I was in awe playing The Midnight Walk. Not only does it have an interesting story, it is easily one of the most beautiful looking games of this era. When developers make their visuals a key component of a game’s selling point, they need to stand out for a reason. What MoonHood has done is nothing short of remarkable. Weird and wonderful 3D models have been scanned and then animated to bring this creepy, moving, and bizarre world to life. I was simply blown away by how good it looks.
After befriending a little creature known as Potboy, you have to navigate an overwhelmingly disturbing world filled with a range of deformed monsters all trying to put out the flame that guides your way. Potboy can be ordered to use his fire to solve puzzles around the map and light the way. He’s an odd-looking fellow, but over the course of the story you begin to fall in love with him. It helps that the story isn’t just fascinating from a world-building viewpoint, but also on a smaller and more personal level.
The world around you is filled with darkness and monsters who moved so uncomfortably. Having this stop-motion aesthetic made it unsettling. One of the first creatures you have to escape from scuttles around like a spider with a gigantic gaunt face. If it catches you, it’s back to the last checkpoint. Evading these beings isn’t always easy, but there are plenty of ways to hide and escape from them. While works like The Corpse Bride and Coraline are going to be relatable, Phil Tippett’s 2021 film Mad God is much more of a comparison (and you should all watch it).
It isn’t just the animation of The Midnight Walk that looks incredible. The way lighting has been used, as well as other visual choices like motion blur all provide one hell of an experience. Pair that with the sound design and it’s hard to call it anything other than special. The noise of the creatures, the groans and creaks from the environment around you, and the score make it one of the best titles this year. It’s also a fun game to play as well, which means the developer hasn’t thrown everything at how it appeals to the eye and ear to sacrifice gameplay.
The Midnight Walk feels like a walking simulator at times. This is far from a downside, though. You spend plenty of time absorbing the wonder around you while finding collectables and audio logs that are often unsettling. The voice acting is incredible, always bleeding into that feeling of unease as you explore this hellish world. When it does come to the gamey elements, you’ll find plenty of environmental puzzles to solve that never leave you struggling, but offer up a nice distraction from the horrors that lurk around every corner.
You have a portable home with legs where you can look at everything you’ve found. It offers a small respite from the darkness, something that will gradually drive you mad. The Midnight Walk needs to be drenched in shadows as the whole point is about lighting your way with Potboy. Sometimes it can be too dark, but that’s mainly due to me wanting to see every little detail at every single location you find. While fire can light candles and other things to help you see, it can also be used to hurt enemies along your travels.
There’s another mechanic where you can close your eyes while focusing at certain points to reveal new paths. This also allows you to hear and pinpoint certain objectives by focusing on the loudness and precision when looking at the back of your eyelids. The Midnight Walk drip-feeds you with new things, but the general core gameplay never stumbles out of familiarity. MoonHood want you to soak in every aspect of their game, and you have plenty of time to do so during the story.
The Midnight Walk is one of the best adventure games of 2025. I haven’t seen anything that appeals to my eyes quite like this in a long time. The effort put into the art style is clear, but the game is also enjoyable to play, if a little terrifying at times. Running away from monsters is something I never got used to. I loved the relationship with Potboy, and while tinged in sadness, hope was still at the centre of it all. I can’t stress this enough: everybody should play this game, and it’s even available to play in VR enhancing the mood and experience just that bit extra.
