The swamps in the Deep South are murky but awfully inviting. Compulsion Games, creators of ‘We Happy Few’ and ‘Contrast’, two games I dug into myself, have created such a magical world in their newest project, ‘South Of Midnight’, set to release in April 2025.

A tale set in the deary bayou of a town called Perspero, this preview throws us into only chapter 3 of this Southern-rooted but gothic adventure. Stepping into the dusty shoes of our heroine Hazel, a weaver, grappling with her new abilities as a guardian of bonding the worlds of magic and spirits. In this tiny snippet of the narrative, you encounter Catfish, the giant mythical fish storyteller, and using a magical blue bottle must free him from his captive.

While only getting to experience a fragment of the story, I enjoyed the overlapping branching of themes of pain and betrayal set whimsically. Still, I do hope this is touched on in a deeper way than the surface level shown so far. Hazel, too, almost feels like Alice of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ in comparison, a likeable and inquisitive character that I can’t wait to learn more about.

After playing the preview 3 times, I had much to mull over when considering gameplay. At the moment, there isn’t a lot to strip back. The level seemed linear, with platforming parts and scripted enemy encounters.

I hope the spiked vines restricting exploration that are so dominant in this chapter are not a recurring theme in other chapters. They gate off the gameplay in a noticeable way since there is barely any diversion of the main path as you double jump or glide from one platform to another, which is disappointing.

As I already mentioned, enemy encounters are very planned. You can see a shimmery bubble arena when you are about to fight. The ‘Haints’ as they are called, aren’t particularly interesting either, bark-like creatures of similar look but varying types.; some shoot bees, some aggressively confront you, and others lob projectiles. The fights are fun, but the game needs some small minor minion-type enemies to break the events between these bigger fights as it felt empty; beautiful but desolate.

The gameplay was also frame-y. I don’t know if this was intentional to understandably match the cutscenes, which emulate the stop-motion animation style. Still, I don’t know about the choppiness in the actual gameplay and how it would affect more intricate maneuvers later on.

The game is gorgeous, but it might not be for everyone. I appreciate the more vintage claymation art style and stop-motion animation inspiration. It gave me the same warmth as retro kids’ shows like ‘Gumby’ or ‘Wallace and Gromit’; it was alluring and charming, almost homely.

The environments are fabulous, too, oozing with the charisma of a deep southern muggy marsh. Full of reeds, snapping turtles, and mossy weeping trees, there are details to look at, at every turn. The characters contrast their surroundings perfectly, making for a fabulously overstimulation of graphics.

One of my favourite elements was the sound design and dialogue. The Catfish is a standout with his quaint Southern drawl encapsulated by the atmospheric surroundings of the croak of frogs, crickets chirping, and branches creaking, making for one captivating experience. I hope the rest of the characters are that riveting.

The music accompanying the game is also very entertaining, with the folk music of banjos, guitars, and kick drums charging the chapter. I hope they used authentic bands and artists, something I will further investigate in a full review at a later date. The music was so good I found myself making a similar playlist and going on a binge of the likes of ‘Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’, ‘Port Sulphur Band’, and ‘The Dead South’. The music choice is impeccable, especially the chapter-specific ballad, which sets the tone of the end of the chapter perfectly.

Despite all my criticisms, I look forward to how this game unfolds. I may not be as excited as before due to my ongoing concerns, but I am wrapped up in the artistic and creative avenue it has gone down. I am optimistic that this is not all or the best chapter Compulsion Games has to offer; till then, I will resume my spot in my rocking chair on the deck, grass in my mouth, pondering what comes next.

Written by: Stacey