The idea that karma can change the game world came to me after I reflected on several games I had played during my gaming career, such as “Red Dead Redemption 2”, “Kingdom Come: Deliverance II”, “ELDEN RING”, etc.
1.In my game, this is a system that operates based on the in-game time, with each day as a node. For instance, at 12 midnight, the player’s karma will be checked, and then the game world will undergo corresponding adjustments and changes.（Fig.1）
Fig.1 Karma→Environment change dictionary (lighting, colour, sound, weather): good (↑) vs evil (↓) settings and rationales.
2.As for how to change it, you can see it clearly from my poster: On the left side, there are manifestations of high karma. The environment and atmosphere are overall warm. While on the right side, it represents low karma. There will be strong winds, fallen leaves, bones and other items to enhance this atmosphere.
This mechanism was inspired by “Dying Light 2: Reloaded Edition“. In the game, there are some special events where players need to allocate certain resources to two completely different factions. （Fig.2）Then, with the support of the players, the architectural environment in the game map will gradually become more similar to that of the chosen faction. This change is exactly what I wanted.
Fig.2 Dying Light 2 faction-allocation UI: the player assigns a facility to Peacekeepers or Survivors, and the surrounding architecture gradually reflects the chosen faction’s style.
3.Apart from changes in elements such as wind and buildings, the attitude of NPCs towards the game’s protagonist is also an important part. Beyond the game, this phenomenon is similar in our lives. In interpersonal interactions, if a person damages his relationship with others, then others will distance themselves from him and show indifference towards him. On the contrary, if a person makes others happy wherever he goes, then he will be a popular person. However, in my game, the attitude of NPCs is also linked to karma and reputation. So you might even see a cloudy sky and strong winds, but people will still smile at you.
Figure 3. Elden Ring—environmental variance across multiple endings. The Erdtree and sky transform according to side-quest outcomes and key choices (e.g., variations tied to Golden Order, Frenzied Flame, and Mending endings), demonstrating world-level consequences of player agency.
In the Balance of the heart, the aspect that most significantly affects the fluctuation of karama is the side quests in the game. And karma will determine the outcome of the game in the final judgment. If a player doesn’t complete any of the side quests, they will only reach a default outcome, namely “neutral”. This is an idea I got from Elden Ring. In this game, the outcome the player reaches is determined by whether they meet the conditions for specific side quests.（Fig.3）Finally, very different scenes will be presented in the outcome.
Reference：
Fig.1[xinyang Zhang] (2026). Original illustration.
Fig.2 Sohu, article on Dying Light 2 faction system. Available at: https://www.sohu.com/a/521763468_100204787 (Accessed: 5 January 2026).
Fig.3 FromSoftware (2022) Elden Ring . Tokyo: FromSoftware; published by Bandai Namco Entertainment.