The Suicide of Rachel Foster

The Game might might have the most terrific story but I will never know. I feel like I was bashing my head against a brick wall playing it. The game feels like it was designed to be deliberately hostile to the player, with aggressive head bobbing, intense depth of field and an oppressively narrow field of view I was unable to make it past the first day. Some of these things like the post-processing effects can be fixed in the ini settings but most you will just have to deal with. The worst part is that these issues would be (presumably) easy for the developers to patch, but after two years with no word this doesn't seem likely. If this gets patched I might try it again.

No spoilers! This game is narrative-driven and the only games I can compare it to are The Vanishing of Ethan Carter and Tales Untold. The game really draws you in and the story is very compelling. Voice acting is great and the dialogue options immerse you deeper into the story. If you like to partake in a mystery thriller for 4 hours I strongly recommend this game. It is something different. If the game would have added more “detective work” and riddles I could rate it 5/5. More subjective feelings: It is a game where you can almost smell the old rug on the floor in the long hallways, you can imagine how wholesome and pleasant the good days must have been in this old hotel. The team behind this game have done so many things right and their approach is something that sets them apart from bigger projects. The environment is treated as a character and exploring it helps you understand the bigger picture. This whole approach was a welcomed change. I see a lot of potential for the future of this studio and hope they will improve on puzzles, interaction and choice.

Si j'ai aimé parcourir cet hotel, parce que l'ambiance était pesante, angoissante à jouer et qu'elle a remplit les attentes horrifiques que j'avais concernant ce jeu. Malheureusement le gros problème du jeu reste son dénouement final et les messages qu''il véhicule, à savoir : 1/pro-pédophile (petit spoiler mais pas tant que ça) : le père de famille a trompé sa femme et c'est ce qui a créé la séparation familiale. Le problème c'est que ce père est un homme adulte, et que l'"amante" a 16 ans (et un handicap mental).... c'est juste une relation hyper malsaine !!! Elle n'est à aucun moment remise en question pour son coté abusif et pédophile. Pire, le pseudo "amour" entre cet homme et cette gamine est glorifié... 2/misogyne (SPOILER) : la méchante c'est quand même la mère (parce qu'elle était jalouse et qu'elle a tué Rachel)... mais quel est l'intérêt ?! En plus, ça atténue encore plus le coté pédophile du père, qui a finit malheureux le pauvre choux... (ERKKKKKK) 3/Anti-avortement : en VF, il y a un sous titre chelou où la mère de famille dit qu'elle (ou Nicole?) a manifesté contre l'avortement. Hors ce n'est pas écrit sur le message en anglais qui s'affiche à l'écran. Mon avis final est que c'est un achat que je regrette et que je ne conseille pas.

The term "walking simulator" tends to connote a certain freedom of movement -- that you can explore anywhere, in any sequence, at your own pace. In that respect, this game is less walking simulator and more rail-mystery-story. If you are the least bit observant, you will realize you need certain articles, only to discover the game obstructing your path. For example, at one point I observed that I was going to need a screwdriver. I knew exactly where The Screwdriver was located, walked from one end of the map to the other to get it, only to find that the game wouldn't let me pick it up, because I hadn't gotten to that point in the script yet. Likewise, some doors/passages are blocked by objects until you reach the appropriate point in the story, at which point the obstacles have magically disappeared. Because the game won't really let you do anything except what The Script Says You're Supposed To Do, there's essentially no real puzzle-solving. This game is essentially all atmosphere, relying entirely on the map design and the story. There is a definite spookiness wandering around an empty hotel in varying degrees of disrepair (complete with secret passages) and, as others have described, the map is fairly lovingly detailed (although, if this were a real building, the architect should be fired -- who puts the dining area and the restrooms at opposite ends of the building?). However, while the story isn't exactly bad, I didn't find it particularly compelling, either. That, coupled with the annoying restrictions imposed by the script logic, keeps me from awarding a higher rating. I don't want to hate on the game -- I bought it on sale, and I'd say I got my money's worth -- but this is probably for people who enjoy exploring atmospheric settings purely for its own sake.

TSORF is a walking sim, plain and simple. It's the story of Nicole, a young woman who travels back to a shut down hotel that she has inherited from her now deceased parents. The family's history ended in tragedy due to your father having an "inappropriate" affair and without spoiling the story: this is where the title of the game comes in. Nicole is forced to check out the vacant hotel in order to sell it off but manages to arrive during a freezing blizzard and surprise surpise, Nicky is now trapped in the hotel and starts trying to unravel the tragic story of Rachel Foster. The screenshots might look pretty but this is not a visually impressive creation (although the in-game rendered cutscenes are nicely animated) and technically it is functional but not much more than that. Movement is sluggish and gameplay-wise there isn't much besides walking forward and equpping a flashlight once in a while. Basically a 2.5 out of 5 stars, there are better walking sims to play but if you enjoy a short semi-scary story, give it a shot.