Firewatch

 PC
User Score
7.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 1504 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 922 out of 1504
  2. Mixed: 361 out of 1504
  3. Negative: 221 out of 1504

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  1. yogibbear
    Feb 11, 2016
    4
    Good gameplay, good humorous writing, interesting concept. Let down heavily by an unbelievable plot full of idiotic characters making stupid decisions. Entire game falls over because you cannot believe what they do or their motivations. Rest of it would be great in another game with a better story and more expanded gameplay. So... I feel ripped off. I mean I knew it was going to be a storyGood gameplay, good humorous writing, interesting concept. Let down heavily by an unbelievable plot full of idiotic characters making stupid decisions. Entire game falls over because you cannot believe what they do or their motivations. Rest of it would be great in another game with a better story and more expanded gameplay. So... I feel ripped off. I mean I knew it was going to be a story game / walking simulator, but there's just no meat here. Also there's no real choice in what happens, just different dialogue as far as I can tell. Pretty disappointed as from the reviews I'd read they made it sound like there'd be multiple endings or something so at least that would've given it some meat, but nope. Not recommended.… Expand
  2. JazGalaxy
    Feb 14, 2016
    4
    Great writing and voice acting are stymied by a terrible plot and conclusion that leave the player scratching their head and wondering why this was a story that needed to be told at all. As usual gamers give too much credit for what is attempted rather than what was achieved. Player choose is mostly cosmetic. In short, want to read a murder mystery where the ending is that nobody was everGreat writing and voice acting are stymied by a terrible plot and conclusion that leave the player scratching their head and wondering why this was a story that needed to be told at all. As usual gamers give too much credit for what is attempted rather than what was achieved. Player choose is mostly cosmetic. In short, want to read a murder mystery where the ending is that nobody was ever actually killed? Your answer will give you the answer as to whether you should play firewatch.… Expand
  3. Chris_DK
    Feb 18, 2016
    4
    This game has a lot of great moments but I completed it in under 4 hours and that was without rushing it. The ending was a serious anticlimax and was really weak. The game ends abruptly and is very linear, the choices you make in this game does not matter in the end. There was no character development, the relationship you have invested time on througout this entire game was for nothing.This game has a lot of great moments but I completed it in under 4 hours and that was without rushing it. The ending was a serious anticlimax and was really weak. The game ends abruptly and is very linear, the choices you make in this game does not matter in the end. There was no character development, the relationship you have invested time on througout this entire game was for nothing. The game has an outstanding voice cast, an excellent soundtrack and nice visuals but is kind of shallow. I have been looking forward to this game ever since it was announced and really wanted to love it. This game had potential to be so much more.… Expand
  4. dunnyone
    Feb 11, 2016
    4
    I'll give the developers this, the voice acting is excellent. The banter between the two characters is incredibly realistic but this falls woefully short as a game. It's three hours long (if that) and the ending is utter trash. It was also insanely overpriced for what you get. I truly do not understand these idiot official sites that tell us how excellent these games are, when they areI'll give the developers this, the voice acting is excellent. The banter between the two characters is incredibly realistic but this falls woefully short as a game. It's three hours long (if that) and the ending is utter trash. It was also insanely overpriced for what you get. I truly do not understand these idiot official sites that tell us how excellent these games are, when they are simply lackluster walking simulators. Wait for a Steam sale, when it drops to $5 then snap it up.… Expand
  5. Vzhik
    Feb 16, 2016
    4
    Как-то всё посредственно. Ни глубокой истории, ни мега-красивостей, музыки очень мало.. Всё ждал какого-го нибудь неожиданного поворота. Ощущение пустышки, обманки. Разочарование от игры.
  6. sjcodan
    Feb 9, 2016
    4
    The setup, the pacing, the suspense were all amazing, but that ending actively made me un-enjoy the game. There's so much setup pointing towards things that just don't matter. At all. I don't want to touch spoilers in my review, but lets leave it at this;
    The first third of the game is a 7, the middle third is a 9, and the back third is a -5.
  7. Akolyte01
    Feb 9, 2016
    4
    A very short game where the plot goes nowhere. Beautiful art direction that conveys the sense of an open world, but is really a series of corridors without any sort of gratifying exploration.

    The game is centered around the plot, but the ending leaves you thinking "Well, that was a whole bunch of nothing."

