Solve Like a Sherlock Murder Mystery Games

You can escape a room, but can you escape a vintage game store?

As part of his acclaimed new book, The Puzzler, best-selling author A.J. Jacobs (The Year of Living Biblically, The Year of Living Constitutionally) partnered with Watson Adventures to create a devilishly fun murder mystery game packed with puzzles. In his book he describes the experience of creating the game—now it’s your turn to play the game! But first…

Shocking news! The owner of a local board-game store has been murdered! Authorities are baffled by the mysterious killing, and they have called in you and your team of expert puzzle-solvers to crack the case.

The killer has hidden clues to their identity in games scattered around the store. It’s up to you to solve a series of puzzles and piece together the name of the murderer. Clearly the murderer loves to play games—but in a gaming store, that doesn’t narrow things down much!

On teams, you’ll tackle up to 10 mini-games that are inspired by classic games—but with humorous twists. Each challenge you solve will lead you a step closer to unmasking the murderer. Can your team unravel this mystery, catch the culprit, and show the villain that they toyed with the wrong people?

What players are saying about the virtual puzzles game

A 5-star review on Google: “Fun and engaging game for our remote team. The host was energetic and kept everyone participating. I will definitely book them again for another corporate event.”

Contact us to learn more about this online murder mystery game—and find more virtual fun!

Beware: there’s a killer in your midst

Someone playing this game with you is a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde. His or her good side knows nothing about the evil side—and the evil side has challenged you to prevent your own murder. Everyone in your group has been poisoned, and the clock is ticking down on your time left to live. To reveal the killer’s identity, you’ll have to complete a series of photo challenges, solve interlocking puzzles, decipher coded text messages, and more. If you succeed, you get the antidote. If you fail…well, you know.

If you love escape-room games, you’ll love this scavenger hunt. But even better, you won’t be locked in a room for an hour: this game can be played almost anywhere. 

An in-person murder mystery for any location!

We have a variety of versions, depending on where you want to play. Such as…

• A city, town, or neighborhood
• A science or history museum
• A zoo or aquarium
• An office building
• A school or campus

A murder mystery scavenger hunt perfect for team building

Here’s a game that will help you solve the mystery of how to entertain a diverse group of people while boosting morale and teamwork. It’s perfect for any private party or a corporate team-building outing of any size. Our clients who have enjoyed this game include T-Mobile, TD Bank, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Michigan in Washington, and others too numerous to mention.

What delighted clients are saying

“Everyone had a great time at the hunt! We are all still talking about it.” —an electrical engineer whose group played the game at the Houston Zoo

“A HUGE THANK YOU. Everyone had a BLAST and your hosts were FANTASTIC! Thank you so much for another great event!!” —an office coordinator in Los Angeles

“We had an amazing time and will be in touch for the next hunt we’d like to do in the near future! Tokia [the hunt host] was amazing, and we’d love to work with her again!!!” —an organizer for a group in Washington, DC

The hunt’s afoot! Contact us to learn more—and find more team-building fun anywhere!

The murder-mystery game you can play anywhere

Terrible news! A Watson Adventures host, David Park, was on his way to lead your team-building activity today, but he was found dead in the parking lot. We need you to go through David’s backpack of game materials and see if you can figure out who would want him dead and why.

On teams, you’ll play the game that David created, answering trivia questions, solving fun puzzles, and—spoiler alert!—uncovering secret messages that reveal that David was leading a double life. There might even be a spy in your group!

We’ll send you the backpack full of game materials, and a Watson Adventures host will get the game started, then answer questions (and offer hints) as you go along.

You can choose whether you would like our Host to lead your group remotely, via Zoom or a similar platform, or you can opt for an in-person host, live in your office.

The game requires one hour and can be played in any room where you need to provide a break for your group, ramp up the fun, and get people to bond and work together in a whole new way.

Do you need a hybrid solution to bring together players working from home and in the office? Check out the Murder by Team Building Game: Virtual Edition.

A Teens Edition is also available.

What players are saying about the murder mystery game

A 5-star review on Google: “What fun we had! Josh was an amazing guide and I would recommend Watson Adventures!!”

Contact us to learn more about this murder mystery game—and find more fun!

A virtual murder-mystery game for team building

Terrible news! Watson Adventures game host David Park was on his way to your office to lead a team-building activity today, but a killer had other plans for your group. David was found dead in the parking lot. We need your help to expose the killer and catch him before he strikes again.

