Music Box route · Official Day 1 patch · Night 9 route
Shift At Midnight Music Box and Marionette Guide
Quick Answer
On Night 9, wait for the Music Box email before searching. Check the garage entrance, store aisles, back room, restroom and bins outside; the box is not tied to one guaranteed coordinate. Once found, let the melody finish three complete plays without fully rewinding it. Deal with the main Entity before focusing on the floating Marionette, keep your distance and use ranged weapons. The official Day 1 patch lowered Marionette HP and made the Jack-in-the-box louder.
- Reading time
- 7 minutes
- Difficulty
- Randomized search and combat
- Checked
- 2026-09-22
On this page
Guide details
Before you begin
Trigger the Night 9 task, sweep five possible Music Box zones, complete all three melody plays, and finish the linked Marionette encounter.
The Night 9 email, five supported search zones, three complete plays and current Marionette patch changes. No fixed spawn coordinate or personal playtest is claimed.
- Status
- Official patch plus saved empirical route
- Edition
- Official Day 1 patch · Night 9 route
- Platform
- Windows PC · Steam
- Checked
- 2026-09-22
- Check note
- The route was re-expressed from saved source-bound evidence; official notes support the Marionette HP and audio changes.
Before you set out
Prerequisites#
- Reach Night 9 and confirm that the Music Box email has appeared.
- Carry a ranged weapon before starting the three-play sequence.
- Plan to control the normal Entity threat before committing attention to the floating Marionette.
Survey 01
Search all five Music Box zones#
Use one complete loop because current route evidence supports several possible areas, not a fixed spawn point.
Garage entrance#
Start at the garage approach and scan the floor and usable edges before moving into the store.
Checking this first prevents an extra outdoor backtrack.Store aisles#
Walk every accessible aisle and look between shelves while listening for the louder post-patch audio cue.
Do not assume the box is visible from an aisle entrance.Back room#
Sweep the staff area and the route connecting it to the sales floor.
Finish the room before returning to the front counter.Restroom#
Open the restroom and inspect its small floor area before leaving the interior.
It is compact enough to clear in one deliberate check.Bins outside#
End at the exterior bins after the indoor loop.
If all five are empty, verify the Night 9 email instead of repeating the same route blindly.
Route 02
Complete three plays and survive the encounter#
Confirm the Night 9 email#
The saved route starts with the task email. Searching before the trigger can produce a clean loop with no valid spawn.
Run the five-zone loop once#
Search the garage entrance, aisles, back room, restroom and outside bins in a fixed order so no area is silently skipped.
Let the melody finish three times#
Allow three complete melody plays and do not fully rewind the box between them. Finding the item or hearing one play is not the completed route.
Control the main Entity first#
Avoid splitting attention between the normal breach threat and the floating Marionette. Stabilize the main Entity encounter before committing ranged fire.
Fight the Marionette at range#
Use a ranged weapon and keep space from the floating target. The saved route says bear traps are ineffective, while the official patch reduced Marionette HP.
Margin corrections
Mistakes that waste the attempt#
Searching before the trigger
No supported route begins before the Night 9 email, so an early empty sweep is not evidence of a broken spawn.
Stopping after one melody
The supported solution requires three complete plays; one successful sound cycle is only the first part.
Relying on bear traps
Keep a ranged option ready. Current route evidence marks bear traps as ineffective against the Marionette.
Field questions
Music Box questions#
- Which night starts the Music Box route?
- Night 9, after the Music Box email appears.
- How many complete melody plays are required?
- Three, without fully rewinding the box between plays.
- Is there one fixed Music Box location?
- No fixed coordinate is supported. Search the five evidence-backed zones in one complete loop.