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When I first launched Midnight Murder Club on my PS5 this winter, I wasn’t prepared for what Velan Studios had crafted. After dedicating dozens of hours to creeping through shadowy corridors and experiencing countless heart stopping encounters, I can definitively say this horror infused party shooter offers something genuinely unprecedented – albeit with notable shortcomings that prevent it from reaching greatness.
In this detailed review, I’ll break down every aspect of Midnight Murder Club, from its revolutionary Guest Pass feature to the technical hiccups that occasionally interrupt the terror. Having thoroughly tested both PC and console versions with my regular crew, I’m ready to help you determine whether this $9.99 gamble deserves a spot in your library.
| Review Category | Our Score | Key Takeaway |
|---|---|---|
| Gameplay Innovation | 8/10 | Revolutionary darkness mechanic creates authentic dread |
| Multiplayer Experience | 7/10 | Exceptional with groups, disappointing solo |
| Value Proposition | 9/10 | Guest Pass feature offers unmatched generosity |
| Content Variety | 5/10 | Limited map selection hurts replay value |
| Technical Performance | 6/10 | Solid core performance, problematic matchmaking |
Midnight Murder Club transforms 2-6 players into hunters stalking each other through absolute darkness. Created by Velan Studios (the visionary developers of Knockout City and Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit), this title abandons conventional shooter wisdom, leaving players to navigate purely through sound and instinct, armed only with a flashlight and their nerves.
The premise is elegantly straightforward: players spawn throughout a sprawling Victorian estate shrouded in impenetrable darkness. Activating your flashlight grants vision but broadcasts your location to every opponent.
A single well placed shot eliminates any target, establishing a brutal game of predator and prey where each choice carries weight. Through countless sessions, I’ve discovered that this delicate balance between illumination and concealment generates some of the most genuinely terrifying multiplayer moments available today.
Velan Studios has established themselves as masters of accessible innovation in multiplayer gaming. Operating from Troy, New York, this independent developer previously delivered Knockout City’s unique dodgeball combat system and the augmented reality marvel that was Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit.
Midnight Murder Club continues their philosophy of reimagining established genres through unexpected mechanics. Their dedication to social gaming permeates every design decision, from seamless proximity chat integration to their industry leading Guest Pass implementation.
The moment to moment experience in Midnight Murder Club represents the pinnacle of the game’s achievement. I’ve encountered nothing comparable – the total darkness transcends mere novelty to fundamentally reshape FPS gameplay.
My inaugural match involved five minutes of careful navigation through corridors with my flashlight disabled, relying entirely on audio cues, until an accidental collision with another player triggered simultaneous panicked shots and screams through proximity chat. That moment crystallized the game’s unique appeal.
The game’s central tension revolves around flashlight management. Illumination enables navigation and targeting but transforms you into a visible target. Darkness provides concealment at the cost of spatial awareness. Through extensive play, I’ve developed several effective approaches:
Pulse technique: Brief light bursts to scan areas without prolonged exposure
Perimeter navigation: Following walls blindly to maintain stealth while moving
Deception tactics: Activating lights to lure opponents before relocating in darkness
Pure audio gameplay: Complete light avoidance while tracking enemies through sound
PC’s mouse and keyboard setup offers superior precision for those crucial split second engagements, though I personally favor the PS5’s DualSense controller. The haptic feedback while moving adds remarkable immersion – you can distinguish between carpet, hardwood, and stone surfaces through controller vibration alone, providing crucial navigation assistance in absolute darkness.
Midnight Murder Club launches with six distinct modes offering varying levels of success. Here’s my comprehensive assessment:
The game’s purest distillation. Free for all combat until someone reaches the elimination threshold. This mode peaks with 4-6 participants; smaller groups struggle to maintain engagement as players hunt each other through the expansive mansion.
Surprisingly strategic when approached with coordinated teams. My group established callout systems for mansion sections and developed flashlight communication protocols. Proximity chat introduces tactical depth – whispered coordination becomes essential to avoid revealing positions to opposing teams.
Here, Midnight Murder Club achieves pure chaos. Random modifiers like accelerated movement speed or randomly malfunctioning flashlights inject unpredictability into matches. My favorite remains “disco mode,” where strobing lights transform the mansion into a surreal dance floor of terror. The Wildcards system provides desperately needed variety given the limited map selection.
Unfortunately, this represents the game’s weakest element. Battling AI controlled supernatural entities sounds compelling conceptually, but the implementation feels lifeless. The artificial opponents move with predictable patterns, completely lack the psychological element that makes human adversaries terrifying, and the mode feels hastily conceived. I recommend this solely for learning mansion layouts and practicing movement mechanics.
An engaging asymmetric experience where seekers possess permanent illumination while hiders must survive weaponless. The role dynamics create compelling scenarios, though balance slightly favors seekers on PC where mouse precision aids tracking significantly.
Traditional flag capture enhanced by darkness mechanics. Flag carriers become permanently visible, establishing fascinating risk reward calculations. Do you seize the flag and become a glowing target, or provide shadowy support for your carrier? This mode particularly benefits from the Guest Pass system since coordinated teams possess substantial advantages.
The Guest Pass implementation represents perhaps gaming’s most consumer friendly innovation in recent memory. A single $9.99 purchase effectively provides the complete experience for six players. The system operates seamlessly:
Unlike traditional demos or limited time trials, Guest Pass users receive the identical experience as purchasers while playing with the owner. This eliminates multiplayer gaming’s primary obstacle: convincing friends to invest in unfamiliar titles. During testing, I assembled my entire gaming group within minutes.
