A Hundred Ways To Die

As this is an English translation of a commercial boxed game, many reviews exist for the Chinese version; you might want to check them out too.

Played at: JunXion · Jushuo (Jalan Besar)
5 characters (5 female)

Criminal X’s current English-translated cases are something of a microcosm of jubensha varieties: a classic evidence-and-timeline case, The Checkerboard; an out-of-this-world setting, Who Stole My Cheese?; hardcore high-concept deduction in The Witch House; and A Hundred Ways To Die, representing the light-hearted (欢乐) genre.

What makes a murder mystery game light-hearted? In this case, a focus on roleplaying and salacious revelations — though the original title, 《前男友的100种死法》, is already something of a giveaway.

This game is best for friends who are happy to take in-character swipes at each other. The game structure explicitly encourages such drama, making the first-round evidence search and accusations more spirited than usual.

The central case isn’t trivial, and there are various other story aspects to figure out. Yet it’s hard to recommend this game to deduction-focused players — the evidence feels incomplete, and some character choices are unsatisfying. (Your experience may vary, but in my case, the most rigorous part of the game also seemed to be glossed over due to a lack of time.)

That said, the correct conclusions can be reached if you’re willing to make slightly under-supported inferential leaps — there are no red herrings or misleading clues.

As with Criminal X’s other translated cases, the production values are solid, though there were a couple of minor mistakes (we pointed one out, so hopefully it’ll be corrected).

Groups that play jubensha more for the experience or story might have a fun time, but groups that enjoy rigorous deduction are better off trying any of the other three scripts.

Try if you like: Roleplaying with friends; soap-opera storylines; making daring inferential leaps.

Not recommended for: Deduction-focused players who prefer a complete set of evidence; player groups that aren’t comfortable with in-character catfighting.