Throughout AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative, you’ll speak to a young boy named Shoma. The son of a failed comedian, he has plenty of baggage to unpack. If you make certain choices in the game, you might get the chance to help unpack that baggage for him by taking him to the Psync machine and diving into his subconscious. If you’re struggling to complete Shoma’s Psync in AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative, here is everything you need to do.
Shoma’s Psync in AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative and how to complete it
When Tama is first dropped into Shoma’s subconscious, you need to sit through Ryuki’s awkward demands of his AI companion. After a short cutscene, you’ll be free to begin exploring Shoma’s Psync. Head over to the suit hanging on the nearby wall and pick “Joke” when the prompt shows up. This will net you a valuable Timie in return for subjecting you to Tama’s terrible jokes.
One quick piece of advice here is to continually use the Timies that the game gives you as you progress through Shoma’s Psync. Unlike in Komeji’s Psync earlier in the game, you don’t need to worry about hanging on to them for the right moment at the end.
You’ll also see that Shoma has been the subject of bullies at school for some time due to his father being a terrible stand-up comedian. When you have control of Tama again, walk to the model house that Shoma has made, and you’ll soon be dropped into a smaller version of the house you were just in. There is a ripped-up version of his father’s outfit on the floor. Walk around the table until you spot the tape on the floor. Interact with it to fix the suit.
Step to the TV and interact with it. Choose “Turn on” and sit through an excruciating moment of Komeji being heckled during his routine. Shoma will get angry and destroy the TV, so now you need to find a way to fix it. Head back into the model house and spot a suitcase on the floor beside the table. Click on it, and you’ll have four choices. We recommend using one of your Timies here and choosing “Tickle” to get the suitcase laughing enough for you to open it up. Remember these sections of AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative are all a dream, so they don’t need to make sense.
Inside the suitcase is a drawing of Komeji that Shoma made when he was younger. Again, use one of your Timies to reduce the passage of time and choose “Cut out” from the four choices. Tama will object but just keep going. Turns out the picture is a perfect fit for the hole Shoma made in the TV. After the cutscene, walk over to the notebook on the kitchen floor. Shoma will appear and spread other notebooks around, as well as reveal that his difficulty understanding reality goes far deeper than Ryuki and Tama thought.
It is easy to waste time at this point in Shoma’s Psync since you’ll be looking for a specific notebook to try to fix. Look for the Math Notebook on the floor beside the table, shown in the above screenshot. Pick it up, using one of your Timies again to reduce the penalty, and choose “Fix it with an eraser” to trigger the next cutscene, which features a heart-warming interaction between father and son.
Once Shoma has thrown his tantrum in the cutscene, head over to the dresser in the corner. Pick “Comedy duo!” from the two options presented and buckle in for another terrible stand-up routine from Tama. It will reveal a familiar piece of folded-up paper. Next, walk to the fridge in the kitchen. Pick “Prop Comedy!” of the two prompts that appear and wait for the comedy to end. You’ll be rewarded with the second piece of the origami medal.
To get the last piece of the medal, you need to head over to the robot that Shoma showed Ryuki earlier and pick “Smile” when prompted. Interact with all three pieces when they’re on the table and, once again, choose “Fix it with tape” from the four options available. Keep using the Timies that you get along the way to reduce your time penalties.
The larger Shoma rejects the memory of his own positive feelings toward his father, instead clinging to the belief that the world around him is fake. You’ll soon take control of a tiny Tama and need to tackle the final Mental Lock in this reduced state. It is fairly straightforward. Walk to the paper medal on the ground to be shown the moment Shoma gave it to his father.
To complete the final lock, walk to the giant robot and choose “Fit Gold Medal,” which has a heft 60-second time penalty. Use your Timie here if you need to. A final cutscene will play out, and you’ll be able to sit back and enjoy the fact that you’ve helped bring peace between a father and son.
There are plenty of other puzzles in AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative that requires a bit of circular logic to get through. Finding the keypad code in Tokiko’s office earlier in the game, for example, can get lots of players stumped, but our guide can help you reach the end without trouble.
