Wink murder
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| Wink Murder | |
|---|---|
| Players | 4 or more |
| Age range | 5 and up |
| Setup time | less than 5 minutes |
| Playing time | Approx 2 - 20 mins per round |
| Rules complexity | Low |
| Strategy depth | Medium |
| Random chance | Low |
| Skills required | Stealth, bluff, creativity |
Wink Murder or Murder Wink is a party game for many people (the absolute minimum number of players is four, but the spirit of the game is best captured by groups of at least six players, and in some places, such as schools, can be played by as many as 35 players and up.). There are two variations of the game. Common to both is that in each round of play, one player is assigned the role of murderer, with the ability to "murder" other players (thereby removing them from that round of play) by making eye contact and winking at them. Other players are forbidden from winking. The objective of the murderer is to murder a maximum number of people.
In one variation of the game, sometimes played by children as a class activity in primary school, another player, unaware of the murderer's identity, is assigned the role of detective. All other players sit in a circle around the detective, whose objective is to correctly identify and accuse the murderer, minimising the number of murder victims. A limit is often imposed upon the number of accusations the detective can make. In this version of the game, players other than the murderer and detective do not necessarily know the murderer's identity, and have no role to play in the game other than to die noticeably if winked at.
In another variation of the game, cards such as playing cards are allocated to all players, with one specified card randomly determining the identity of the murderer — players may not reveal their cards to each other. All players who are not murderer effectively take on the role of detective, with the objective of correctly identifying and accusing the murderer. Every accusation must be seconded by another player, with a false accusation resulting in the death (that is, the removal from the round of play) of both the accuser and the seconder. This version of the game can be played in an informal setting, requiring only that players are all within sight of each other — the game can be played concurrently with other activities (such as conversation or another game).
Murder handshake is a variation where the players are expected to shake hands, and the murderer kills by using a special handshake, usually scratching the victim's palm. Many prefer this version of the winking version because "killing" someone is not as easily noticeable by third parties, and there's less chance for error (if you blink while looking at someone from the side, it could be interpreted as a wink even if you are not the actual killer).
