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TL;DR:

  • Digimon Survive uses a Karma system to move the player’s journey forward.
  • Every choice made during the Digimon game impacts a player’s Karma.
  • Karma has an effect on Digimon evolutions, as well as which Digimon players can befriend.
Monzaemon in 'Digimon Survive,' which uses conversations to fuel its Karma system. In the image, he's standing in front of stone steps. There are multiple responses the player can choose from listed beneath him.
Screenshot of ‘Digimon Survive’ | Bandai Namco Entertainment

After multiple delays over the past few years, Digimon Survive has finally made its debut — and those diving into the video game have a number of decisions to make from the jump. Among them is what kind of Karma they want their character to accumulate. Every decision a player makes in the new Digimon game determines what their journey will be like. Karma impacts evolutions, which Digimon join your team, and more. Read on to learn how Digimon Survive‘s Karma system functions.

[Warning: Spoilers ahead for Digimon Survive.]

‘Digimon Survive’s Karma system determines each player’s experience

Digimon Survive transports players to the Digital World, where they’ll need to make a number of important decisions in order to stay alive. Every interaction the game’s lead, Takuma Momozuka, partakes in — whether it’s with his human friends or potential Digimon companions — has an impact on what happens next.

The Karma players accumulate affects what the Digimon on their team will evolve into, as well as what kinds of relationships they’ll have with the creatures they run into. This aspect of the Digimon game was teased by producer Kazumasa Habu during Bandai Namco Entertainment’s showcase at Anime Expo 2022 (via PlayStation.Blog):

“In the ‘Digimon Survive’ setting, Digimon are basically the reflection of what is inside the human heart. And the bond between the Digimon and the human partners are being tested in this sort of dangerous situation. Because of that, each choice you make will have a great impact on how the Digimon will evolve.”

Players need Digimon to evolve in order to fight the threats they run into in the Digital World. Naturally, that makes the Karma system a critical part of Digimon Survive. But how exactly does it work? Here’s what we know.

There are 3 kinds of Karma players can collect

When it comes to the Karma system in Digimon Survive, there are three types of Karma that players can accumulate: Moral, Harmony, and Wrathful.

Players build their Karma by interacting with other people and Digimon, which the game prompts them to do through discussions. Depending on the responses a player chooses, they’ll earn points toward one of the three categories.

According to PlayStation.Blog, a player’s Moral score is increased by responses that “focus on justice, sacrifice, or even prudence.” As the name suggests, this type of Karma is all about morality. And the Moral choice, which is associated with the color red, will consistently appear on the left side of the screen.

Meanwhile, Harmony points are increased when a player reacts in ways that emphasize teamwork. Focusing on Takuma’s friends — and what’s best for the group — will boost one’s Harmony. The Harmony option will always show up on the right, and green is the color players will see when they click on it.

Finally, players accrue Wrathful points when they choose the most forward response to a prompt. Those who dive right into a situation will be rewarded with an increased Wrathful score. These responses appear at the top of the other options, and they’re associated with the color yellow.

How the Karma score affects Digimon friendship and evolution

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So, now that we understand how the Karma system operates in Digimon Survive, let’s dig into how it impacts players’ relationships with their Digimon.

One noteworthy way Karma affects a player’s relationship with Digimon is through compatibility. Unlike with Pokémon games, Digimon Survive tasks players with befriending Digimon before adding them to their team. As such, players will need to pick the best responses to appeal to each creature they run into.

Digimon fall into one of three attributes in Digimon Survive, and each attribute is compatible with a specific type of Karma:

  • Moral: Vaccine attribute
  • Harmony: Data attribute
  • Wrathful: Virus attribute

The more compatible a wild Digimon is with a player’s Karma score, the more likely it is that the player will successfully befriend it.

Additionally, one’s Karma score impacts Agumon’s chain of evolution. Depending on which Karma score is highest when players fight Dokugumon, Agumon will evolve into the following Champion-level Digimon (per Fandom.com):

  • Greymon: Moral
  • Tyrannomon: Harmony
  • Tuskmon: Wrathful

Knowing all this, players can choose the responses that will bring them closest to the evolution chain they want — or just see where the chips land. Either way, it helps to understand how the Karma system functions.

Digimon Survive is now available for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.

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