Specimen 7 Theory

[scoutxander]

I've recently been replaying Spooky's House, and realized something upon reaching Specimen 7- nobody knows what exactly it is, nor where it came from, nor how exactly it works/kills. Based off it's CAT-DOS entry, it doesn't seem that GL Labs has any idea either. So being myself, I began to analyze the crap out of it. Here is what I found:

CAT-DOS's description consistently reference a connection between Specimen 7 and the subjects' minds in different ways; The entity's form changes with the subject's personality, and it is only effective on subjects with a history of psychological issues or mental trauma. This much we know already. We also know that Room 410 is probably the most trippy and surreal area in the entire game. A similar, non-game related setting where everything is surreal, and in some cases very trippy, is the human mind, most notably the dreams that come out of it. When dreaming, it is fairly common for the dreamer to be unconscious. What is the first thing we do before entering Room 410? We cross the Threshold of Consciousness. In the game's coding, this room/section is also referred to as, "MAD(room #)." When one loses the ability to control their mind, they go insane- or mad. In some cases, they cannot tell what's real and what's not- And in other cases, when they are dreaming and not dreaming. I'm not sure what other people think, but going insane, however recently it was, definitely qualifies as a past psychological issue. Another thing to keep in mind that the Cat does not appear until we cross the Threshold (I was able to find a possible connection between some of the Cat's quotes and Specimen 7; these are listed below). Now for the main theory:

Upon crossing the threshold, Specimen 7 takes control of the player's mind, knocking them out. The player, unconscious, does not realize this, and continues their journey. The Cat gives the player cryptic advice and warnings when spoken to, most likely referring to Specimen 7 being inside the player's mind. The specimen creates a series of rooms to attempt to traumatize or confuse the player, creating a breach/weakness in their mind if successful. In one final attempt to claim the player's life, the entity breaks through and pursues the player to consciousness, speeding up the whole time so the player doesn't awaken. Now here is where things get odd: how is the player progressing through rooms if unconscious? Now, sleepwalking is a thing, but that's quite a far-fetched guess. Their are two better answers, both fairly obscure. The first is that the player isn't progressing rooms at all. Before a patch, this was in fact the case- until the player outran Specimen 7, they would never leave Room 410. The second theory is slightly more sensible: the player enters a state somewhere between conscious and unconscious. They have awakened with the Specimen still in control of their minds, therefore physically in control of what they are doing, but not mentally.


The Cat's Role
"This place can help those who are ready, but expect turmoil more then you are used to."
Is the Cat speaking of the human mind? Perhaps. The mind can indeed help many people, but can also lead to their downfall.

"Two sides of the same coin. Knowing your projections can help you achieve freedom."
The mind(mental) and the body(physical) both make up the person: two sides of the same entity. Those who cannot tell each apart do not know the projections created by their mind, and therefore cannot, "achieve freedom," according to the Cat. Achieving freedom most likely means freeing one's self from Specimen 7's grasp and influence on their mind.
Note: In the room this quote is spoken in, there is a compass on the floor that follows the player. Is it possible that this compass is showing us where all of what we are seeing is truly located? In the mind of the player?

Let me know down below what you think of this theory, if you had the patience to read the whole darn thing (and if you did, I applaud you).

[AshLancer]

It's just a demon wall, really. Final Fantasy series had a demon wall in almost every game. Only difference is this one can screw with your head.

The weird rooms and the cat are references to Alice in Wonderland and quite possibly John Carpenter's "They Live" (1988).

[Andrew]

Originally posted by AshLancer:

It's just a demon wall, really. Final Fantasy series had a demon wall in almost every game. Only difference is this one can screw with your head.

The weird rooms and the cat are references to Alice in Wonderland and quite possibly John Carpenter's "They Live" (1988).

R/ConfidentlyIncorrent