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Costume Advice

CODES, CIRCUITS & CHAOS

Techies, Tinkerers & Tin-Can Tyrants

From hoodie-wearing startup wizards and socially questionable hackers to sentient robots, caffeinated engineers, and billionaires with God complexes — this costume category celebrates the wide (and wild) world of technology. Whether you build it, break it, debug it, or embody it, this crew runs entirely on caffeine, ambition, and untested prototypes.

CODES, CIRCUITS & CHAOS LOOKS

The Tech CEO

 

Vibe: Disruptive. Delusional. One IPO away from launching themselves into space.

 

Closet Costume:

  • Black turtleneck (Steve Jobs) or sleek black tee (Elon-core)

  • Skinny jeans or monochrome slacks

  • Designer sneakers or Allbirds

  • Lanyard badge that says “Founder. Visionary. Problem?”

  • Jacket that costs $2,000 but looks like a potato sack

 

Behavior:

  • Make TED Talk hand gestures while saying nothing of substance

  • Say “We’re not a company, we’re a movement”

  • Refer to your garage as "the innovation lab"

  • Drop phrases like “frictionless scalability” in casual conversation

 

The Computer Scientist

 

Vibe: Knows 47 programming languages but can’t explain their job to their family.

 

Closet Costume:

  • Graphic tee with an inside joke only six people in the world get

  • Khakis, cargo pants, or anything with extra pockets (for cables)

  • Lab coat or flannel overshirt

  • Glasses with blue light filter

  • Worn-out sneakers or New Balances with a story

 

Accessories & Behavior:

  • Carry a laptop (get a toy one) with 19 stickers

  • Speak in algorithm metaphors

  • Refer to things as “NP-hard” even if it's just getting out of bed

  • Occasionally stare off and whisper, “What if we optimized recursion…”

 

The Robotic Engineer

 

Vibe: Thinks “emotion” is a module. Brings soldering gear to potlucks.

 

Closet Costume:

  • Work jumpsuit, lab coat, or layered tech wear

  • Goggles (pushed up) or a headlamp

  • Utility belt filled with wires, resistors, and possibly raisins

  • Safety gloves and a name tag that says “Builds Friends”

 

Accessories & Behavior:

  • Remote control for something, even if nothing’s attached

  • Blueprint rolled up like a scroll of forbidden knowledge

  • Explains torque specs unprompted

 

The Hacker (Morally Fluid)

 

Vibe: Lives in the shadows of the internet and is probably on a watchlist.

 

Closet Costume:

  • Black hoodie (mandatory)

  • Dark pants and combat boots

  • Gloves, backpack, and a laptop with mysterious duct tape

  • Headphones around neck and a slightly suspicious USB stick

 

Behavior:

  • Type furiously and then say “I’m in”

  • Refuse to explain what you do. Ever.

  • Say “the algorithm is watching” with absolute seriousness

  • Occasionally vanish from conversations mid-sentence

 

The Robot / AI / Humanoid

 

Vibe: Designed to help. Malfunctioning anyway.

 

Closet Costume:

  • All silver, black, or white clothing — anything structured or synthetic

  • Reflective sunglasses or visor

  • Panels drawn on skin with eyeliner or metallic tape

  • Dots or LEDs on temples for “facial interface ports”

 

Behavior:

  • Responds with “Affirmative” and “Request denied.”

  • Walks like someone trying to remember how knees work

  • Pauses randomly to “reboot”

  • Glitches on purpose when bored

 

The Silicon Valley Coder

 

Vibe: Never blinks. Thinks sleep is a feature to be patched later.

 

Closet Costume:

  • Company hoodie from a startup you made up

  • T-shirt that says “Code. Eat. Sleep. Repeat.” or similar

  • Blue-light glasses

  • Joggers or jeans with mystery crumbs

 

Accessories & Behavior:

  • Laptop covered in stickers like “Stack Overflow Saved My Life”

  • (Pretend) Vapes while debugging (if adult)

  • Constantly refreshes GitHub and Slack

  • Says “this code is ugly but it works, just like me”


Bonus Characters

Character Type = Costume/Behavior Blend

Defective AI = Freezes mid-sentence, says “RECALCULATING” after every social cue

Tech Support  = Dresses in officewear, speaks with interruptions of printer noises and sighs

Influencer Dev  = Carries ring light, never codes, just vibes and posts “#buildinpublic”

Crypto Bro  = Suit jacket over shorts. Screams “BUY THE DIP” while juggling fake NFTs 

NOTES FROM THE GAME DEVELOPER

HACKER:  They can look like anyone because nobody knows who they are, so feel free to dress in whatever you wish. However, the public's perception of a hacker (per the existing videos, TV shows, etc.) would be someone in a dark hoodie and possibly wearing a mask like Mr. Robot.  Don't worry - after you enter the party and take a few photos - you do not need to keep your mask on - that would be annoying!

COMPUTER SCIENTIST/SOFTWARE ENGINEER/CYBERSECURITY: You could wear a suit  (click here for men's or click here for women's) to look business professional and dress it up with a nerd kit or a pixel bow tie.  Or, wear the floppy disk costume for a laugh!  A third option is to go full nerd!  Any academic-themed character is great with a nerd costume, whether your character's bio says you are a nerd or not :)  Velma is a nerd, so you could wear that and put on a spin. You're at a mystery party, so you are channeling your inner Scooby-doo team to solve the case.

ROBOT/HUMANOID: There are a few options up there with robot costumes, or you can wear all silver and grab a robot mask.  Or even cheaper - wear all black (everyone probably has that in the closet) with the robot mask. Or, even more budget-friendly is to wear all black and make your own robot mask by grabbing a cardboard box that was used to ship something to you. Cut out a window for your face. Paint it silver and decorate it with cut-out felt pieces.  Don't forget the cheesy antenna :)

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© 2006. My Mystery Party, LLC. All rights reserved. Games created by Dr. Bon Blossman.

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