Plot Theories

[Paddy™]

The "Frontflesh" discussed in the other thread, and mentioned in one of the casting calls for "Depth", seems to tell us that the WAU (Warden Unit) is a malevolent entity, at least some of the time. Up until I read about the Frontflesh I assumed the WAU was the benevolent "central processing unit" of PATHOS-2, like the mainframe which controls everything at a low level, but without any significant agency of its own.

For instance, you can find a mention of the WAU in the leaflet which describes the CCRV-7 Blackbox implant, and it sounds very innocuous. At the time of this leaflet, at least, the WAU isn't the "bad guy", at least not overtly.

So, could the WAU be the primary antagonist of the game? Does it gain enough sentience/independence (perhaps enabled by the asteroid strike which cuts PATHOS-2 off from the rest of the world) to start producing the "Jiangshi"? The Frontflesh "is a device created by the WAU to entrap Adam Golaski; it speaks as both wife and daughter and is built from the flesh of the dead". Sounds like the behaviour of an evil, control-obsessed entity.

If the WAU is the "bad guy", what would its motivations be? I'm reluctant to think that the WAU is an entity along the same lines as HAL 9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey, because, well, it's been done and it's kinda predictable at this stage. But with the little information we currently have, I'm kinda stuck for any other theories.

EDIT: regarding my "HAL 9000" comment, this very question had already been addressed during the April previews:

As you explore the environments, you can find black boxes, which are essentially audio logs that chronicle the final moments of a person's life. Most of these deaths seem to be at the hand of a computer system called WUA. When asked if this is some sort sentient A.I. gone rogue like HAL 9000, Hedberg plays coy. "I would stay clear from the HAL comparison, but there's definitely something strange going on," he says. "I don't want to spoil it because that's one of the big mysteries for the setting. There is some sort of programmer or whatever that's working it."

So, the WAU isn't an independent entity at all. Hmmm.