Firewatch Reviews
Firewatch is an excellent, tense story, uncanny in spite its numerous beauties, and unmissable despite weaker mechanics.
Firewatch is a short, succinct, game that tells the story it wants to tell. It offers a real look at developing relationships, choice and consequence, all with the beautifully rendered backdrop of the Shoshone national forest. It's a game that will stick with you beyond the finish and one that you'll want to go back to.
Firewatch has the embers of a great narrative-driven game, but it fails to ever ignite into a furnace. Unforgivable performance issues detract from the otherwise outstanding art direction, but it's the abrupt story and unconvincing characters that really douse the hype here. Campo Santo's inaugural outing starts incredibly strongly, but your alarm bells will be ringing long before it burns out without ever really sparking into life.
Firewatch is a beautiful game with a unique narrative hook. It's been hanging around in my head for days since I finished it.
That being said, Firewatch is not a difficult game. So long as you keep an eye on where you're going and don't walk in random directions, you should be fine.
Firewatch is a beautiful game full of spectacular visuals, but it's the nearly excellent writing that will really keep you moving through Henry's introspective journey.
A brilliant adventure packed with some of the best dialogue gaming has even been medium to, Firewatch manages to engross you from the moment it begins and throughout its fittingly brief tale. Even if the journey is far more captivating than the eventual destination, Firewatch is more than worth the price of admission. Wyoming and it mysteries await.
Firewatch certainly isn't a game for everyone, with its non-violent tone, its heavy emotional toll and its somewhat choppy visuals from time to time. That said, it presents a fresh breath of content to the genre that some players won't want to miss, especially when it comes to its characterization and exciting scenarios. This is one game that definitely delivers the slow burn – in a good way.
The lush environments of "Firewatch" are a joy to explore, but the story at the heart of the woods leaves something to be desired. The early emotion felt in the game's intro loses its trail among a bramble of side plots and head scratching character decisions. "Firewatch" gets lost like Henry on his first day on the job.
Through the grounded reality it portrays and simple jobs players are tasked with, Firewatch sneaks up and surprises you when it zeroes in on a powerful message about the human condition.
Firewatch pushes the still-forming first person exploration genre ahead several steps, with wonderful dialogue, sumptuous design, and a story that examines loneliness in unique ways.
Campo Santo should be applauded for what its done with Firewatch. The game is an artistic masterpiece and gives further evidence that this medium can deliver beautiful and unique experiences.
It's a shame that the game loses the player so early, and that it takes so much of its length to win one back.
Despite featuring some awful stuttering and skipping, Campo Santo's Firewatch is one of the strongest debut projects in recent memory. The Olly Moss-designed world shines on screen, and the engaging relationship between Henry and Delilah elevates the story, even in the face of a weak closing act.
Firewatch is a simple game that tells a simple, far from impactful, tale, which approaches greatness thanks to superb writing, acting and design work. Gameplay is kept light and straightforward, but is always engaging – befitting a game that revels in the unique storytelling potential of games. This is a new studio's debut title, but it bears the quality of a product made by a team of veterans who have a great deal more to offer.
Firewatch delivers a forest adventure that never really ignites
Firewatch has a funny, surprisingly intelligent narrative all captured within a spectacular and grand setting that worth a picture or two. Even though there were some obvious performance issues with the PS4 version of the game, Firewatch is still more than worth playing, multiple times.
While it may not be the most groundbreaking release of the year, Firewatch does mark another tentative step forward in exploring video game experiences beyond established genres like shooting and racing.
An above average narrative, excellent dialogue, and wonderful pacing should make Firewatch enjoyable to any adventure fan.