Unsolved murder mystery game – Cold Case Files Investigation
Unsolved murder mystery game – Cold Case Files Investigation – CRYPTIC KILLERS – Detective clues/evidence – Solve the crime – individuals, date nights & party groups – “Murder of a Marine Biologist”
TIME?
We expect this case to take 3 hours to complete and solve.
AGE?
Due to the content of the game, we advise this is suitable for ages 14 and above.
PLAYERS?
This can be played solo, as a couple or distribute the evidence amongst friends and solve as a group.
DIFFICULTY?
We give this a 4 difficulty rating out of 5. Found this too hard, or too easy? Then look out for new games in the series with different ratings.
 |  |  |  |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DIFFICULTY | 4 out of 5 | 3.5 out of 5 | 4.5 out of 5 | 4 out of 5 | 3.5 out of 5 | 3 out of 5 |
| DURATION | 3 hours | 2.5 hours | 3 hours | 3 hours | 2 hours | 2 hours |
| PIECES OF EVIDENCE | 32 + online evidence | 27 + online evidence | 33 + online evidence | 30 + online evidence | 29 + online evidence | 27 + online evidence |
| NUMBER OF PLAYERS | Individual – Couples – Groups | Individual – Couples – Groups | Individual – Couples – Groups | Individual – Couples – Groups | Individual – Couples – Groups | Individual – Couples – Groups |
| SUITABLE FOR ADULTS | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| ONLINE ACCESS (game play / hints / answers) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Dimensions: | 38.71 x 27.51 x 1.09 cm; 299 Grams |
| Colour: | Multicolor |
| Batteries Required: | No |
| Batteries Included: | No |
| Dimensions: | 38.71 x 27.51 x 1.09 cm; 299 Grams |
his is the first cryptic killers case file we got as it was recommend by friends, it was honestly so fun decoding messages and feeling so excited when you cracked part of the case! i’d really recommend this
This is the 2nd one of these we have done and they are brilliant! Spent nearly 3 hours solving it, couldn’t believe the killer was………!!! Will definitely be doing another and we will do them all!
I liked the evidence provided and the way it was provided such as a newspaper article or security log.
I also liked the additional use of the internet which made it more interesting. Not too easy so you have to use your brain but there is a hints site if you get stuck. I have already bought my next game and can’t wait to start it. My only complaint is that the photos were a bit dark.
Bought this as a Yule family game and it was really great fun. The ‘evidence’ felt very realistic and we felt like Mulder and Scully looking it over (only with less aliens, haha). Really got into it, but we did solve it in 90 mins (the average time I think we were given was 3 hours) but as one of us studies forensic anthropology and another loves Midsomer Murders perhaps we had an advantage! Would definitely buy anothe
Another fabulous “play at being a detective” afternoon/evening spent with my daughter.
We love how these packs are so detailed and exciting. With the added online bits too, it really does make you feel like you are working an active case! This is the second one we have done and cannot wait to get our hands on another one soon.
Thoroughly recommend this to families with older kids, looking for something to get involved with!!
Once again Cryptic Killers have nailed it!! Have passed them both on to my eldest and her boyfriend, and they thoroughly enjoyed their time being detectives too 😉
I bought this on a black friday discount. I’m glad I did because although it was good fun, it took two of us under two hours. I didn’t feel like the evidence to show it *was* the killer was quite convincing enough, it felt a bit circumstantial and although I’d ruled out all other suspects, I would have rather have been sure of the answer. Overall though it was cheaper than a cinema ticket and was an interesting way to spend an evening!
Absolutely loved it!
Well thought out, well packaged, easy to follow.
Took over 4 hours over two days to complete!!
Definitely a winner if you’re looking for something different to do on a weekend evening at home! Great with friends and family, but would also be enjoyable by yourself!!
Great game and very well presented. Only needed a hint on one thing. Great afternoon entertainment. I think any more than 2 people playing may get confusing. We played with 2.
This is our 2nd one and I have bought a 3rd one that I am looking forward to playing
Bought this is a games night activity for a group of friends and we all had a great time reading through the clues and following every thread! Took us just over 3 hours to solve. Can thoroughly recommend this case file and we’re looking forward to trying some of the others too!
I loved this. Me and my boyfriend did it as an alternative date night, something different and we honestly had such a fun time. We started around 7pm and didnt finish at until 10:45 pm (we had a dinner break in between). So we wp
Would say roughly 3 hours like it says on the pack.
All of the details in the evidence that is supplied is just incredible and kudos to the guys that created this.
We will definitely be buying more!
Bloody loved this game. It was our first time and we’ll definitely be playing the others.
Quite difficult and had to use a few of the hints but really good fun.
