14 DAY TRIAL // 
Walking simulators represent the most polarizing game genre we currently have: some love it and enjoy it even if (or maybe because) they are not gamers, while others consider it the completely and utterly unnecessary appendix of the video game world. The Suicide of Rachel Foster splashed at the beginning of the year on PC in the middle of all this, increasing the controversy due to the subjects it deals with, including suicide. Read on to find out if the console version is worth counting your steps.
Released initially for PC back in February, The Suicide of Rachel Foster was praised for its atmospheric storytelling but also frowned upon for dealing with taboo topics such as suicide. Now the console players can decide for themselves if the game is worth the miles you have to put in it, by assuming the role Nicole Wilson, the sole heir of a family with a closet full of skeletons.
The adventure begins with a funeral, the perfect set-up for the thrilling tale, that will lock the players into an isolated hotel, in the middle of the mountains. Although initially, the goal seems to deal with the estate and get back to the day to day life of our hero, soon it turns into a trip of self-discovery, a twisted method to cope with loss and guilt, and a closure to a tormented past.
As is the case with walking simulators, the gameplay consists mainly of exploring and solving puzzles. You will walk a lot, but you will never be in real danger to overexercise your grey matter. The puzzles are extremely simple and have the major role to extend the length of the game, which can easily be finished in roughly three hours. There is no real incentive to explore since most of the areas of the beaten path are empty of any interaction. After you have learned the layout of the hotel there will be no challenges, even if the light goes out and you have to stumble in the dark.
The entire set-up is designed to create a heavy atmosphere, where the uncertainty puts pressure on you. There will be only a handful of scary moments, the designers choosing to build the game rather around the idea that you never know what is real and what is a trick of the mind. The best example is Irving, the self-proclaimed FEMA representative who wants to make sure you are completely safe in the completely isolated cabin. He will accompany you like an invisible, but chatty companion, and nudge you on certain directions through the endless conversations on the brick-sized cell phone. Even though you will doubt him and his intentions, you will end up relying on him because he will be your only connection to the outside world.
The developers from OneOne Games were more interested in telling a story and building a specific atmosphere, rather than focusing on the gameplay that makes a videogame. As a result, there is not much to do in The Suicide of Rachel Foster, but follow the narrative path into the rabbit hole of the long-forgotten events from the past. This of course means that the game has no replay value at all. Once you concluded the game there is nothing to draw you back in.
Even if some dialogue options may offer the illusion of choice, in reality, everything pushes you forward towards the same inevitable conclusion. The detours are few and lacking any significance. The melodramatic story, despite the developer's efforts, unfolds in a predictable ending, making the entire experience rather lukewarm. The only highlights are the few scenes where you explore the halls of the abandoned hotel, equipped with a parabolic microphone is search of paranormal clues.
This is where the game shines, throwing at you random noises and bits of conversation, that seem to ooze out of the walls. Thanks to the excellent sound design, these moments really manage to create a scary, yet thoroughly enjoyable experience. Unfortunately, the rest of the technical aspects are not so stellar. The graphic design of the console version is outdated and does not offer the same detailed visuals as the PC counterpart. It would have helped a great deal with the immersion if the environment wasn’t so blurry and you wouldn’t be continually reminded that you're surrounded by old computer graphics.
The Suicide of Rachel Foster is plagued by some game-breaking bugs. The entire story is told in 9 days, the game autosaving at the beginning of each day, with no manual save possible. During these days you have to complete specific tasks in certain areas of the hotel to advance the events and trigger the beginning of the next chapter.
In its current state, if you exit from the game in the middle of these tasks, when you return to continue the story, you risk being respawned at the checkpoint of a previous day with your access to the current objectives erased. Also, you are unable to go to any of the required locations. The only solution, in this case, is to start a new game and go through it again. This is especially frustrating since no dialogue can be skipped or fast-forwarded, and there is not enough appeal to experience them multiple times.
The Good
- Excellent audio design
- Moments of real tension
The Bad
- Game breaking bugs
- Outdated graphics
- Dialogues cannot be fast-forwarded or skipped
Conclusion
Despite the heavy topics at its core, The Suicide of Rachel Foster in the end proves to be a bit overly melodramatic. It resembles the work of a playwriter that tried too hard to be dramatic, with overacting characters, the entire experience being a sizzle rather than a bang. But, thanks to the few moments when the tension can give you goosebumps, The Suicide of Rachel Foster is worth experiencing on a rainy afternoon, but only by the fans of the genre.
