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This Bed We Made (2023)
one of the perks of getting a laptop after years with a desktop was knowing that i would likely get into playing steam games again. This Bed We Made was at the top of my list. a point-and-click mystery game, this is less up my alley and more the alley itself.
set in 1950s Montreal, it follows Sophie, a hotel maid, throughout one day at work. on this day, she stumbles across some suspicious information about a hotel guest, makes the decision to investigate it, involves a coworker (who can become a romantic connection), and ultimately encounters a body. it's a relatively short game (3-6 hours, i think), but there's a lot of variation in the choices you make, which can impact what's revealed throughout the game, as well as how it ends. the game is also extremely queer, but the degree to which the player (and sophie) engage with that queerness depends on player choices. i also really enjoyed how the game's writing incorporated the player's natural (imo) inclination to open every drawer and paw through every suitcase into sophie's character. i always get a kick out of narratives which find uses for game mechanics or aspects of genre.
in terms of story, This Bed We Made is about the options, and lack thereof, available to queer folks in the mid-20th Century. i loved the way this unfolded--the first hints you find to a character's queerness really rely on you having some familiarity with the queer culture of the time, but gradually becomes increasingly explicit. since i was much more knowledgeable on this count than sophie, it was a fun time for me.
the choices you make change the outcome of the various mysteries, but they also impact whether your various coworkers keep or lose their jobs. my sophie was all about solidarity with the labor class. you only encounter a few of your coworkers in person, and the game achieves a lot through written notes (that sophie finds snooping in lockers) and overheard voices--even one conversation that happens through a door. it feels like a quiet, snowy day in a hotel, but also that the hotel does have a full staff. off, somewhere, just out of view.
ultimately, the most impactful choices that the player makes determine who is arrested for murder. it's possible to protect all of the queer people in the hotel (regardless of guilt), but only if fbcuvr tbrf gb wnvy sbe bofgehpgvba. There's no other way to do it. And I think that's perfect.
set in 1950s Montreal, it follows Sophie, a hotel maid, throughout one day at work. on this day, she stumbles across some suspicious information about a hotel guest, makes the decision to investigate it, involves a coworker (who can become a romantic connection), and ultimately encounters a body. it's a relatively short game (3-6 hours, i think), but there's a lot of variation in the choices you make, which can impact what's revealed throughout the game, as well as how it ends. the game is also extremely queer, but the degree to which the player (and sophie) engage with that queerness depends on player choices. i also really enjoyed how the game's writing incorporated the player's natural (imo) inclination to open every drawer and paw through every suitcase into sophie's character. i always get a kick out of narratives which find uses for game mechanics or aspects of genre.
in terms of story, This Bed We Made is about the options, and lack thereof, available to queer folks in the mid-20th Century. i loved the way this unfolded--the first hints you find to a character's queerness really rely on you having some familiarity with the queer culture of the time, but gradually becomes increasingly explicit. since i was much more knowledgeable on this count than sophie, it was a fun time for me.
the choices you make change the outcome of the various mysteries, but they also impact whether your various coworkers keep or lose their jobs. my sophie was all about solidarity with the labor class. you only encounter a few of your coworkers in person, and the game achieves a lot through written notes (that sophie finds snooping in lockers) and overheard voices--even one conversation that happens through a door. it feels like a quiet, snowy day in a hotel, but also that the hotel does have a full staff. off, somewhere, just out of view.
ultimately, the most impactful choices that the player makes determine who is arrested for murder. it's possible to protect all of the queer people in the hotel (regardless of guilt), but only if fbcuvr tbrf gb wnvy sbe bofgehpgvba. There's no other way to do it. And I think that's perfect.
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