Karma: The Dark World - Game Review

      Calum Petrie provides a review of Karma: The Dark World…

      Karma: The Dark World is an ambitious psychological horror game that delivers a narrative-centric experience. It strives to fuse surreal dystopian elements with experimental storytelling, yet unfortunately, its ambitions often surpass its execution.

      The game begins with the protagonist awakening in what seems to be a hospital room, recovering from a mysterious and dreadful procedure. From this point, the story gradually unfolds, though the term “unravel” might be too kind, as it frequently becomes more tangled the deeper one delves. The narrative centers around accessing others' memories via a cassette player (yes, genuinely), resulting in a complex, Inception-like exploration of multiple minds. While this idea is creative, it quickly becomes messy and hard to follow.

      Visually, the game is striking, offering a suffocating atmosphere, bold design decisions, and unsettling character designs—like government agents with televisions for heads—which contribute to a world that is both memorable and perplexing. The art direction is commendable, yet without a strong narrative foundation, it sometimes feels more focused on style than substance.

      In terms of gameplay, it functions as a glorified walking simulator, featuring light puzzle-solving and pseudo-combat elements that lack true consequences. You can be “caught” or “killed,” but these outcomes don’t affect progression, making these mechanics seem more like decorative elements than significant gameplay. Some segments become repetitive and vague, with ambiguous objectives that can lead to player frustration.

      There are fleeting moments where the game shows a lighter touch, such as quirky achievements, and it tries to utilize haptic feedback in interesting ways, although the benefits are minimal. The sound design is inconsistent, with fluctuating audio levels that necessitated frequent adjustments. Visually, the graphics are decent; they are not of AAA quality, but it’s also not a title with a AAA budget.

      The story fluctuates significantly in tone, particularly in a perplexing second act that unexpectedly shifts toward a love story. It genuinely left me questioning whether I was still engaged with the same game. The narrative aims for depth and philosophical themes but unfortunately comes off as confused, with an overload of threads competing for focus and few making a substantial impact.

      Despite its shortcomings, the game has responsive controls, tight movement mechanics, and while the sprint feature is underwhelming, the overall gameplay mechanics are solid. Ultimately, Karma: The Dark World feels like a labor of love from a visionary team that may have benefited from greater focus and clearer storytelling.

      I may not fit what the developers consider the “core audience,” but I don't believe this game is suited for the average player. Even for enthusiasts of niche horror or abstract narratives, it may turn out to be more frustrating than satisfying. There is potential here, buried beneath layers of metaphor and overwhelming ambition, but it remains a challenging game to endorse.

      Rating – 4/10

      Calum Petrie – You can follow me on X @Cetrie