What follows are the journal entries from my playthrough of Mountaintop Isolation from La Lionne Publishing, which I reviewed last week. The premise of the game is as follows: You have been invited to a ski cabin weekend with your old high school friends. It is late at night by the time you find your way high up on the mountain to the remote cabin, and you are the first to arrive. You fall asleep by the crackling fire you built with the few logs available inside. When you wake up, the fire has died down to embers and you hear a whistling noise outside. A glance out the window reveals a whiteout blizzard that has created 4- to 6-foot drifts of snow. There is no cell phone reception, and the landline in the cabin appears to no longer work…
I played as a character named Sam! Sam is a 24 year old student completing a BComm with a focus in marketing. Sam has short, blonde hair, brown eyes, and freckles. Athletic and does yoga five days a week. Sam collects horse statues and loves Monty Python sketches.
Mountaintop Isolation Content Warnings: fear, isolation, suspense, despair, bullying, paranoia, mental instability, hypothermia, death.
Day 1. My name is Sam. My old high school friends planned a ski weekend getaway in a remote mountaintop cabin and invited me to join them last week. I was first to arrive as snow started to fall, and there isn’t any cell reception up here so I couldn’t reach my friends to see where they were. I hunkered down for the night near the fireplace and when I woke up this morning, I looked out the window and found a blizzard had swept through while I slept. The snow is so deep I can’t even see my car anymore.
I think I’m going to be stuck here for a while without my friends; there’s no way they can get up here. I’ll just need to wait it out. Hopefully there’s enough firewood to keep me warm. I already used what was stacked by the fireplace when I arrived, and it’s just embers now… -S.
Day 2. Still snowing. Can’t reach my car and don’t think anyone else will be making it up. Still no cell reception. There’s a covered porch along two sides of the cabin that wasn’t too snowy. I didn’t want to trek through waist deep snow just to look around. I found a radio antenna out there. I was just walking across the porch and heard something crack under my foot – never a good sound! I thought for a second I’d broken the porch somehow.
Weird place to find an antenna. I haven’t seen a radio, so maybe someone who stayed here before lost this piece? I brought it inside. I think they’d be happy to find it if ever they come back. A fun story, you know? “Oh haha, we went and got a new radio but the antenna was at the cabin the whole time!” -S.
Day 3. Did anyone check the weather before planning this trip? It’s still snowing. The storm can’t last forever, right? No, I know it can’t. It will end and it will take me hours but I’ll be able to dig out my car and head home. Do they get snow removal up here? It’s pretty remote and I wouldn’t want to start the drive back down the mountain only to get stuck somewhere….
I’m regretting agreeing to this trip a little bit. Am I a bad person for thinking that? I was so surprised when my friends reached out… we hadn’t spoken in years. It was such an out of the blue invitation. I don’t even ski, and they said that was fine. Maybe someone cancelled at the last minute? I was always a good spare. That’s a big part of why I stopped hanging out with them… I don’t know. I think I wanted us to have a fresh start. It was weird to hear from them, but I thought maybe this would be a new chapter. -S.
Somehow the storm is getting worse. I just got chills. The wind is…Okay, I like nature enough. Parks are nice, and I enjoy a short hike as much as the next person. But it’s really quiet out here, and I think that’s starting to mess with my head. It really does sound like the wind is howling. You hear that in books and stuff but I’d never really heard it before. I don’t like it! Like, I know it’s the wind but…
Okay, okay, okay. What is even happening okay so. Wow. A tree just crashed next to the cabin. Like, maybe five feet away. That’s shorter than I am tall. What the fuck. It was so LOUD. This awful cracking sound, I’ve never heard anything like it, and then this shuddering and… okay. No it’s fine, this is fine, I’m okay. I mean it’s… firewood right? Yeah. Firewood nice and close. -S.
Did I mention the thundersnow? Yeah that’s a thing apparently. The clouds started rumbling and maybe it was a bad idea but I wanted to know what was happening so went to look outside and that’s when – it was so fast. The cracking and bright light – the smell? Lightning hit the tree and down it went and it was so close and I want to go home. -S.
Decided not to go back outside today. I’m good, that was too close and I’m still really shaken. I’m lucky it didn’t hit the cabin. Or my car. Really can’t afford a new car. Imagine if it had blocked the road? It could have been worse. I was startled but it’s okay. I’m alright. And I found what I think is a hand crank for that radio! I still haven’t found the actual radio, but have the crank and antenna now.
Maybe whoever had it didn’t forget these pieces? Maybe they left the radio behind too? I don’t know why they’d disassemble it like this, super unhelpful honestly, but… maybe it’s here. Maybe I’ll be able to get a signal out. Or maybe they accidentally threw the radio out – there was a lot of trash in the dresser I found the crank in. I hope they didn’t. I really hope they didn’t. -S.
