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SOMA review
Exceptional
by Roman

That was way too scary game for me, but the idea and the plot are definitely worth to beat this game. Absolutely mind-blowing.
«Blew my mind»

Other reviews13

SOMA is probably my favorite horror game of all time. Frictional Games yet again delivers a masterpiece that chills the player and puts them on edge. The game starts out with a mystery to keep the player going and by the end it will have the player asking deeper questions about consciousness and our place in the world. I still find myself at odds with this type of horror game and not being able to fight back or really do anything. What I think I usually run into is the AI just being stupid. Numerous times I'd have the proxy just wandering back and forth never allowing me to sneak by them until finally it picked another path. I think that's why for the most part scripted encounters are much better and the ambient and random generation stuff really doesn't work outside of maybe Mr. X in the RE2 remake. That being said, this game is very tense and spooky. Adding to the overall dark tone is having to walk the ocean floor at various times and how creepy that can be knowing how exposed you are. 
«Blew my mind»
«That ending!»
This is not horror game, just a walking simulator.
Deeply uncomfortable with a downright exceptional ending
«That ending!»
«BLEW MY MIND» «JUST ONE MORE TURN» «CAN’T STOP PLAYING»
This game leaves you thinking about your life
«Blew my mind»
«That ending!»
After I beat this game I had a forty minute conversation with a friend about artificial intelligence and theories on what it means to be human.
«Blew my mind»
«That ending!»
Translated by
Microsoft from Deutsch
When Frictional Games released the first Part of their Penumbra series in 2007, which was preceded by a technical Demo a Year earlier, I was personally fascinated from the Beginning by The concept of the Series, the Essence of a Horror Game, that is, its Key Elements, the Atmosphere, the Fear, the Discomfort, to put in the Foreground and superfluous Components such as exaggerated action, inflationary Splatter effects and other Brims, which are more likely To come from Games such as Resident Evil 6 or the last Dead Space Mediocre Shooters have made as real Horror Games to hide. They should continue to pursue this Principle with the Sequel "Black Plague" in 2008 and ultimately give them the final Breakthrough with "Amnesia-The dark descent" from 2010. Frictional Games should also inspire many other Developers, not least because of the Ability to easily program their own Stories and Missions (so-called "Custom Stories"). Now Soma, her latest Title, has been on the Table since 2015 and only now (June 2017) I come to take a closer look at it. On the Action itself, which is clearly Science fiction-more Lavery and philosophical than e.g. Penumbra, unlike this one, does not end absurdly, but begins absurd, but this is not to be a Disadvantage, I would like to deal only superficially. It is steinterly striking With Parallels with Bioshock, Dead Space and Slender, but in no Second does the Knowledge that this is a Game of Frictional Games go down. Much more I would like to focus on the playful aspect of the Title, which you can now see that the Creators, through a significantly more lush Voiceover of the different Characters and a noticeably more ambitious Plot, which very quickly wants to be very much (SF, Drama, Horror, Romance etc.), had a significantly bigger Budget available. This is joined By puzzles that are too often mundane for my Taste, and smaller So-called "Jump-scares" and Screen Filters (as you know them from Slender), which are known from a Bunch of smaller Would-be horror games and extensions, but not in the latest Title of the Penumbra makers of 2015 should expect dignity. That Group of Game developers who have given new Impetus to this Genre. Added to this is the (apparent) fact that you are more likely to die hard. If you Get an Opponent, you are KO for five Seconds and then get up in the same Spot again. Only the second Time in a row (but you have to queue a little silly for that), you die and always start at the last of the Memory Points that the Game sows lavishly. All this blends together into a thread and noticeable Aftertaste, which comes when Playing the quite atmospherically dense SOMA. You get the Feeling that SOMA is no longer as creepy, not as sinister as the previous Games of the Makers. This is despite the fact that this time they had more Budget at their disposal, although here you can see again very well that this is not all. Were my Expectations perhaps too high? Quite possible. Very good even. Don't Get me wrong, I had and have a lot of Fun with SOMA, which is more based than its Predecessors on an exciting and reasonably innovative Plot that will tie you to the Screen until the End (about 10 Hours). I just think it's a shame that there are now games like Outcast that Have trumped Frictional Games, in some Ways the Lords of the Revolution, in my Opinion. FOR me, SOMA is playfully based too much on Tried-and-tested. Only the Surroundings have been attractively redesigned (here a Plus Point). Am I disappointed? Maybe a very small Bite. Is SOMA a bad Game because of this? Not at all, that's why I made a Recommendation. But Don't Go with the Expectations that Frictional Games has once again reinvented the Wheel here or is focusing just as much on anxiety as it was in Penumbra at The time, and treat yourself to the Game for €10.
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I don't usually like horror or very dark games, but I decided to try this one after hearing so many praises to it. And mostly after so much hype, when you try it for yourself the game usually disappoints, but boy oh boy this game delivered.

Soma is not actually a horror game, more like a dark and gritty sci-fi with a disturbing atmosphere and plot but that darkness and an uneasy feeling is really strong and well made. I don't want to spoil anything, but this was one of the very few games who manages to pull that "what just happened down there, I have to know" feeling perfect. After the ending, I just sat and stared to scrolling end credits, but inside my mind was blowing up like fireworks on July 4th. Play this game, the writing is superb, voice acting is amazing, atmosphere is chilling and this game is awesome.
«Blew my mind»
«That ending!»