During today’s Xbox Developer Director, we saw a new trailer for South of Midnight complete with a release date of April 3, 2025 for those who purchase the premium edition, and April 8, 2025 for everyone else.
South of Midnight is a third-person action-adventure game set in a fantastical version of the American Deep South. In the trailer, we saw a good look at main character Hazel’s powers, which blend the traditional craft of weaving with magic to allow her to fight, conjure things, and overcome environmental obstacles. As she fights, Hazel “unravels” enemies to destroy them in action combat, and has some elements of customization in her fighting style that can help her counter different types of enemies.
Hazel’s story starts with a massive hurricane that seemingly kills her mother, but also gives her the ability to see a magic world beyond the real one that gives her hope her mother might still be alive. As she hunts for her, Hazel will visit different different regions ruled by magical creatures, each one with a different Southern Gothic history that she’ll need to heal by collecting their fragmented memories. In the trailer, we got a look at several of these creatures, including a real big bird and a massive crocodile covered in spikes with giant trees going out of its back. A giant talking Catfish acts as a guide for Hazel as she awakens her new powers.
South of Midnight was first announced at the Xbox Showcase in 2023 as a new game from We Happy Few developer Compulsion Games. It reappeared at the Xbox Showcase last year, and we got a hands-off look at it back in November. In an Xbox Wire post today, it’s suggested the game will take between 10-12 hours to finish.
You can catch up on everything shown in today’s Xbox Developer Direct right here.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
