South of Midnight Review

While the video game industry has taken great strides over its relatively brief existence to cover a wide variety of themes and settings, there are still plenty of lesser known and underrepresented worlds out there. As the major publishers stick to paths well-traveled, it's often up to smaller teams to take risks and take players into more unique corners. South of Midnight is the latest title from Compulsion Games, who consistently try to delve into original worlds, but haven't been quite able to find success through their first two games, Contrast and We Happy Few. And while their third game perhaps offers the most well-presented setting yet, the dull gameplay and underdeveloped story leave this title well short of a triumph.

As a third-person action adventure, the game follows a woman named Hazel. After a severe storm that sees her mother and home literally swept away, Hazel discovers that she could be a Weaver – a magic wielder of sorts that keeps the evil of the land at bay and restores peace to the lands in time of need. Armed with a set of hooks that she discovers in her grandmothers' attic, Hazel sets out in hopes of finding her mother. Traversing the fictional American South that's been overrun by a strange evil force, she will find enlist help from, and meet, Gothic-themed magical creatures, big and small, and battle the enemies that have corrupted the land.

The game's story is not particularly engaging or well developed. The magical aspects are weak at best and are mostly there to serve the visual flair and setting. The tone of the writing is very inconsistent, and Hazel doesn't make for a relatable hero. She selfishly fights with her mom, but then goes to check-in on the neighbors. Her inner monologue can quickly switch between panic and surprise at what she is experiencing, to calm and inconsequential thoughts on how unhelpful her grandmother is. Hazel is mostly annoying to adventure with, and brings back unwelcome memories of Forspoken.

The constant narration and lengthy chapter-recap cutscenes add to the game's overwritten nature. The main themes of family trauma, and how it affects later generations, is ham-fisted and told through dull monologues of her mother calling the past. Lines such as "It's like some weird folk tale" give off vibes of "What are we, some kind of suicide squad" tier writing. The dialogue is also full of clumsy cursing, which doesn't really fit the setting and entirely unnecessarily pushes the game to an M-rating, in what is otherwise a typical magical adventure with few mature themes.

But what does work is the setting. This fictional version of the American South folklore is very well realized, from the accents of the characters to the creatures that you encounter. It's a setting that's rarely, if ever, explored in gaming or even in entertainment in general. The environments may not be particularly original or detailed, with the generic dark vines / growths and abstract enemy designs, but the creatures and bosses that Hazel encounters are decently memorable. The excellent soundtrack really brings it all together, from blues to honky-tonk and shades of jazz, alongside all the unique Southern instruments that go along with it. While the music is very good, it is sometimes used at strange times, such as an upbeat tune during what is supposed to be a dangerous escape sequence or a dramatic moment.

The game also makes another attempt to be unique through the stylistic choices of how it delivers the visuals. Everything has a slightly claymation look, as if a movie from Laika studios, and utilizes stop-motion animation. The effect is not as pronounced as the recent Spider-Man animated films, but it is noticeable, especially on the finer details such as facial animations and certain movements. The implementation is not very consistent though, as cutscenes are noticeably more smoothed out, as if the developers were not quite ready to fully commit to this visual style. And it can indeed be fully turned off, if you choose.

Outside of the presentation, South of Midnight lacks the same level of imagination or experimentation. It's a very typical third-person adventure, as you traverse through highly linear environments, occasionally getting stopped in small areas where you have to defeat a few enemies before moving on. This sort of level design structure repeats across the entire campaign, with the occasional large scale and multi-stage boss fight. The game would have benefitted from more exploration elements and more bosses, as the offered collectibles are hardly worth pursuing. There is some mild platforming, and you have abilities to glide, double jump, and zap across gaps, but it's rarely engaging and never challenging. The occasional environmental puzzles, like pushing a box around to create a ledge, are not exactly inspiring.

The combat is equally dull and grows rather repetitive. You only have a basic attack to dish out damage, even if it can be chained. Your other moves include a charged attack and a dodge; there are no parrying or blocking mechanics. There are multiple difficulty settings, but even on Normal the game is relatively easy. You'll be fighting mostly generic monsters that float or run around, sometimes in a somewhat human form, and sometimes as creatures. They are generic fodder, and don't make for exciting encounters. Some have ranged attacks, others are melee, and they occasionally glow yellow and perform a powerful attack that you need to be out of range to avoid. Fighting these enemies in arena after arena, before being able to move on, becomes a grind over the course of the game. One minor twist is that you can finish off enemies with a special move that restores some of your health. As mentioned, the boss battles are more fun because they are custom experiences, but are a too few in number.

To perform better in combat, Hazel can find health filaments that increase her overall health permanently, and Floofs that act as upgrade currency. Given this design, and there being no experience system from combat, the quantity of action feels even more unnecessary. The Floofs can be sent in a few small skill trees to improve Hazel's base abilities and combat effectiveness, as expected.

On PC, the game performs without much hassle. There is a good level of customization and visual settings, and it seems to be well optimized. Both keyboard/mouse and controllers are supported, with the latter being recommended. We didn't experience any major crashes and framerate remained steady throughout (obviously, not counting the intended stop-motion effects).

There are many things that South of Midnight does right – notably its American South visual style and setting. This is definitely territory that's not often explored by games, or any media at all. But the setting is somewhat wasted on a predictable campaign, uneven writing and a sometimes annoying main character. The music is great, but is often misplaced. The gameplay mechanics are quite generic, and make for an overall forgettable adventure. At around 9 hours and a mid-range price point, it may find a few fans, but it's a case where the dress setting can't hide the underwhelming interior.