
Release Date: March 27, 2025
A Chinese first-person psychological thriller, inspired by the creations of George Orwell, Hideo Kojima, David Lynch and Christopher Nolan. Karma: The Dark World takes us to an alternative version of 1984 East Germany. We play as an agent capable of accessing minds of interrogated people to find secrets and complete investigations.
Karma: The Dark World is an adventure game in the style of a psychological thriller, inspired by the works of Hideo Kojima (Metal Gear Solid, Death Stranding), as well as the creations of David Lynch (Twin Peaks) and Christopher Nolan (Inception, Interstellar). The game was developed by the independent Chinese team Pollard Studio from Shanghai.
In Karma: The Dark World we watch the action from a first-person perspective (FPP). The driving force of the game is the exploration of thoughts of the suspects we interrogate. They were presented in the form of "distorted", surreal locations reflecting not only their experiences, but also emotions and desires.
Traveling through these places, exploring their nooks and crannies, solving puzzles and facing other challenges lurking in them, we learn more about the people we interrogate, as well as their connection to the cases we are investigating. In this way, we also learn about how the individual crimes happened.
The discoveries we make should be reported to the management. The situation is complicated by the fact that the longer the main character stays away from reality, the more his perception of the boundary between it and the imagined world begins to weaken, which over time puts his sanity to the test.
Karma: The Dark World presents us with an alternative vision of history, in which in East Germany of 1984, the Leviathan corporation rules with an iron fist. Just like in Orwell's book, the citizens of this country are subjected to mass surveillance. Furthermore, East German society is based on a class system, and one of the few forms of escape here are drugs and the promise of a stay in the enigmatic Utopia, which is a reward for obedience.
The main character of the game is Daniel McGovern from the Leviathan Thought Bureau, who is equipped with technology that allows him to penetrate the minds of suspects and the accused. Over time, the protagonist becomes entangled in a large-scale spy intrigue. The story also touches on such topics as betrayal, family, love, and loss.
Karma: The Dark World operates on the Unreal Engine 5. The game utilizes flagship technologies developed by Epic Games, namely Lumen (lighting and reflections) and Nanite (geometry).
Platforms:
PC Windows March 27, 2025
PlayStation 5 March 27, 2025
Xbox Series X/S September 10, 2025
Developer: Pollard Studio
Publisher: Wired Productions
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Karma: The Dark World will soon be available on PC and PS5, but players can already play the demo version of this dystopian title.
video games
Jacob Blazewicz
March 19, 2025
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System Requirements for Karma: The Dark World Video Game:
PC / Windows
Minimum System Requirements:
(1080p, 30 fps) Intel Core i7-6700K / AMD Ryzen 5 2600X, 16 GB RAM, graphic card 6 GB GeForce GTX 1660 / 8 GB Radeon RX Vega 56, 30 GB SSD, Windows 10 64-bit.
Recommended System Requirements:
(1440p, 60 fps) Intel Core i7-10700K / AMD Ryzen 7 5700X, 16 GB RAM, graphic card 8 GB GeForce RTX 2080 / 12 GB Radeon RX 6700 XT, 30 GB SSD, Windows 11 64-bit.
Game Ratings for Karma: The Dark World Video Game.
Gamer Social Club: 9 / 10 by Russell Segui
So, to answer the question posed at the beginning of this review, yes, it vary much lived up to the hype. Karma The Dark World is not an action-packed thrill ride, and it never tried to be. Karma is extremely good at a couple of things and doesn’t stray from that, which I enjoy a lot and feel more games need to do. Keep it simple and don’t overstay your welcome.
Pure Dead Gaming: 6 / 10
Karma: The Dark World exhibits impressive world design with an unrivalled Orwellian setting that is layered with intrigue. It explores the darker machinations of a totalitarian regime with an iron grip on a helplessly captive society. However, Karma: The Dark World disappointingly fails to deliver on its initial premise and potential by neglecting to expand upon the engrossing themes, setting, and narrative showcased during its opening hours. The unnerving world and atmosphere that Pollard Studio has created in Karma serve as the backdrop for an artistic masterpiece that never fully forms on the canvas, as Karma inexplicably elects to all but abandon any dystopian focus during its second half, instead replacing its ostensibly marvellous setup with new characters and narrative threads that squander the game’s incipient masterclass in world-building and sowing intrigue. While Karma easily could have been a masterpiece, as evidenced by all of the chilling artistry of its opening act, it results in a mess of a game that lacks sufficient design cohesion or narrative focus. Karma: The Dark World is ultimately an amalgamation of richly intriguing and uncannily evocative ideas that never mesh together in a cohesive narrative or consummate gameplay experience.
Smash Jump: 6 / 10 by Sam Flanagan
Karma: The Dark World has a lot of interesting ideas, but it tells them in such a vague way that will leave many dissatisfied. Couple that with limited gameplay sections, cheap horror moments, a story that feels like huge gaps were cut for the sake of building mystery, and it’s hard to not be a little disappointed. However, that being said, Karma does have standout moments sprinkled throughout that elevates the game past its mediocrity. It’s graphically outstanding, the soundtrack is hauntingly beautiful, and even though the game’s story is full of smoke and mirrors it does occasionally provide you with an incredibly well crafted scene or two.
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