No luck finding the radio (yet), but I did find a packet of ginger biscuits in the pantry. They were half-eaten and stale, but it’s better than nothing. I like ginger biscuits, and they’re usually pretty crunchy but stale like this? Pretty sure you could use them as a hammer. They’re hard. -S.
Day 4. Cold. So cold. Went outside to look for food, foraging I think it’s called? Like I know anything about that. Snowdrift shifted and buried me. I was lucky, the snow was light so getting out was fine. I was soaked. Am soaked. Hung up my wet clothes and am huddled by the fire. Didn’t think to bring my own towel, so used some of my laundry to try and dry off. What I wouldn’t give for a hot bath. -S.
Woke up to a knock at the door. Or, I thought it was a knock. I wanted it to be a knock. I thought someone had arrived, one of my friends or… I don’t know, anyone. I opened the door and a blast of freezing cold air hit me. I closed the door as fast as I could, but the chill is in here now. I feel cold in my bones, and I’m running low on firewood. I really thought I had heard a knock… -S.
Decided to walk around the cabin to try and warm up. Get the blood pumping, you know? Bad idea, leg is all scratched up and there’s a draft coming up from where my foot plunged through the floorboards. I thought it would be bad to go through the porch. Going through the floor didn’t even cross my mind. I lay the damp clothes I used to dry off over the hole and put some of the broken wood pieces over them. I think it’s helping? I just want to get warm. -S.
Day 5. These last five days have felt like five years. I woke up this morning to a terrible crackling noise. I didn’t know what was happening and then – I didn’t even know this could happen – the wind tore off a section of the roof. The wind tore off the roof. Not the WHOLE roof, just a corner part. Just a – what am I even saying, how does this happen? Why is it happening to me? I never should have come on this trip. It’s so cold in here now – I have a hole in the floor and now part of the roof is gone and any heat from the fire is gone and I’m just… I’m so tired. -S.
I found a mostly intact tarp and a hammer, and took the nails out of the broken floorboard to cover up the hole in the roof. I don’t know how long it will hold. The fire is down to embers now, I sat here for hours trying to get warm. Tried to go out for more wood but the snow has buried the cabin entirely. I didn’t know what to do. The door wasn’t happening. I can’t open it. I decided to go to the bedroom and started burrowing through the window. There’s a pile of snow in there now. I moved the mattress to the living room. I should have done that sooner. It’s so hard to stay warm. I got firewood, but it’s frozen. I brought in as much as I could before I got too tired. Finished the ginger biscuits. I don’t feel well. -S.
I don’t know what time it is. I turned off my phone to conserve the battery. I just had… a bad dream. A nightmare. My friends were in it – these friends, the ones who invited me. They were taunting me, jeering… it felt so real. I could almost believe it happened. Did it? Did they, and I forgot? I’ve heard that. That brains can forget bad things, hide them so they don’t hurt you. Were they that terrible to me? Why did I agree to come on this trip? I shouldn’t have come. I shouldn’t have trusted them.
Did they plan this? -S.
Day 6. Couldn’t stay inside anymore. I know I should. I know it’s safer (is it? Is it when the floorboards break and wind rips off the roof?) but I just… it doesn’t matter. I should have stayed inside. In the woods, not far from the cabin, there’s a skeleton hanging from the trees. Like. An animal skeleton. I was so scared. I am so scared. How did it get here? Someone must have put it here. But why? Will they come back? Could they help me?
I didn’t want to get closer. I did, and saw it was tied with twine. I tried to undo some – so whoever did it would know someone else had been here – but my fingers were too cold. I tried to change where the bones were positioned. I don’t know if it will hold, with the storm but I had to try. I had to do something. This isn’t a bad idea, right?
Oh god maybe I shouldn’t have touched it. Who puts a skeleton up like that in the woods? What if it’s a murderer. I’ve told a murderer that I’m around. Nobody will ever know. No – no come on! Don’t be ridiculous, that’s not – there’s a totally normal explanation for this. There has to be. Right? -S.
The storm is breaking! I don’t believe it, I didn’t believe it but I believe it now! It’s still freezing cold, the wind cut right through me but the snow has stopped! And the wind, yeah it’s cold but it isn’t as strong as it was! My car is still buried – I’m not actually sure where exactly it is, I’d put some sticks in the snow but they got buried… whatever – the storm is breaking and I still have to find a way down but the storm is breaking! Maybe someone else will be able to get up here! It has been almost a week, they’ve got to be wondering where I am by now. -S.
