The Story of the Real “Midnight Club” That the Game Was Based Off Of

Most of us who remember the heyday of street racing video games probably remember Midnight Club. The game came out with seven different titles and lasted nearly a decade before it died off in 2008. There has been speculation of a newer title coming but nothing too concrete yet. However, what most don’t know is that there’s actually a story behind the name. It wasn’t just some unique and catchy title thought up by a bunch of suits in a boardroom at Rockstar.

Instead, the “Mid Night Club” was a group of upper-class individuals who were really serious about their street racing. As Drivetribe describes the group, they were a secret society of street racing. Their goal was to host top speed races on the Wangan, a Japanese highway.

While there were plenty of other car clubs that participated in similar activity, the Mid Night Club strived. They became the focus of media attention everywhere. They’ve even been featured in hundreds of articles that dove into the extreme driving habits of those who made it in.

Unlike other car clubs that are begging for people to get in, the Mid Night Club had some strict rules. Those who entered even had to serve as an apprentice for a year before being given full membership. This meant coming to every single meeting as well. Membership was highly sought after and very few were ever able to gain entry. The club-shaped itself to be something that would be seen in a movie as they operated under the cover of night.

The video below from Drivetribe takes a deeper look at what exactly happened in the club and why it was such a spectacle. These long distance, high-speed races certainly went down in history. The way that it came to a close created even more of a controversy.