The Shores of Denial – The World that Shouldn't Exist

My Voluntary Descent

When I first stepped onto the Fort Oasis pier as Tyler, the atmosphere was immediately suffocating. My first instinct wasn't to explore, it was to leave. I was given the functioning boat , then took the exit, and triggered the ending within minutes. But as the credits rolled, I realized I hadn’t actually played the game; I had simply committed a "coward’s move." I chose the "Safe Lie" because the reality of the island was too unsettling. I believe everyone have tried that in their first playthrough.

On my second run, I refused the boat. I stayed because I wanted the content. By staying, I felt like I was actively validating Tyler’s internal chaos. The game stopped being a survival horror and started feeling like a psychological autopsy I was performing on myself.

Navigating a Broken Mind

As I explored Fort Oasis, I realized it isn't just a game with a map; there are some metaphors. Since the game doesn't tell us the direct story, I explored the internet and found that the story explains about the terminal disease and the depression on the character I'm playing. I began to see the environment as a manifestation of Tyler’s isolation:

• The Mining Colony: This is the skeletal remains of a life once filled with productivity and purpose, now hollowed out.
• The Rot: The black, organic corruption "overwrite" the walls was visceral. It’s the visual language of a terminal illness that doesn't just inhabit the world but replaces it.
• The Permafrost: The cold represents an emotional numbness I think Tyler uses to shield himself from the memory of Leda’s love (Leda is Tyler's wife). It is the "Distant Embrace" of a death that has already begun.

The Realization of the Mission

In the beginning, I followed the story believing I was on a rescue mission. However, the deeper I went, the more I felt manipulated. I wasn't there to save a colony; I was there to witness the final shutdown of me(actually the Tyler).

The most haunting part of my experience was the silence. Before the monsters ever appeared, the weight of being all alone in a dying world was more terrifying than any jump-scare. That silence is the bridge between Tyler’s past and the "Total Chaos" of his current mental state and the void left behind when love is replaced by a diagnosis.