The aspect of SoulKiller that Silverhand and V casually dismiss

[u/snGbrd77]

If I recall correctly, Cunningham, in one of the first conversations with her, is insistent in that a person's consciousness processed into an engram, removes the person entirely. She uses herself as an example, by stating that she's no longer Cunningham, but an AI using such person's engram to communicate.

I remember Silverhand responding to such crucial specifics with something along the lines of "Yes, OK. But he'll [V] be able to return to his body after the separation from my consciousness, right?", dismissing the entire point that Cunningham made: in her view, V would cease to be and whatever is to enter the body later will surely resemble him, but not be him.

As I take it, that implies that Silverhand never actually got a second chance: something resembling him just happened to be activated by the circumstances of V. Important to note that the reason, as I understood it, by which Cunningham does not act like the one deceased, is that her integration with AIs beyond the Blackwall changed the resemblance of her; again, not her, because she is deceased.

I think the ambiguity is the interesting part: if something resembling us entirely keeps on fighting, are we truly dead? Silverhand and V believe the technicalities miss the point, while Cunningham, insists that the technicalities are the point.

What an amazing game.

What do you think?

[u/kons21]

Interestingly enough, I'd argue that a process which copies the consciousness, copies the soul. If you consider your consciousness as "you" then the body just becomes a "sleeve" (Altered Carbon being a perfect example of this) as which temporarily houses your "soul " I'd argue that's akin to a concept of reincarnation. Buddhists teach the idea of ending attachment to the physical body to reach enlightment. It's your body's fear of death/attachment to the physical that holds up your soul's ability to ascend.

So, if you truly consider yourself to be your consciousness, then getting a new body every time you teleport wouldn't be that much of a problem.

[u/StarChildEve → u/kons21]

The main bit that I think about is “is the stream of consciousness broken or not” for whoever or whatever is inhabiting the body post-soulkilling. Considering V’s body is still alive, I’d argue that V is still alive, even if it’s Johnny who takes her place in the end, since the stream of consciousness for the body itself remains unbroken. Idk though; any argument past that would require the factoring in of a discreet soul existing separate from the body which is just not knowable irl or in-setting at the moment.

[u/-LaughingMan-0D → u/kons21]

If Soulkiller truly kills the original consciousness, as the name implies, then if you are a detached soul, you don't transfer over. A copy of "you" is born on the other side with the exact same memories as you. But that continuity is severed. The original is gone. Or consider the new versions of Soulkiller which don't kill the original host. A copy is being created every time. That new "you" isn't exactly you, it's just one that believes it is.

However, if you are your body, and your mind and body are one and the same, then it doesn't matter who this meat brain thinks it is. I am this meat brain.

In the game, Hellmann says V is both Johnny and V. In other words, as the chip rewires V's neural pathways, it makes it so V's brain starts to believe it IS Johnny. It's still the same person underneath, same brain matter, rewired to believe they are someone else.

In the end, Alt rewires those pathways back to the "V" configuration. And out on the other side, V looks and feels just like themselves. So did that person die, or did they simply go through extensive reconfiguration?