Psychological horror games are one of the most difficult types to create in the current year. Because since the old releases like Amnesia: Dark Descent and Silent Hill, the games have been developing like nothing else. Gamers have been seeing the same jumpscares and creepy sounds for more than fifteen years. Maybe adding something new to this genre, an interesting and original story, or an antagonist (because most of us know that what makes a game remarkable is, usually, how good the villain is), would be great. Martha Is Dead is partially has done it. It has an engaging story with simple gameplay and some horrific scenes. Even though it makes a good start, the more you progress in the game, the duller the game becomes. So, without further ado, let’s check out Martha is Dead.
Martha Is Dead is a first-person psychological thriller in which you play a girl named Giulia. Actually, you are mostly playing as Martha, but we will get to that later. The game was released on February 24, 2022. It was developed by LKA and published by Wired Productions. LKA had a similar release in The Town of Light in 2016. So, we can say it’s not their first time developing a triller-themed game. There are experienced developers behind Martha is Dead.
In Martha is Dead, we play a girl named Giulia. She is the daughter of a German soldier. She also has an identical twin, Martha. The game is set in Italy in 1944, so it has a WWII atmosphere, which gives the game its dark and depressing mood.
In the first minutes of the gameplay, we listen to our nanny tell us a tale about a jealous man who murders his wife and how karma gets him. Maybe one of you has played the game or watched the gameplay and said, “Oh, that story has a deeper meaning, you are telling it like it’s a kid tale.” This is a review, and yes, maybe we didn’t get the meaning.
After several minutes, we find ourselves in front of a river. We will take a photograph with an old camera and see a floating body. While taking the body out of the river, we realize that the dead body belongs to Martha. Then our parents find us. They confuse us with our sister, thinking that Giulia is dead.
Instead of clearing out the confusion, we act like we are Martha. After this big start, we play as our dead twin sister, and the story gets dark. Reality and dreams are mixed. While trying to find our sister’s killer, we take photos to unsolve the mysteries, survive the horrors of Giulia’s mind, and remember our memories in a puppet theater.
The game has some heavy content. Even if you are a horror player, make sure your eyes and mind are strong enough to get through this game. The story starts off really sharp (as we said here), but in later gameplay, the game starts to be a bit slow and uncertain.
Uncertainty is one of the most powerful elements of a thriller game. Because if you knew everything, you wouldn’t get scared or even excited. But the game makes it a bit much. In the end, you can’t tell what is real or not. That makes the game’s ending a mostly unsolved picture.
Besides all these, the game has beautiful graphics, and you can even take screenshots and make them your wallpaper.
Martha is Dead Available Platforms and System Requirements
Overall, Martha Is Dead is a decent psychological horror game with some flaws. The game mostly delivers on its promises with pretty visuals. You can play the game on Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S for $29,99.
You can find the game for PCs on the Epic Games Store and Steam. Don’t forget to add it to your wishlist or library if you are ready for horror in the 1940s. Lastly, if you want to play as your dead twin sister, you need these system requirements:
- It requires a 64-bit processor and operating system.
- OS: Windows 10 64bit
- Processor: Intel Core i7 or equivalent AMD
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GTX 1060 or AMD RX 5500
- DirectX: Version 11
- Storage: 30 GB of available space
- Additional Notes: Game installed on SSD Recommended