Great product! And lots of evidence and reports to read, really keeps you going. The sheets and evidence are very well put together and the hints if needed are easy to get online. Great evening in 🙂 will be getting another one!
Ordered this after seeing them go viral on TikTok. Thought it would be a good date night at home. Wasn’t disappointed, my husband and I love crime docs/dramas so figured we’d do well at this. It took us about 3 hours in total but time flew past, had lots of fun working things out. It goes in two parts. We did find it hard to determine the killer at the end as we felt we had three suspects. There is online aspects which add into all the paperwork you receive. If you get stuck anywhere there is a website for hints. All in all I will definitely be getting some of the other stories as we had a great time, something a bit different from binging tv!
Really enjoyed this, took me and my boyfriend around 3 and a half hours to complete (beer likely didn’t help) but a great and totally different way to spend a Friday night! Looking forward to trying out some of the other packs
We had hours of fun with this one! Only slight issue was that the 2 envelopes said part 1, thankfully when we checked inside them we had part 1 and part 2 and used the website to check we had everything for part 2.
Me and my girlfriend did this and it was so much fun! Cannot recommend enough if you’ve got an afternoon off together and want to spend a few hours putting your heads together to solve this! And the conclusion is unpredictable, came as a massive shock when we figured it out!
Very interesting game with lots of head scratching moments. Took around 3 hour for me and my partner to complete but fun all the way through!
Highly recommend and the evidence and websites that are provided are incredible attention to detail.
This is a tough one, I’m not going to lie. We absolutely adored playing this murder mystery. We have played 2 of these and loved both. The marine biologist has definitely been trickier to crack but loved every second. Purchasing the next ones now!
ook me and my friend 5 hours to complete, i really recommend this. I’m a college student who studies forensics science and i could not recommend this enough if you are into true crime and things like this, it has a lot of plot twists and hidden messages. i really enjoyed this and so did my friend, I recommend it a lot.
This is the first Cryptic Case I have ever played and will definitely be getting more. The attention to detail is incredible and made it so immersive. Only given 4 stars as there was some loose ends we were still unable to tie up despite looking through all the hints after finishing the game. But still so, so good!
This is our second case file and we have thoroughly enjoyed both. Both times we have played with ages raging from 11-70 years and everyone has been able to get involved, although this time we were out foxed by the final clue which felt a little unjust after all our hard work! It’s a great alternative for an evening’s entertainment and we will definitely do another one.
It was a great game! Visually, they clearly put a lot of effort into making it an immersive experience and it actually involved some thinking (I’ve come across a few detective games that may have looked nice but were lackluster in the content difficulty and this scratched that itch).
One thing though, in Part One when inputting the password for the GPS tracker, it wouldn’t accept (with the right answer) for me unless the password was hidden. Other than that, excellent work! I’ve ordered all the other level 4+ games 🙂
This game is great to complete as a team, in a couple or by yourself. My husband and I love these games so we’re really excited to try this one. This one was split into 2 parts so you can take a break before you tackle part 2. The mystery is really interesting and the clues really make you think about it. I would encourage everyone to try this one!
Myself and partner found ourselves without the kids for an evening and wanted to plan something different for a date night! We chose this case at random and on reading the pack when it arrived we were a little daunted by the high difficulty rating. HOWEVER, we got a takeaway, munched on food and started opening pack 1 and we didn’t stop! It took us just under 3 hours but as soon as it finished we said “I want to do another!” I can’t wait wait to order another Case and get cracking!
Took me and my partner 3 hours to do, but definitely something fun, different and interesting for date night! Caused a row or two over who we thought was right, but it was all good fun and once stuck into it, it was intriguing enough to keep us going…. we’re neither of us competitive, but didn’t want to give up either and was great to do as a team 🙂
Really well presented re: checklist of evidence, and packaged authentically with a file, envelopes, etc – lot of attention to detail in the ‘evidence’ and documents so it’s not just pieces of paper!
This was absolutely amazing. Such a clever idea and well put together. Had me and my hubby discussing the killer and all the evidence for hours!
Wasn’t easy, definitely thought it was a different killer but we got there in the end – without cheating!!
Definitely buy this if you’re into crime documentaries etc. We both felt like we were involved in a real investigation. Will definitely be purchasing more for future date nights!
This is the 3rd cryptic killer game we’ve played now and it’s just as good as the others. It’s a little longer and split into two parts but that made it more fun!
Even though it was listed as 4.5 difficulty we were able to eliminate a lot of suspects quickly but some of the puzzles will have new players scratching their heads for a bit!
I love the whole series and look forward to playing the res
Me and my other half absolutely love crime stuff so when we heard about these we had to try it! it was so much fun debating theories with each other and eventually ruling out everyone by process of elimination. It took us 3 hours and 39 minutes to complete and weve decided that were getting one each date night! The joy we got connecting all the dots – and when we finally got it right was great! All the evidence was really interesting and containted ALOT of information, you do have to use your head a bit and sometimes google to find the answers. If you like a challenge and want a fun time–these are for you!
