Discovery and Exploration

Incoherence (2)

The most harrowing thoughts that haunt Kate, and the player, as they play the walking simulator game and are left alone with their thoughts, are the ones about her sister blaming her for her suicide. As Sabine Harrer writes in her book, "Games and Bereavement," Kate's experiences in "Incoherence" frame death as "the player’s failure to provide rather than presenting it as part of an inevitable narrative moment. Each death comes with the question, Could I have done something different to prevent this loss?... The answer is always yes, encouraging emotions of guilt." (164) Guilt is one of the most challenging emotions to deal with and it can be impossible to get rid of, which is why Kate imagines such nightmarish notes from her sister, pictured below. Towards the end of the game, Kate also imagines seeing her sister dead and bloody in her hotel bathtub, also pictured below. 


Kate's journey of self-discovery is hinged on poisonous thoughts that are dangerous for her mental health. It is clear that Kate had a dysfunctional relationship with her sister, which must have triggered these harmful thoughts; her biggest fear, which she repeatedly confronts throughout the game, is that she could have done something to prevent the suicide. Theoretically, there is nothing Kate could have done, but with her sister gone, and a huge gap in Kate's life where her sister used to be, her mind is so troubled with grief that it imagines terrifying things. Through Kate's journey of grief and guilt, the player can experience firsthand what it is like to lose someone and not know how to miss them if you feel as if you don't deserve to. "Incoherence" confronts terrifying ideas of self-discovery that can lead one down a self-destructive path, especially in a game where it's easy to feel alone. 

This page has paths:

Contents of this path:

This page references: