Midnight Murder Club Review

Midnight Murder Club is a party-based multiplayer shooter developed by Sony and Velan Studios, the team behind Knockout City. Set within a creepy old mansion, players are armed with only a flashlight, a six-shooter, a knife, and their instincts as they hunt down fellow hunters in a tense game of survival.

Featuring multiple game modes and support for up to six players, the experience quickly escalates into chaotic, fast-paced action. Will you be up for the challenge and face the darkness? Come on down for a wild ride in Midnight Murder Club!

The Darkness Is Your Weapon!

The gameplay in Midnight Murder Club is quite straightforward. Players find themselves trapped in a haunted mansion alongside other hunters, armed only with a few tools, with the objective being to eliminate their rivals and complete mission-based tasks to survive the night

Controls are intuitive, making it easy for newcomers to jump in. The six-shooter features infinite ammo, allowing for continuous gunfire until a reload is required, while close encounters can be resolved with the use of a knife. Wildcards add a layer of unpredictability, granting players unique abilities activated via the L1 button, depending on the perk drawn.

As a party shooter, Midnight Murder Club offers a variety of modes, including classic deathmatches and team battles. However, its standout experiences lie in Wildcard Mode and Rituals.

Wildcard Mode pits three teams against each other in fast-paced, 5–10 minute rounds, where players receive randomized perks such as wider flashlight beams or post-death item drops that can be used to set traps, gain tactical advantages, and escape the mansion. It’s a mode that thrives on chaos and creativity, offering hours of fun depending on team dynamics.

Rituals Mode, arguably the mode I preferred more, tasks players with completing nine distinct rituals to lift the mansion’s curse. Each ritual rewards players with a bonus and a curse, both of which factor into gameplay in the following rounds.

Objectives range from collecting artifacts and destroying cursed items to battling formidable foes like Revenants, and players can choose to tackle these challenges solo or coordinate with their team.

Healing is available via hidden slot machines scattered throughout the mansion, and each round ramps up in difficulty, culminating in either victory or defeat.

While Midnight Murder Club lays a solid foundation for a possibly compelling multiplayer experience, what it offers at the moment simply isn’t worth the price of admission just yet. That said, the current offering is enjoyable, with a simple interface and easy-to-learn mechanics that make it ideal for casual sessions with friends, but still lacks the meat to its bones to see a bright future with the game, depending on how the future updates shake out.

Verdict: Wait for it…

Midnight Murder Club lays down a promising foundation, offering accessible gameplay and a variety of modes that provide opportunities to test your skills, whether solo or with friends. The core concept is straightforward yet flexible, allowing players to dive in and enjoy the chaos with minimal friction. However, the game is not compelling enough to make players stay just yet.

That said, as the game continues through its early access phase, its long-term appeal will hugely rely on future updates and expanded content. With its potential clearly in place, the next step lies in how Velan Studios evolves the experience through new features, seasonal events, and creative surprises that build on its solid groundwork. There’s plenty of room for growth, and it’ll be exciting to see where the developers take it next.

*Midnight Murder Club has been reviewed on a PS5 with a review code provided by the publisher.