Midnight Walk Review: A Captivating Claymation Horror Game

The Midnight Walk Review: A Captivating Claymation Horror Game

In this The Midnight Walk review, we delve into the captivating and unique experience offered by this claymation-inspired horror game, exploring its strengths and weaknesses on both PC and PS5.

First revealed during a PlayStation State of Play event, The Midnight Walk immediately grabbed attention with its distinctive claymation visuals. Developed by MoonHood, a Swedish studio with talent from games like Lost in Random and Ghost Giant, it aims to create a visually stunning and emotionally resonant experience. The game is available on both PC and PS5, with optional VR support.

Marketed as a "cozy horror game," The Midnight Walk attempts to blend comforting elements with unsettling horror, resulting in a genre-defying experience. While it succeeds in combining these seemingly opposite elements, creating a world that is both charming and terrifying, the game does suffer from inconsistencies, particularly a lack of challenge and a weaker narrative in its latter half.

A Touching Story Told in Fragments in The Midnight Walk

In The Midnight Walk, players take on the role of The Burnt One, an unnamed character who partners with a sentient clay torch known as Potboy. The mission is simple: complete the Midnight Walk through a perpetually dark land, ascend Moon Mountain, and reignite the sun, bringing daylight back to the world.

However, the game avoids excessive exposition, instead throwing players into a strange world where they must piece together the narrative by finding scattered fragments of the story. Much like in Dark Souls, NPCs are more concerned with their own struggles and how the sun's disappearance has affected them, leaving it to the player to uncover the larger mystery. This approach to storytelling works remarkably well, rewarding exploration and problem-solving.

The Tale Of The Burnt One

The story of The Midnight Walk unfolds in six episodes, each titled "The Tale of..." These episodes explore different parts of the Midnight Walk, delving into characters' backgrounds and the tragic histories of various locations. This episodic structure keeps the plot moving and the gameplay engaging, particularly in the early chapters.

Each chapter feels like a fairy tale, starting with a clear problem in a distant land and ending with a straightforward moral lesson. The game is carefully designed to evoke emotional responses, with certain story beats and images being particularly impactful. Despite the darker themes, the narrative maintains a hopeful and uplifting tone, which is one of its strengths.

While The Midnight Walk is relatively short, around seven hours to complete the main story or up to ten hours with all collectibles, not all episodes are created equal. The fourth and fifth chapters delve too deeply into the origins of the clay world, diminishing some of the mystique that made the earlier parts of the game so compelling. The story works best when kept at a distance, allowing players to fill in the gaps.

The Clay-Hewn Visuals of The Midnight Walk

Many games have attempted to replicate the claymation style, but few achieve the visual impact of The Midnight Walk. Drawing inspiration from Henry Selick, particularly The Nightmare Before Christmas, the game features wholly original character designs brought to life with actual, physical clay models.

The handcrafted feel is evident in every detail, from the rough textures to the jerky stop-motion animation. This aesthetic choice enhances the game's atmosphere, making both the horror elements and the tender moments more impactful. The music and voice acting further contribute to the experience, conveying a passion that drives the story and endears players to the characters.

Accompanying the visuals is a folk-inspired soundtrack featuring guitar, violin, piano, and banjo, which is simple yet incredibly effective in setting the tone.

Gameplay in The Midnight Walk: Puzzles and VR

At its core, The Midnight Walk is a puzzle game, with many puzzles revolving around rekindling fires. Players must light candles or shoot flaming matches to progress. Closing your eyes is also a key mechanic, requiring players to use sound clues to find hidden items or to blink to make obstacles disappear.

The puzzles are generally simple and don't present a significant challenge. While this isn't necessarily a negative, some players may crave a higher level of difficulty. The game also tends to provide excessive hints, making solutions readily available.

The first half of The Midnight Walk introduces new puzzle mechanics and builds upon existing ones, keeping the gameplay fresh. However, the puzzles in the second half of the game are less engaging and can become repetitive, with an overabundance of chase sequences and overly simple challenges.

VR Experience

The Midnight Walk is playable in both standard and VR modes. VR enhances the immersive experience, allowing players to appreciate the detailed world and tactile interactions. However, the game can be disorienting in VR, with camera movements and continuous walking causing motion sickness for some players.

Final Thoughts on The Midnight Walk

The Midnight Walk is a visually stunning and imaginative game that perfectly captures the claymation aesthetic. Its story is captivating, with memorable characters and emotional depth. Despite some shortcomings in gameplay and potential VR-induced discomfort, The Midnight Walk is ultimately worth playing for its unique world, compelling story, and beautiful visuals.