Day 7. I was out foraging when I saw it: a crate! It looked like the emergency supplies you see on TV, and I’m so glad the wind went by when it did so that I saw it. I rushed towards it – as much as you can rush in such high snow – and came to the edge of a pond. I don’t like frozen water. I won’t skate on anything that’s not artificial. I just don’t trust it. But supplies…
I remembered hearing that to cross frozen water you should spread your weight and be low to the ice so I got down on my hands and knees and started crawling. It was slow going. But I got it! I got it and the ice didn’t break! The crate had been broken into by… I don’t know what, but I think it was big. There weren’t as many supplies as I had hoped. I was thinking… fire… blankets… food, maybe a flare or something? There was some dehydrated food left. I’ll take it. It’ll be my first real meal in days. I need to make sure these last. I don’t think I’ll get lucky like this again. I just need to hold out until someone can make it up here. -S.
Day 8. I know it sounds fake but I swear I heard laughter coming from the forest. It was cheerful, loud and so crisp and clear. I thought I was imagining it at first, but it kept going. I started searching the trees, trying to follow the sound but I couldn’t find anyone. What’s happening here? What’s happening to me? -S.
I got back inside and huddled up next to the fire. It’s small, and doesn’t do much unless I’m right next to it. There’s too many places for heat to escape from for it to be properly warm. I’m wearing all my layers. I turned on my phone. I don’t have service but I text my family. I don’t know if they’ll get my messages. What are they going to say when they find out what’s happened to me? Will they find out? Am I going to be one of those unsolved missing person cases that some network makes a shitty show about? I don’t want that for them. Or me. -S.
I heard someone! Maybe the laughter was doing a weird sound thing earlier. But I heard someone, and then saw them! It was so faint, but I know I saw someone on skis on the mountain. I shouted as loud as I could. I kept shouting and shouting. I don’t think they heard me. But maybe… maybe they did. Maybe they’ll find the cabin! I’m going to get out of this! -S.
The wind and snow is relentless. I thought the storm was breaking. It got better but is still so cold. Between the hole in the floor and the busted roof I just can’t get warm. I can’t stop shivering. What does hypothermia feel like? I can’t feel my hands or feet. I don’t have any more layers of blankets. I don’t know what to do. I hope that the skier finds me soon. I don’t know how much longer I can do this. -S.
Day 9. I found tracks outside. I don’t know a lot about animals outside of horses but I thought they might be deer. Which would be fine if the snow wasn’t up to my waist. What is out there? Is this why those bones were strung up? What’s wrong with this place? I never should have come here. I’m going to freeze to death and be eaten by mutant deer. My family will never know what happened to me. Oh god. -S.
Day 10. The landline phone rang! I thought it didn’t work and that I was hallucinating. I stumbled over and shouted “Hello!” into the phone, but there was nobody there. There wasn’t even a dial tone. I don’t understand, I know I didn’t imagine it. -S.
Day 11. Can’t stay awake. Heard an awful scream in the night. I thought it was the wind but… it wasn’t. They were coming from the forest, and they were terrible. I huddled even deeper into the blankets. I hope whatever is out there doesn’t find me. I don’t want to die like this. -S.
Day 12. Went into the forest to investigate. Probably a bad idea. A ball of light appeared in front of me. It was bright white, the size of a tennis ball. Before I could touch it it shot off into the trees. I went after it. I don’t know why – because it was impossible? Because it must have been magic? I thought it was magic. It gave me hope. But magic isn’t real. Was the light even real? -S.
I think the light was real. It was a sign of what was to come: sun! The clouds have finally parted. It’s still freezing but maybe this means the storm is really over. The sun will melt the snow. It will be warm. It has to be warm. My whole body is so cold. I heard people lose fingers to frostbite. Is hypothermia like that? Is it too late for me to warm up? I… I’m going to go lie down. -S.
Day 13. I was the only one here when I arrived. Wasn’t I? I was looking around today and there’s things I don’t remember being here. Like these boots I found in the closet. I would have remembered seeing those, wouldn’t I? Did someone arrive a few days before me? If they did, why haven’t they come back? I’m using these boots. They’re too big but they’re proper winter boots. Mine are meant for winters in the city. You know. Walking from your car to a building and back again. Not… this. -S.
I went out with my new boots. They’re a big hard to walk in, but really warm. Saw something sticking out from near the bottom of a snowdrift and dug it out. It’s the radio! I rushed back to the cabin and I think I put the antenna and hand crank in the right spots. I sent out an emergency signal. I hope someone heard it. I’m going to keep trying. Someone will find me! -S.
