![]() Then, go up the first set of stairs on the right. At one point I interacted with something I wasn’t suppose to yet during a dialogue sequence, an action that glitched out the game and made me have to restart that day right from the beginning. But in The Suicide of Rachel Foster, I found myself standing around a lot, waiting for dialogue to end so that I could progress. Other games would time your walk down a hallway with the time it takes for characters to complete their scripted dialogue sequence. The open-ended approach to The Suicide of Rachel Foster made the game feel imprecise. But in a game that hinges so firmly on its narrative, linearity would have gone a long way. Perhaps the developers thought a more open approach would add to the realism and enjoyment. The Suicide of Rachel Foster instead plops you in the midst and hopes you don’t wander too far. Games like Gone Home do a masterful job of leading you through its hallways and rooms methodically and intelligently. And in going there early, not only did I find absolutely nothing to interact with or do, I spoiled some moments that would have been more impactful had I not explored. Areas of the game were clearly intended to be visited during certain narrative moments only. ![]() But in doing so I wasn’t rewarded, I was punished. As a gamer I’m trained to explore and search off the beaten path. That’s because many areas of the hotel are accessible long before you’re ever required to go there. It’s here where we find a fairly large flaw in The Suicide of Rachel Foster’s design. As the days progress, you’ll be lead around the hotel, exploring new areas and uncovering more information. It’s a narrative told over the course of various days as you inspect the hotel, learn more about the past, and chat with your FEMA friend Irving on a frequent basis. The hotel you explore within the game is fairly sizeable, as you’d expect. And she didn’t really grow on me all too much through the rest of the game either. But intentions aside, I didn’t feel sorry for Nicole in this moment. I think the intention was to paint Nicole as a damaged character who is so haunted by her past that she’d be willing to make terrible judgement calls just to avoid facing the grim reality. In the game’s defence, I think Nicole’s jarring reaction was deliberate. I’m all for female empowerment, but when you’re telling a member of the Federal Emergency Management Agency that you don’t want their advice to keep you alive, then you are just bad at feminism. She proudly declares that she has never listened to a man trying to tell her what to do before, and she doesn’t intend to start now. She ignores his expertise, acting on impulse and vocally angry that he would suggest she remain in the hotel until the storm blows over. In their opening interaction, Rachel is so dismissive, sarcastic and disrespectful. Very early in the game you’ll be contacted by Irving, a FEMA agent warning you of the brewing snowstorm and trying to keep you safe. One major point of contention I have with The Suicide of Rachel Foster is that main character Nicole just seems so unlikable. But as she uncovers more information it starts to become clear that there’s more to this story than initially thought. Rachel’s suicide and the ongoing investigation into the scandal is something Nicole is eager to leave behind her. The two families involved were quite prolific in the area she grew up, and the shame of the transgression resulted in the suicide of the teenage victim. That’s because when Nicole was younger, her father cheated on her mother with an underage girl. ![]() Although the history of her family’s scandal is hard to avoid. Nicole grew up in this hotel, her childhood room still remains intact. Whilst Nicole wants to complete the inspection process as quickly as possible, a snowstorm traps her inside and forces her to acknowledge the memories she is trying to suppress. Playing as Nicole, you’re sent to inspect your family’s hotel after you inherit the abandoned building. Similarly, I’ll give a content warning for this review, because it’s hard to talk about a narrative driven game without discussing the game’s narrative. So much so that you’ll be met with a trigger warning after loading up the game, encouraging you to seek supervision and support if you think you’ll be negatively impacted by any of the game’s themes. If you can’t tell by the name alone, The Suicide of Rachel Foster deals with very mature themes.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |