Video Game / Midnight Mysteries

Midnight Mysteries is a hidden object game series originally created by MumboJumbo, with the fifth game developed by Hot Lava and the sixth game by Game Forest (the rebranded Hot Lava) between 2009 to 2015.

You are a writer who has encounters with the paranormal. However, in these cases, your visitors are famous historical figures who can't seem to find rest. To help them rest in peace, you travel back in time to solve the mysteries that haunt their souls to begin with.

The games listed in the following order:

• The Edgar Allan Poe Conspiracy
• The Salem Witch Trials
• Devil on the Mississippi
• Haunted Houdini
• Witches of Abraham
• Ghostwriting

Midnight Mysteries contains these examples:

Shared Tropes

• The Conspiracy: The plot behind each of the games is that there's something in each historical figure's past that brought about their doom, and the author has to help them figure out who and why.
• Historical Domain Character: A staple of the series, but this time they are the haunted spirits seeking help to solve the mystery of their demise and find peace.
  • The first game featured Edgar Allan Poe.
  • The second game featured Nathaniel Hawthorne.
  • The third game featured Mark Twain.
  • The fourth game featured Harry Houdini.
  • The fifth game featured Abraham Lincoln.
  • The sixth game featured Charles Dickens and Washington Irving.

The Edgar Allan Poe Conspiracy

• Bottomless Pit: Falling into the pit is Griswold's final fate if you choose not to have him arrested.
• Failure Is the Only Option: Downplayed. Though you succeed in a puzzle where you attempt to help Edgar Allan Poe, his death couldn't be prevented.
• Loose Floorboard Hiding Spot: The author helps a policeman uncover the murder weapon used to kill Mary Rogers, which was hidden under the floorboards concealed by a chair.
• My Sister Is Off-Limits: Taken to the extreme with the Royster brothers, as they were convinced to murder Edgar Allan Poe to stop him from marrying their sister.
• Pendulum of Death: Execution by the pendulum is Reynolds's final fate if you don't have the police arrest him.
• Secret Room: The author discovers one behind the walled-up tomb of Fortunato, where they search for more clues.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: With Edgar out of the way, Reynolds killed the Royster brothers to keep them from leaving a trail to the mastermind.

The Salem Witch Trials

• Hanging Judge: Judge Hathorne, who Nathaniel descended from, was very involved in the witch trials - and he wasn't a decent person in the slightest.
• Mark of Shame: A red "W" is used as marking the alleged witch. Nathaniel himself used it to mark his shame of his ties with his family, who played a part in the Salem witch hunts.
• Salem Is Witch Country: The Salem witch hunts and trials are witnessed by the author during their investigation.
• Sins of Our Fathers: The reason behind Nathaniel Hawthorne's suffering from beyond the grave is because of wrongdoings his lineage perpetrated in the past.
• Together in Death: Sarah Good and her daughter Dorothy are reunited and are able to pass on in peace.

Devil on the Mississippi

Haunted Houdini

• Affectionate Nickname: "Rosabelle" was Bess's nickname by Harry as his expression of love for her. It is used to finally help Bess make contact with her husband and reunite them.
• Hellhound: A hellhound - which served as Doyle's inspiration for Hound of the Baskervilles - makes a nuisance of itself before having to be dealt with for good.
• Red Herring: Initially it's suspected Conan Doyle and Arthur Ford had a hand in Houdini's downfall. However, despite them being zealous believers in spiritualism, neither of them was involved. The masterminds behind his death - and by extension, Bess - were Dr. Cranston and his wife Mina, Mina's brother Walter Stinton, and J. Gordon Whitehead.
• Spooky Séance: In the intro of the game, a group of people are gathered in a circle performing a seance. Something, however, goes horribly wrong.
• 13 Is Unlucky: The number 13 makes appearances throughout the investigation.
• We Used to Be Friends: Similar to history, Harry Houdini and Arthur Conan Doyle lost their friendship when Harry debunked claims of the paranormal, which in-game showed Doyle's wife was called a fake.

Witches of Abraham

Ghostwriting

• Distressed Dude: Charles Dickens is targeted by the Villain, and the author has to rescue him.
• Headless Horseman: Irving's iconic character makes an appearance, attacking its creator.
• Your Soul Is Mine!: The Villain meddles with the works of Charles Dickens partly by taking the souls of the author's characters.