‘South of Midnight’ Devs Reveal More Story Details, Game Length Information, and Production Data Ahead of April Release

In a recent interview, Compulsion Games shared details about South of Midnight, an action-adventure game that will unfold over a single day. The game’s runtime will be around 10 to 12 hours, covering 14 chapters.

This was the original target, although it might turn out a little longer than planned. Gameplay director Jasmin Roy says the story is designed to have a strong narrative momentum, which fits the urgency of the protagonist Hazel’s quest to find her missing mother.

The game takes players through various Southern Gothic locations like swamps, the Delta, the Appalachian mountains, and a New Orleans-inspired area, all within a single 24-hour period. Art director Whitney Clayton describes the experience as linear, with opportunities to explore different environments. As the clock ticks forward, each location changes in mood, reflecting the story’s progression.

Though the game might be shorter in length, its world is complex. Roy mentions that five years of development went into the project, with much of that time spent on research and creating prototypes.

One of the most striking aspects of South of Midnight is its visual style. The game has a stop-motion look, but it runs at 60fps. Compulsion aimed to create a handcrafted world without making the experience uncomfortable.

Not everything in the game will have the same stop-motion effect. While some elements like foliage and animals move with that signature flicker, more important elements like Hazel’s movements are kept smooth for better gameplay.

The art direction was heavily inspired by the stop-motion animation studio Clyde Henry Productions, creators of Madame Tutli Putli. Clayton notes that the goal wasn’t to mimic classic stop-motion shows like Wallace and Gromit, but to create something darker and more atmospheric.

The team worked closely with Clyde Henry’s studio to apply the look and feel of stop-motion to both the characters and the environments, creating a unique handcrafted aesthetic for the game.

In short, South of Midnight is a visually rich and immersive adventure that combines the eerie charm of stop-motion animation with a compelling, urgent story that takes place across one intense day.

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