Chaotic party game Midnight Murder Club is preparing to end its early access period, with developer Velan Studios confirming a full launch on PlayStation 5 and PC on Friday 15 August 2025 (AEST). To mark the occasion, a new trailer has been released and a major update – Patch 1.2 – has gone live, introducing new gameplay features and expanding the game’s Wildcards mode.
The Wildcards mode, which adds unpredictable twists to each match, now includes a series of new mechanics designed to challenge players in creative ways. These include:
- Flameskull: A controllable flying skull that ends in a fiery explosion.
- Falling Chandelier: A timed trap that can crush players beneath it.
- All in the Chamber: Converts your revolver into a shotgun, firing all bullets at once.
- Shrink Shot: Being shot causes players to shrink, altering visibility and hitboxes.
- Gift from the Grave: Offers a useful item on respawn, aiding revenge efforts.
- Knives Only: Disables gunfire, requiring players to rely on melee combat.
- Growing Glow Trails: Each kill increases a player’s visible glow trail, making them easier to track.
- Pinged to Death: Reveals players’ positions upon a kill, keeping the action fast-paced.
- Party Room: A disco-themed room adds music and visual effects to random encounters.
- Sound Blast Jazz Club: Replaces gunfire sounds with musical instruments for added absurdity.
In addition to the new Wildcards, Patch 1.2 introduces several quality-of-life improvements. These include the addition of a mansion map within the in-game compass, helping players navigate when their flashlight is activated, and a new “death pin” mechanic marking the location where a player was eliminated. Door outlines now also appear regardless of flashlight use, aiding navigation in the dark.
A voice scrambler has been added to support positive play, allowing players to hear opponents’ movements while obscuring spoken communication from muted users. Players can now also face off against bots in Wildcards matches.
Further user experience improvements include refined rematch options, updated UI for group matchmaking, and proper display of Xbox glyphs when using 8BitDo controllers on PC. Additionally, the Headhunters PvE mode has been renamed Totem Hunters, with clearer messaging provided when more than two players attempt to start a session.
Looking ahead to the full launch with Patch 1.3, players can expect the addition of a co-op PvE mode titled Graveyard Shift, which tasks duos with retrieving relics from the mansion while avoiding supernatural threats. Key remapping is also slated to be introduced as part of this update.
