South of Midnight

South of Midnight
Developer(s)	Compulsion Games
Publisher(s)	Xbox Game Studios
Director(s)	David Sears
Artist(s)	Whitney Clayton
Writer(s)	David Sears
Composer(s)	Olivier Derivière
Engine	Unreal Engine 4
Platform(s)	Windows Xbox Series X/S
Release	April 8, 2025
Genre(s)	Action-adventure
Mode(s)	Single-player

South of Midnight is a 2025 action-adventure game developed by Compulsion Games and published by Xbox Game Studios. The game is set in a fictionalized American Deep South. It was released for Windows and Xbox Series X/S on April 8, 2025.

Upon release, it received generally positive reviews from critics.

Gameplay

In this game, Hazel, the player character, must fight against "Haints", nightmarish creatures who become the physical manifestation of past traumas.

South of Midnight is a third-person action-adventure game. Players take on the role of Hazel, who learns an ancient weaving power to explore the Deep South mythos. Throughout her journey, she must cleanse "Stigma" and defeat enemies known as "Haints", both of which are physical manifestations of deep-rooted sorrows and trauma that had festered for decades. The game emulates stop-motion animation for its cutscenes, though it also provides an option for players to toggle it off.

Hazel's primarily weapons of choice is a pair of hooks. Five consecutive melee attacks form a combo, damaging enemies significantly. She can perform a quick dodge to evade attack. If she is able to dodge just before an opponent's attack lands, she will trigger a strand blast that damages nearby enemies. Enemies attacks can be interrupted, though unavoidable attacks (indicated to the player when an enemy's health bar turns yellow), must be dodged. Hazel can also cast magical spells during combat, though there is a short cooldown time following each usage. With her magic, she can stun an enemy, push them away or pull them towards her. Hazel is also equipped with a small puppet known as Crouton; throwing it at enemy will cause a Haint to attack its allies for a brief period of time. Combat encounter occurs in an arena that is cordoned off upon entry; players must defeat all enemies in the arean before they can progress. Hazel can either "unravel" a downed Haint, or consume a green health sigil which can only be used once in each arena, to replenish health during combat.

Hazel can perform highly acrobatic skills such as double jumping, wall running, and gliding through the air. The game is largely linear, and players can summon a guiding strand to lead them to their next objective. If players explore off the beaten track, they may find "Floofs", which can be used to purchase combat upgrades or new abilities, or "health filaments", which increase Hazel's maximum health. Crouton can also squeeze into small tunnels Hazel typically cannot fit through. Hazel can also use her powers in both transversal and puzzle-solving. For instance, she can solidfy "Echo" objects from the past and use them to reach previously inaccessible areas. The game's world is also filled with environmental hazards such as explosive mushroom and spiking thorns, both of which must be avoided. Throughout the game, players will encounter several mythical creatures, some of which serve as the game's boss battles. Many of these mythical creatures are also haunted by events of the past. As a Weaver, Hazel can gather their painful memories and contain them using a magical bottle, and place them on a bottle tree to resolve their past trauma, enabling them to move on.

Plot

Premise

The game is set in a Gothic fantasy American Deep South setting. South of Midnight follows Hazel Flood's (Adriyan Rae) journey after a hurricane devastates her hometown of Prospero. Pulled into a Southern Gothic reality where folklore creatures emerge, Hazel must become a Weaver—a magical mender of broken bonds and spirits. Along the way, Hazel encounters all kinds of mythical creatures based on Southern American legends. As she confronts enemy creatures known as Haints and untangles her family’s past, Hazel seeks to reweave the tears in the Grand Tapestry and find a place that feels like home.

Synopsis

Hazel Flood helps her mother Lacey (Cynthia K. McWilliams) prepare to evacuate their house in the wake of an approaching hurricane. However, they both get into an argument when Hazel accuses her mother of caring more about random strangers than her daughter and leaves the house. As Hazel leaves, the house is washed away by a flash flood with Lacey still inside, and Hazel desperately tries to chase it, catching sight of "Strands" along the way. Unable to catch up to the house, Hazel turns to her estranged grandmother Bunny (Debra Cardona) for help. Upon hearing that Hazel can see the Strands, Bunny attempts to trap Hazel in her mansion, only for Hazel to escape and continue to search for Lacey. Hazel soon recovers several enchanted tools that allow her to manipulate the Strand and fight Haints that begin appearing to attack her. As she proceeds further down the river, she increasingly begins to become aware of more supernatural phenomena.

Eventually, Hazel comes across and helps a giant Catfish (Walter Roberts), who agrees to help her find Lacey as well as tell her more about her powers. Catfish explains that Hazel is a Weaver, an individual who can perceive and tap into the power of the Strands which they use to battle Haints and repair the Grand Tapestry that ties all creation together. Continuing her journey, Hazel comes across several monsters that are the manifestations of human and animal spirits twisted by negative emotions, which she heals by "bottling" up their negative emotions and confronting the monsters in battle to untangle their "knots". Eventually, she finds the remains of her home, but there is no sign of Lacey besides red yarn. Catfish warns that the red yarn means that Lacey was likely abducted by "Huggin' Molly", another supernatural monster. He explains that Bunny is the only person who fought Molly and won, rescuing Hazel's then-child father Trey from Molly's grasp.

