
  3. Guests hunt for the hidden evidence. Each placard clears a suspect, a room or a weapon.
  4. Every 10–15 minutes a story twist fires: a sudden gale speeds up the search, a blackout freezes accusations, the Inspector demands interrogations.
  5. The Inspector summons pairs for phone minigame interrogations. Winners earn a clue.
  6. The first correct accusation triggers last call. Then the finale reveals the killer's motive and confession on every phone.

Prizes worth fighting for

  • First solver: the golden candlestick.
  • Best costume: voted by the room during last call.
  • Most dramatic wrong accusation: a toy magnifying glass. Everyone wants this one.

Make it an annual tradition

The killer, room and weapon are drawn at random every game, and your printed evidence kit is reusable. Next Halloween, put the same placards back up and play a brand-new mystery, or switch to The Last Séance.

Questions

Halloween murder mystery FAQ

How many people do I need for a Halloween murder mystery?

At least 3. InQuestion works for up to 6 players free and up to 40 with a Party Pass, so it suits a small dinner or a big house party.

Is it too scary for kids?

No. The cases are cozy, Agatha-Christie-style mysteries: spooky atmosphere, no gore and no adult themes. Most kids around 10 and up love it, especially in teams with an adult.

Do guests need to download an app?

No. Guests scan a printed QR code with their regular phone camera and play in the browser.

How far ahead should I send the invite?

Two to three weeks for Halloween weekend. Guests who open the link early get their character and costume idea immediately.

Can I host and play at the same time?

Yes. Schedule the start time and the game runs the twists, interrogations and finale on its own. The host is a suspect like everyone else.

This Halloween, someone in your living room is a killer.

Set up the free Halloween case in two minutes and send the invite link tonight; your guests will have their characters by breakfast.

Host a mystery freeHow it works

Free for up to 6 players · No app download · No credit card