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thebestestdancers · 8 months

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PLAY SOMA (2015) TODAY!

SOMA (2015) is a psychological horror game made from the same minds that brought you the amnesia and penumbra series. it stars a young man named simon jarrett, who recently suffered a car crash that killed his coworker, leaving him with survivor's guilt and brain damage that is slowly - but surely - killing him. to avoid that fate, simon agrees to participate in an experimental brain scan program, which takes a scan of your brain and then simulates it to test different treatment programs and identify which will keep him alive the best. however, things take a turn for the worse when simon comes out of his scan and finds himself in an abandoned underwater facility 300 feet below the surface of the ocean... and nearly 100 years in the future.

you can purchase the game here on steam, and it's available on playstation and xbox as well. its base price is $30 USD, but it usually goes on sale for as low as $3, so if its current price is a bit much, you can always wishlist it and keep an eye out!

if you'd rather consume content in other ways, most major youtubers have a playthrough of the game. i recommend cjugames' playthrough just because he is a pretty quiet youtuber who doesn't shout a lot. there's also an official website for the game, with some additional ministory content that's very fun to browse - i recommend doing so after playing the game, though.

in order to achieve the best experience for SOMA, i highly recommend playing alone, in a dark room, in one sitting. the game is approximately 8 - 12 hours long, but extremely worth it if you have an interest in philosophical discussion about humanity and apocalyptic settings. it's also recommended to go in as blind as you can, but this is not a media inherently accessible to all audiences. with this in mind, i've outlined a list of warnings for the game below - please review these if you want to go into this game with a little more awareness.

please be aware that as of september 1st 2023, this list of warnings is incomplete. i'm always open to suggestions as to things to add to this list. this list is as spoiler-free as i can get it to be.

at all times throughout the game

this game features robots who believe undoubtedly that they are human, which may be triggering if you suffer from psychosis. this game challenges you with the question of if these robots count as humans frequently as part of its themes.

the majority of the game is set underwater, and the latter half is set in the deepest depths of the ocean. there are also large ocean beasts in the depths.

another significant setting for the game is its post-apocalyptic scenario, which made humanity extinct. this part of the world comes up often, and is the whole basis for why the story is happening.

throughout the game, encounters with monsters inflict a glitchy effect on your vision, and a static sound. you can adjust your settings to minimize these effects, though they do not go away entirely. additionally, when you take damage and have not repaired yourself, a high pitched noise may play, and your vision has an rgb shift applied to it.

there are instances of gore and viscera around. there is one determinant instance of direct grievous injury occurring in the story, though this is avoidable - please see specific sequences for more information.

throughout the game, several settihgs and sequences have flashing/flickering lights. i'll update this point again when i have specific times of concern to be able to list but these are unavoidable.

there are several enemies and characters who have either been revived from the dead or are being forcibly kept alive despite grave injury. there is a safe mode to ensure these enemies stay away from you (mostly), but you will still encounter them.

on death, you are shown rapidly flashing images that may trigger a seizure or headache. to minimize deaths, i recommend playing in safe mode - this will make the monsters less likely to attack you, and try to avoid you.

there are several enemies who have a design philosophy of body horror, both human-shaped and creature-shaped.

specific sequences

the game opens with the sound of a car crash occurring.

at the start of the game, simon makes a joke about indians (referring to native americans) being afraid of cameras stealing their souls. he makes this same joke later in the game, at the end of omicron's level.

in upsilon, at the very end of the level, the room will fill with water and simon will panic and worry about drowning. there is nothing you can do at this point to prevent the water - it is scripted.

in the train station after upsilon, there is a sequence where a woman is on life support, and it is up to you to unplug her. this sequence is unavoidable.

in lambda, you learn a character you thought was human was really a robot. your character also learns he is a robot.

in delta, there is a man who ripped out his eyes, which you can find discarded on the floor. there are also bugs in the area, making buzzing sounds. these are in the same space and are avoidable - just don't enter any buildings in delta.

in delta, you must choose to harm/'kill' one of two robots. this choice is unavoidable.

in theta, there are several characters who killed themselves, and it is discussed heavily in the documentation you can investigate in the area. in one of the rooms is also a razor and a pool of blood to indicate this as well. however, this is mostly avoidable, as simon and his friend don't discuss it - if you focus only on the story objectives, you can skip past it.