Having extensively tested both versions, each platform delivers distinct advantages:
Cross platform compatibility functions flawlessly. I’ve detected no significant competitive imbalances between platforms, though PC players might possess marginal advantages in rapid fire situations compared to other shooters with similar mechanics.
Midnight Murder Club’s most glaring weakness lies in its solitary environment. The Victorian mansion showcases excellent design with multiple levels, hidden passages, and diverse room configurations, but after extensive play, every corner becomes intimately familiar. This knowledge significantly diminishes the terror factor – understanding exactly where floorboards creak or which doors lead to specific areas substantially reduces tension.
Velan Studios hasn’t revealed plans for additional environments, raising concerns about sustained engagement. The game desperately requires 2-3 alternative settings to preserve long term appeal. A dilapidated hospital, abandoned educational facility, or simply alternate mansion layouts would dramatically improve replayability.
Locating matches with random players currently represents Midnight Murder Club’s primary weakness. During peak periods, lobby formation requires 5-10 minutes. Off peak gaming sessions prove even more challenging I’ve abandoned 15-minute queue attempts multiple times. The player base appears concentrated around friend groups utilizing Guest Pass functionality, leaving random matchmaking underserved.
Bot backfill attempts to address this issue but completely undermines the experience. Artificial opponents lack proximity chat, exhibit predictable movement patterns, and eliminate the psychological warfare element that makes human adversaries genuinely frightening. Extended queue times prove preferable to diluted bot filled matches.
Steam reviews currently reflect “Mixed” reception with 68% positive feedback across 214 evaluations. Community sentiment aligns with my assessment: outstanding with friends, frustrating in isolation. The Discord community maintains moderate activity with approximately 500 members, though discussions frequently center on matchmaking complaints and requests for additional content.
For sustained success, Midnight Murder Club requires:
After mastering the shadows, here are my essential tactics:
Audio supremacy: Quality headphones are mandatory. Footsteps, door movements, and breathing patterns become your primary navigation tools
Ambush positioning: Unlike traditional shooters, patient camping proves highly effective since detection requires visual contact
Spawn point mastery: Learn all six spawn locations to avoid early game confrontations
Environmental navigation: Furniture collision generates noise but provides cover from flashlight sweeps
Proximity chat manipulation: Use false information to mislead opponents or maintain complete silence for stealth approaches
Light discipline: Never illuminate while moving unless actively pursuing targets
Technically, Midnight Murder Club demonstrates solid stability across platforms. PC’s minimum specifications (GTX 1060, 8GB RAM) remain reasonable, and I experienced zero crashes throughout extensive testing. The PS5 version maintains consistent 60fps performance with instantaneous loading. Network stability generally remains reliable with occasional server side latency spikes.
The audio design merits particular recognition. Spatial audio implementation proves exceptional – players can accurately track opponents through sound alone. Every surface produces distinct footstep characteristics, from muffled carpet to echoing hardwood. The mansion’s ambient atmosphere adds immersion without masking crucial audio information.
While Midnight Murder Club occupies a distinctive market position, comparisons with similar experiences provide valuable context. Unlike conventional horror games emphasizing jump scares and narrative atmosphere, this title focuses exclusively on player versus player psychological tension.
Titles like Phasmophobia deliver cooperative supernatural investigation, while Dead by Daylight provides asymmetric survival horror, but neither captures the specific intensity of hunting friends through complete darkness.
The closest analogue might be Prop Hunt variations, though those rely on visual camouflage rather than total darkness elimination. Midnight Murder Club’s innovation centers on completely removing visual elements, compelling players to develop audio awareness and spatial memory in ways that feel genuinely revolutionary within the saturated multiplayer FPS market.
Midnight Murder Club carves out a distinctive space in multiplayer gaming. Rather than competing directly with mainstream shooters or established horror franchises, it delivers something authentically different: a social horror experience prioritizing shared memories over competitive achievement.
At $9.99, Midnight Murder Club delivers an irreplaceable experience. The Guest Pass system transforms one purchase into entertainment for six participants, creating exceptional value for organized groups. However, limited map variety and matchmaking struggles significantly restrict appeal for independent players.
Final Score: 6.5/10
With friends, this easily becomes an 8/10 experience filled with unforgettable moments and genuine innovation. Solo, it diminishes to 5/10 due to matchmaking frustration and content limitations. Velan Studios has crafted something remarkable, but post launch support remains crucial for realizing its complete potential.
The darkness mechanic transcends gimmickry – it fundamentally revolutionizes competitive shooter design. Should Velan Studios address content and matchmaking concerns through future updates, Midnight Murder Club could transform from an intriguing experiment into an essential party game. Currently, it represents a brilliant concept constrained by execution limitations.
As of late 2024, Velan Studios hasn’t revealed specific post launch roadmaps beyond stability improvements. The game’s trajectory will likely depend on organic growth and content creator adoption. Popular streamers have already generated entertaining content showcasing proximity chat features, potentially driving player expansion if momentum continues.
I’ll monitor Midnight Murder Club’s development and update this assessment following significant changes. For now, assemble your most adventurous friends, extinguish the lights, and prepare for gaming’s most distinctive multiplayer innovation. Simply don’t expect extended solo engagement beyond initial exploration sessions.
