Halloween 2018 Descends!

All Hallow's Eve approaches fast, and the darkest night threatens to take over osu! once and for all, starting with the main menu! Spooks, chills and thrills abound with new Hush-Hush medals and more, come check out what's new!

There's a lot to cover, so let's get stuck right into it!

The osu! game client has been possessed by spooky ghosts! Oh no! Taking the form of the winners from this year's Halloween Fanart Contest as voted by you (and a few extras), these adorably delightful pieces are sure to terrify and brighten up your day in equal measure.

We had over 160 entries to vote for this year, setting a brand new record by an absolute landslide - the only contest to even come close is Spring 2018 with 77.

The most horrifying thing of all is this meant that people only had 15 votes to throw around over five days. Agonizingly few, we know.

Without any further shambling around, let's dig right in - and if you like what you see, click the banner to be taken to a full-sized download!:

Exploding into first place with a sea of spooky colours and 6744 votes to boot was 2Su's outstanding entry featuring a Halloween attired pippi and Yuzu eagerly welcoming you into the outright hell that is All Hallow's Eve.

And by hell, I actually meant candy, because this piece is so sweet that it almost hurts. Death-defyingly sweet.

In second place with 6305 votes was Sunako's enthralling (literally) entry featuring a vampire pippi lording over her Mocha and Aiko maidservants within a courtly manor.

Sunako is at this point, a regular in these contests and has been putting out showstopper after showstopper, with this entry certainly no exception. The horror of true talent - how Halloween!

With 5316 votes, h-alice0430's rendition of Aiko in Halloween garb holding a rose before a distant horizon of eerily smiling towers is as charming as it is cute. A fine testament to the old adage of 'less is sometimes more'.

Before the blood moon, an oni-Mocha and a witch-pippi cackled and gleamed their way into the hearts of 5073 voters in Que3tion's piece.

We recommend against stuffing your undead servants with candy corn. It just makes a mess.

Summoning forth 4866 votes, PaperDawge's portrayal of a gorgeously attired witch-pippi and Count Yuzu complete with a werewolf Mocha and demon Maria is well deserving of its spot among the finalists, featuring the official mascots in their entirety to some of the best costume design we've seen all season.

Never thought I'd see Yuzu in a ruffled cravat, but hey, it works!

Whimsically commanding 4111 votes, Vio's surprisingly bright but no less Halloween-y piece is full of charisma and quirky charm, with tiny hats to boot!

High above the clouds, 3927 voters approved of Misakko's take on a flying Aiko set before an ominous blood mood. Simple, striking, and absolutely wonderful.

Running straight into the grasp of 3851 voters, Lee Narie's spooktacular entry features the main mascot gang in full, except Yuzu's insatiable attraction to plant and fruit-based lifeforms have resulted in him seating a pumpkin on his head.

We don't know if the witch-garbed pippi is annoyed, scared or just simply laughing at him, so we'll assume all three are the case here. Oh, Yuzu. When will you learn?

3650 gigajoules worth of votes blasted through the mad scientist Mocha's terrible machine in HawkkunXDDDDDD's maniacal masterpiece, shocking a Frankenstein's Monster themed Taikonator into life.

IT LIVES!

Showcasing their natural cuteness in Halloween-themed style, 3407 declared their support for iPhone's take on some scarily adorable costumes for both pippi and Mocha, complete with Yuzu hurling assorted fruits (and pumpkins!) into the night sky, plus a murderous little don caught in the act. Always knew those things were up to no good.

Due to an error in submission, this entry will not be available on the main menu for the time being. Sorry!

Lost in a sea of blood, 3376 voters cast their lot for Akshilsnow's take on a disturbed pippi gazing eerily up towards the heavens. Something ominous lurks in that coffin to her left, I wonder what it could be?

Unfortunately, due to concerns about suggestive content, this entry will not be making it to the main menu.

It just isn't Halloween without grandiose, frilly dresses, and 3354 voters seemed to completely agree with Bunnshii's take on brand new costumes for both pippi and Mocha.

Taking to the skies atop a magical broom, 3119 voters were swept up in kuli88312's devilishly simple take on a witch-attired Alisa sailing through the purple-hued skies of a full moon.

Stolen by the innocent gaze of the costume-clad duo that is pippi and Mocha, 2908 simply couldn't resist HeBedesu's artful charms.

And last but certainly not least, 2897 voters were absolutely torn between trick or treat with maaayonnaise's rendition of a devilish pippi as the trick, and an angelic Mocha as the treat.

Which would you choose?

Most of the top-voted entries listed above qualified to become a part of the Halloween main menu pack, but a few did not - we have since replaced those with a set of two staff picks to keep things fair as follows:

• Atago's entry
• pockyway's' entry

Both the voted entries and the staff picks will receive 2 months of osu!supporter as part of the main prize.

And on an entirely unrelated note, one entry was judged to be a little too suggestive to make it to voting, but deserved something of a special mention. What's this? Where did the link go?!

Unless otherwise specified, the above entries are all available NOW in-game as the Halloween seasonal background pack.

And to tie it all off, one of our Featured Artists, Dictate has been hard at work conjuring up a new tune to lead us into All Hallow's Eve - titled ghouls!

This track is what all of the scores condemned to a terrible fate via the Sudden Death mod hear at the gallows. Ominous!

Speaking of ominous, there are now 11 brand new Hush-Hush themed medals available! If you're new to this medal thing, Hush-Hush medals are half-riddle, half-achievement and all fun. These things will test your general knowledge of everything osu! - from popular songs, mappers, and more. Figuring out how to get them is only half the battle!

If you do manage to figure one out, please keep it to yourself. The riddle is part of the fun!

These new medals are universally hard at a sheer mechanical level, perhaps the hardest set to have been released ever in that regard. One of these new medals poses such a feat of regal magnificence that it has yet to be completed by ANY player - an entirely unique challenge!

Think you're up for it? Take heed of the hints below, you're going to need them, and this is all you'll get from us!

• Skylord - Never miss a wingbeat. (Flight requires nothing but perfection.)
• B-Rave - It takes courage to stand before the master. (Ill-tempered bosses make for excellent final battles.)
• Any% - A speedrunner's best friend. (Unintended features for intentional wins.)
• Mirage - The horizon goes on forever, and ever, and ever... (The light is far harder than it seems.)
• Under The Stars - Onwards, to where the darkness can never stop us. (Walk beneath skies of black on a journey to elsewhere.)
• Senseless - I hear nothing. I see nothing. (A song sung in that which is not.)
• Aeon - In the mire of thawing time, memory shall be your guide. (When your eyes fail you, how shall you succeed?)
• Upon The Wind - And in that gale, no eye could hope to follow. (In the heart of a storm of flowers, a world untouched by sight.)
• Vantage - There we stood, where the spires pierced the sky, and dreamed of the future to come. (Breaking ground, to critical acclaim.)
• Quick Maths - Beats per minute over... this isn't quick at all! (Where x equals beats per minute, and a variable unknown.)
• Efflorescence - A lament for the past, and a glimpse into tomorrow. (The horizon thunders with a portentous bloom.)

A big Happy Halloween from all of us on the osu!team! Remember to show your artists some love if you really liked their work!

—Ephemeral