This year has really flown past, and we’re so thankful to have you here with us as part of this journey. We’ve gotten valuable feedback during the first year of MGH Early Access, and you, our community, have been directly affecting what things the developers have been spending their time doing.
Let’s take a quick look at all the things we had an opportunity to put out during the first year of MGH Early Access:
MARCH 2022
On March 31st, Midnight Ghost Hunt went into Early Access. The community really came through (thank you!), and during the launch, we even reached Steam’s Top Sellers number two spot, right behind Elden Ring.
MAY 2022
In May, it was time for our first big update. Based on community feedback from our alpha and beta tests, we decided to work on the Factory map and give it some extra love. Prior to the EA launch, we had taken Factory out of the map rotation and gave it a new life as a creepy Doll Factory. With the first update, we brought in tons of new hero props: Murder Doll, Warehouse Gate, Forklift, Soda Machine, and Speaker. Our melee weapons, Ghost Smasher and Sledgehammer also went through a rework to improve usability. Early Backer skins became available, and our friend from Satisfactory, the Pioneer, got her own skin both as a hunter and as a ghost. During Update 1, we also added lots of new victory poses, emotes, and titles.
JUNE 2022
In June we put out something of a mixture between a patch and an update, and since we are an inventive bunch, decided to name it the Summer Patch. We added the in-match challenge system, Ghost in the TV hero prop, new skins: Jock and Birthday (which is very topical right now!), plus some new emotes and victory poses.
SEPTEMBER 2022
In September we started gearing up for the spooky season, and it was time for Update 2. Mr. Giggle’s Happyland a.k.a the Carnival map was something we were extremely excited to release since the community polls and suggestions had been hoping to see a creepy Carnival or Circus-themed map in the MGH universe. The ghosts also gained a brand new ability during this update, Deflector. Hunters were awarded with some new drip, and the Paramedic, Pilot, and Old Hippie skins were added in. We like a plethora of hero props at the MGH HQ, so Jack-in-the-box in three different color variations was added in to take the mood of the carnival to the next level. In addition, we added a few more titles and a new song to the MGH Soundtrack.
OCTOBER 2022
Oh, October. Our favorite month. Spooky season speaks to us. In October we changed things up and decided to switch up our update strategy a bit. Smaller updates, more often. That’s how we like it. Update 3, the Halloween Update, brought in spooky new Halloween-themed decorations and hero props (of course!). Chompkin Pumpkin, Pumpkin-gut-spewing Jack-in-the-box, and Witch Doll made the maps feel even more spooky, for the occasion. Our new experimental game mode, Darkness, also saw the light of day for the first time. Random level variation on Mansion was also brought on for the first time, and it’s another fantastic idea we were able to bring to life thanks to the community feedback! To celebrate Halloween, the hunters were able to get dressed in a fan-favorite Duck Hunter costume and the ghosts could don the Pumpkin Head Ghost skin. These are some of our favorite skins, so far!
NOVEMBER 2022
In November, we were feeling thankful and Update 4 was released with a brand new feature, the Boombox. Have you found all the cassette tapes since the feature was launched? We added in a new hunter gadget, Camcorder, and in the name of Thanksgiving, all the maps and the van were ready for the feast. Our released hero props were also in theme. Splattering Pumpkin Pies and a tasty, juicy Turkey, what more could you ask!
DECEMBER 2022
In December we put out Update 5, and our third new map, the Mall. Decked with seasonal decór, the abandoned Mall truly felt like we had traveled back to the 1980s. The Hero Props this time around made quite a pair, Spooky Santa and Creepy Elf. We hope you were not on the naughty list in 2022. We added in some seasonal skins for both hunters and ghosts, bots were improved, and the soundtrack was updated. Last but definitely not least, we introduced the Progression Tier System to add a bit more fun to leveling up.
FEBRUARY 2023
Just last month, we pushed Update 6, in the name of love! The much-anticipated host migration feature was added to MGH. All the maps and the van were decorated in Valentine’s theme so you could spend some quality time with a special someone, and the lovely new hero props Cupid and Chocolate Box added some love to the maps. The Carnival Map was also expanded upon with the addition of the Tunnel of Love, and some improvements to the progression UI were made to allow you to keep a better track of your progression level.
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE
The Early Access journey for MGH isn’t over yet, and we’re still finalizing all of the details before we’re ready to share an updated Roadmap with you all, but we hope to have one out soon!
Thank you for all of your support this past year, Ghosts and Hunters, we appreciate it more than you know! As always, all the details can be found on Steam. We’re excited to celebrate our first anniversary with you, we hope you enjoy Update 7. Come share your favorite MGH memories, and all the feedback with us on Discord, or drop us a comment on Twitter!
👻 -Team MGH
