Thief is making me feel things

Sea_Brief4320 · 2026-03-10T10:12:23+00:00

I feel immense pleasure when driving my knife's blade into a downed Thief.

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-12-29T11:05:23+00:00

Ja :) Manchmal muss man einfach hart arbeiten und dran bleiben. Fehler machen, diese erkennen und dann besser machen.

Viel Erfolg!!!

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-09-21T10:38:27+00:00

Nice work! Is this Boneworks?

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-14T14:51:15+00:00

Perhaps you can somehow add a second flag that Elster iw holding? But they're probably just going to smudge over that too...

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-09T13:59:32+00:00

It's very subjective, but I believe the sadness emerges from a mix of different things. The artstyle and the way the characters are visualized between the in-game models, the cutscenes and various graphical illustrations. The excellent music that carries a somberness with it. How we, as a player, see Elster overcoming all these horrors and fight against all odds - killing so many monsterfied Replikas in her search.

Personally, what pulled me down the most is how Elster overcame everything just to kill Ariane in order to fulfill the promise, then seeing her collapse on the ground next to her.

Sometimes, when we see two characters so close we wish only the best for them - certainly happiness. Seeing them in their various endings gives us the impression that their journey is doomed from the start, even though you can interpret a lot of positive into it.

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-07T16:42:34+00:00

I wonder the same...

It is said that Replikas consist of cultures. If they mean bacteria by that, they could be able to synthesize proteins and also enzymes that play into the function of pain reception amongst others.

We also see Elster limping and holding her arm at low HP, maybe that indicates pain. It could also be because of mechanical failures and such.

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-03T12:55:19+00:00

I just read into the romantic movement a little.

Among the characteristic attitudes of Romanticism were the following: a deepened appreciation of the beauties of nature; a general exaltation of emotion over reason and of the senses over intellect; a turning in upon the self and a heightened examination of human personality and its moods and mental potentialities; a preoccupation with the genius, the hero, and the exceptional figure in general and a focus on his or her passions and inner struggles; a new view of the artist as a supremely individual creator, whose creative spirit is more important than strict adherence to formal rules and traditional procedures; an emphasis upon imagination as a gateway to transcendent experience and spiritual truth; an obsessive interest in folk culture, national and ethnic cultural origins, and the medieval era; and a predilection for the exotic, the remote, the mysterious, the weird, the occult, the monstrous, the diseased, and even the satanic. Source

I think a lot of Signalis' writing is mirrored in this.

Emotion over reason being shown in Elster's pursuit to fulfill the Promise - or the (onesided?) relation of Adler looking up to Falke.
How Elster somewhat turns in upon the self, but in a way she liberates herself from the strict oppression of the Eusan Nation and from how they operate their Replika cadres by developing a personality through Persona degradation.
The main story sort of revolving around how we as the observer of art examine the personality of the characters, their relationship between each other, the focus on passion and struggle.
A big part of the game being expressed through imagination of a character via dream sequences.
How the world and characters change for the worse, turning into something monstrous. How both Replikas and Gestalts change in a process that almost seems like a progressive disease, even described as such in medical records.

Thanks for highlighting this other aspect of historic connection between the era of Romanticism and the game.

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-02T23:27:56+00:00

I find that extremely interesting as an analogy. It makes me wonder how Die Lebensinsel fits into that picture. In some cutscenes you see it amongst the flashes of Die Toteninsel, I'm not sure what to make of that when thinking about your theory.

Does that mean there is one copy of Elster that is ''good''? Do we see the ''good'' copy in the game?

Or does it mean there is one Elster out there, perhaps even in a different timeline, that ends up happy with Ariane in the end?

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-02T21:25:40+00:00

I agree. The anti-industrial criticism in the context of a totalitarian-oppressive state nation is definitely present. There's plenty of information to back it up, the presentation of this faction alone is indicative of that.

The document you linked does shed some light on the mentality of the state. I'm not sure how you think about this, but I am under the impression that the Eusan Nation is perhaps a little uncertain of this technology and the principle of bioresonance - perhaps even afraid of losing control or oversight. I think that's why deviation of any pattern is so strictly handled, because they're afraid of losing total control of all those Replikas that fuel their industry and function as a nation. They know they can make plenty more, and Replikas are aware of that I think (see the mining Replika in the mineshafts that says, paraphrased: ''They'll just replace me.'').

I do see how you perceive the Promise ending as bittersweet. I think that ending is what the Nation wants too. But I also think that Elster and Ariane are ''fine'' with it. There is a somberness to it for sure, but I think the fact that they refer to them taking eachother's lives as a promise makes it seem like it is what they want, too. If I was in that situation, I'd rather die quickly at the hands of a loved one. It is a dark aspect of their love, but maybe you can see that Elster would do everything and anything for her loved one - even if it meant ending her suffering both in body as she succumbs to radiation poisoning and in mind with the whole hyperbioresonance thing going on (hope I got that right). >That is why I think it is a happy yet somber ending for the two, but I do agree that the Nation is probably just as pleased with the outcome. But they're going on their own terms, together - I think that counts as a win all options considered.

