>>213761063This is my understanding and I think it makes sense, more or less. When the machine is simulating the past it is fully deterministic (in this case in reverse: effect > cause) because the past has already happened and since it somehow has mapped the data of the entire universe it can just rewind every particle. When the machine is simulating the future, the many worlds theory applies because it hasn't happened yet. Each time the machine simulates the future it is showing one possible future. The most likely world it can calculate based on the current positions of all particles. It doesn't need to "parse and compile infinity" or "connect to other universes."
Lily was one of the few in the show in the unique position of actually seeing the projection of the future and she was the only one who actively made choices to undermine it. If Lily watches the future Lily doing (x) at a specific moment, Lily will do (y) at that moment. It doesn't matter if the machine accounts for Lily doing y upon seeing x. It's an infinite looping problem. WHATEVER it shows she will not do. The machine for all practical purposes is God, but no matter how godlike it is it can't solve for that so that's why it stopped projecting past that one decision. Once that decision has occurred, it should begin to make future simulations once again. But not before. Lily is not "special," anyone in Devs who viewed Deus's future simulation could have exercized free will to exist in a different world. They didn't because they were true believers and because even though many worlds is true, the machine is still incredibly accurate. 'Many worlds' or no, certain worlds are still going to be more likely than others. Note that Lily and Forest still died in basically exactly the same way. Lily's change didn't actually result in a different final outcome.
That should satisfy you since your issue was about the machine being able to handle infinity, because in the show it fails because of infinity.