Was reminded of SOMA the other day and something that annoyed the hell out of me about it. I was thinking of doing a full blown review, but there's not actually much to say in that department. It's a slow paced adventure game with minor and I do mean minor escape elements/puzzle solving. No combat. No special abilities to move through the environment other than walking and walking slightly faster or activating a prompt/switch. No, this game exists entirely as a vehicle for its plot. Told well. It's a disturbing horror story filled with very nasty creatures and philosophically posits on what human existence is while setting up "guidelines" for how the game's technology (yet another vehicle that exists only to further the game's philosophical pondering) fits into the soft scifi scenario.
Now, as a self contained narrative the game is largely flawless. There is no problem with the writing or the in universe exposition and resolution of the issues pertaining to the game's plot. Where my personal annoyance comes in, is in the actual premise itself. The game's science is self contradictory narrative magic, poorly reproduced cliches about the human brain that are not accurate, and a final situation concerning the human condition that leaves virtually zero personal investment for the player to actually give a shit about what just happened.
The game's principal philosophical issue is what they the call the Coin Toss. An idea that when their technology reproduces a human brain in digital emulation, there's a chance that the new "brain" might in fact be the previous consciousnesses and the old mind somehow becomes a newly created cast off suitable for a grim but justifiable disposal out of respect for the sanctity of life and the identity of the original mind. When in fact this is a delusion, and only a copy of the original mind is produced meaning no furtherance of the original entities mind. Now, if that sounds goddamn confusing and contrived, that's because it is. You see, if you can emulate a human mind like a digital file (a physical impossibility, btw, the human brain isn't a computer). Then, there's no reason why you couldn't transfer that singular instance of the emulation over to new hardware and have the continuity (the original entity) stay intact. Why? Because it would need to be that way for the human brain's digital existence to maintain continuity in the first place. However, for some reason, you cannot do this despite the technology for it to even work in a singular body necessitating it being possible. Why? Because the game's plot would have no "bite" were this not the reality of the technology. Instead this super magical tech defaults to Windows 86 file architecture and HD based computer technology for the sake of cheap, soap opera level drama.
Now, that would be cool if the drama pertained to living humans, which it doesn't. Everybody is dead. And, most are copies of copies of dead people. Making them even further removed from a point of sympathy. Now, this issue during the telling of the game is cheaply dodged around by having the player (who is hopefully human) experience everything from the singular continuity of a god like mind jumping between no less than four versions of the Canadian main character. In essence the game through your eyes dodges its contrived narrative drama in order to fix it's own trash world building by violating the fourth wall. In the end it works, but if you scrutinize any of it isolated from its own presented reality. The game's plot makes no sense. And, Simon is no longer human but some mutant digital life form aping us. However, thanks to the narrative magic of having you be a guy strapped into a magic chair at the beginning of the game who is "teleported" to the future. You're always that guy in your head. No matter how many curve balls, unplugging yourself/not unplugging, or even the last minute death of Simon three (which you shouldn't be able to see if this is all coming from Simon 4's memory, but whatever). As a player you ARE the character. And, you ultimately only sympathize with the last happy "ending" you get for yourself. It's how SOMA succeeds as a narrative, but only as experienced from your godlike perspective. It leaves anyone who played it with lingering levels of fridge logic the size of an iceberg.
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