in theta, there is a sequence involving a brain scan of a deceased man, 'reviving' him several times to get information from him. part of this is in tricking him into believing the simulation he is in is real. this sequence is unavoidable and must be done to progress.

in theta, it is possible for simon to discover his brain scan has been used, and freaks out at the idea of multiple other 'simons'. this sequence is entirely avoidable, and is only triggered by looking at his profile on a computer containing profiles of three other people as well.

in theta, there is a man who killed himself in an office. you must interact with his body in order to progress as he holds a key item. you do not have to listen to the audio of his suicide.

in theta, after the elevator sequence is complete, there is an unavoidable jumpscare.

in the second half of theta, there are people scattered around, unconscious and in mounds of unknown biological material (looks like coral). they are being forcibly kept alive, and sound strained in their breathing. additionally, they'll occasionally play voice lines that are warped and hard to understand - they sound like echoed mumbling. this sequence is unavoidable, though you are able to move around in the space away from them, and they are not a focus of the section.

outside omicron, in the water, is a man who drowned himself and a woman who suffocated to death. both bodies are entirely avoidable, but interacting with them will play sounds relating to those two deaths, which may be upsetting to hear.

from omicron onwards is the introduction of a character who teleports around, causing minor screen glitching. he also communicates with the player through the computers in this area, with small messages. he'll continue popping up until the second to last site you visit. he is unavoidable.

in omicron, there is a sequence where there is a dead rat involved, as well as several dead mutated fish in tanks. you are not forced to interact with any of these and can skip past them.

in omicron, you are given the choice to mercy-kill somebody while they're asleep.

in tau, there is a sequence where a woman asks you to unplug her life support. you can choose whether or not to do so, but meeting her and being asked this is unavoidable.

on your way through the abyss, there is a cave section in the middle of the ocean (with green glowsticks). this section is claustrophobic and has crabs that resemble daddy longleg spiders. you must make your way through this cave to progress.

towards the end of the game, you are given the option to stick your arm into something. putting your arm in results in it being torn off, and the game does make you look at the stump several times after this point. if this would be upsetting, i recommend instead walking away towards a closed door in the room, which will trigger an alternative outcome and allow you to keep your arm.

#soma

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ineedrelationshipadvice · 4 years

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gift giving is my boyfriend's love language. mine is quality time. how do I tell him that he doesn't have to spend a lot of money on me for me to still want to be with him? he's spent a lot on me in the past 3 1/2 years and I want to try and return the favor but I'm on a fixed income, most of my money goes toward bills and the one thing I was counting on spending at least $300 on him in a single day got cancelled this year. (1/2)

This can always be a confounding issue, because if you're two people that really get along, but you don't have very compatible "love languages," then there will be an inherent clash in how both of you are expressing your feelings toward each other. This is 100% one of the biggest problems in my current relationship, and it can seem a bit vexing when it can feel like you're "talking past" your partner just because of different world views.

The first thing you want to do to alleviate some of these issues is to express this. Have a talk about it. Do you two know about each other's love languages? Is he aware that you value quality time, and is he aware that YOU BELIEVE that his method of expressing attention to you is through gift giving? The reason I say "you believe" so emphatically is because, even though I'm trying to help you out right now, I have to assume you're an unreliable narrator. Just because you say something doesn't make it true. That's why you have to take the extra effort just to make sure.

Check in with him if you haven't already. Make sure that he understands what makes you happy in a relationship, and in the same hand, make sure that YOU understand what makes HIM happy. Don't guess; you must know.

But let's assume that you've already had this talk, or that you're going to have this talk the moment you're done reading this. What then?

One thing you can do is express your situation. Reaffirm to him that you care about him very much, but also explain your financial situation. He likely already knows about your money troubles, but it's good to remind him that any perceived lack of gifts that you may be giving him is not a sign that you don't love him, but is rather a sign that you just straight-up don't have enough money. I really want to hammer home on this point here specifically because of something you said.

"I want to try and return the favor."

NO BAD! This is an unhealthy mindset to have, from a financial, adult perspective. While it's definitely nice to "pay back" your partner for gifts that he's given, let's make this perfectly clear: YOU ARE UNDER NO OBLIGATION TO RETURN ANYTHING TO YOUR PARTNER. Let's say you and I are dating. I tend to like to give gifts to my partner; it's fun to make them smile. So I buy you flowers, maybe a video game, take you out to get new clothes, splurge on you. I do this with the only expectation of YOU BEING HAPPY, and MAYBE I'll have a selfish, ulterior motive that you make me happy in return. Not that I said I wished you would "make me happy," and not, "give me gifts." The gifts are not the point; it really is the thought that counts sort of situation. Anyone who gives a gift should not have an expectation for financial repayment; gifts are gifts, and gifts are a charity for fun and to make someone happy. Period. Asking someone to "repay" a gift is like someone donating to a homeless shelter and asking to eventually get paid back - that's just not how it works.

