[Review] – Midnight Fight Express

Midnight Fight Express is the first outing for Polish Game Designer, Jacob Dzwinel. It boasts a High-octane Soundtrack by Sound Designer Noisecream that propels you through top-down action gameplay where the player controls Babyface as they fight through hordes of colourful and unique enemies by dodging, parrying, and utilizing various finishing moves.

The most important aspect in a beat ’em up game is how the combat feels in terms of weightiness and pacing. Obviously there’s always going to be an element of subjectivity when it comes to the preferred levels of both these aspects. The pacing in Midnight Fight Express is generally high tempo, Babyface only having a few milliseconds to dodge or parry an attack. The weightiness of the combat tends to vary depending on which of the many weapons Babyface utilizes, larger weapons being slower and giving a greater visual impact. The game does a good job of teaching the controls through its tutorial level.

The second most important aspect is its character progression, Midnight Fight Express keeps it simple. Playing through each mission unlocks skill points, which are used to unlock new fighting abilities that can be equipped/unequipped at any time.  Another aspect of character progression are in the game’s mission challenges, These unlock for each mission the first time you complete them, giving the game additional replay value. They are also fun ways to interact with each stage, for example, one of the challenge missions in a subway asks the player to kill all enemies by allowing them to be hit by passing trains.

The game features 40 missions, these are split amongst different locations. While all the levels are visually distinct, there are a few that really drive it home with special additional environmental hazards. These include: Helicopters shooting at Babyface from above, rising water, faulty cargo container cranes, and the previously mentioned subway trains. In addition, every so many levels, the player gets treated with a special railgun chase sequence level which breaks up the action.

The game includes various customization options for Babyface and his drone companion. These include various masks, skin colors and clothing options.  It also allows the player to equip the skin of any foes defeated in the game. Some of the customizations are locked behind the challenge objectives for each mission.

Midnight Fight Express has a simple but compelling narrative to it. At the start of the game, Babyface is in the custody of the police, each level part of Babyface’s recounting of their exploits.  The police officers provide commentary during cutscenes about how they don’t believe your story, which details a conspiracy. The game does offer the option to skip the cutscenes and narratives on future playthroughs.

Midnight Fight Express is a must-play for fans of classic scrolling beat-em-ups