“It's pretty interesting that people are disgusted to a certain degree by their own bodies. Let's lean into that.” Thomas Grip · The Deep-Sea Podcast
September 2026
Grip was describing how SOMA's underwater creatures came together, including the coral people fused into the walls, some screaming and some in a state that reads as pleasure. He says the design started from noticing that players do not want to think about their own bodies being a little bit icky. The disgust was not a side effect of the horror; it was the thing the game kept pointing back at.
Transcript
Yeah, that worked better. That was because we had the anglerfish before. So we just put it in and it just, you've been chasing lights for so long that when there is a light and it's a little bit different, but you still, I like you, you've now, you've been taught to run towards these. And then it's so that worked really well. But it's one of those that wasn't really scripted, where it's just from beginning, but we like, this will fit really well. So a lot of development is like that, where it's like you get opportunities.
It made me laugh out loud. Yeah. Because I was just like, we can't make fun of the animals because I just fell for it. I just walked up to this anglerfish. And that's a model that has so much detail to it. I actually looked it up because there's so much storytelling going on in the Anglerfish. This is the AI is trying desperately to resurrect or maintain humanity. And so actually, when you get a chance to look at this model, there is very much a human face. Face on one side of it, and one of the pectoral fins is a skeletal hand. And there's just so much detail in something that actually terrifies you in the moment, and you only catch a glimpse of it. And in my sort of wider reading, having experienced the game and then realizing how much detail there was in it, like I loved looking at all the models and the concept art and seeing how much care had gone into them. And there's so many singletons. You don't repurpose any enemies. Each one is an individual, is a deeply tragic individual with a backstory, and they're all very different. Is there any little design details that we as a community have missed?
I don't know. There's a lot. It's sort of fun how it came about. So we had just released Amnesia. And at the beginning of the project, it's hard to know what the artists are going to be doing because you hadn't really started up the other products. So then we're like, well, it's got to be underwater. So let's just work on fish. So artists worked on fish for half a year. And so we had so many fish. So they're like, we'll look into like what areas we're going to be at. So they're like research what sort of fish are at these depths and then use that. So there's a ton of stuff where like we have a hammerhead. Like where do we put that? So that's just swimming out of view for you because we just had it flying around. So that was that was very fun just having all of those elements. Other than that, the monsters, again, like design is a very messy, very evolutionary thing. So there's almost everything started out like an idea, a purpose that then evolves over time. And then you combine it with everything else. And often that's sort of what works. But there is interesting things where you just try to make the most of it. Like, I can't recall what you call like these sort of coral people. You know, they're screaming and it's like humans that are trapped in there. And the idea is that you find some other of them and they're actually in a very pleasurable state. And you're like, okay, is that okay in this? Like, again, it's a design thing thinking I had, which is like human bodies, at least I feel like when viewed human bodies, we don't want to think about our bodies being a little bit icky. It's pretty interesting that people are disgusted to a certain degree by their own bodies. Let's lean into that. So that was what I took off this. So a lot of the things is just, did you realize, like, inside you, there's all of these icky parts? You realize this? And so a lot of the designs is just sort of reaffirming your sort of a lot of the game is about, and again, Soma is like bodies. So a lot of it is just having people thinking about how they're like. I think that's also like, there's a lot of themes coming together with the self and so on, but the sort of the bodies we inhabit is like, I think, very interesting in that. And thinking about that. So a lot of the monsters and so on are like versions of that. At least not so much, I guess, the monsters you see, but like attempts at resurrection and so on and so forth. So all of that is part of it that's trying to do.
I think it sits really well. It's a great continuation of the theme because there's that sanctity of the original you, but then realizing that the body we inhabit is flawed and failing. Is it better than the little ROV? I think it sits really well with the themes. I found this game terrifying. I think this is the most afraid I've been in a game just because the setting and the themes made me really receptive to it. But you put in a safe mode so that people can experience the story and the philosophy of it without sort of freaking out with that. And a lot of our community was saying how sympathetic that made them these terrifying monsters. And it also actually gave us a chance to appreciate your design because things like that anglerfish in the game sort of where it is dangerous. You don't get a chance to appreciate that really complicated design, like how much thought has gone into the design of that body. They loved watching what were the monsters, but then became these sympathetic characters. I love that flip.
It's interesting how well it worked because the game wasn't designed for it. But then we saw them. There was a mod that came up soon after where they made the monster passive. And we're like, this is actually a good idea. So then we just made our sort of phone version based around that. And there was also a lot of people that were like, I really like the story, but I'm too afraid to play it. I don't like the sneaking section. So I wish we would have released the game with it better later than never.
It was the character in the server room. I think that was the first very mobile one. That guy freaked me out. I'd been sneaking around from slow things, but that guy runs at you.