At first glance The Suicide of Rachel Foster has all the makings of a memorable horror game experience. If the title alone isn’t enough to set the stage, The Suicide of Rachel Foster has a remarkable The Shining-ness to it with the game taking place in an abandoned and long-forgotten hotel that is creepy as it is filled with detail. Add a few horror tropes – a protagonist who has recently lost a loved one, a sudden and unexpected natural catastrophe that leaves the main character trapped and unable to reach the outside world for help, the inevitable and seemingly inexplicable supernatural phenomenon – and what you have is a great foundation for some guaranteed scares. Horror isn’t so much what mechanics or devices one employs, but rather how well one avoids making it seem cliche and predictable. While The Suicide of Rachel Foster does manage to conjure a few frights, it ultimately misses the mark and what would easily have been one of the horror genre’s greatest mysteries.
Being a ‘walking sim’, a genre that is devoid of traditional action mechanics, The Suicide of Rachel Foster relies heavily on its narrative, storytelling, and occasional puzzle solving to engage with the player. Taking on the role of a young woman named Nicole, you – at the request of your deceased mother – are charged with selling off a property known as the Timberland Hotel in the hopes of selling off your bad memories of it along with it. Those bad memories however cannot be ignored and so you are compelled to visit the hotel just one last time. It seems that a young woman named Rachel Foster died of an apparent suicide in that hotel. Rachel was also pregnant at the time of her death and it also seems that she may not have taken her life after all. With the mystery afoot, Nicole sets off to the hotel only to be trapped inside by a convenient yet pesky snowstorm. It looks like she has no other choice but to stay the night and do a bit of sleuthing to kill some time until daybreak.
The story isn’t incredibly original – at least its foundation isn’t. One would think that with such a typical set-up that the narrative would pivot in weird ways but sadly that just isn’t the case. Without revealing too much, the ending here won’t surprise you. What begins as what appears to be a compelling ghost story sort of devolves into drama for drama’s sake. While at times things can be a bit muddled and disjointed the overall payoff is a predictable one and won’t leave a lasting impression. In fact, one of the game’s greatest tragedies is just how forgettable it all ends up being. That is a real shame considering that it tackles some pretty sensitive subject matter albeit sloppily. From infidelity and child grooming, to abuse and unexpected pregnancy, there is a lot to work with that is used more to shock than to deliver a meaningful message. There is even a character that speaks to Nicole occasionally on the phone – a character that players will never see or interact with face-to-face. It is reminiscent of Silent Hill 2’s Ernest who only communicated with Maria from behind a locked door. It can be a haunting and effective gimmick if used properly but that just isn’t the case with The Suicide of Rachel Foster. It seems that a lot of attention and effort was put into making the abandoned hotel environment seem as hostile and oppressive as possible with the story taking a bit of a backseat to the unnerving atmosphere. And that just happens to be the one area where the game truly excels at.
When it comes to setting the stage for a horror story, you can’t go wrong with a hotel; it’s up there with a mansion or a school, or a hospital in terms of creep-factor. While it may seem large and foreboding from the outside, the hotel’s cramped corridors induce a sort of claustrophobic reaction and heighten unease. There is some really great set design at play with a lot of detailed poured into making the Timberland Hotel feel like a character unto itself. The Suicide of Rachel Foster. There is a great use of lighting with bright patches of red in certain rooms that are terribly hard to look away from. Every space is crafted to catch the eye and to ensure the player is deadly focused on their surroundings. The game also has a handful of moments that could have been used more frequently such as a power outage which prompts the use of a camera’s flash to navigate your path forward. It was a nice touch and the game desperately needed more elements like this to keep the tension high and the player engaged.
Overall The Suicide of Rachel Foster works as a spooky attraction. It absolutely nails the horror vibe and has some genuinely good moments that are more than capable of getting under your skin. It has superb sound design and atmosphere and has a handle on what makes things scary. It doesn’t really on jump scares bu rather it induces dread without having to try too hard. If the story had been handled with the same measure it would have been an instant classic. For those who are looking for a quick horror fix, there are a myriad of games that do the same and tell a better story.
