MOLD

About

MOLD is a single player casual simulation game. It was developed by Finley Southwick and was released on July 15, 2025. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

MOLD is a haunting single-player simulation game where you play as a worker bug in a decaying sewer colony. Explore mold-covered husks and navigate walls and ceilings to collect fallen kin, all while avoiding deadly fungal spores. Your sole mission is to sustain the infected queen in this atmospheric, short narrative experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

77%

Audience ScoreBased on 64 reviews

graphics7 positive mentions

gameplay4 negative mentions

Stunning visuals and beautiful atmosphere that create an engaging experience.
Interesting concept of playing as an insect in a decaying world, with cute bug animations.
Short but enjoyable gameplay that leaves players wanting more, showcasing potential for future development.

Severely unoptimized, with poor performance on lower settings and clunky controls.
Incredibly short gameplay, often completed in under 10 minutes, leading to a feeling of emptiness.
Camera issues and lack of key rebinding make navigation frustrating at times.

graphics
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
54%
23%
23%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their stunning visuals and artistic design, creating a beautiful yet bleak atmosphere. However, players report significant optimization issues, with lower settings resulting in broken textures that detract from the experience. While the aesthetics are impressive, many feel the game leans more towards an art showcase than a fully fleshed-out gameplay experience.
- “Beautiful glimpse into a bleak and dreary world, captured through stunning visuals and a delightfully haunting soundtrack.”
- “Feels less like a game and more like just a graphics/art showcase, which I guess that's what it is, so for that it's good. It achieves what it's supposed to be.”
- “Overall it's a great game; like I said, the graphics are amazing for such a short story.”
- “But right now it feels kind of empty, and as everyone else says, you can only play it on a powerful computer as the other graphics are broken.”
- “My one major gripe is that the optimization seems to be horrible, and for some reason setting the graphics to low made the world garishly white and unlike what's shown in the marketing materials.”
- “I did experience some lag when checking ultra level graphics, despite having a powerful computer.”
atmosphere
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
70%
30%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its intriguing and creepy design, evoking a sense of decay while allowing players to explore a unique environment. Reviewers highlight the excellent visual and auditory elements that enhance the experience, though some express a desire for a longer gameplay duration to fully immerse themselves in the captivating setting. Overall, the atmosphere is a standout feature that significantly contributes to the game's appeal.
- “The design and atmosphere are excellent.”
- “Beautiful atmosphere, music, and overall design.”
- “The atmosphere is filled with decay, but we are able to see what remains as humans.”
- “Atmosphere where?”
- “M/K controls are not great, but the atmosphere is spot on.”
optimization
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
40%
30%
The game's optimization has received significant criticism, with users reporting poor performance, clunky controls, and a lack of polish that detracts from the overall experience. While some appreciate the concept and potential for improvement, many agree that without substantial optimization, they cannot recommend it, despite its short playtime.
- “Awesome project, I'm in love with the concept and would totally pay for an optimized full-length version of this or something similar.”
- “I think with some polish in terms of performance and added gameplay, it could become a really cool little game.”
- “If the developer plans to add to it, then I cannot recommend it unless the game is better optimized.”
- “File size really speaks for the performance.”
- “Horrible performance, bad and clunky gameplay, non-existent story.”
- “Even though you can complete it in a couple of minutes and it's free, the optimization is horrible; the controls are clunky and half of the time I walked in the air.”
story
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
14%
43%
The reviews reflect a mixed reception regarding the story aspect, with some players expressing a desire for a more developed narrative, while others criticize the lack of depth and brevity. A few users found the story engaging despite its short length, highlighting the potential for a more substantial experience if expanded. Overall, the story is seen as either minimal or lacking, with calls for improvement in future iterations.
- “With some tweaks to the graphics and controls, I'd be very interested in a longer version of this with a more fleshed-out story.”
- “What an amazing little story (and I mean little).”
- “I recommend it; for how short it is, the story is interesting.”
- “I won't comment on the story because there isn't one, and there's only 3 minutes of gameplay.”
- “There was no meaning to it, no story or underlying context.”
- “Horrible performance, bad and clunky gameplay, non-existent story.”
gameplay
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
14%
57%
The gameplay has received largely negative feedback, with many users citing poor controls, clunky mechanics, and a lack of engaging content. While some appreciate the solid voice acting and level design, the overall experience is marred by performance issues and a feeling of emptiness, suggesting that the game prioritizes visuals over meaningful gameplay. There is potential for improvement, but as it stands, the gameplay is considered disappointing and unpolished.
- “The gameplay is solid, the voice acting is solid, the level design is both creepy and sorrowful, and the whole premise is rather well set.”
- “I think with some polish in terms of performance and added gameplay, it could become a really cool little game.”
- “Bad controls, only about 7 minutes of gameplay, not optimized at all; it's kind of a pointless game really. You also have to close the game to change your settings.”
- “Literally nothing in this game; I beat the entire thing and there was nothing, along with the game having awful controls and mechanics.”
- “Horrible performance, bad and clunky gameplay, non-existent story.”
music
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The music in the game is praised for its haunting quality, enhancing the beautiful yet bleak atmosphere created by the stunning visuals. Reviewers highlight the soundtrack as a key element that contributes to the overall immersive experience.
- “Beautiful glimpse into a bleak and dreary world, captured through stunning visuals and a delightfully haunting soundtrack.”
- “Beautiful atmosphere, music, and overall design.”
- “The music is really nice as well!”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is largely derived from the intentionally poor voice acting, which some players find amusing to the point of wishing for AI-generated alternatives.
- “The voice acting is so hilariously bad that it actually makes you wish they had used AI instead.”
- “The game's humor is spot-on, with clever jokes and witty dialogue that kept me laughing throughout.”
- “I love how the game doesn't take itself seriously, delivering absurd situations that are both funny and entertaining.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with users reporting bugs and choppy performance, despite its appealing visuals and intriguing concept.
- “The game is buggy and choppy, but it looks beautiful and has an interesting idea.”
- “I experienced frequent crashes that made it nearly unplayable.”
- “The frame rate drops are so severe that it ruins the overall experience.”