Because Firewatch features a decidedly human story that constantly hints at something bigger, its setting’s majesty largely plays second fiddle. The thing is, there’s a reason why there aren’t gamers wandering around our National Parks. Sure, on top of everything else it has to offer, this setting is a fantastic change of pace from what we usually see in video games. Because Firewatch takes place in the middle of a largely empty sect of Wyoming wildnerness, there has to be a strong narrative at play to prevent players from dying of boredom. We’ll dive into its carefully crafted thematic elements and how gorgeous it looks later on, after diving into its bread and butter: the story. You know, with the rappelling and all.įirewatch has three basic hooks to its credit. In case you were wondering, that was totally another outdoorsy joke. Firewatch places you right in the mind of a man on the run from an impossibly heartbreaking situation, and this immediately ropes you in and makes you a believer in its tale. It’s why the aforementioned Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture feels like you’re taking the role of a slow-moving camera operator. One of the biggest problem with a number of first-person experiences is they remove all sense of humanity from the player. You’ll have the ability to influence the path Henry’s life takes through this opening text-based segment, but the destination is always the same. The truth to Henry’s life is actually a tougher pill to swallow, as Firewatch’s earliest moments use brilliantly crafted dialogue options to illustrate how his wife’s life was shattered by Early-onset Alzheimers. Video games have trained us to expect downright ridiculous things about narratives, so the previous sentence might have seemed like a hint at some insane twist. Firewatch tells the story of Henry, a conflicted middle-aged Boulder, Colorado native escaping a horrifying situation by taking a job as a fire lookout in Wyoming’s Shoshone National Forrest. Also, yes, that absolutely was a geology pun, and for good reason.
With the obligatory grandiose statement on genre debates out of the way, let’s dive into this absolutely rock-solid title. Of course, we can’t forget that the opposite side of the argument is very quick to christen every first-person experience as the best video game of all time, so both ends of the spectrum have some issues in regards to these games. Oh, and make no bones about it, Firewatch is absolutely, 100% a video game, and it’s sad to think about this blatant fact being a future point of contention. There’s something divisive about these first-person, narrative-heavy exploration games, and though it’s totally okay to enjoy whatever you like, some really fantastic games are being brushed aside by gamers around the world because of earlier genre entries. After all, if you’re not a fan of shooters or Japanese role-playing games, you probably won’t enjoy shooters or Japanese role-playing games. Ordinarily, this is something that goes without saying.
Those who found titles like The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, Gone Home and Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture to be less than palatable probably won’t have a great time here. Even though the player character, Henry, can interact with objects in the environment, rappel and use equipment, there is no fast-paced action to speak of. If you’re someone who is inherently against narrative-driven first-person experience games (AKA walking simulators), then this is definitely not the game for you. There’s one thing that must be addressed before diving into what ultimately makes Firewatch a successful game. From its memorable, shockingly human story to its powerful examination into escapism and the idea of being lost, this is one first person experience that you should absolutely indulge in. With that said, Firewatch is nowhere near a disappointment. If you’ve come to Firewatch looking for a game that will absolutely blow your mind, then you’re probably going to walk away disappointed.
#Firewatch game ending simulator#
The closest comparison for how Campo Santo has managed to build its mysterious Wyoming solitude simulator would be the way in which Fullbright teased at horror in Gone Home. Make no mistake, Firewatch is not a game that will toy with you in the way Undertale or The Witness will. Whenever games toy around with player expectations, it automatically shifts the way you look at the entire package. Very few games are bona fide stumpers from a criticism standpoint, but Firewatch is the best example we’ve come across in quite some time.
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