[SPOILERS] SOMA unsolved mysteries thread

[GhylTarvoke]

It's not a map of outer space. It's a (really grainy) photo of a UH8.

[Abion47]

I thought of UH8 but how does that tie in to a map of space?

What map of space? There is no map of space in Sarang's room. The image is an underwater picture of a UH8 unit:

Did Carthage send Dahl, Sarang, and Ross to consult Pathos 2 employees to change events?

Seeing as the comet still landed and killed off nearly all if not all human life on the planet and the Carthage employees really should've seen that coming had they been from the future, I'm going to label this theory as unlikely.

The only "time travel" was Simon's brain getting plugged into a robot 100 years after he died. The two things about that form of time travel is that it's the same form of time travel as cryogenically freezing yourself, and that form of time travel only works in one direction.

The other theory I had was the map indicates Carthage is operating from somewhere else in our galaxy.

I don't like this theory (and the previous theory as well) for the same reason as why I don't like the Ross Magical Teleportation theory. SOMA establishes a very specific set of technological advancements and capabilities. It doesn't display metaphysical events or otherworldly presences. As such, for Carthage to be agents from the future or from outer space is not only unsupported by any in-game evidence, it's unsupported by everything we know about the game's setting and established mythos.

[Bigbob]

Good discussion. I'm not seeing a UH8 in that pic but seeing as it's written I'll go with that. Were the UH8's capable of being controlled via a pilot seat? That's the only reference I could make. Otherwise I guess it's a mystery?

I'd be interested in hearing theories.
Why does Dahl say Delenda Est?

On Dahl’s computer is Carth Notes which is pretty damning.

"with some luck Ross made it back to Tau and is able to continue his work at Alpha. To avoid further disturbances I have decided to report the evacuation as a complete failure, hoping it will stop Theta from attempting another one. Claudia Eames, the manager of Omicron, has already ordered the Climber to stay at the plateau for now. My report on the Savage wildlife scared everyone enough to even stop Waldeck and Darby from maintaining the lumar probes. It's a good thing Golaski is off-site because I have a a feeling he would not have approved. The restrictions came out slightly more severe than I had anticipated, but I'll take it. As long as Ross is left alone to work with the WAU."

Anyone have any theories on why she's so intent on leaving Ross to study the WAU? Even to the point that she must realize that they wouldn't survive down there forever.

Edit: You could take time travel and Carthage knowing about the comet out of the equation and I think that still works. Carthage Industries sent 3 employees to meddle in the affairs of Pathos 2 to promote the WAU, much like the renegade time travelers in Delenda Est. Ross was surprised by the WAU changing protocol when the comet hit, expanding in the core chamber, etc.

[Mudbill]

I believe this video may give some insight to why Dahl says Delenda Est.





I just searched and grabbed it though. I remember seeing it a while ago so forgive me if it's the incorrect video.

[Bigbob]

I believe this video may give some insight to why Dahl says Delenda Est.





I just searched and grabbed it though. I remember seeing it a while ago so forgive me if it's the incorrect video.

That's the Gameological video I mentioned earlier. To be fair, he makes a lot of other analogies. Carthage was destroyed by Rome in real life, and the entire planet was destroyed by Talos in Soma. What I was saying is he didn't mention the idea of Carthage sending people back through time.

That video is really, really well done. I wouldn't have put Delenda Est together without it.

[Abion47]

Edit: You could take time travel and Carthage knowing about the comet out of the equation and I think that still works. Carthage Industries sent 3 employees to meddle in the affairs of Pathos 2 to promote the WAU, much like the renegade time travelers in Delenda Est. Ross was surprised by the WAU changing protocol when the comet hit, expanding in the core chamber, etc.

Well, that theory goes to the other side of the spectrum in that it's already basically canon. It's pretty obvious that Carthage is invested in the WAU to some degree, and Dahl's secrecy on the subject of Alpha makes it pretty clear that it's something that the rest of Pathos-II isn't invited to be a part of.

[Bigbob]

Edit: You could take time travel and Carthage knowing about the comet out of the equation and I think that still works. Carthage Industries sent 3 employees to meddle in the affairs of Pathos 2 to promote the WAU, much like the renegade time travelers in Delenda Est. Ross was surprised by the WAU changing protocol when the comet hit, expanding in the core chamber, etc.

Well, that theory goes to the other side of the spectrum in that it's already basically canon. It's pretty obvious that Carthage is invested in the WAU to some degree, and Dahl's secrecy on the subject of Alpha makes it pretty clear that it's something that the rest of Pathos-II isn't invited to be a part of.

I realized after I posted the part you quoted that I took us back to square 1.

I was trying to think about Carthage's end game. What exactly did they want to accomplish beyond just supporting the WAU?

One thing I don't believe has been talked about is in the first entry on Catherine's tablet in her room at Theta she's talking about Reed testing the Vivarium and she writes that it was assembled in a seemingly primitive way. Like someone had specifically created it for WAU to steal. I wonder if Carthage created the Vivarium?

Do we see the Vivarium in game? I think the ARK puzzle in her lab is more her prototype. I'm just wondering if a Carthage logo is on the Vivarium or the pilot seats?

[Bigbob]

More weird s***. I'm listening to a Let's Play by this guy Mental Fox. This guy looks at EVERYTHING. It took him something like 2.5 hours to get on the Curie. I just listen while at work so it's fine.

In the room where Brandon Wan's corpse is a computer screen that looks like stuff on the moon? Solar panels on the ground? It says "this is not a test" and it sounds like something else.

Probably just a satellite they launched and lost contact with after the comet hit.

[Abion47]

The broadcast is a recording of the emergency broadcast system that most governments with TV infrastructures employ. It's saying "THIS IS NOT A TEST". Presumably, it's talking about a broadcast that happened just before Talos landed, but it's unclear what the rest of the recording is saying or why something like that would be playing on endless loop in Theta. Here's the audio in question:





I think I pick out snippets of them saying "Air Force", "July 3rd", "earthquake", and "killed him and filled his place". There's a lot more than that, though, and I have no idea what it could be referring to. The only thing in the SOMA timeline I can find regarding July 3rd is that's the date that Catherine gets approval to start scanning people for the ARK.

And I don't hear anything in the recording explaining why it's placed against the distorted footage of a satellite/some solar panels/whatever on (presumably) the moon.

The text on the images seems to read (backwards):

Simulation snapshot #{number}
24/78/09

The different images have a different number:

• 1: #(00?)248
  
• 2: #00033
  
• 3: #01773
  

[Bigbob]

Did you add any tags to that? I want to try screwing around with editing software to see if I can slow it down or something. I'm trying this on a Galaxy so I have no idea if I can figure anything out.