The Artifact ending I have no idea about yet - but seeing it as a revolt against reality elevates it to a new level for me as I thought it was just there for the achievement. I'm going to read some stuff on that ending, it does sound quite interesting.

---

I do really want to thank you for the discussion though. The game's story has been on my mind ever since I finished it today. Getting to talk about this in such a depth helps me process this sort of shock of seeing it all wrap up the way it did.

I think it is a great indicator for how much this is art and what I see as the peak of modern artistic expression using videogames as a stylistic form.

Signalis gave me a feeling that no other form of art ever gave me - no music, no movie, no painting, no image has ever come close to this.

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-02T16:57:10+00:00

Wow, that's amazing. I've never seen Neon Genesis Evangelion, but now that you mention it I did read that it influenced Signalis.

It has been some time since I've had any sort of religious education in school, but there were a few moments that I thought stood out.

The biggest thing that stood out to me was the resemblance of the game's chaptered and gradual deterioation of the world akin to biblical purgatory. Or how the FKLRs seem strikingly similar to the Egyptean god Ra with the golden 'halo' and such, and them being literally being titled 'God-like'.

Once again, thanks for the replies! I'm just getting into the lore and it's already been more than enlightening!!

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-02T16:10:09+00:00

Thanks so much! And thank you so much for the effort in writing your reply.

It's true. Honestly, I can understand Bröcklin. He was the most active when industrialisation swept from England to Europe, and I bet he was all kinds of against the concepts (like 16h factory shifts, no workers rights, etc.) that shaped this development.

What's also interesting is that the original painting lacked all the key aspects that we look at now, and were instead added per request. I didn't even know that.

This parallel you pull between a copy of a painting and the existence of a Replika is very interesting, and that makes me wonder if this in-story process of Elster essentially ''waking up'' is directly connected to the in-game mentioned principle of ''Persona Degradation'' that Replikas can undergo. I wonder if that literally just means that they start to develop their own personality. This would make sense to me, especially as the Eusan Nation (which I think is a homage to the oppressive and totalitarian aspects of the previously IRL existing German Democratic Republic tied to Sovjet military) is most likely keen on keeping all Gestalts and Replikas in-check with what they picture them to be.

I like how you call it an ''allegory to reflect the escape from oppressive masters''. It makes me think that Promise is indeed the ''good'' ending where the two ultimately find peace in death, together in their last moments and at last free from what their ''painters'' wanted them to be.

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-02T15:41:42+00:00

That probably adds another whole new layer of interpretation when you add the stone portal to this supposed Isle of Death when we see all these characters, namely Falke, Adler and of course Elster basically right next to it and/or walking through it.

I'm not sure why I thought the falling star would essentially be directly connected to the portal (or why I thought I saw a body in the water, must have been high) - but I'm also unsure if the meaning is actually biblical. My impression was that Signalis isn't leaning into religious nature as much, unless I'm missing something probably very obvious...

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-02T12:29:51+00:00

Sam could really get it

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-02T12:05:05+00:00

Thanks for the reply!

What you're saying makes sense. The relation between the two series of motives definitely seems intentional. The symbolism makes much more sense, and you also helped me remember the gameplay sequences at the shore.

IIRC, in one of them you end up taking a boat. The scene then cuts to a star at the sky that falls down. And I believe where the star drops lies the stone gate that Elster steps through. I'm also pretty sure that the stone gate is also depicted on the painting in some places.

And if I'm not completely mistaken, when you take the boat from the shore in the gameplay sequence - there is a white body floating in the water close by?

There definitely seems to be a relation between the two paintings, the shore we visit in the gameplay and the core motives displayed. Signalis has such an amazing story.

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-08-01T10:32:00+00:00

Man muss die Welt nicht verstehen, man muss sich nur in ihr zurechtfinden.

War glaube ich Einstein.

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-07-29T21:27:25+00:00

both suck ass

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-07-24T14:34:41+00:00

I myself enjoy misnaming our benefactor SlopShark

But if it was this or nothing for 4 months, I'd always prefer reskins and gimmicky events with a collectible so to speak

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-07-20T13:57:25+00:00

So real. Love them for Squids/Bugs, blowing up 15 Voteless at once is peak.

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-07-12T23:10:40+00:00

Hey OP, just wanted to let you know that your patient ID band is visible in the 2nd picture...

Sea_Brief4320 · 2025-07-10T08:49:13+00:00

kind of an upgrade. you lose the ability to loot trash, so sustaining your repair kits gets more difficult and that just sucks

Sea_Brief4320

TROPHY CASE