An Affair to Dismember

     My next review is going to involve the "How to Host a Murder" line of murder mystery games.  These games set the bar for boxed parties back in 80's.  I own them all and they are now considered Out of Print for the most part.  This review is about their Halloween themed game, "An Affair to Dismember."  This was one of the last games to come out for the line and you can still find it pretty easily at online retailers.
     I find that most people either love or hate this series.  I think, for the most part, these boxed games are about the best for detail and character involvement.  But, like anything else, some scenarios in the line are better than others.
     Each game comes with 8 character booklets (thus for eight guests), 8 invitations, a map of the crime scene, a host's guide complete with menu and costume suggestions, a booklet of secret clues (not every character gets one), and either a cassette tape or CD which usually has a detective or other character on it who describes the scene of the crime and the various clues found.  Usually the tape/CD is played at the start of the party.  Once in a while, it is used a little later.  Some of the later titles, including this one, also have a track of various sound effects/mood music depending on the theme.  None of the games use the tape/CD to reveal the solution of the game, unlike Murder a la Carte and other boxed games.
     The game is played in four rounds.  At the start of the game, the guests read their personal dossiers which give them the facts they know about themselves, (which were included in the invitations), and then their secret information, which usually gives them their possible motive for the murder about to be revealed.  None of the games in the line has ever told the player (or players) who are guilty that they have committed the crime at this point in the game.
     After that, in each of the four rounds, the characters are given facts to conceal, (which is information about what their character has been up to), and facts to reveal, which are facts they must reveal about the other suspects in each round.  It's a casual, sit-down game, with facts and suspicions discussed among the players.
     "An Affair to Dismember" takes place in the spooky town of Deadbolt, Transylvania.  The most well known, powerful and wealthy person in town is Neville Aster-Night, who lives at the Castle Von Morgue.  Neville is hosting a Halloween midnight buffet, to celebrate his engagement to the french innkeeper, Lizzie Bordeaux.  His guest list includes some of the world's most "creepy" characters.  These include...

Lizzie Bordeaux:  The gothic French Innkeeper of Deadbolt's "Motel California."
King Aldrinktotat:  A 3,000 year old mummy that was unearthed 20 years ago.
Glumda: The wicked witch from the land of Depressed.
Balihi:  The Rogersandhammerstein Monster, who is a famous Broadway musical star.
Angela Deth:  A sadistic dentist.
Asthmadeus:  The "Prince of Dimness," he is "The Prince of Darkness's" dim younger brother.
Aretha Garlique:  The famous flamboyant clairvoyant and mystic.
Hannibal Schecter:  The world's only kosher cannibal.

     As you can see, the "How to Host a Murder" line is very tongue-in-cheek and the characters make a great mix of personalities and costumes.  There isn't anyway to add any other characters.  So, if you have more than eight guests, you can give them silly names and a reason to be there, but they will have little to do except watch, ask questions and take notes.  Then, at the end of the game, they can try to guess the identity of the murderer along with everyone else.
   
CONS:  The game is limited to eight guests.  Normally this isn't a problem, but if someone cancels at the last minute, it could ruin your evening.  The host will have to do some quick thinking.  Normally, I would opt not to play a character and this way I could at least fill in for the missing role.  But if a couple has to cancel on you, it may make it a bit rougher to do.  I'd advise making an excuse as to why they couldn't be there, read their facts out loud and try to answer questions posed by the other characters.  Also, though the "How to Host a Murder" line is more thorough and plays fair with clues and solutions, they have an awkward writing style at times.  Certain games, (this one included), hints at certain events and actions taken by the characters in their booklets, but because they try to be clever about it, the player may not be given all the correct information.  For example, one of the characters is told in round one that they were sneaking something in a cooler out of the castle.  But they never tell the player what that is.  Later, in round four they are told they shipped it somewhere, but again not giving all the vital information.  Meanwhile, in round one, another character has spotted the player with the cooler.  When asked about it, what should the player respond?  The writers of the line try to make each character look suspicious and when reading your secret information, you will, at times, think you may be guilty, but unless your booklet spells it out that you are the killer, you shouldn't assume you are.  I've also noticed that sometimes players are given facts about the other characters before that character gets their own information and this sometimes causes confusion.  Suffice to say, many of these games are not good for novice players.  But the game does encourage you to say "You don't know" if you really don't know the answer to a question.

PROS:  Even though they are sometimes written in odd ways, (and this could also just be simple editing mistakes), this line of games is very detailed and the plots are very humorous and very involved.  Many characters have inter-connecting story lines and it is very humorous.  The game references a lot of pop culture and adds to the fun.

FINAL THOUGHTS:  I really enjoy this line of boxed games, despite the odd writing at times.  The detail and fair play clues keep the guests involved.  I would also recommend that the host or hostess read through everything way before the party.  It's better if you know what's going on and then, to avoid confusion, you can casually try to point your guests in the right direction when facts are unclear.  Also, you should make up a list of facts that were learned in each round and at the end of each round, sum up what the group has learned.  Again, this takes some prep time but it's worth it.  This particular scenario is great for a Halloween party.  It's more upbeat and a lot of fun.  The way in which the information is presented can be confusing at times, but the characters are detailed enough that your guests should be able to ad lib some quick responses to awkward questions.  The game is really good, but not perfect, so I'd give this title 4 out of 5 stars.