Claustrophobic, Diegetic Horror Simulation MOLE Is Out on Steam

Indie horrors that lean more into atmosphere are what excite me. One such new release is MOLE from developer Off Black Creations and publisher Oro Interactive. It’s quite similar to games like Mouthwashing and Threshold, so, if you liked them, you might like this one, too.

You play as the Navigator aboard the MOLE, which is a gigantic post-war drilling machine built to burrow deep beneath Slavic soil. The crew has disappeared, and the machine is falling apart around you. The Signal keeps calling your name, but you’re supposed to keep the enormous machine alive.

The whole game revolves around descending deeper and deeper underground while operating the massive drilling vessel. You interact with its complicated systems, fixing things when they inevitably start breaking.

As you keep drilling downward, pieces of your own memories begin surfacing, and the choices you make refuse to stay buried. Meanwhile, your sanity slowly erodes as the vessel itself struggles to survive.

The story also sounds like it goes full Eldritch horror. Undoubtedly, you’ll find some familiar Lovecraftian ideas, but the game doesn’t overdo it. Meanwhile, the vessel is very well-detailed despite being oppressive.

As reality continues breaking apart, entirely new rooms begin appearing. There are lockers, portraits of previous operators, and even a wall of fame displaying the greatest depths previous MOLE crews managed to reach.

MOLE is deep into management

You’re managing the giant machine, finding safe routes through rock, plotting coordinates, monitoring drill RPM, and repairing failing systems. Everything you learn is through trial and error, experimentation, paying attention to your surroundings, and reading instructions scattered throughout the vessel.

The presentation is apt for the setting. The dim lighting, ASCII and UNIX-style text, and low-fidelity visuals establish an unsettling atmosphere. Take a look at the MOLE to see for yourself!

MOLE is now available on Steam.

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Amrita Sankar

News Writer

Amrita has been playing video games since she was a toddler, so writing about games comes naturally to her. Outside of Gamezebo, she has experience in webcomics and social media copywriting.