When comparing SOMA vs Hitman (2016), the Slant community recommends SOMA for most people. In the question“What are the best PS4 (PlayStation 4) games?” SOMA is ranked 12th while Hitman (2016) is ranked 85th. The most important reason people chose SOMA is:
SOMA’s atmosphere is a combination of various things. It can be the feeling of loneliness when you’re exploring a rundown and desolate lab. The feeling of anxiety as you trek along the seafloor and you’re only surrounded by muffled sounds and the bubbling of the water. The feeling of fear as you dive deeper into the ocean and the sun becomes more distant. It’s an extremely immersive atmosphere, which is something that many modern horror games don’t have.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Great atmosphere
SOMA’s atmosphere is a combination of various things. It can be the feeling of loneliness when you’re exploring a rundown and desolate lab. The feeling of anxiety as you trek along the seafloor and you’re only surrounded by muffled sounds and the bubbling of the water. The feeling of fear as you dive deeper into the ocean and the sun becomes more distant. It’s an extremely immersive atmosphere, which is something that many modern horror games don’t have.
Pro A horror game for Sci-Fi enthusiasts
SOMA is set in the future, so it has all that futuristic goodness. Things like robots, AIs, underwater laboratories, diving suits designed to endure immense water pressure, and much more. SOMA is a thoroughly enjoyable Sci-fi experience.
Pro Thought-provoking story
Like many horror stories, it delves deep into uncovering the central mystery of what’s going on. There are many unsettling events and revelations along the way, bringing up philosophical questions about consciousness and identity. It’s the type of story that sticks with you long after you’ve finished it and is worth experiencing at least once.
Pro Hiding in plain sight is intuitive
The game allows for players to easily hide in plain sight through a disguise system, like dressing up as a model at a fashion show, which gives the player access to anywhere they might want to go. This is expanded upon by having a helpful hint system for those who are unfamiliar with its intricacies.
Pro Tons of choice
The game's six levels are all big sandboxes that allow players to complete their tasks in any way they see fit. This allows players a great deal of freedom in experimentation and the customization of play style. One of the earliest assassinations in the game can be achieved through the manipulation of a chess board, sabotaging the ejection seat of a fighter jet, or faking a radio call, among other things. Hitman provides a strong context for the player's actions, but there is no wrong way to play, so long as you get the target.
Pro Replayability through escalations, contracts, challenges, and masteries
Once the main level and objective is complete, players can move on to escalation missions or player-created contracts. Escalation missions remix the maps, giving players new targets to complete in the same maps. Paris features 17 escalations, Sapienza has 9, and the other missions have some as well. More are being added all the time. Escalations are unusual in that they feature specific constraints, such as specific uniforms that must be worn, or specific methods of assassination. This increases the difficulty, but it's a great to expand each episode. The player contracts are similar, but this game mode allows the player to choose who their target is and what constraints to put in place, making for an endless list of possibilities in a particular level. Each level also features 20 'Mastery' levels, which unlock tools and insertion locations that expand the way the level can be played. Hitman is a game built to be replayed.
Pro Interactive environments
More so than previous games in the series, Hitman has many objects that can be tampered or interacted with. Nearly any problem the player faces can be solved by using the game's many interactive objects. For players unsure where to start, the challenge system offers a wide variety of hints. For instance, the optional challenges for the first training level include one where the player must disguise himself as a special character who is scheduled to meet the target and another where the target can be given rat poison at the bar.
Cons
Con Not for mainstream horror enthusiasts
SOMA focuses heavily on psychological horror by maintaining suspense and creating a very creepy atmosphere. If you’re looking for jump scares, gore, and other thrill-inducing horror aspects you might be sorely disappointed.
Con Very linear level design
While other horror titles have branching paths and open areas you get to explore, SOMA is very linear even in its ocean exploration sections. This feels like a failed opportunity to create an even better game.
Con No HUD (head-up display) or map
You have to memorize the layouts of the underwater facilities, since there is no HUD or overlay map system. Even though there are several computer terminals scattered through the game that provide access to rudimentary maps, there's no way to save them.
Con DRM issues
While playing single player, if the player loses connection to the game's servers (through their own internet going down or the servers going down) the game will boot the player back to the start screen, meaning any advancement made in the game will be lost. To see this happen in single-player is concerning, as there is no reason for the single-player experience to take place online.
The game features frequent online updates, limited-time event assassinations, and other features that benefit from an online connection, but players cannot opt out of these features if they simply wish to play the single-player campaign.
Con First chapter does not offer a ton of content
Much of the content in the first chapter are a bunch of training levels that are represented as being done on a set of some kind, giving a feeling of not being real. The problem here is that there is little in the way of giving a feeling of wanting to revisit these training levels, which drastically cuts down on the playable content in this chapter.