    Do not listen to the shills creaming their jeans, Firewatch is exceedingly mediocre.
  8. meglaa
    Aug 11, 2016
    4
    Going from point A to point B, with sometimes an additional point C. Basically the game is a walking simulator with dialogue. You can't run with the map open, which is a big deal, since you hardly learn the map before the game is over. The story is pretty interesting, but it feels like at the end, the writers were fired, because nearing the ending is just ridiculous. The actual gameplayGoing from point A to point B, with sometimes an additional point C. Basically the game is a walking simulator with dialogue. You can't run with the map open, which is a big deal, since you hardly learn the map before the game is over. The story is pretty interesting, but it feels like at the end, the writers were fired, because nearing the ending is just ridiculous. The actual gameplay time is a few hours, which is pretty sad, considering the price of the game and the game has absolutely no replay value. The decisions you make have no impact on the game itself, it's just for you to do something. Whatever you choose, whatever you do, the entire game will still be exactly the same.… Expand
  9. honest_rev7
    Sep 26, 2020
    4
    UH this falls under one more genre of "i forgot i even played this??|" cos i did. i forgot i got it and played it, and beat it. HUH, how's that for impressions?

    no idea what to give it cos at least i played it until its end. more than i can say for most stuff these days. but it wasn't a good end, anyway. ppl say this game's characters had good banter but i just thought that this is    UH this falls under one more genre of "i forgot i even played this??|" cos i did. i forgot i got it and played it, and beat it. HUH, how's that for impressions?

    no idea what to give it cos at least i played it until its end. more than i can say for most stuff these days. but it wasn't a good end, anyway.

    ppl say this game's characters had good banter but i just thought that this is kind of barren empty experience i'd never want to experience if it was my story in colorado, so why did i pay someone for an experience i'd consciously avoid?

    there's some story but idunno it all felt kinda cheesy to me. first person perspective isn't the way you get to connect with your character and immerse yourself cos it takes me away weirdly.

    such a shame about this game's ending. a cop-out    … Expand
  10. slicshuter
    Feb 9, 2016
    3
    The best thing about this game is the visuals. If you came for the visuals and exploration, buy the game, it's probably the prettiest game I've played in the past few years. The environment and art style is beautiful. However, I feel like if you came for the thrilling story, stop playing about 2/3 into the game because after that it starts to fall flat. I can't spoil anything but all I canThe best thing about this game is the visuals. If you came for the visuals and exploration, buy the game, it's probably the prettiest game I've played in the past few years. The environment and art style is beautiful. However, I feel like if you came for the thrilling story, stop playing about 2/3 into the game because after that it starts to fall flat. I can't spoil anything but all I can see is I was pretty disappointed with how the story concluded. The characters were seemingly deep but when you think about it you actually barely learn anything about them after the first hour or so of story, and from there the story itself begins to peak before falling flat at the end.

    Overall, the game kept me entertained for about 5 hours, but I can't help but feel like the story could have been a lot better. 10/10 for visuals, 5/10 for the story. I don't think it's worth £15, but something definitely worth picking up later on in the year when it's on sale.    … Expand
  11. willfo
    Feb 10, 2016
    3
    A 2 hour game that amounts to nothing.

    Beautiful and well made, but with a story that could have come from a bad 90's TV movie written by a failed screenwriter working for nickelodeon. Do not be fooled into thinking this game falls into a category with telltale games or Until Dawn, because the story and choice elements are sorely lacking. If you REALLY like the walking-sim style    A 2 hour game that amounts to nothing.

    Beautiful and well made, but with a story that could have come from a bad 90's TV movie written by a failed screenwriter working for nickelodeon.
    Do not be fooled into thinking this game falls into a category with telltale games or Until Dawn, because the story and choice elements are sorely lacking.