We have reason to believe that David led a secret life. He created today’s virtual murder mystery game, and we suspect that there are clues in it that could help unravel the quandary of his death. We need you to play David’s game to see if you can uncover any clues to what he was up to and why he disappeared. 

On teams, you’ll tackle trivia questions, solve fun puzzles, and—spoiler alert!—uncover evidence of spies, intrigue, and assorted skulduggery. Can your team crack a code that can stop an international incident with cataclysmic consequences?

Virtual teams have actual fun

A Watson Adventures host will lead the game via Zoom or other video conferencing—setting the scene, offering guidance, announcing how the teams are doing, and supplying hints if you get stuck. Teams collaborate in breakout rooms, then reunite to find out which sleuths solved the whodunit.

The game requires one hour, and anyone with access to a computer can participate. It’s a great way to unite offices, stay connected with people working from home, and boost morale. You’ll having fun while collaborating in a fun, new way.

An In-Person Edition is also available when you want to bring together coworkers in an office or other common space, with a game host who can be in person or remote.

What happy sleuths are saying about the team-building murder mystery game

A 5-star review on Google: “We booked [Murder by Team Building] for a department activity at work. Everyone had so much fun! The puzzles were challenging, but not too challenging, and being able to split into smaller teams and come back together was perfect. Our host, Jamie, was really energetic, patient, and fun and did a great job. Would definitely recommend them for group events, especially when a virtual element is needed.”

Another 5-star review on Google: “The murder mystery game was challenging and fun! We ran late and our host did a great job accommodating our shorter run time. I recommend this for a corporate team building event.”

Yes, yet another 5-star review on Google! “We have worked with Watson Adventures Scavenger Hunts to host a Murder Mystery Night virtual team building event. It was great working with Watson, very responsive, professional and the pricing was good too. The game’s host was very entertaining, kept everyone engaged and maintained a positive fun vibe throughout the game. The game was awesome, the team had lots of fun! Everyone enjoyed it a lot, it was challenging enough but not impossible to solve, so everyone stayed engaged and not discouraged. I have received only positive feedback from the team, the event was a big success. Thank you Watson Adventures, we will definitely come back for more fun games in the future!”

Contact us to learn more about this virtual murder mystery game for remote teams—and find more fun online!

STOP A KILLER? GET A CLUE!

There’s a killer on the loose, and it’s up to your team to stop him! The madman—or madwoman—bumped off a famous art critic, then taunted the police to expose him/her by completing a virtual murder mystery scavenger hunt through America’s great museums. Your task: to play the game, follow the clues, find the art, answer amusing questions about what you find online, and suss out the name of the killer, the scene of the crime, and weapon used. Think you’re up to the challenge?

The trail of clues leads across the web

Using Zoom, you’ll join our Host in launching the game in our game in any browser. On teams, you’ll follow links to art on museum websites, tackle tricky questions for points, and consult photo clues to narrow the list of possible suspects, weapons and crime scenes. No previous knowledge of art is required. But you’ll be amazed at the art you discover—and with any luck, you’ll catch the culprit.

Games for private groups are available anytime, including an International Edition, for people whose first language is not English, as well as a Kids Edition for kids and adults to play together, ages 10 and up.

What players are saying about this online murder mystery game

“Thank you to @watsonadventures for such a fun evening! Our club had a blast playing The Murder at the Art Museum Virtual Scavenger Hunt.” — @nyflers on Instagram

A 5-star review on Google: “My team was a little skeptical when we told them this would be our holiday event. Once the timer started, everyone was in. The game was fun and the team appreciated the challenge. We ended up having a wonderful time and I will be booking again.”

Another 5-star review on Google:  “Our group of 25 had a great team building virtual event with Watson. Our host, Michael, was excellent: funny, available, clear and had a pretty good playlist going in our virtual waiting room. There were many team laughs and lots of cross functional communication happening. Definitely going to do another adventure with them soon!”

Yes, yet another 5-star review on Google: “Wow, amazing experience! I HIGHLY recommend for a business team bonding event, remote. It allowed for ample/natural time to have fun with your colleagues but see how people work in a different setting. They make it easy on you for planning purposes, just schedule, send invites, pay and show up!”

Contact us to learn more about this virtual murder mystery scavenger hunt—and find more online fun for teams!

Watch out! There might be a killer behind those flowers…

So you planned a tranquil team-building outing to your local botanical garden? Uh-oh! Turns out someone in your group—possibly on your own team—is a real Jekyll and Hyde, and they’re scheming to leave you pushing up daisies.

