Frictional Games’ SOMA is easily one of the best horror games of the last few years, and it’s finally available on Xbox One with a noticeable new features — “Safe” Mode. This narrative-focused mode essentially allows you to play the game without dealing with death. There’s still plenty of fear to go around, but the monsters can’t kill you.
Originally released on PC and PS4, “Safe” Mode is available on all PC copies thanks to a new update, while PS4 users will have to wait a little bit longer before “Safe” Mode lands on their platform of choice. It’s essentially another difficulty selection, along with Hard Mode, which makes you even more vulnerable to monsters who are quicker to take notice of you.
In “Safe” Mode, instead of chasing you down, monsters will patrol the environment without noticing you — SOMA includes some scripted sequences where you’ll have to get caught by monsters, so you’ll still want to be prepared for jump-scares and disturbing imagery around every corner. It’s a not-so-nice world under the sea, and your choices will change the future of the station. Like the Amnesia series, there’s no fighting back. You don’t have weapons, but you do have the ability to crouch, sneak, and run.
With the new “Safe” Mode activated, you can enjoy a more leisurely experience, without the stress of constant monster attacks. If you’ve been too scared to play this amazing game, this is a pretty good way to enjoy the story, get in a few scares, and avoid those stress overloads.
Check out the SOMA launch trailer, including the new “Safe” Mode, for Xbox One and PC (Steam / GOG.com) above to get a taste of the fear. Hardcore horror enthusiasts need not worry, because Frictional Games say they’re working on two new games, and one is a “proper horror game” — which can only mean good things, especially if their next game is as inventive, strange, and inspiring as SOMA.
