There are a lot of these and most comparisons are written by the people selling them. This one is too, so read it with that in mind. What follows is accurate, includes the cases where somebody else's kit is the better buy, and is upfront about what ours does not do.
Who wrote this. Dead Certain makes one of the kits in the table below. We have put our own product in its actual place rather than at the top, and said plainly where it loses. Prices were checked in September 2026 and move often; confirm on the seller's own site before buying.
The question that actually decides it
Almost every buyer picks a murder mystery kit on theme and price, and then discovers the thing that matters on the night: somebody has to run it. In the traditional format one person reads a host booklet, knows the solution from the start, hands out clues at the right moments, keeps the rounds moving, and does not really get to play. That person is usually the one who bought the kit and cooked the dinner.
Every other difference — theme, player count, print quality — is smaller than that one. Decide it first.
The kits, side by side
Kit
Format
Price
Players
Does someone have to know the answer?
Night of Mystery
Downloadable PDF
From $35
8–20
Yes. Host booklet model.
Masters of Mystery
PDF or boxed
About $35–43, boxed higher
6–20
Mostly. An optional free app can draw the killer secretly.
Broadway Murder Mysteries
PDF
$30–60
6–20
Yes. Offers free four-character samples.
Playing With Murder
PDF
$30–50
8–100+
Yes. Scales by adding extra characters.
MysteryMaker / generator kits
Generated PDF, some with audio
About $25
Custom
No. Built per party from a form.
Hunt A Killer / Deadbolt
Boxed subscription
$24–45 a month
1–4
N/A. Not a party product.
Dead Certain
Printable kit plus a screen app
$29
8–12
No. Nobody is told, including the killer, until Act 3.
Honest picks
If you have 15 or more people — Night of Mystery or Playing With Murder
Large tables are a genuinely hard design problem and these two have spent years on it. We cap at twelve on purpose and would rather say so than sell you a kit with four people who have nothing to do.
Playing With Murder scales furthest. Expect some characters to be lighter than others at the top end; that is the trade every large-cast kit makes.
If it is a gift and needs to be a physical object — Masters of Mystery
A downloadable file is a bad present to hand someone at a birthday. Boxed kits exist for this reason and theirs is the one most often recommended.
Everything we sell is a file. It is excellent value and it is not wrappable.
If it is one to four people on a sofa — Hunt A Killer or Deadbolt Mystery Society
These are excellent and they are not party games. They are a puzzle box for a small group over several evenings. If you want eight people arguing over dinner, this is the wrong shelf.
If you want the characters to use your guests' real names — the generator kits
MysteryMaker and the others build a kit from a form, around your actual guest list. Nothing else does that.
The recurring criticism in reviews is that generated characters feel thin and the clues do not always connect. Worth reading recent reviews before buying.
If nobody should have to host — Dead Certain
The evidence is in eight sealed envelopes the setup person seals without reading. A single file on the television paces the three acts, opens the envelopes on cue, questions each guest by name, runs the votes, and reads the ending. The solution is not in a host booklet because there is no host booklet. Whoever bought it plays as a suspect and is wrong along with everyone else.
Limits, plainly: one case released so far, eight to twelve players only, PG-13, and not many reviews yet because it is new. If those matter to you, buy one of the others.
What buyers complain about, across every brand
These five patterns show up in reviews of nearly every kit in the category. They are worth knowing before you spend anything.
"Too much to read." Thick character booklets go unread and players miss clues written for them. The more paper per player, the worse this gets.
"We lost track of what happens next." When the running order lives in a host guide, the party stalls whenever the host loses the thread.
"The host couldn't play." Usually written as a regret rather than a complaint, and the most common reason people go looking for a different kit the second time.
"The characters felt flat." Most often about generated kits, where motives are assembled rather than written.
"Great for eight, fell apart at fourteen." Kits that scale by adding characters tend to add ones with nothing to do.
Everyone at the table is certain. That part is free and comes with every kit on this page.
A checklist before you buy any of them
Who reads the solution, and when? If the answer is "the host, up front," accept that one person is working, not playing.
How much does each player have to read? One card is good. A twelve-page booklet is a reading assignment.
What keeps time? A person with a phone, or something built into the kit.
What happens if two guests cancel? Ask before you buy. Some kits handle it; some quietly break.
Is there a content note? Murder mysteries touch death, affairs, addiction and money. A seller who has thought about the room will tell you what is in the box.
Can you play it twice? Most kits have one solution and one ending, so the second play is a re-run.
Do you need a printer, and how much ink? Some kits assume colour printing on card. Most people have neither.
See one running before you spend anythingThere is a ninety-second demonstration of the Dead Certain Conductor on this site. It runs in a browser, needs no download and no email address, and shows the screen opening evidence on cue, questioning a guest by name, and calling the vote. If the idea appeals but you want to see it work first, that is what it is there for. Try the Conductor