    If you REALLY like the walking-sim style genre then this may be worth a buy, otherwise wait for a sale at best.    … Expand
  12. itmo
    Feb 10, 2016
    3
    So did they forget to finish the game but still charge for a full game? The best way to sum up this game is - Good Marketing campaign, Dud game. The asking price for this game is 3 times to much for what you get, and what you get is a 3 hour walking simulator, on rails, no exploring the great wide yonder, a pretense to an interesting story which falls flat on its backside. There is noSo did they forget to finish the game but still charge for a full game? The best way to sum up this game is - Good Marketing campaign, Dud game. The asking price for this game is 3 times to much for what you get, and what you get is a 3 hour walking simulator, on rails, no exploring the great wide yonder, a pretense to an interesting story which falls flat on its backside. There is no climax, there really isn't much of a game. Zero replay value. Reminds me of the beginners guide, it's trying to be arty, cool but comes off as lame, underdeveloped and a missed opportunity to be an innovative idea.… Expand
  13. Voodoo123
    Jan 10, 2018
    3
    This well-enough crafted game uses simple, 'nintendo style' graphics to tell its pretentious story about a fire lookout solving a mystery. It's a 3 hour long 'walking simulator' game and once you start playing, you'll quickly know if its for you or not.
  14. thumperca
    Oct 15, 2017
    3
    This game was a let-down and I regret buying it. It is nowhere as good as critics believed us to be. There isn't a lot to explore and the campaign was short. The ending of the game is also a big letdown. This game builds up suspense but ends feeling empty.
  15. da_ReVo
    Nov 15, 2017
    3
    The only thing going for this game is the beautiful art style.
    The world is quite empty in comparison to many walking sims that take place in much smaller gameworlds.
    The story doesn't go anywhere.
    And the poor business practices hurting the industry.
  16. Morguewolf
    Feb 13, 2016
    3
    I was ready to be in love with this game. It looked beautiful and had a great set up for an amazing story. Sadly...

    It falls short in literally every department. The game is painfully short for the price tag of $20. 3 hours long with zero depth in the gameplay and a massively disappointing story. Do yourself a favor and ignore this game.
  17. AlkaVirus
    Feb 9, 2016
    3
    Hardly a game, more like a mediocre story-based game trying to show off animation and graphics. Lots of backtracking, uninspiring characters, and cheesy conversation lines. The only redeemable factor is that it shows a glimpse of suspense, but that which quickly dies away.
  18. draconianwrath
    Feb 12, 2016
    3
    This game contain two well-fleshed characters talking to each other, a pretty wilderness to walk around in and NOTHING ELSE. A literal walking simulator.

    The gameplay is basically nil. You walk from A to B over and over, meanwhile selecting dialogue choices which only change the next line of dialogue received and nothing else, giving the illusion of choice. That's it. THAT'S THE GAME.    This game contain two well-fleshed characters talking to each other, a pretty wilderness to walk around in and NOTHING ELSE. A literal walking simulator.

    The gameplay is basically nil. You walk from A to B over and over, meanwhile selecting dialogue choices which only change the next line of dialogue received and nothing else, giving the illusion of choice. That's it. THAT'S THE GAME.

    The above might have been forgivable if the game had a strong story to keep you interested throughout. Unfortunately, while the story starts off strong, it proceeds to jump of a cliff near the end, which is almost as bad as having it be bad all throughout as it leaves a very sour taste in many people's mouths.

    The only positive aspects of Firewatch are the dialogue and the environment design, however, this just adds fuel to the idea that Firewatch would have functioned much better as a story then as a game, as well as having a story that didn't stop giving a **** near the end.

    Finally, it's extremely short for it's asking price of $19.99 US. This "game" is nothing more then an interactive book, calling Firewatch a game is an insult to other games and it's proclamation of being of good quality by mainstream game sites is more proof that mainstream games media have ****ing lost the plot and/or become filled with agenda-pushing morons.    … Expand
  19. evilnils
    Feb 20, 2016
    3
    If you cut out the hiking back and forth, this game would have less than one hour gameplay.

    It looks good, voice acting is superb, story is great, ending is underwhelming (and it is supposed to be).
    But, there is no game play and it is way way too short.
    This could have been a good movie, instead it became a pretty average game.
  20. Ewakid
    Mar 22, 2016
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Not much content for a game I spent 19.99 on, I've player DLCs that are longer and more enjoyable than this game. The conversations between Henry and Delilah are ok, but its hard to pay attention to them when trees pop in and out of existence, or when the ground disappears. The 15 FPS is great too, I have a pretty nice Pc and I'm above the system requirements but I still have to endure a god awful framerate. [[SPOILERS]] The endings piss poor, the second they introduced the weird hiker guy with his son I knew that he would have a big role to play. Sure enough, he was the one that was doing all the weird **** After that, you just get rejected no matter what, and nothing you did affects the outcome of the story. Now you can say the ending doesn't matter and that its all about the journey, but you can't say that when the **** journey was "walk to this place, walk to another place, talk a bit". Another game that had a **** ending was Fallout New Vegas, you get a **** slideshow and you realize nothing matters. BUT the difference is in fallout new vegas I can **** do stuff, I don't just walk and walk and walk. So in the end, don't buy this game, you won't really have fun, it's just walking. Watch a full walkthrough with no commentary. You will get more out of just watching everything happen than actually playing the game.… Expand
  21. Shahenita
    Apr 29, 2016
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. the game is just 2 hours long! its too short..
    its an adventure to reveal the story.. that start very good and ends very Sad!
    raising to expectation until the middle.. and then is just disappointment after another!

