Avinash Rohra 
Introduction: A World of Shadows and Screams
It’s midnight. The world outside is still, the kind of quiet that feels heavy, like the air itself is holding its breath. The faint hum of my air conditioner is the only sound, a mechanical whisper that does little to dispel the growing tension. My room is bathed in the ghostly glow of the screen, its light casting jagged shadows that seem to shift when I’m not looking. I’m playing Karma: The Dark World, a preview build of the upcoming psychological horror game from Pollard Studios and Wired Productions. As I step into the shoes of Roam Agent Daniel McGovern, an employee of the omnipresent Leviathan Corporation, I’m immediately struck by how wrong everything feels. The world is dystopian, oppressive, and dripping with dread. By the time I pause to catch my breath, I realize I’ve been holding it for far too long.
Stephen King once wrote about the three levels of terror: the gross-out, horror, and terror. Karma: The Dark World isn’t just a horror game—it’s a masterclass in terror. It doesn’t rely on jump scares or gore (though there’s plenty of unsettling imagery). Instead, it worms its way into your mind, planting seeds of fear that grow as you play. By the time I reached the end of my two-hour demo, I was left shaken, questioning what was real and what was a figment of Daniel’s fractured psyche. This is a game that doesn’t just want to scare you—it wants to haunt you.
What is Karma: The Dark World About?
A Dystopian Nightmare
Set in an alternate-history 1984, Karma: The Dark World is a first-person psychological horror game that immerses players in a world ruled by the Leviathan Corporation. Think of Leviathan as a darker, more sinister version of the Federal Bureau of Control (FBC) from Control. Where the FBC sought to understand and contain the supernatural, Leviathan seeks to control and exploit it. The corporation’s influence is everywhere, from the telescreens that monitor every move to the floppy disc-shaped IDs that dictate your social standing. This is a world where even the smallest infraction—a stain on your uniform, applying makeup during work hours—can have dire consequences.
At the heart of Leviathan is MOTHER, an AI designed to enforce the “New World Order.” MOTHER’s directives are absolute, and her presence looms over every aspect of life. Employees are drugged to increase productivity, their memories stripped and stored to serve the corporation’s goals. It’s a chilling vision of a society where individuality is erased, and conformity is enforced through fear and surveillance. If George Orwell’s 1984 had a corporate overlord, it would be Leviathan.
The Story: A Descent into Madness
You play as Daniel McGovern, a ROAM agent, a Nightcrawler—a special agent tasked with infiltrating the minds of suspects to uncover their deepest secrets. What starts as a routine investigation into a theft at the Winston Research Institute quickly spirals into a nightmarish journey through fractured memories, surreal landscapes, and unspeakable horrors. As Daniel delves deeper into the case, he begins to question not only the world around him but also his own identity.
The narrative unfolds nonlinearly, jumping between 1966 and 1984, as Daniel pieces together fragmented memories to uncover the truth. Along the way, you’ll encounter a cast of characters—enemies, superiors, residents, and family members—each with their own motives and secrets. Some will help you; others will plead for mercy or call out to you in the darkness. The story is as much about Daniel’s internal struggle as it is about the external horrors he faces.
Gameplay: A Delicate Balance of Investigation and Terror
Exploring the Mind
At its core, Karma: The Dark World is a game about exploration and investigation. As Daniel, you’ll navigate surreal environments that shift and change, reflecting the fractured psyche of the minds you’re exploring. The game’s first-person perspective heightens the sense of immersion, making every shadow, every sound, feel unnervingly real. You’ll solve puzzles, piece together clues, and uncover evidence to complete your reports for Leviathan. But beware—the deeper you go, the more the line between reality and nightmare blurs.
One of the most striking moments in my demo came after I found the evidence of Shawn Mendes’s crime. When I went to return it via the pneumatic tubes that dispensed my orders, I saw Mendes walking like a ghost through the hallway. I followed him, and he led me into a dark room with a single door.
When I entered, I found myself in what can best be described as Twin Peaks’ Black Lodge: red curtains everywhere, mannequins, a family around a table. It took me a moment to realize I was seeing Mendes’s memories—his life, his fears.
I read about his daughter, saw her room, and then, when I returned, they had moved in front of the TV. Eventually, they led me to an elevator going down.
I descended.
What followed was one of the most disturbing sequences I’ve ever experienced in a horror game. Alarm clocks hung from the ceiling, their incessant ringing filling the air. Bodies covered in some sort of black goo littered the floor. Mannequins splattered with blood lay haphazardly along gurneys.
I learned about what happened to Mendes, to his wife, to his daughter. I watched their home disintegrate. I put my hand into a computer and watched a man strung up by his arms explode. I entered an office and watched it go mad, the mannequins inside cowering in fear.
At one point, I turned around, tried to go another way—and they were suddenly behind me, hands up, forcing me to go forward.
Sometimes the greatest horror is to be forced to watch.
Who is Karma: The Dark World For?
Fans of Psychological Horror
If you’re a fan of games like Control, Silent Hill, or Layers of Fear, Karma: The Dark World is right up your alley. It’s a game that prioritizes atmosphere and storytelling over action, drawing you into its world with a sense of unease that never quite lets go. The game’s focus on exploration and investigation will appeal to players who enjoy piecing together a narrative through environmental storytelling and subtle clues.
Lovers of Dystopian Fiction
The game’s dystopian setting and themes of surveillance, control, and identity will resonate with fans of 1984 and other works of dystopian fiction. Leviathan Corporation is a fascinating antagonist, a chilling embodiment of corporate greed and authoritarianism. The game’s world-building is meticulous, with every detail—from the telescreens to the floppy disc IDs—contributing to the sense of a society under constant surveillance.
Final Verdict: A Journey into the Abyss
Karma: The Dark World is shaping up to be one of the most compelling horror games of the year. Its blend of psychological terror, surreal imagery, and dystopian storytelling creates an experience that is as thought-provoking as it is terrifying. The game’s emphasis on atmosphere and exploration sets it apart from more action-oriented horror titles, offering a slower, more deliberate pace that allows the dread to build naturally.
My time with the preview build left me deeply unsettled, but also eager to see more. If Pollard Studios can maintain the level of tension and storytelling seen in the demo, Karma: The Dark World could be a masterpiece of psychological horror. It’s a game that doesn’t just want to scare you—it wants to burrow into your mind and stay there, long after you’ve put down the controller.
Karma: The Dark World doesn’t just rely on scares or cheap tricks; it taps into something deeper, something primal. It challenges you to question what’s real, what’s imagined, and how much of yourself you’re willing to lose in the pursuit of answers.
This isn’t just another horror game; it’s a carefully crafted descent into fear and unease, one that sticks with you long after the controller is set down. The game forces you to confront its twisted, uncanny world and, in doing so, reflect on your own fears and vulnerabilities.
The question isn’t whether you’ll find the truth—it’s whether you’ll want to.
So, is Karma: The Dark World worth entering? That depends. How much do you trust your own mind?
[These impressions on a PC Preview Build]
