„A music box, the song is nice, but creepy.”
The music box is a cursed possession that can be used to pinpoint the location of the ghost, though one is at considerable risk if one is careless with it.
Mechanics[]
The ghost appears when a music box is played nearby.
A music box has a 1 in 7 chance per contract of being chosen as the cursed possession that will spawn, with one specific spawn location per map.
Activation and usage[]
When picked up, the music box will open (this does not mean it has been activated). The music box can then be activated using the Primary Use key. Doing so will end the setup phase early if it is ongoing. The music box cannot be activated during a hunt, and can only be used once.
Once activated, if the ghost is within 20 metres of the music box, it will sing along, broadcasting its current location while remaining invisible.
If the music box is within 5 metres of the ghost, it will trigger a ghost event where the ghost manifests and begins to walk towards the box. The music box can be handheld or placed on the floor, the latter being the only safe way to discard the box without triggering a cursed hunt before the ghost event. In all cases, the box will close once it stops playing.
Cursed hunt[]
While using the music box, a cursed hunt will be initiated if one of the following occurs:
- The ghost is within a short distance of the player holding the box
- The ghost walks during the box-triggered ghost event for more than 5 seconds
- The box is thrown while the tune is playing
- The player reaches or is already at 0% sanity (there is currently a bug where this initiates a cursed hunt without the 20 extra seconds, and doesn't extend the duration of subsequent hunts)
By avoiding all of the above, it is possible to use the music box without causing any hunt:
- Ensuring that no one is inside the investigation area when the above occurs (future hunts will be extended if the breaking method would have caused a cursed hunt)
- When the music ends without the ghost ever being near enough, the music box will automatically close
- If the player brings the music box near the ghost only just before the music stops playing, the ghost will simply disappear when the music ends.
Note that while the music box is playing, the ghost can still initiate a hunt on its own due to meeting normal hunt conditions rather than the box itself; this results in a standard hunt instead of a cursed hunt.
Other effects[]
Being within ~2.5 metres of an actively functioning music box drains the player's sanity at a rate of 2.6%/s, totalling 77% if the entire song is listened to. This applies to all players within the range, regardless of who activated the music box.
As long as the box-triggered ghost event has not occurred, an active music box will not prevent regular ghost activity, which means that the ghost can continue to roam, interact with objects, use its abilities, or even perform regular ghost events and hunts. While the ghost will not actively walk towards the music box if it is out of range, it can happen to roam close enough to trigger the ghost event.
If the music box is brought outside, the box will close. If the music is also playing, the sanity drain will pause, but the music will technically continue. It will reopen and function normally once the music box is brought inside again.
Ghosts[]
- The Shade has a chance of appearing as a black shadow rather than in its full form while walking towards the box.
- Compared to other ghosts, the Yokai must be closer to the player holding the box (within 2.5 metres) to trigger the ghost event.[note 1]
Photo rewards[]
- Main article: Photo Rewards
Taking a photo of a music box, used or not, will yield a photo labelled as Music Box, and reward up to $5 and 5XP, depending on the distance it was taken from.
Strategies and tips[]
The music box can be broken down into two primary uses: 1) utilize the triggered ghost event and following hunt to complete relevant objectives and/or to identify the ghost type, or 2) get the ghost to broadcast its current position to narrow down and locate its favourite room.
The music box is an easy way to obtain a ghost photo, but beware that switching to the camera while holding the music box will automatically throw it and immediately cause a hunt; it should be placed down before switching to the camera. In multiplayer games, one way is to have the photographer carry the smudge stick while another player activates the music box. The player holding the music box should refill their sanity to a comfortable level to avoid a 0% sanity-triggered hunt.
If the player wants to trigger a hunt, it is advised to do so by throwing the box while at a safe location rather than walking to the ghost to trigger the event and subsequent hunt (unless the player also wants a ghost photo in the process), as the latter method puts the player in close proximity to the ghost when it begins hunting which is quite dangerous and can lead to death especially against ghosts such as a Revenant.
On smaller maps such as the suburban houses, it can be quite difficult to avoid getting too close and triggering the event and subsequent cursed hunt especially if the player is not sure where the ghost is, so caution should be advised when using it, and the player should also take some precautions in case this happens:
- Carrying along a tier III Crucifix can come in handy to prevent the cursed hunt entirely; if the ghost event is triggered, quickly place down the box and swap to the Crucifix, which will block the hunt when the event ends.
- Bringing Incense, tier III Salt and tier III Sanity Medication can all help with escaping the ghost as with all hunts.
- If the event does trigger, immediately place down the box and run away from the ghost to put some distance between the player and the ghost before the cursed hunt begins.
Players should be especially careful when using a Music Box if the ghost is a Wraith, as it can teleport to the player holding the box, and instantly start a cursed hunt at their location, leading to an almost-guaranteed death.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
The tune the music box plays.
- When players interact with a piano's keyboard, it will play 1-2 notes from the Music Box's song, with the whole song playing when repeatedly interacting with the piano.
- The tune of the music box was composed by Lavender, one of the game's developers, and is titled "Adrift".
- The name and sheet music for the song can be seen inside the Music Box's top lid and above Bleasdale Farmhouse's piano.
- A full piano version is available on Spotify.
- The Music Box is available as official merchandise on The Music Box Store.
History[]
| Early Access | |
|---|---|
| 0.5.0 | Added the music box. |
Notes[]
- ↑ This is bugged and the Music Box will still trigger the ghost event within 5 metres of the Yokai instead of 2.5.