Compulsion Games, the developer for South of Midnight, has revealed that the game’s runtime will be around “10 to 12 hours” as the story unfolds over a single day. In total, the game has 14 chapters that players will get to go through, with “a kind of urgency to it” throughout as you begin to unveil Hazel’s story. Jasmin Roy, Gameplay Director of South of Midnight, spoke to GamesRadar+ about this title, explaining that the game is a bit bigger than they thought but is in the original ballpark of what they were aiming for at the beginning.
Throughout the journey in South of Midnight, you’ll get to go through different environments and biomes, with each new environment having a very specific atmosphere and type of mood. All of this was explained in a 30-minute documentary from Compulsion Games that was released last year, where the developers spoke about the themes they chose to incorporate into the story as a “love letter to the South,” making sure to balance all themes carefully throughout. You can find the documentary above, where more of the specific details of the environments are explained, as well as the efforts that went into it.
In the documentary, you are introduced to four of the biomes that you will get to explore. This includes the Swamps, the Delta, the Appalachians, and a biome that is inspired by New Orleans. Considering how short the game is, and with it taking place across a 24-hour time frame, this seems like a lot of new ground to cover in such a short time.
The game is described as “a linear game with some bits of exploration through the sections, and you go through various different types of locations in the deep South, all the span of one day. So you start your adventure in the morning, and it ends at midnight,” by Art Director Whitney Clayton.
In this interview with GamesRadar+, it’s also mentioned that the game took around five years to plan out and develop, despite the game being a shorter tale for those who play it. This is due to the reverse-engineered 3D-modelled world as well as the extensive research, planning, and prototypes that had to be done through the years. However, Roy states that “the bulk of the game has been made in the last three years.”
The narrative of South of Midnight is front and center. “There’s a kind of urgency to it that makes it feel like we want you to explore, but it needs to support the momentum of Hazel’s journey.”
This game was showcased during the Xbox Developer Direct, a new title that is being made by Compulsion Games, the minds behind We Happy Few and Contrast. This is their third game to be developed and is set for release on April 8 on PC and Xbox Series X|S. Those who have Game Pass will also have access to this title when it is released.