    games should be fun! whats fun about a boy dead on a cave!!!    … Expand
  22. visiblelight7
    Aug 29, 2023
    3
    Very boring. The story isn't even there to drag you threw the gameplay loop which is mainly you walking toward your destintion while holding your map and compass and getting annoyed because the road is not ''obvious''. This gameplay loop begins IMMEDIATELY. The story consists of you talking on the walkey talkey with a very annoying feminist. I was bored out of my mind. There's noVery boring. The story isn't even there to drag you threw the gameplay loop which is mainly you walking toward your destintion while holding your map and compass and getting annoyed because the road is not ''obvious''. This gameplay loop begins IMMEDIATELY. The story consists of you talking on the walkey talkey with a very annoying feminist. I was bored out of my mind. There's no characters , no worthy story either. don't download this if you are bored. Good thing i had gamepass. The game is VERY overrated. It's at most a 4/10… Expand
  23. ARTMIS
    Sep 30, 2018
    3
    At first, I would give this game 8 - 9, but, after I finished the game. I dropped it to 3. I believe everyone already wrote the good things about this game, so I want to write the bad.
    The ending. Totally bad, my worst video game ending I believe, anti climax, in the end, we never know much about Delilah, and the truth about her, so much plot-lost. So much mystery never solved.
  24. Polarthief
    Feb 24, 2016
    2
    Here's just a list of reasons why this game is very, very, subpar.

    - It's a very linear, story-driven, game, with practically no gameplay. It's pretty much the definition of a "hiking simulator". - It's about 3-4 hours long and launched with a $20 price tag. - It started with plenty of potential and ended with a disastrous "that's it?" feeling at the end. - It gives you the illusion    Here's just a list of reasons why this game is very, very, subpar.

    - It's a very linear, story-driven, game, with practically no gameplay. It's pretty much the definition of a "hiking simulator".
    - It's about 3-4 hours long and launched with a $20 price tag.
    - It started with plenty of potential and ended with a disastrous "that's it?" feeling at the end.
    - It gives you the illusion of choice that changes how your character and the "companion" character that you never meet communicate to one another. There is no actual choice though.
    - There is virtually no difference between watching and playing this game. Go watch any of the LPs for it and save your $20.
    - It's not even appealing to look at. At the very least it could have given us that.

    I honestly don't know what drugs the positive reviewers were on when they posted their reviews. Maybe they're only reviewing the demo (which was solid), but the full game is just trash.    … Expand
  25. Kraks
    Mar 25, 2017
    2
    I couldn't disagree with positive reviews for this game more. It is a very short adventure novella with 0 skill requirements, no puzzles, and no problem solving required. You just walk around the world for a bit and click on things and listen to a conversation between yourself and another firewatcher. The entire game may take 4 hours to complete if you go slow, but is easily completed inI couldn't disagree with positive reviews for this game more. It is a very short adventure novella with 0 skill requirements, no puzzles, and no problem solving required. You just walk around the world for a bit and click on things and listen to a conversation between yourself and another firewatcher. The entire game may take 4 hours to complete if you go slow, but is easily completed in 2.

    I wouldn't suggest this game for any more than $2. The $20 price tag suggests depth that just doesn't exist.    … Expand
  26. SaniCorpus
    Feb 27, 2016
    2
    Its not worth the money. Its so short...I thought it would only be the 1st episode...but after 3 hours the game was over. I looks nice and the idea was good.. the relationship between the two characters is interesting. But thats all... the rest ist....BORING! Walk around, click because the ui shows you to click. Compared to "The Walking Dead", where your decisions have an impact on theIts not worth the money. Its so short...I thought it would only be the 1st episode...but after 3 hours the game was over. I looks nice and the idea was good.. the relationship between the two characters is interesting. But thats all... the rest ist....BORING! Walk around, click because the ui shows you to click. Compared to "The Walking Dead", where your decisions have an impact on the story and the story goes much longer, this game is a bad joke. And after the ending you don´t want to play it again... Don´t waste your money for this betrayal!… Expand
  27. JMountain26
    May 13, 2016
    2
    Thsi game is **** awful. It was so damn fun and **** interesting as hell. But the goddamn ending made me want to neck myself and drink bleach at the same time. DONT BUY! 20.00 is not worth a 4 hour long train ride to a neverending circle of **** that ends with 0 questions answered.
  28. Rabullione
    Sep 11, 2017
    2
    I have a single, simple requirement of videogames-- they have to be fun. This game fails to meet that requirement, and so it receives a poor rating. Enjoyable visuals, script & voice acting are the only redeeming qualities in what is, otherwise, more akin to a chore than a game.
  29. TitaniumDragon
    Dec 27, 2017
    1
    Firewatch is a walking simulator which uses some video-gamey elements to try and make it seem more interactive. Unfortunately, like all walking simulators, it is critically important that the story that the simulator is telling is actually interesting.