Just as your partner can give you gifts with not expectation of repayment - at least this is the perspective he should have a a mature adult - YOU don't have to give gifts to him if you don't want to or can't afford it. Again, I emphasize, IF YOU CAN'T AFFORD TO GIVE A GIFT, DON'T GIVE IT. If your situation does not allow for frivolous spending, do not spend frivolously. Your stability as a person is much more important than whatever thing you might spend money on.

Okay, but let's assume part of his "love language" is not just him giving gifts, but it also makes him happy to receive them. Again, make sure you're explaining your situation to him so that you can set his expectations properly on what kind of gifts you're actually able to give. For instance, my partner knows I'm broke as shit. I can't give her as many gifts as I would normally like to. So if her birthday is coming up, and I know I can't afford a gift, I'm just gonna tell her: "Sorry, my finances are super tight right now. I can't give you a gift. I'm sorry." I've had to say this to many people, and literally 100% of the time, the other person is like, "dude, don't worry about it." People understand. Money sucks, life sucks, people get it.

OKAY BUT WHAT IF YOUR PARTNER IS JUST REALLY DUMB AND JUST DOESN'T GET IT AND REALLY WANTS GIFTS.

For this, you're on the right track with trying to find cheaper alternatives that are both within your budget and are within his interests. This is just a basic skill of gift-giving, honestly, but one thing you should do is figure out what kind of gifts he actually wants? For instance, just last week, my partner wanted to give me a gift. I'm notoriously difficult to give gifts too, but she knew I wasn't feeling well, and saw a video game sale was going on, and asked me which game I wanted. I told her I didn't want one, and then she insisted on giving me a gift, and asked me to take some money so I could buy myself a nice meal. She knew that would make me happy, and she was right, so I accepted her gift.

Do the same with your partner! "Money is tight right now. I know you like gundams and figures/models. If I found one that fit my budget, would you like that?" This is a valuable question to ask, because the last thing you want to do is buy something, and he just straight up isn't interested in the gift. Ask him what he would enjoy. Maybe he's like me, and would actually really dig a meal. Maybe he's not really wanting to work with a gundam model, and would much rather something else instead. Worst case scenario, he wants some $2000 thing, and you'll just have to say, "Sorry, I really can't afford that, maybe later."

Finally, if you're really insistent on splurging for your partner, SAVE. I tend to be extremely financially conservative, to the point of asceticism and raw austerity; all my money decisions are hyper-practical, and I don't spend a dime I don't have to. My financial logic for big-ticket items, as such, is that if I want something expensive, I need to be able to afford it twice over. I needed to buy a new keyboard recently. The one I wanted was very expensive. So I made sure I had its price doubled in my bank account before buying it, because then I know I didn't really "lose" any money, and I can still afford all my bills. This means you have to be more patient and careful, but if you're already on a strict financial diet at the moment, that should be second nature at this point.

Either way, make sure that whatever you do, you base these conversations about gifts and money on communication with your partner. You both are trying to make each other happy, but love languages are only one method of communication. Your words are the more important one, so make sure you use those words and try to figure out the best common ground that works for all parties involved in your relationship.

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deep-sea-skiving · 4 years

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How to shop for vintage aesthetics!

With vintage fashion and aesthetics becoming increasingly popular, I thought I'll share some of my techniques of shopping affordably for vintage clothing. A couple of disclaimers to start with, my preferred aesthetic time period for clothing is the 80s and 90s however, this does not mean that this ‘guide’ can’t be used be used for whatever vintage style you’re shopping for. This post will also be UK based as that’s where I live, some of the places where I tend to shop may apply to Europe but I'm not entirely sure! Finally this is how I shop and what I look out for when shopping for vintage clothing, if you got any of your own tips please share, vintage clothes shopping unfortunately, has become incredibly expensive :( Now all that incredibly dull stuff is out of the way, lets get into it!

