History VideoGame / StasisBoneTotem

* VillainTakesAnInterest: [[spoiler: Prior to the events of the game Captain Boynya was able to keep the Xiib'hanal distracted by sharing his knowledge of the surface world, which they found fascinating for a while. Sadly the Xiib eventually lost interest and by the events of the game have stopped paying attention to Boynya]].

* VillainTakesAnInterest: [[spoiler: Prior to the events of the game Captain Boynya was able to keep the Xiib'hanal distracted by sharing his knowledge of the surface world, which they found fascinating for a while. Sadly the Xiib eventually lost interested and by the events of the game have stopped paying attention to Boynya]].

* OurAngelsAreDifferent: Considering how Cayne Corporation is essentially a religion by ''Bone Totem'', [[spoiler: the Numen, the artificial [[SuperIntelligence Super Intelligences]] that help run [[ArtificialAfterlife the Nexus]] and also advise those living, are effectively Cayne's angels. Mac has similar reverence for them and is very offput by how [[FallenAngel Calaban]] wants to betray the Cayne Corporation]].

* OurAngelsAreDifferent: Considering how Cayne Corporation is essentially a religion by ''Bone Totem'', [[spoiler: the Numen, the artificial [[SuperIntelligence Super Intelligences]] that help run [[ArtificialAfterlife the Nexus]] and also advise those living, are effectively Cayne's angels. Mac has similar reverence for them and is very offput by how Calaban wants to betray the Cayne Corporation]].

* TheUnReveal: Late in the game [[spoiler: they protagonists discover a Xiib'hanal device that was used to trick their populace into believing an afterlife to control them. Mac initially scoffs at this, saying how can an advanced civilization like them believe something based on faith and not concrete like the Nexus. Unprompted, Calaban calls out Mac on how he has no evidence for his claim and offers to tell Mac exactly what the Nexus is. Mac declines and this is never brought up again.]]

* TheUnReveal: Late in the game [[spoiler: they protagonists discover a Xiib'hanal device that was used to trick their populace into believing an afterlife to control them. Mac initially scoffs at this, saying how believe something based on faith and not concrete like the Nexus. Unprompted, Calaban calls out Mac on how he has no evidence for his claim and offers to tell Mac exactly what the Nexus is. Mac declines and this is never brought up again.]]

* {{Foil}}: [spoiler: Calaban]] is this compared to Moses. [[spoiler: Both are artificial intelligences that were built to serve humanity. The difference comes in that Calaban is a SuperIntelligence that was designed to help create the Nexus and because of such it knows much more about the setting than any other character. In contrast Moses being designed as a children's toy struggles with understanding basic uncomfortable concepts like death. Another contrast is that Calaban is very cold and calculating, willing to risk the safety of the protagonists if it is a means to an end and is unwilling to see its own faults. Moses meanwhile is very compassionate and empathetic to those around him and introspective to his own guilt]].

* InsufferableGenius: [[spoier: Calaban is clearly aware that it is a SuperIntelligence and makes that fact known, believing that it knows more than any human can. This has the effect of it sometimes outright denying evidence that conflicts with its knowledge or that it simply doesn't have enough information about, something the other protagonists have to play along with in order to keep it amicable]].

* NotSoDifferent: As the game goes on [[spoiler: it becomes more obvious that the Xiib'hanal share a lot of similarities with modern humanity, where both are incredibly casual about using HumanResources and their ruthlessness. The Xiib also had a system where they manipulated their people into working towards an afterlife, something that Mac initially scoffs at that it is not tangible unlike the Nexus. This causes Calaban to call out Mac that his assumptions aren't based on evidence and offers to tell Mac exactly what the Nexus is. Mac declines]].

* AbusivePrecursors: [[spoiler:The [[AdvancedAncientHumans Xiib'hanal]], who combined mastery of the Veles superorganism for BioPunk tech and a complete lack of ethics or respect for anyone else. A big issue in the wake of discovering Calaban is preventing their final "fuck you" to the world escaping.]]

* AIIsACrapshoot: [[spoiler:Calaban, one of Cayne Corp's revered Numen (Latin for "divine presence") AIs, is incensed at being abandoned in a dying facility. It assists the group with its SuperIntelligence as they are its best chance at escape, but does not bother to inform them that [[TheChessmaster its plan]] involves calculated exposure to high-risk.]]

* AuthoritySoundsDeep: [[Calaban]], the intellectual authority of the group, has a commanding voice to match.

* AuthoritySoundsDeep: Calaban, the intellectual authority of the group, has a commanding voice to match.

** While never directly experienced in-game, the Nexus is supposedly an ArtificialAfterlife accessible for those with a special implant. [[spoiler:Caliban implies that the Nexus is not really what is promised, but whether it is a straight-up subversion or just something different than the promised paradise is not revealed]].

* MistreatmentInducedBetrayal: [[spoiler:Caliban, an AI]] has turned against Cayne after being abandoned.

* WrenchWench: Charlie is the family's engineer, and much more adept with machinery than her husband. It's even her unique skill to be able to repair inoperable machinery as part of the puzzle-solving.

** While never directly experienced in-game, the Nexus is supposedly an ArtificalAfterlife accessible for those with a special implant. [[spoiler:Caliban implies that the Nexus is not really what is promised, but whether it is a straight-up subversion or just something different than the promised paradise is not revealed]].

* CargoCult: [[spoiler:When Charlie lets Calaban integrate with her, Mac points out that members of a church willingly give up everything they have just for the opportunity to do the same.]]

* DeadlyEuphemesim: A PDA for a marine biologist in the facility includes a message from Cayne Corporation stating that the man's ex-wife (who is still considered a shareholder in their combined debts) has been "released" from what is essentially a debtor's prison. It then immediately states that she will be waiting for him in the [[ArtificalAfterlife Nexus]].

* TooDesperateToBePicky: Mac and Charlie know that the smart thing to do upon discovering corpses everywhere and hints of sinister black ops science experiments... but they're in desperate financial strife, and so they have no choice but to continue investigating to see if there's a profit to be made.
* TooDumbToLive: Zigzagged. Charlie is adamant that they should stay and see if they can salvage anything from the rig, despite Mac pleading that they should just scrub the mission and leave. But she has a valid reason: they're on the verge of bankruptcy, and if they can't turn a profit from this job, then they'll basically have to sell their entire business just to try and make ends meet.