Dark Mass: The Underwater Horror Game That'll Sink Into Your Brain

Everything We Know About Dark Mass – The Terrifying PS5 Horror Game

I thought I could handle zombies. I thought I could handle the ocean. But Dark Mass changed that — permanently. This upcoming PS5 horror title has managed to awaken a deep-seated thalassophobia I didn’t even know I had. And now that I’ve seen it, I can’t stop thinking about it.

Announced at the Future Games Show, Dark Mass is a first-person psychological horror game from Spanish indie studio Path Games, best known for their sleeper horror hit Insomnis. Set for release in Fall 2026, this game plunges you into the darkest corners of the ocean and then cranks the terror up to eleven.

Let’s just say... you might never look at the deep sea the same way again.

1. The Premise: Welcome to the Abyss

In Dark Mass, you play as Alice, a deep-sea explorer diving alongside her brother Reed. After a massive underwater earthquake, the ocean floor cracks open to reveal something horrific: the wreckage of an ancient ship — and beneath it, an entire manor, perfectly preserved, untouched by time.

Think that’s weird? It gets worse. Much worse.

The manor isn’t just a bizarre architectural miracle — it’s a nightmare preserved in saltwater, complete with grotesque creatures, ritualistic puzzles, and a malevolent entity lurking in the shadows. If that doesn’t already sound like a panic attack waiting to happen, the game’s setting ensures the fear doesn’t just hit you — it surrounds you.

2. Gameplay: Horror with Depth (Literally)

Gameplay in Dark Mass is as much about survival as it is about narrative exploration. Alice must dive into submerged corridors, twisted chambers, and deep hallways, all while dealing with the crushing weight of the ocean and limited oxygen. The game leans heavily into claustrophobic level design — walls press in on you, and danger can come from any direction.

Combat is minimal, if present at all. Instead, you’ll be solving disturbing puzzles inspired by real-life Inquisition torture methods, interacting with cursed objects, and trying to stay one step ahead of the nightmare that haunts the manor. The choices you make — in how you explore, what you say to your brother Reed (via a walkie-talkie system), and what paths you follow — will directly impact the ending.

Even better (or worse?), the underwater environment affects everything: how you move, what you can interact with, even how light behaves. Verticality becomes a constant threat — you’re never sure what’s floating above... or crawling below.

3. Atmosphere: Silence Has Never Been So Loud

The game’s audio design deserves special mention. It’s not jump scares or loud screeches that make Dark Mass terrifying — it’s the silence. The sound of your own breathing. The distant creaking of metal. The occasional garbled whisper through your comms. It’s quiet, until it isn’t. And by then, it’s usually too late.

The visuals are equally oppressive. The manor itself feels ripped out of a haunted Victorian novel and then drowned. Wallpaper peels off into the current. Portraits float eerily in dark corners. And every now and then, something moves — that shouldn’t move.

4. The Story: Mystery, Madness, and the Sea

The central mystery of Dark Mass is deeply psychological. Why is this manor at the bottom of the ocean? Who lived here? What rituals took place within its halls? And most disturbingly — why is it still intact?

As Alice, you’re not just uncovering a ghost story — you’re confronting something ancient and impossible. The presence haunting this place isn’t just malevolent… it may not be bound by time or physics. It remembers. It waits. And it knows you’re there.

The game’s branching narrative ensures that no two playthroughs will be quite the same. Your decisions impact not only Alice’s fate but also Reed’s — and possibly the fate of whatever force lurks in the abyss.

5. Thalassophobia Warning: You've Been Warned

If you’ve ever felt uneasy looking into deep water, Dark Mass is going to haunt your dreams. It's not just "underwater horror" — it’s the underwater horror game. Even if you’re usually unbothered by oceans, this game will make you question that confidence.

It taps into something primal — the fear of the unknown, the dark, and the deep. And then it layers on a crumbling house full of secrets, monsters, and twisted history. It’s The Deep House meets Amnesia, with a splash of Bioshock's decaying beauty and SOMA’s existential terror.

Prepare to Sink

Dark Mass isn’t just trying to scare you — it’s trying to pull you under. It’s a chilling reminder that we know more about outer space than we do about the ocean, and that what lies beneath the waves might be better left undiscovered.

This one is high on our radar for Fall 2026, especially for fans of narrative-driven horror that doesn’t rely on cheap tricks but instead builds dread like pressure in a diving bell.

So... maybe skip that beach trip. Because once you’ve played Dark Mass, even a bathtub might feel a little too deep.

Stay submerged in the horror world with Land of Geek Magazine — we’ve got your deep dives, dark finds, and terrifying tales covered.

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