Firewatch

I applaud the idea, but somewhere along the way I just got bored and couldn't be bothered to finish the game. I couldn't identify with the character, and that made the dialogues (which make up a large portion of the story, while you're walking/climbing to a place to finish a task), well, boring.

Overrated game. I've heard that it's excellent but I was disappointed. It's a walk around the forrest with some anticlimactic mistery around it, talking with someone, thinking that your dialogue choices, or any choices, matter, but they don't. Don't bother exploring, don't bother carefully choosing your dialogue carefully, they all lead you to the exact same one ending that the game has. It's so sad that the developers gave us so many options but didn't do anything meaningful with them, it's a complete letdown.

Embark on a journey through Wyoming's wilderness in Firewatch, a game that promises much but delivers inconsistently. Visually, Firewatch offers an intriguing landscape, with detailed backgrounds that immerse players in the wilds of Wyoming. However, the animations lack appeal, and details feel neglected, detracting from the overall experience. The story, while initially engaging, takes an unexpected turn as it sidelines main character development for a convoluted narrative involving secondary characters. The disjointed prologue further adds to the sense of inconsistency, leaving players feeling disconnected from the overall narrative. In terms of audio, Firewatch fails to leave a lasting impression. While the voice acting is commendable, bringing the characters to life with vivid and realistic dialogue, the music is forgettable, and the sound design lacks the immersion necessary to fully captivate players. Gameplay in Firewatch is overly simplified, with exploration feeling monotonous and serving primarily as a backdrop for dialogue between main characters. Choices in dialogue have little impact, contributing to the overall sense of disappointment and leaving players yearning for a more engaging experience. However, Developer Commentary adds depth and insight into the game's development, providing players with a unique perspective on the creative process behind Firewatch. In conclusion, Firewatch shows promise but ultimately falls short due to its inconsistencies. While it offers glimpses of potential, particularly in its landscape and voice acting, it fails to deliver a cohesive and immersive experience, leaving players wanting more.

TL;DR: If you like walking simulators, I recommend checking out the game but maybe wait for it to be on sale. As far as walking simulators go, this one was pretty intense. It was engaging, emotional, and had me at the edge of my seat for much of the game. The visuals were quite beautiful for a game of this type. As someone else mentioned, the audio could have been better but I feel like the quietness of the game was likely intentional to make it as lonely feeling as possible. The game is so immersive that you don't notice that some stuff doesn't make any sense and aren't cleared up in the game. I highly recommend looking up the theories online after you finish the story. If you let your imagination run wild, it's a very enjoyable game. Also, you can adopt a turtle so that's cool.

Despite what people say, I really enjoyed the story and found navigating the game world to be enjoyable. The ending is somewhat unsatisfying but I think it's intentional and it didn't detract from the experience for me. This game is pretty short and there isn't much replay value. I don't think that a game needs to have much replay value to be good, but the game is $20 and not very long. If you buy it on dale, it absolutely worth it and I enjoyed the experience.