The empty hotel quite rightly feels old and full of memory, its foreboding walls, rooms, and corridors could tell a thousand stories. Undoubtedly, this is a game dripping with atmosphere, through some very well-considered design decisions. You begin to accidentally uncover clues that feel out of place, that confuse and challenge Nicole’s perspective of what happened in her past. As you search more of the hotel, the mundane tasks of securing food and lighting quickly escalate as you begin to unravel more of your family’s past and how it is interwoven with Rachel’s before her death. But The Suicide of Rachel Foster feels equal parts horror and mystery to set up more of an exploration-thriller than anything else. Wandering around a large abandoned building alone is a pretty well-traveled narrative trope, particularly in horror games. Her only contact with the outside world is via one of the first mobile phones, which keeps her in touch with Irving, a FEMA agent tasked with helping her through the transaction. As the new owner, Nicole travels to the hotel to inspect it, with a view to selling, only to get trapped alone there due to a pretty nasty snowstorm. Not because her upbringing was hard or painful, far from it, but more so the tragic events that resulted in her abrupt departure ten years ago: the suicide of Rachel Foster. It is a place of childhood memories for Nicole, that she’d rather forget. The death of her mother sees her become the owner of the family hotel, The Timberline, high up in the mountains. Set in the early 90s, the protagonist of this tale is Nicole, a young woman who has lost both of her parents. Remember, you don’t have to go through things alone. It’s a message I would echo as well before we continue, given the serious nature of the plot. Every time you begin a new session, there’s advice to seek help and reach out to others for support if you are struggling. It’s clear from the outset, there is a respect here for the topic at hand, and how the raw story they wish to tell could affect people. The Suicide of Rachel Foster is fairly blunt as titles go, though the approach by One O One Games is anything but. As long as the appropriate steps are taken to respect the subject matter and those who may be affected by it. Rachel's story is not melancholic or poetic as the game represents it, it's just irresponsible.I’m a firm believer that any subject matter can be covered in the medium of video games. I barely know anything about this character apart from the fact that she was groomed starting when she was young, got pregnant by a man three times her age, and then took her own life. No letters, no flashbacks, no pages from a diary, nothing that attempts at giving her any voice. For a character whose name is in the title of the game, I know very little about her. The most damaging aspect of how the game frames this relationship is that Rachel has no voice throughout the entire game. It made me cringe, especially as the game's marketing focuses on Rachel's retainer, an object that emphasises how young she is. There's a line where Rachel is described as 'mature for her age' as if it's some sort of excuse to her father's relationship with the teenager. An attic with fairy lights hangs above a bed where sketches of the teenager posing naked lie scattered on top. The relationship is even more worrying because it's seen as romantic. It's revealed that Rachel was nine weeks pregnant when she died and clues indicate that she was groomed by Nicole's father from a young age.
As the second half of the game begins to delve into the details about Nicole's father and Rachel's relationship, it becomes clear that One-O-One Games is treading into a territory that it is not equipped to handle. However, rummaging through Nicole's belongings and unearthing the history of the hotel is where Rachel Foster gets problematic. I felt like it was heading more in the direction of a ghost story than a mystery, which I was somewhat looking forward to. Another section has you watch the old battered VHS recordings of a ghost-hunting group that captures the crew's terrified reactions to something off-screen. In one chapter the power completely goes out and you have to navigate the pitch blackness using only the flash of a polaroid to guide you. Rummaging through Nicole's belongings and unearthing the history of the hotel is where Rachel Foster gets problematic
It serves as a cosy safe haven within the confines of the hotel. Nicole's room has been kept exactly the same as when she left it. You go from being scared about what around the corner of a narrow corridor, to massive ballrooms, dining halls, kitchens, and lounge areas where anything could be lurking. The hotel uses both its corridors and open spaces to build tension.
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