Firewatch - First Person Adventure/Puzzler/Exploration Game

[Isgrimnur]

On sale today on Steam for $9.

[Hipolito]

I just finished this game. I thought the plot was OK. The way it unfolded, you kinda knew it would end up being inplausible, and it was. But it wasn't as farfetched as I was expecting, and was buttressed by very good dialogue and voice acting.

As others have mentioned, the real strength of the story was how it mirrored the characters' lives. People were coming to the forest to escape reality and responsibility. Escaping can be a good idea when life's problems become overwhelming. But when the escape becomes more than a brief respite, you're just running away from yourself. You bring your neglectful nature to the forest and cause mishaps there.

Some gameplay annoyances prevented me from fulling enjoying Firewatch. The forest can be pretty, but the game didn't run very smoothly on my fairly good PC. It was annoying to have to keep taking out and putting away the map and compass while navigating the forest. I wandered around lost for about an hour and had to look up hints to know where to go next.

Firewatch is a thoughtful trip worth taking, but I liked Gone Home much more.

[Scraper]

I think I was 1/4th done and stopped. I started thinking all kinds of stuff about it...am I dead...is the lady on the radio a ghost ...a killer? And all the possibilities got to me and I just walked away instead of finding out.

I just played through this game on Gamepass. It only takes about 4 hours tops. I can say I was honestly dissapointed with the end. Like Daehawk my mind was running wild with the possible explanations for what was going on.

Spoiler:

In the end when it was just some chick who can't take responsibility for her actions and tries to cover everything up and a dad who couldn't handle his son's death, I was disappointed to say the least. I was at least hoping that the woman would be the one pulling all the strings just to mess with him.

[Scraper]

I will add that it was worth the playthrough, especially since it's on Gamepass and it's so short. But there's no reason to go back and play it again.

[GreenGoo]

It's been on my wishlist forever, feels like, and I too bought it just this past sale. Not sure when I'll get to it but it's kind of a mystery to me too, so I'm curious what I've bought.

I did play through it years ago, and had thought I might comment on it here, but in the end I didn't feel like I had anything more to say than most would have already done.

With Scraper's disappointment, I revisited my feelings on the game, and while I won't comment on details (especially since my memory is hazy), I will generalize a bit.

I will say I enjoyed it and while it didn't meet my hopes for a crazy ending, I was not disappointed either. It was a walking simulator and even though I don't play many of those, I felt it was a good one. It's listed as #2 on this top 20 walking simulator list.

Spoiler:

As with Life is Strange, I felt it dealt with real human emotions and introspection. People aren't perfect and the characters in this game are not super hero protagonists. They are flawed. And that's the end.

I felt that was good enough, and better than I expected for the few dollars I paid.

Note that these are not the kinds of games I look for or play often, so for me it was practically a unique experience. For others, it might be more mundane or a weak implementation of typical walking simulator play. I wouldn't know.

edit: There are no real puzzles in the game. Not that I remember anyway. Mysteries? Yes. Puzzles, no.
And as Scraper says, it has zero replayability.

[Blackhawk]

Lesse, the search function tells me I played in 2019. Here was what I said in the 'games played' thread:

7/3 - Firewatch. I really do enjoy peaceful exploration games, and this was that. I shied away from this one for quite a while, as the art style made me hesitate. Exploration games, for me, are about immersion. Stylistic graphics tend to work against that, as they always look like graphics, not a place (not that they weren't beautifully done.) But while the game may have been a little less immersive, it more than made up for it with remarkably well done characters that felt particularly human. I really enjoyed this.

[Blackhawk]

It's listed as #2 on this top 20 walking simulator list.

[snip]

Note that these are not the kinds of games I look for or play often, so for me it was practically a unique experience.

I don't play them regularly, but I'll give one a shot every year or two, just for a laid-back change of pace. Off of that list, I've played five (The Stanley Parable, Firewatch, The Unfinished Swan, Dear Esther, Gone Home.) I really enjoyed every one of them. Sometimes it's nice just to 'go' somewhere and experience something special without the constant press of objectives, quests, resources, and other nagging mechanics. I wouldn't play them exclusively, but they're a great palate cleanser.

[Alefroth]

Funny that they consider Death Stranding a walking simulator. No. 1 and 4 on that list are very good.

[GreenGoo]

No one said the list was valid

I just picked a random link from google search.

I've never played Death Stranding, and have no idea what it's about. Babies in jars in backpacks, is my understanding.

[Daehawk]

I still need to play this though along with The Vanishing of Ethan Carter.

[Alefroth]

I've never played Death Stranding, and have no idea what it's about. Babies in jars in backpacks, is my understanding.

Lol... that's part of it. A cargo delivery simulator where the terrain is your adversary as much as anything else. Wrapped in a story from the imagination of Kojima.