SOMA succeeds in being more than just a horror game

Everyrobots gone to Rapture

I think the first thing to establish about SOMA is that - yes it is scary. And yes there are those contrarians that say "well *readjusts monocle* SOMA really isn't scary at all", which is always going to happen with a scary game. Fear is subjective, what I find scary in SOMA (everything) other people might not even flinch. It's one of the reasons why Horror, along with comedy are the hardest things to get right in games.

Jump scares are the cheapest and easiest way to ensure some type of response yet psychological fear, the kind that gets under your skin - where you start to question everything; if you're imagining something, did that object used to be there, I don't remember shutting that door. SOMA does these things, while also challenging the likes of Bioshock and Alien in terms of creating a setting and atmosphere which oozes with foreboding and dread. It's hard to ever feel comfortable, as with the likes of Amnesia  (from the same developers) and Outlast - there's no combat and in this game you can't even find solace in the cowering of open lockers or the underside of beds. It's unfortunate then that - at least with the PS4 version - technical issues plague the experience, with regular frame rate drops and pace stoping loading freezes. It's one of the only parts that let the game down, sound design is top notch with huge attention to detail with the noises every object makes when throwing or knocking them. Same applies to the sparse but effective soundtrack which never gets in the way of the game by asserting it's presence.

"Oh god not this dream again, I've got to stop drinking antifreeze"

The underwater world it's created is so successful in part due to the OCD level of set dressing and detail every room, open space and ocean floor bed contains. There's a overwhelming sense of place, that every room and station served a purpose that isn't just one of gameplay needs. People lived here, which makes it all the more spine chilling when something on the other side of the living spectrum hoves into view. One thing this one does do differently is push story and world building above anything else, in that regard it might not be as immediately scary as some of its brethren, long periods where all you do is explore or solve puzzles might put off people looking for instant scare gratification. Stick with it though and you'll find one of the creepiest and intriguing games of the year. It's a good job there's some lighthearted humour in there otherwise my heart wouldn't be so light I can tell you that.