Malignus Demo First Look: Even Evil Overlords Have Staff Problems
Malignus is already doing something rather wonderful in its free demo: letting me build the dungeon instead of sending me into it to slaughter the inhabitants. I've finished the tutorial, taken a warband out raiding and returned victorious, despite one of my own minions betraying me along the way. The first impression is promising. The art style appeals to me, the villain fantasy is tangible, and apparently even the forces of darkness cannot hire reliable staff.
My immediate thought was RimWorld meets Dungeon Keeper. One brings to mind the complicated business of managing a colony; the other remembers that a dungeon ought to contain things no respectable estate agent would agree to photograph. Malignus appears perfectly happy to put those ideas in the same building.
You have deadly traps, dens for your bloodthirsty creatures and rooms with shackles for captured 'heroes'. I like that last detail enormously. In traditional fantasy, some armoured lunatic breaks into a dungeon, kills everyone who lives there, steals the valuables and gets a song written about his bravery. When you're the one paying for the dungeon, he's a home invader with unusually effective public relations.
That inversion gives the building mechanics some character. The rooms aren't merely places to increase production or watch numbers rise. They're the infrastructure of being a complete bastard. Your creatures need somewhere to live, intruders need discouraging, and anybody who arrives waving a sword and announcing their righteousness might end up requiring accommodation of a considerably less comfortable kind.
I haven't seen enough to tell you how sophisticated the dungeon management eventually becomes. But at this early stage, I appreciate that the game gives me genuinely villainous things to organise, rather than handing me the title of Dark Lord and then asking me to collect twelve mushrooms for a frightened farmer.
Enjoy building an evil dungeon? Our Evil Genius 2 review explores deadly traps, disposable minions and the terrifying discovery that world domination involves an HR department.
Raiding Villages, Losing Employees
The trouble doesn't stop at the dungeon door. Malignus lets you send warbands against settlements to take treasure, pillage or raze them. Those are appealing choices for an aspiring menace, although I haven't established how much the different objectives change the longer-term game.
I have completed a raid. We won. This might have been a routine success story if one of my minions hadn't decided that loyalty was more of a suggestion.
There I was, trying to conduct a perfectly reasonable act of organised pillaging, and one of the bastards betrayed me. What exactly is the disciplinary procedure for that? Do you issue a written warning? Suspend them without pay? Explain that while the company encourages initiative, switching allegiance during an active raid falls outside the approved professional-development programme?
The victory made the whole thing funnier. I can't yet tell whether betrayal is an occasional irritation, a substantial strategic threat or something you can meaningfully anticipate and manage. But I can tell you that the incident gave my first expedition a personality it wouldn't otherwise have had. A warband that might turn on its own master is a much more interesting proposition than a collection of obedient damage numbers, provided the game gives you some agency when things go wrong.
The tutorial did its job, too. I found it understandable and adequate, which matters in a game trying to combine construction, creature management and raids. I got through it without feeling that the instructions were written by someone who'd already spent six years playing.
Prefer commanding monsters to managing a dungeon? Ghost Keeper puts you in charge of the haunting, turning innocent civilians, ghost hunters and expensive Victorian furniture into one magnificent tactical disaster.
Promising Beginnings, Unfinished Business
Early community reaction offers both encouragement and a useful warning. Steam's initial reception is mostly positive, and players discussing the demo on Reddit have described getting unexpectedly absorbed in it. Others have raised questions about depth, while one player found the early learning curve steep and wanted clearer instruction around creature lairs. My tutorial experience was smoother, but that's a reason to recognise the difference, not pretend their frustration doesn't exist.
The demo is also being used as a beta, so this is a look at a developing game rather than a verdict on a finished one. I haven't played enough to know whether raids become repetitive, whether sprawling dungeons become a management nightmare, or how fair the systems feel once the stakes rise. Those questions will determine whether Malignus has genuine staying power.
For now, there's enough here to make me want to return. I have an evil empire to build, settlements to terrorise and at least one employee who should never again be trusted with a company vehicle.
Had enough of saving the world? Explore CRIMENET's Villain Games hub for more games where you can become the monster, mastermind or magnificent bastard everyone else is desperately trying to stop.
Malignus Demo FAQ
Is the Malignus demo free to play?
Yes. The Malignus demo is available for free on Steam and also serves as a beta build, allowing players to experience the game's developing systems before Early Access.
What kind of game is Malignus?
Malignus is a dungeon-building colony simulator inspired by RimWorld and Dungeon Keeper. You manage monsters, construct traps, imprison heroes and send warbands to raid settlements.
Can your minions betray you in Malignus?
Yes. Minions can betray you during raids, adding an unpredictable element to your expeditions. CRIMENET encountered a betrayal firsthand and still managed to win the battle.
When will Malignus enter Early Access?
Malignus is scheduled to enter Steam Early Access in November 2026. The developer has announced November 13, although Steam has also displayed November 12.
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