Day 14. The wind has died down. I haven’t been able to see this much since arriving. It’s back to snowing, but it’s light now. Peaceful. Maybe… maybe I should walk down. If it stays like this I should be okay. But what if it doesn’t stay like this? -S.
The wind is back and angrier than ever. It’s like when the roof came off. The tarp collapsed under the weight of the snow. It’s colder here than ever before. I don’t know what to do. -S.
Found a notebook at the back of a drawer from someone here before me. It’s filled with notes and drawings. One of them is a wolf. I think it’s a wolf. Maybe it’s more than that. I don’t know. There’s something wrong with this cabin. This mountain. I’ve been feeding pages into the fire for warmth. I’m glad this notebook was left. Even if I’m more afraid to go outside. -S.
The wind is whipping against the cabin and I’m curled up in front of the fire. I’m running low on my portioned rations and am always hungry and tired but I’m awake. And the fire is as big as it has been since my first few days here thanks to that notebook. I probably should have saved more of it but… I need to warm up. Especially after getting the tarp back up. I got covered in snow again. The wind is brutal. -S.
Day 15. I heard something outside. The crunching of snow. I feel like something’s watching me. Is it the thing that screamed in the woods? Is it that wolf creature from the notebook? I’m keeping the axe right next to the mattress. -S.
Something passed by the window. It looked human. It was just a shadow but… it took me hours to get up the courage to check, but when I looked outside properly there was nobody there. There weren’t even tracks. It’s watching me. I know it is. -S.
I had to get more wood. I’m so afraid, but I need it. It was on my last run back that it happened. I slipped on ice outside the cabin. I forgot that patch was there. I didn’t feel anything at first – I can’t feel most of my body outside – but couldn’t put any weight on my foot. Back by the fire I looked at it. My ankle is swollen and really, really hurts. I think I twisted it. How am I going to walk down now? -S.
Day 16. I found a note in my jacket pocket. How did I miss it before? It looks like Beth’s writing. Why would she write me a note? How did it get in my pocket? Why would she tell me to bundle up? Was it even for me? I haven’t seen Beth in years, she was meant to be here this weekend. How did I get this? -S.
Day 17. The howling is back and I know it isn’t the wind. It’s the same thing that has been going by the window. That’s watching me. I saw it, just a flash of movement from the corner of my eye. Aren’t there stories about these woods and their danger? I shouldn’t have come here. I never should have agreed to this trip. -S.
What’s the point? Nobody is going to find me. It has been almost three weeks. Nobody is coming. I’m going to die here. Maybe I should just go out into the snow and fall asleep. It would be so easy… -S.
I found playing cards in a hidden cupboard near the fireplace. There was a note with them. “I’ll beat you next time.” I threw it in the fire. I’m burning the cards. -S.
The clouds came back. They’re so thick you almost couldn’t see daylight at all. I felt vulnerable, being the only spot of light in this otherwise spot of darkness. I know I’m being watched. It’s just waiting, biding its time. Maybe if I’m very still it won’t find me. -S.
Day 18. I found a generator! It works! There isn’t much gas, but the cabin is warm – I am warm! I don’t… there’s something wrong with my fingers and toes. My whole body hurts from blood flow returning properly. But it’s warm. I have heat. I won’t freeze. I have a few more days. -S.
Wind shifted and blew snow up against the door again. I was able to force my way out but it cost me. With the heat I can feel my ankle properly and it… it isn’t good. I need to see a doctor. How do you heal a twisted ankle that you’ve been moving on? -S.
It was only a matter of time, but the pipes have frozen. I thought with the generator I could have warm water and a warm cabin but… the pipes are frozen. I don’t have running water anymore. I should have stocked up. Why didn’t I do that? I can melt snow, right? I’m so tired. – S.
I don’t think my friends were ever going to come. I should have known better. They aren’t my friends. They never were. No friends would let someone be missing this long. They knew I didn’t want to come on this trip. They tried so hard to convince me. Why did they do that? We were never that close. I should have trusted my gut. I shouldn’t have been so hopeful.
What did it matter that they might have liked me after this? It was high school. It doesn’t matter. They didn’t want me on this trip. Maybe someone cancelled. Or maybe… What did I ever do to deserve this? They were never going to come. They aren’t coming.
They aren’t coming. There isn’t much gas and I can’t stand long enough to chop more wood. My car is buried. I can’t walk down the mountain. Nobody has answered the emergency signals I’ve sent out.
If you find this… oh God. My name is Sam Turner. I’m 24 years old, and my birthday was on January 13th. My parents are Lisa and Mitch, and I have an older brother, Vik. Tell my family I love them. And I’m sorry I cancelled our dinner plans to go on this trip. – Sam.
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