This was our latest case to solve, and by far the hardest to date. Very well put together and without the hints sectionI don’t think we would have solved it.
This is my third time purchasing one of these games, they are absolutely brilliant! I have been recommending them to everyone! Me and my boyfriend have been playing them and the level of thought and detail put into the pack is incredible, while this is probably the most difficult one we have done so far it made all the more satisfactory when we discovered the killer! Can’t wait to play more!
It has loads of evidence to read through. Very detailed. We did part 1 in 3 hours and then part 2 in just under 2 hours. It requires a lot of thinking and note taking but it is very enjoyable and worth the money!
A brilliant game. Lots of evidence and so took us quite a while. Possibly some more small elements to figure out would have been good. Other than that, brilliant job!!
This mystery was for a family fun evening. Sadly the drinks flowed and that made it really tricky to solve. You need FULL concentration. It’s very immersive and really beautifully done. I will definitely tackle the other versions of this game, stone cold sober.
Bought this kit for an at home date night & had a fantastic time! The kit has everything you need and is well put together. Top hint: pay attention to EVERYTHING! There is physical evidence and online evidence, so you do need access to the internet to play. We’ll definitely be looking at some more kits for the future.
I absolutely love stuff like this and when i heard about the games i had to try…these games are amazing, I have ordered 3 so far, done 2 with the latest one being this one, it was a bit more trickier than the first one (murder of a millionaire) and a lot more evidence but I thoroughly enjoyed them both. They are so detailed and i love all the different types of evidence and how they all link together (even the tiniest details) will be doing the 3rd next week with a group of people and definitely ordering more.
Really fun, took a while to complete but really enjoyed it for a week night in. It was a bit tricky but we got there in the end!
It might seem a bit pricey considering it’s single-use but the quality of it all is really good and the websites to go along with it are class too. Great for a gift or to re-gift after using it!
Got one of these before this one to do with friends and it was so good! If u don’t mind only being able to play once n selling it on / passing it on to somebody else it’s definitely worth it !! It took us 3hrs 30 but that’s because we were slow on the first part of the last one we did it just keeps you guessing and it is so good !!
I purchased this game to play with my boyfriend as we both like this type of investigation game, having played a few investigatory video games and escape room board games. I was drawn to the marine biologist one as it seemed the most unique and interesting. I haven’t played the other titles but the names sounded a little clich, we might try them in the future though.
Overall the game was very fun to play, and a lot longer than we had expected. It took us 3 sessions of around 3 hours each, as the game has so many clues in person and online that we couldn’t thoroughly go through them all in less time.
We were both very happy with the amount of information- having so much made it feel like a real case and it was fun that there was so much available to go back and forth with.
In general we like to play these types of games but wouldn’t consider ourselves to be experts. At first we were wondering whether it would be too hard for us (being a 4 difficulty) but we solved it pretty easily. Not that it was obvious, we still had to look through all the clues multiple times, but we didn’t need any help with the conclusion.
The physical aspect of the game is so well detailed. The evidence FEELS real which is so exciting and immersive.
The only downside which I will mention more below is that the storytelling could be better. Not that it isn’t good because the game is very enjoyable but the game could be perfect with some tidying up.
****NEXT PART CONTAINS MINOR SPOILERS FOR THE GAME*****
My only issue with the game is that the game fails to mention important characters for a very long time (until the second part really) so it doesn’t feel very satisfactory at the end of the game when some people are found not to have anything to do with the case at all. Of course there will be some red herrings but I felt as though the majority of the first part turned out to be for nothing. It would have been nice if there were more interlinking things instead of just a bunch of coincidences, especially when we spent so much time going over everything.
Abandoned for the weekend I was able to give this my full attention.
First thoughts were concerning the high quality of the materials. Presented in a ‘secruity’ sealed plastic bag the evidence is mostly in the form of A4 sheets of paper. These are split between part 1 and part 2 envelopes. The objectives for part 1 must be completed and verified on-line before opening the part 2 envelope. Each envelope has an evidence checklist and any missing evidence can be requested on-line and sent to you via email. Nothing was missing from my pack so I did not use this facility.
The on-line content worked well. I used a tablet to access this information and had no need to print any information. I think I may have struggled using a phone but prints would have solved this.
The story was well written and held my attention. I made copious notes and completed it in 1hr 40 minutes for part 1 plus 2 hours for part 2. No hints were required but I do have unanswered questions about the gun used by the murderer.
No game materials were damaged during my playthrough and it is easy to reset the game so that it can be passed onto other players.
I will be looking to get another case in the series in the near future.