Hey there Ghosts and Hunters!
Can you believe it’s already been over a MONTH since we launched into Early Access?! So much has happened in the short time since we released MGH to the world, so we thought we’d give you an update on what we’ve been working on and the results of our latest community poll!
EARLY ACCESS PATCHES
As you all know, we’ve been keeping plenty busy since the start of Early Access! In the last month alone we’ve put out 5 patches full of improvements, fixes and content. At a glance, the post-Early Access patches included:
Improvements to our matchmaking system to help make fairer matches and mix players up a bit better
Major improvements to our anti-cheat system
Some new emotes and other cosmetics
7 new supported in-game languages
Rebalances to various systems, weapons (lookin’ at you, Harpoon Bazooka!) and abilities based on feedback and data
Significant fixes to hit detection and inconsistent Ghost damage
Introduction of the lobby code invite system
Limits to keep quick play hosts from abusing kicking players or forced team changes
Invulnerability for the Generator to keep coordinated groups of ghosts from targeting the generator right from the get-go and other dastardly shenanigans
Tweaked match rewards being granted earlier to prevent host quitting denying progress
Many, many bug fixes and various quality of life improvements
The incredibly critical addition of bounciness to basketballs!
That’s about as busy as you can get in a month! It’s been a fantastic whirlwind, and we’re glad you’re all along for the ride! It’s also great to see that our improvements and balance changes are having the desired impact. As of our last check-in, we are incredibly close to the coveted 50/50 win-rate balance! In Early Access, Ghosts have a 50.7% win rate. Conversely, Hunters currently achieve victory in 49.3% of matchups. This of course can fluctuate a bit given party size/player level, and as always we are keeping a close eye on it! 👀
We will, of course, continue to make thoughtful and measured adjustments to attempt to bring this into as perfect alignment as we can.
THINGS ON THE HORIZON
As we move on in Early Access, we will continuously be looking at areas for improvement and additional content for our players.
We are continuing to work on our matchmaker. Although we have made some significant improvements since launch, we are still working on further streamlining the new player experience. We hope to try some of these changes in the very near future, so stay tuned.
Two other areas we have identified as being critically important are dedicated servers and host migration. As of yet, there are still some open questions around the exact implementation of both, but rest assured we hope to have some news for you on these highly requested features soon.
As far as new content goes, we’ve got some cool new stuff in the pipeline that we can’t wait to share soon. Be sure to follow us on Twitter and Discord where we typically put the news out first!
We’re still refining and tinkering with our upcoming roadmap, so stay tuned for that!
THOUGHTS FROM THE COMMUNITY
In our last blog post during the latter part of April, we put out a poll to collect thoughts and opinions from all of you lovely folks in the community. Quite a few of you responded to give us your opinions on your favorite map types, props, hiding places, and much more. Let’s jump into the thoughts you shared!
MAP MISCHIEF
50.3% of folks who answered our poll said that maps with lots of corridors and narrow spaces (like Mansion, for example) were your favorite map type. It’s easy to see why! Nothing quite beats the frantic pace and excitement of close quarters battles in tight spaces. This is definitely something we’re taking notes on!
In second place with 32.6% of votes, we have maps with lots of different rooms, like Museum. Museum is an example of a map that really brings out an interesting variety of elements and themes. Your thoughts on this definitely give us a few ideas for the future!
Open maps like Ghost Ship had a few less fans. Clocking in at 17.1% of votes, it looks like we may need to consider some changes to make open maps more entertaining. We’re on it!
PROP PANDEMONIUM
Do you prefer hiding in plain sight, or wreaking havoc with functionality-infused hero props? Well, it’s hard to say, seeing as standard small-and-medium-sized props barely edged out hero props with 47.3% of votes, compared to hero props’ 46.9% of responses. It’s good to see that both provide fun and intriguing gameplay.
Understandably, in a game where hiding is the primary goal, large props are least popular. Perhaps there are some tweaks we could make to give them a bigger purpose in the gameplay.
HIDING-PLACE HAVOC
While 47.3% of players said that MGH currently features a good mix of obvious and cheeky hiding places (a very good sign!), some 49.1% of you said you’d like to see more snug fits to hide in that require close examination. We’ll have to inspect our options for exciting new hiding places in tight spaces!
MAP VARIETY
Another question asked in our latest survey was about map variety, and what additions you all would like to see to make existing maps more intriguing. A vast majority of you (88.2%!) answered that conditional map variations (like a wine cellar on Mansion that opens when the attic closes) were the most intriguing way to introduce map variety. Additionally, more than half of folks would also like to see more environmental hazards like the salt water on Ghost Ship.
This info gives us a really good starting point for making intriguing map variations. Who knows — perhaps we can even add conditional variations with their own environmental hazards!
TELL US MORE
In our endless thirst for knowledge, we’ve decided to make yet another poll! We want to hear from all of you in the community about your favorite maps. We collected these ideas from our discord suggestion channel - so we grabbed the most popular ones and decided to narrow it down a bit further!
If you’d be so kind as to let us know which of these map ideas are the most appealing to you, we’d really appreciate it! You can answer the poll here.
ONE OF US!
In other exciting news, the community’s old pal Skedog has a new role. Skedog will be officially joining me as a Community Manager for Midnight Ghost Hunt! I’m very happy to be working alongside such a talented and knowledgeable pro who really loves and understands our community.
Many of you may know that Skedog has a keen eye for detail, so lately he has been working hard on things like writing patch notes, managing things on Steam and ModMail, and his favorite task — conducting technical wizardry over on Discord! If you see him tinkering around over there on Discord, be sure to congratulate him on the new role. 🤗
That’s ALMOST all for now. Since you all were so kind as to immediately answer that poll I mentioned *ahem* ☝️ - we’ve decided to give you a little taste of what’s to come! Perhaps this gif will excite your thirst for more.
