MOLE

About MOLE

MOLE was made by Off Black Creations in Unreal Engine 5 and published by Oro Interactive for Windows in 2026, on Steam and DRM-free on GOG. Its makers describe it as a psychological horror experience with tactile simulation elements, about madness, faith and the depths we choose to dig.

It is set in an alternate 1980s. You are the Navigator aboard a deep-bore vessel, a colossal post-war drilling machine built to descend deep underground, following a previous mission toward a strange Signal. But the crew is gone, the vessel is silent, and the Signal won't stop calling. The cockpit is a wall of gauges, valve wheels and amber CRT screens; a message terminal is dated November 1982, and the crew quarters are a narrow bunk beside a calendar and framed portraits.

Most of the game is the work of running the vessel. Cartridges act as keys and data, and signs beside each station spell out what to do. Bloody Disgusting describes an early fusebox: you put the fuse in the slot for the right floor, set the dial, hold a button, flip four of eight switches and pull a lever, and the game will not let you walk through unlit areas until you do. Setting the course means carrying a cassette from console to console and dialling in values from the terminal readings. Later these jobs come under time pressure and the corridors and vents are very cramped.

Between shifts, flashbacks show the Navigator's life before the mission and the grief he carries, and the closer you get to the Signal, the more past and present run together. The screenshots move from the machine to a grave in a wheat field, a white rabbit in a night garden and a crewman lying in blood. There are chase sequences through very dark places, and Steam players mention a few jump scares. Its store page notes that the game depicts death, killing and suicide.

HowLongToBeat puts the main story at about 3 hours; Bloody Disgusting's run took about four and a half. It suits players who like slow, hands-on machine horror such as Iron Lung and stories that turn inward.

How to play MOLE

1. Buy it on Steam or GOG and run it on Windows.
2. Read the instruction signs beside each station; they set out every step of the routine.
3. Restore power at the fuseboxes so you can move through the dark parts of the vessel.
4. Set the course by moving the cassette between consoles and dialling in the values from the terminal readings.
5. Follow the flashbacks between shifts, and run when something comes for you.

Tips

• One chase late in the game is very dark; Bloody Disgusting's reviewer raised the brightness setting from 1.4 to 2.8 to get through it.
• Learn each routine early, because later the same jobs have to be done against the clock.
• Check the terminal for unread orders; they tell you what the vessel needs next.
• Some Steam players report getting stuck on a timed segment, so take the timed jobs carefully.

Questions