    And Firewatch fails at this. This isn’t obvious at first, though. The game actually has what seems like fairly decent moment to    Firewatch is a walking simulator which uses some video-gamey elements to try and make it seem more interactive. Unfortunately, like all walking simulators, it is critically important that the story that the simulator is telling is actually interesting.

    And Firewatch fails at this.

    This isn’t obvious at first, though. The game actually has what seems like fairly decent moment to moment writing; while it starts out with a sort of text adventure thing that unfolds as you’re hiking, it quickly starts going into actual dialogue as the protagonist (Henry) talks with Delilah, his supervisor.

    Henry has taken a job watching out for fires in a national forest as a means of getting away from his problems; his wife has early onset dementia and Henry himself is something of a mess as a result, and it is implied that he might be an alcoholic.

    The problem is that we get this at the very start of the story; this is the setup. But the game ends up spending a lot of its length having Henry reveal all this to Delilah, meaning that a lot of Henry’s “character development” is stuff we already know. While his conversations with Delilah are solid enough, they lose their oomph because we, the reader/listener, already know this from the intro.

    And this is the real flaw of Firewatch – it constantly undercuts itself. There is a mystery early on, which then links into another (greater) mystery… which is a solid way to present a plot. But the solution to the mystery is an anticlimax, and as a result all of the tension it tried to build up was utterly pointless.

    The plot is, thusly, a mess, and so from a macro structural standpoint, so is Firewatch. Without a really meaningful plot, the game is nothing more than wandering around in the forest while talking over the radio and doing slice-of-lifey stuff. And if the game had just been a slice of life drama, it might have worked. But its attempt at mystery, and its attempt at a story arc, utterly fall flat, and in the end, nothing we spent all that time doing really meant much of anything. It is a story we experience rather than interact with, and the story itself is not very good, so there’s not really anything there.

    The game itself is pretty enough – or at least, the environment is, with a nice aesthetic to it. I took quite a few screenshots, and there’s some nice little details in there, such as the protagonist writing notes to himself about what has been going on. The voice actors are both solid and deliver their lines well on the whole, though there’s some slight inconsistency in a couple scenes as a character who is supposedly getting drunk immediately sobers up a few lines later.

    But without a good story to go with it, the whole thing is an empty experience, and you will spend 4-5 hours wandering around in the forest without ultimately being led to feel like your wandering mattered.    … Expand
  30. coustoe
    Sep 14, 2017
    1
    A very linear game with very little actual gameplay or game content. Total game time is about 3 hours. It plays more like if you were just watching a movie and should be worth the same price, a few dollars. The developer seem to be jumping on the bandwagon of trying to scam gamers into paying game prices for delivering a "visual novel". This combined with hearing the Developer's recentA very linear game with very little actual gameplay or game content. Total game time is about 3 hours. It plays more like if you were just watching a movie and should be worth the same price, a few dollars. The developer seem to be jumping on the bandwagon of trying to scam gamers into paying game prices for delivering a "visual novel". This combined with hearing the Developer's recent rants about the gaming community and the over generous game review you can tell that this is another "Lost at home" Developer.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

61
#61 Best PC Game of 2016
13
#13 Most Discussed PC Game of 2016
55
#55 Most Shared PC Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
81

Generally favorable reviews - based on 65 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 51 out of 65
  2. Mixed: 14 out of 65
  3. Negative: 0 out of 65
  1. CD-Action
    May 1, 2016
    80
    Firewatch is hands down the best, the most engaging first person walker I have ever played. Something doesn’t let me rate it higher though, and I guess it’s my common sense. [04/2016, p.50]
  2. GameSpew
    Apr 15, 2016
    80
    The look of this game is nothing short of stunning… Each detail is carefully designed and thought out with a charming feel to it overall.
    Read full review
  3. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Apr 12, 2016
    100
    This unconventional game combines strong story, beautiful natural surroundings and fantastically written and played characters. What it lacks in classic adventure mechanics, it makes up in great dialogue system between the main protagonists. [Issue#262]
See all critic reviews »