How long do they usually take to run?

by Catherine Browne
(Ireland )

We are looking to run a murder mystery game for our christmas party. There will probably be around 100 at it. We were looking at the St Cakes game or even using the Christmas themed games for it. How long would it last and is there a way to shorten the game? I.E hints etc.

My response:

In terms of playing time, most of the games take about 2.5 to 3 hours to play. The whole event tends to take a bit longer as time is needed for introductions (and to meet and greet) and to wind-down (and share war stories) afterwards.

Speeding up the game is possible, but it's hard to shave much more than about 30 minutes off the playing time and another 30 minutes off everything else.

(Having said that, though, with 100 people I think you'll find it hard to cut the time by very much.)