Hazel explores Bunny's abandoned weekend cottage for clues on Molly's whereabouts. Reliving the memories she finds there, Hazel discovers Trey (Jim Conway) accidentally killed his younger sister Cherie (Auguste Lercher) when he dropped her in the river in attempt to clean the girl's dress when it got dirty, which Bunny never forgave him for. She also uncovers all of Bunny's secret research into Weavers and the supernatural creatures in the area, including Molly. Bunny confronts Hazel at the cottage and agrees to help her, explaining that Molly abducted Trey as bait since she was Molly's real target, so Molly may be using Lacey as bait for Hazel as well. Bunny gives Hazel information on how to find Molly's lair. Catfish warns Hazel that Bunny can't be trusted, pointing out that she will resort to any means to resurrect Cherie. Ignoring Catfish's warnings, Hazel invades Molly's lair and confronts the creature. After defeating Molly, Hazel realizes too late that Lacey and Molly were actually working together to rescue children who were being abused by their parents, and Molly was attempting to heal Lacey. However, Bunny arrives and takes advantage of Molly's weakened state, killing her and stealing her heart which she plans to use to resurrect Cherie.

Bunny then shoves Hazel off of a cliff to her apparent death. Suffering a near-death experience, Hazel encounters Roux (Ahmed Best), a dark spirit who informs her Lacey's soul is trapped in the realm of Kooshma, the King of Dreams and Nightmares. Upon arriving in Kooshma's realm, Hazel frees Lacey's soul from Kooshma with Roux's help, in exchange Roux gives Hazel an enchanted hairbrush and instructs her to give it to Bunny. He reveals that Bunny is a "False Stitcher", a person who has obtained Weaver powers through dark magic which is tearing apart the Great Tapestry. Hazel returns to the human realm where she reunites and makes amends with Lacey. She confronts Bunny, who is distraught her ritual to revive Cherie had failed. Hazel gives her the brush and Roux appears, offering to take Bunny to Kooshma's realm so she can live in an illusion of raising Cherie. Bunny accepts the offer and leaves with Roux, and Hazel embraces her new role as a Weaver, keeping watch over her hometown for supernatural threats.

Development

South of Midnight was developed by Compulsion Games, the creators of We Happy Few and Contrast. It marks Compulsion's first game developed under Xbox Game Studios, following their acquisition by the company in 2018. The game was originally developed under the codename "Project Midnight". Details of the game first leaked via Windows Central in 2021, where concept art was revealed. The game was officially announced at Xbox Games Showcase on June 11, 2023, during Summer Game Fest. On June 9, 2024, Compulsion Games showcased the first gameplay trailer for the game and announced that it would be released in 2025.

The stop-motion cutscenes were created with the help of Clyde Henry Productions. Maquettes of clay stop motion figures were used to create the unique art style. The game has a dark modern folktale driven by character development, lyrical music inspired by the American South, and a narrative that delves into Southern folklore.

Reception

Reception

Aggregate scores

Aggregator	Score
Metacritic	(PC) 75/100 (XSXS) 77/100
OpenCritic	67% recommend

Review scores

Publication	Score
Destructoid	9/10
Eurogamer	3/5
GameSpot	8/10
GamesRadar+	3.5/5
Hardcore Gamer	4/5
IGN	8/10
PC Gamer (US)	83/100
PCGamesN	6/10
Shacknews	8/10
The Guardian	3/5
Video Games Chronicle	3/5

South of Midnight received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator website Metacritic. OpenCritic determined that 67% recommended the game.

Kristina Ebanez from Destructoid called the game "A hallmark of excellence. There may be flaws, but they are negligible and won't cause massive damage." Eurogamer's Chris Tapsell says "It's one of the best sounding games I've played in an age, with a highly unique, artfully implemented original score woven into its sound design. And it's also extremely well acted, a cut above the vast majority of video games in emotional authenticity and heft. But goodness me can it get tiresome to play." From GameSpot, Jordan Ramée said that the game "makes up for its orthodox gameplay with a fantastic story, well-researched setting, and an incredibly catchy lyric-driven soundtrack. Jasmine Gould-Wilson from GamesRadar said that the game "is a charming (if predictable) action-adventure experience that's perfectly happy to play it safe." Hardcore Gamer's Parker Green praised the game's unique and gorgeous setting, deep and thoughtful storytelling, and dynamic stop-motion art style while criticising its underwhelming combat, some visual glitches, and art style that can be hard to interpret at times. Michael Higham from IGN said the game "is a straightforward but well-executed action-adventure game elevated by the artistry and heart of the American Southern culture that’s wrapped around it." Andrea Shearon from PC Gamer said that the game's "action may not have the strongest hook, but its poignant tale of hope and sorrow tailored to Deep South mythos keeps its head raised high." From PCGamesN, Lauren Bergin said that it "is a monotonous action-adventure game plagued by boring, repetitive fights and boss battles, with a story that loses momentum when it needs it most. Thankfully, its strong characterization, setting, and soundtrack do a lot of the heavy lifting." Shacknews Donovan Erskine praised its well-paced story, awesome protagonist, gothic fantasy and stop-motion animation while criticising the game's generic combat and progression. Chris Scullion from Video Games Chronicle said the game "is a gorgeous adventure with wonderful performances, striking visuals and solid platforming gameplay. Its combat, however, is repetitive and reductive in equal measure, letting the overall package down considerably."

External links

• Official website