Everyone in your group was surreptitiously poisoned, and the clock is ticking. To save yourselves and get the antidote, you must play their game, identify the would-be killer, and prevent your own murder.

The killer has hidden their identity in a series of thorny puzzles, as part of a scavenger hunt at the botanical garden. You’ll be tasked with answering trivia questions, solving interlocking puzzles, deciphering coded messages, and meeting the conditions of tricky photo challenges around the gardens.

Along the way, your team might…

• Tiptoe among the actual tulips.
• Hug the biggest tree you can find.
• Achieve inner peace in a meditation garden.
• Tackle trivia about famous murder mysteries.
• Identify snippets of songs that involve nature.

If your group enjoys escape-room games, they’ll love this botanical garden scavenger hunt. The game will also help you solve the mystery of how to entertain a diverse group of people while boosting morale and teamwork. It’s perfect for a private party or a corporate team-building outing of any size.

A Kids Edition is also available, in which kids age 7 and up work with adults. It’s a great activity for a school field trip, a birthday party, a family reunion, you name it.

Contact us to learn more about the Murder Mystery Mayhem Scavenger Hunts—and find more fun!

Uh-oh! A killer lurks among you…

…and they’re about to interrupt an otherwise normal team-building outing to your favorite history museum. Someone in your group—possibly on your own team—is a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde, and they’re plotting to make you history.

Fortunately, this game gives you a fighting a chance to prevent your own murder. Everyone in your group has been secretly poisoned, and the clock is ticking down on your time left to live. To save yourselves and get the antidote, all you have to do is complete various fun challenges and reveal the killer’s identity.

The killer has hidden their identity in a scavenger hunt at the history museum. Your team will solve a series of interlocking puzzles, decipher coded messages, and meet the conditions of creative, collaborative photo prompts.

Along the way, your team might…

• Act your age with age-old artifacts.
• Put your patriotism on display for all to see.
• Interrogate sculptures and statues for clues.
• Gape in wonderment at outdated technology.
• Tackle a trivia quiz about famous murder mysteries.
• Identify murderous movies and snippets of killer songs.

If your group loves escape-room games, they’ll love this history museum scavenger hunt. The game will also help you entertain a diverse group of people while boosting morale and teamwork. It’s perfect for a private party or a corporate team-building outing of any size.

A Kids Edition is also available, in which kids age 7 and up work with adults. It’s a great activity for a school field trip, birthday party, and more.

Contact us to learn more about the Murder Mystery Mayhem Scavenger Hunts—and find more fun!

Beware: there’s a killer behind that panda…

Your perfectly delightful team-building outing to the zoo is about to be spoiled: someone in your group is plotting to feed you to the lions, or have you hugged by a cobra, or perhaps sat on by a hippo. Because this person—possibly on your own team—is a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde.

This person now challenges you to prevent your own murder. Everyone in your group was fed a deadly venom with your lunch, and the clock is ticking down on your time left to live. To save yourselves and get the antidote, all you have to do is reveal the killer’s identity.

Easy, right? Not so fast: the killer has hidden their identity in a series of puzzles that are part of a scavenger hunt at the zoo. Your team must solve a series of interlocking puzzles, decipher coded messages, and meet the conditions of tricky photo challenges around the zoo.

Along the way, your team might…

• Play monkey see, monkey do with a monkey.
• Blend in with an animal known for camouflage.
• Tackle a trivia quiz about famous murder mysteries.
• Identify snippets of songs that feature animals.
• Twist, and maybe shout, with snakes.

If your group loves escape-room games, they’ll love this zoo scavenger hunt. The game will also help you solve the mystery of how to entertain a diverse group of people while boosting morale and teamwork. It’s perfect for a private party or a corporate team-building outing of any size.

A Kids Edition is also available, in which kids age 7 and up work with adults. It’s a great activity for a school field trip, a birthday party, a family reunion, you name it.

What delighted clients are saying

“Everyone had a great time at the hunt! We are all still talking about it.” —an electrical engineer whose group played the game at the Houston Zoo

“A HUGE THANK YOU. Everyone had a BLAST and your hosts were FANTASTIC! Thank you so much for another great event!!” —an office coordinator in Los Angeles

“We had an amazing time and will be in touch for the next hunt we’d like to do in the near future! Tokia [the hunt host] was amazing, and we’d love to work with her again!!!” —an organizer for a group in Washington, DC

PLUS check out Watson Adventures on Google to see hundreds of 5-star reviews from delighted clients!

The hunt’s afoot! Contact us to learn more—and find more team-building fun at the zoo!