The Ultimate SOMA Discussion Thread

[Fortigurn]

A thought about the monster design:

As ridiculous as "Disco Ball Head" looks, I wonder if the 'Jiangshi' is in fact possessed in a similar manner to the Headcrab Zombies of Half-Life. The glimpse we've had of its bulbous face seems to show that it has multiple eyes and a mouth and that it's glowing - this could indicate that a biomechanical lifeform has latched itself onto a human host and is controlling them.

The 'brainless bodies on tables' scene gives me the impression that we're looking at human bodies with mechanical parts grafted on top of them. The bulbous face and multiple eyes are the mechanical replacements of the head and its sensory organs. One scene has a human body in a suit, with an open helmet and wire (or tentacles?), emerging from where the face should be; see here.

Add this scene of a disembodied brain hooked up to some kind of machinery, and I'm even more convinced we're looking at humans whose consciousnesses are being digitally copied from their brains (is this what's happening to the brain in this scene?), their consciousness implanted into machines (see the 'Mockingbird' trailer), and human bodies having mechanical parts added to them (as in here), which not only include replacing sensory organs but may also include replacing their original brains with mechanical brains with digital copies of their consciousness (Disco Ball Head man).

Makes me wonder if Simon looks any better. We've been getting hints that SOMA's protagonist may not be entirely human.

Exactly. And I think his name is Neville.