The Ultimate SOMA Discussion Thread

[Kein]

Can't see a damn thing but i will trust you regarding the hype, etc.

[Ghieri]

I may be blind but what do you see there?

This is the image Ghieri posted:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/cp6zk5aw25uvad..._Hotel.png

It doesn't show up for some reason, I had to right-click over [Image: SOMA_Hotel.png] and select "View Image".

EDIT: I think it's because it's not a direct link to an image, it opens a Dropbox page even though the link ends in .png

Don't know what's wrong with dropbox. They changed shit and now I have to do MORE work to get a direct image. How is that progress?

[Ashtoreth]

Don't know what's wrong with dropbox. They changed shit and now I have to do MORE work to get a direct image. How is that progress?

Yeah, I rarely use Dropbox these days.

Jesus Christ, apparently the only way to get the direct link is to drag the image from the Dropbox page to a new tab... Could it possibly be more user-friendly? Not to mention the length of the URL...

https://photos-5.dropbox.com/t/0/AAA06CX...vNOWhGy1pA

End of off-topicness

[Paddy™]

Ashtoreth and I were browsing the The Dark Swarm's files when she noticed that there are three pieces of SOMA concept art we haven't seen yet (or rather, haven't been published in the gaming press):

Feeding
Sleepers (this is the full version of the image which is currently used as the header for the FG blog)
Tunnel

The "Feeding" one is interesting, because it seems to imply that whatever that creature is, it likes to incorporate computers and machinery into itself, perhaps feeding on their data stores. It makes me think of the Trapper Keeper episode of South Park haha. For those who haven't seen it:

The Trapper Keeper binder is destined to gain sentience and hybrid into a supercomputer to conquer the world in the future and wipe out all traces of humanity.

[Cuyir]

@Padster:

Those are some incredible images.

So glad we're a *little* closer to 2015.

[Ashtoreth]

Why would anyone build a station underwater in the first place? What's the purpose?

Ever seen the movie The Abyss? That took place on an underwater oil drilling platform.

No, but how does this answer my question? The research station has nothing to do with oil. The purpose of PATHOS-2 has probably something to do with AI and consciousness. So what's the point building it underwater?

Some details from the upcoming film "Depth" (which will serve as a sort of prologue for SOMA) seem to indicate that one of the operations going on in PATHOS-II was related with underwater oil drilling. I posted about it in more detail here.
This fact may or may not be important to the storyline of SOMA. We'll see.

And "The Abyss" has indeed been cited by Thomas Grip as one of the influences for the setting of SOMA:

Abyss is a pretty good example of something we've had as an inspiration source, a little bit at least.

[Source] (skip to 22:04)

[Paddy™]

I wonder if the liquid breathing from The Abyss is also in SOMA. If I remember correctly, they do it to prevent the lungs of the characters from collapsing under the extreme pressures of the ocean.

The scene in the movie were they make the rat breathe in this way is genuine (another clip from a documentary). It's conceivable that in the not-so-distant future they could do this with humans for real, too.

[Paddy™]

Here are three new screenshots from a new preview article, from the Gamescom demo (the article is in French):

01 | 02 | 03

Here's a summary of the new info contained in the article (someone who actually speaks French might find massive fault with some of this):

• Simon uses "secret technology" which allows him to breathe underwater without any external apparatus. Whether or not this was a serious point by the previewer, or just his/her way of pointing out what seems to be a plothole, is hard to tell haha.
  
• The script is finalised and all of the game's dialogue is recorded.
  
• As of the date of this preview, about three quarters of the game's content is completed/built.
  
• The huge bulbous object with the red lights, floating above the entrance to the facility, is a transport zeppelin (see here, look at the top-right).
  
• Roughly speaking, only about 30% of the environmental items/objects are needed to progress the story; the other 70% are mainly there to ensure a sense of credibility (ahhh interactivity, I've missed you!).

The final point involves the behaviour of one of the enemies, so don't read it if you want to remain oblivious:

Spoiler below!

The "Discoball" Jiangshi "attacks" you by moving closer and closer to you with greater and greater speed the longer you stare at it. If you turn away, it will cease its attack, or at least slow it down. That said, this was just the observation of the previewer; we know from TDD how easy it is for players to "invent" behaviours/AI routines for the enemies haha.

[Newsman Waterpaper]

I thought we had to decipher text like we had to do with Mors prematura but looks you got the juice of the article so we don't have to argue over it for 6 months if you know what I mean XD.

[Potato]

Spoiler below!

Love it! Sounds sort of like a reverse SCP-173, or Weeping Angel. I guess as you said, though, it could all just be theory based on his play experience.