The first thing I would do before even attempting to go vintage clothes shopping is research. Knowing your era and the distinctive style of that era is incredibly important. I know it sounds self- explanatory but having a good insight of the fashion and culture of your chosen vintage aesthetic will mean that you can spot certain pieces in the wild with ease. With anything if you know what you’re looking for you’ll find it a lot easier. The best research in my opinion is just asking someone who grew up or lived through that time period, they tend to remember the more obscure and weird trends that have been long forgotten. Maybe, for the greater good, I'm looking at you leg warmers. If you don’t like social interaction and I don’t blame you, I don’t like talking to old people either, watching TV shows from the time will also give you an insight. Top Of The Pops in my view is the best show to watch not because of the awful obvious lip-syncing, like how did they fool anyone when they’re playing electric guitars plugged into nothing ? But because you can see how both celebrities and normal people dressed.

Other shows I would recommend have to be of course friends, we all know that Rachel Greene was a 90s fashion icon, ok. To summarise, research means that shopping for your chosen vintage aesthetic is a lot easier, you can avoid common mistakes such as buying something that’s way too modern or clothing which was not fashionable in that particular era.

When you have decided what vintage era you’re shopping for and what you are looking for, knowing where to shop is the next priority. Like I said I live in the UK so some of these are maybe UK specific and I don’t have loads of money, so that narrows down some of the options. One of the best places to look for vintage clothing is charity shops. Due to the troubling economic climate at the moment there’s like 10 charity shops in every town spreading like head lice in a primary school. Consequently, it’s probably the most accessible way to shop for vintage clothes. If you are like me and favour an 80s/ 90s aesthetic look in the mens section as most of the clothes from this era were unisex or have a more oversized boxy look which means many volunteers mistakenly put these items in the mens. Anyway who need to conform to gender norms, wear what you like! Unfortunately, some charity shops have caught on to the popularisation of vintage aesthetics as such some items will go on their online shops (Still worth a look) or prices for vintage clothing will be higher than other pieces of clothing but bear in mind these prices tend to still be lower than eBay and vintage shops. It’s really hit and miss but when you do find something it’s normally a bargain. Recently I managed to get a wind breaker for £8.99 and it even had it’s original tag still attached! Plus this method of shopping for vintage clothes is ethical and helps real good causes.

Another place where I look for vintage clothing is car boot sales. Normally you find absolutely nothing but they’re still fun to go to nonetheless. Anyway you could strike it lucky and find a long lost supremes costume at a French car boot (yes that really happened!). If you do find anything the great thing about car boots is that you can let out your inner apprentice candidate and haggle on prices. Though it’s rare to find anything apart from old ladies’ bone china plates with matching bowls, if you do you tend to find something you’ll get it for a steal when compared to eBay.

Shops that specialises in selling vintage clothing obviously will have the most stock and variety of pieces however, it’s going to cost you. Vintage sales are also a possibility but though the ‘low’ price per kilo is enticing once you put one sweatshirt or a pair of jeans in that bag you’re done for. Vintage sales are only good value for money when all the items you want are super light, if not they can become super expensive real quick. Also be aware that though these are called vintage sales there are a lot of items that are not vintage in the slightest.

So, how can you tell if a piece of clothing is vintage? The first thing I look at is the label. Most vintage t-shirts and jumpers will have a label sewn in, while modern clothing will have what would been the label printed into the fabric. It’s hard to explain so here’s an example:

However, this is not a definite rule some modern clothing will also have labels that are sewn in! Some over things to look out for to identify vintage clothing from modern is the materials. Look out for those incredibly flammable and definitely safe materials. Zips are also a big clue if a piece of clothing is vintage or not, older clothing tended to have metal zips while modern pieces have plastic. This is probably a cost cutting measure.

We all know that vintage clothing can be expensive so buying new versions of retro products can also be a possibility if you want to go for a certain retro aesthetic. This is a cheaper way of shopping however, quality and durability may vary when compared to the original product. I always buy new when it comes to shoes just because I’m not a fan of wearing someone’s else's incredibly worn 20+ years old trainers. But whatever floats your boat, I guess. Most athleisure brands like reebok will do a classic range which replicates retro shoes such as the freestyle hi which was worn by 11 in Stranger things 3.

Brands like Casio also continues to make vintage products such as the F-91W which sometimes gets discounted to as low as £7.99. The quality of these are superb and can add retro feel to any outfit.

so, there's some of my tips for how to shop for vintage clothing, this isn't all of them but I think this post is way too long now! If you have any tips that you would like to share please write them in the comments. I love learning new things!!

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