You may not know who Klaus Lyngeled and Olov Redmalm are off of the top of your heads, but you’ll likely recognize some of the worlds they’ve helped create, with Lyngeled being the founder of Zoink Games, having created such games asLost in RandomandGhost Giantwith Redmalm. The latter game being rather important in this case, as that was a VR title and their latest title, which also serves as the debut for their new development studio MoonHood, sees them dabbling in VR again. Unlike the cozier vibes of Ghost Giant, though, this new game - The Midnight Walk - notably has what is described as “a conflicting world of wonder and horror,” which is made abundantly clear in the game’s reveal trailer, which you can check out below.
Not Exactly a Casual Stroll
Right now, though, details are a bit scarce concerning the premise of The Midnight Walk. All we know right now is that you play as a character known as The Burnt One, taking the titular walk along with a lost lantern creature known as Potboy, heading through a bizarre world full of various monsters that pose certain threats. While said monsters are rather eager to devour Potboy’s flame, you can also use that to your advantage, finding ways to distract all of the creepy crawlies to deal with them, as outsmarting enemies is the name of the game here.
…The end result being something that wouldn’t feel out of place in, say, one of Laika’s animated films.
However, the big draw in The Midnight Walk is its visuals. It’s not exactly a surprise that the game is rather striking so far and has a ton of unique and varied character designs, as that’s pretty much to expected from some of Zoink’s veterans. But here, the setting is enhanced by having the world and its inhabitants all made out of clay, with all assets being hand-sculpted and then 3D scanned. And to top it all off, the animation is also done in the style of stop motion, with the end result being something that wouldn’t feel out of place in, say, one of Laika’s animated films. You can even check out some of the models and the sculpting process in the gallery below.
While The Midnight Walk is set to be a VR game - even having made its debut during the recent State of Play as a PSVR2 title - the VR support is actually optional, and the game will be available for regular play on both PS5 and PC. That said, the kind of eerie world this game has seems like a natural fit for VR play, and VR-exclusive publishers Fast Travel Games are on hand to help the game reach more VR fans as well. But The Midnight Walk does seem like a trek worth taking no matter how you choose to play, so keep this on your radar so that you don’t miss The Midnight Walk when it arrives in 2025.
Thunderful Takes a Chance On Lost in Random: The Eternal Die
One of 2021’s hidden gems returns with Lost in Random: The Eternal Die, with Thunderful now putting a roguelike twist on the chance-based world.
