Midnight Crane: The Scariest Jumpscares of the Year

Every once in a while, an indie horror game comes out of nowhere and just nails it. Midnight Crane is one of those games. Developed by Dekaizen Studios, it’s a “super simple concept” that is both engaging and terrifying, making it easily one of the top horror games of the year.

The premise is simple: You are Marcus, a lone arcade worker on the night shift. Your boss, noticing your love for the claw machines, makes you a bet: win 50 prizes before the night is over for a $500 bonus. What starts as a simple task to win prizes for your girlfriend quickly devolves into a sound-based nightmare of pure, unrelenting tension.

“Step into the eerie world of late-night arcade shifts with Midnight Crane. Juggling between eerie crane games and basketball hoops keeps you on edge. Lock those doors tight!”

This game had some of the best jumpscares we’ve ever experienced, and the build-up and tension are absolutely “insane.”

The $500 Ticking Clock

Your main objective is the crane machine. You need to win 50 toys and put them in your boss’s crate. This simple, mundane task becomes the game’s agonizing, stressful core. The crane game itself is hilariously (and realistically) rigged. The claw is weak, the prizes are slippery, and you’ll scream, “Are you kidding me?” as a plush dinosaur “phases through the thing.”

But you have to keep playing. That $500 bonus is on the line. This simple loop of playing a janky crane game while waiting for something bad to happen is what makes the atmosphere so incredibly thick.

Listen or Die

At its core, this is a sound-based survival horror game. While you’re trying to win a “fugly” hippo, a masked man (who you “politely” tried to kick out earlier) is trying to get in. He will try to enter through the doors, the windows, and the vents.

Every sound matters. You have to listen. A creak at the “Bottom Door,” a scrape in the “Vent,” or a tap on the “Window.” You have to react instantly, dropping your toy to go lock the door, check the cameras, or tighten a vent screw. If you don’t… he gets in.

Pure, Unrelenting Terror

The jumpscares in this game are “1000/10.” They are perfectly spaced and brilliantly executed. The game doesn’t just rely on a simple loud noise; it builds tension until you can’t take it anymore, and then it gets you.

The game is constantly evolving, “never letting you know what’ll happen next.” The lights will go out, forcing you outside to a breaker. The killer will call your phone and taunt you. A food delivery will arrive (it’s Salisbury steak, and yes, it’s probably a trap). In one of the most stressful sequences, the killer gets in, and you’re forced to navigate a dark maze to find joysticks while he hunts you. It’s “stressful as hell.”

This is a short, sweet, and to-the-point horror masterpiece. We encountered only one minor bug (stuck on a peephole) that was resolved with a restart. Otherwise, it’s a polished, terrifying, and “W ass game” that ends with a fantastic, satisfying epilogue.

Pros & Cons

Pros	Cons
✅ 10/10 Jumpscares: Some of the best, most well-earned scares in any horror game.	❌ Very Short: Leaves you wanting more (which is also a good thing).
✅ Insane Atmosphere & Tension: The sound-based design is perfectly executed.	❌ Minor Bugs: We got stuck on a peephole once.
✅ Simple, Brilliant Gameplay Loop: Blending a mundane task (crane game) with terror works perfectly.	❌ Slow Crane Animation: A minor nitpick when you’re in a hurry.
✅ Great Sound Design: Every creak and footstep matters.
✅ Fun & Satisfying Story: A simple concept with a great beginning and end.