Velan Studios, the developer behind the sadly ill-fated Knockout City, has announced it’s PlayStation-published pitch-black FPS Midnight Murder Club is launching into PC and PlayStation 5 early access on 13th March. And as an added incentive to tempt purchases into braving the dark, up to five friends can play for free.

Midnight Murder Club sets players exploring the pitch-black interior of the Wormwood Manor, arming them with revolver and flashlight then challenging them to be the last one standing. “You sprint toward your friends’ shouting voices echoing through the mansion, only to bump into someone else hiding in a dark corner!”, Velan explains in a bout of scene-setting on the PlayStation Blog. “Shots ring out, luring the other hunters to your location. Every flash of light is the promise of a deadly firefight.”

Midnight Murder Club’s frantic action comes in five distinct flavours. There’s a Free for All mode, as well as Thief in the Night, Team Deathmatch, Headhunters, and the newly announced Wildcards mode. This one lets everyone play cards in their collection to twist the rules for everyone in a match – perhaps giving participants supersede or causing them to explode on death – with new cards unlocking once the match is over.

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of today’s early access release date announcement, however, is the news purchasers can invite up their friends to play along at no extra cost. Friends will first download the free Midnight Murder Club Guest Pass Edition, and after that, purchasers can invite up to five of them to play public or private matches, in all current game modes, as much as they want.

Midnight Murder Club launches into Steam and PlaYStation early access on 13th March, and will cost $19.99 USD for the full game.