The public’s interest in true crime significantly increased after Truman Capote released his 1965 novel “In Cold Blood,” which covered the brutal murders of the Clutter family.
This interest is still seen today, as GRLGMRS hosted its own murder mystery game night for students to solve a fictional homicide case.
From the game company Unsolved Case Files, participants were given evidence to solve the murder of Harmony Ashcroft. Documents included information on five possible suspects, and three objectives to complete. With each suspect came a headshot, personal information, a narrative/witness statement and an interrogation transcript.
The first objective was for participants to prove Bones McBride, a wrongfully convicted man, innocent. Once completed, one of the club’s board members would give extra hints to help attendees in the search.
The second objective determined which suspect had a false alibi; the third convicted the real killer.
Adolfo Lopez, a junior electrical engineering major, said that although the game took a little over an hour to complete, it was still enjoyable.
“It felt fun to figure out the mystery as it went on, and it was very interactive,” Lopez said. “I would play the game again. It was very engaging, fun to solve and fun to work with others.”
Lopez and the other participants received a little extra help from a couple of GRLGMRS board members because, according to Anisa Ellis, the club’s president, the game was designed to take four hours.
While Ellis said she was happy with the turnout of the event, there is always something that could use improvement.
“One thing we could have done differently was promoting the event earlier; however, I know a lot of our executive members were very busy during the last two weeks before the event,” Ellis, a junior user experience design major, said.
Fortunately, the club’s delay in advertising for the event did not affect the event’s entertainment factor or atmosphere.
“[It was a] very welcoming environment, I’ve got friends involved with it and overall very unique and fun events that I don’t see other organizations around campus doing,” Lopez said.
GRLGMRS’ next game will be Among Us at 6 p.m. in GCC 213 on Nov. 8.
