Firewatch

 Xbox One
Firewatch Image
Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 9 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
6.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 181 Ratings

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  • Summary: The year is 1989. You are a man named Henry who has retreated from his messy life to work as a fire lookout in the Wyoming wilderness. Perched high atop a mountain, its your job to look for smoke and keep the wilderness safe. An especially hot, dry summer has everyone on edge. YourThe year is 1989. You are a man named Henry who has retreated from his messy life to work as a fire lookout in the Wyoming wilderness. Perched high atop a mountain, its your job to look for smoke and keep the wilderness safe. An especially hot, dry summer has everyone on edge. Your supervisor Delilah is available to you at all times over a small, handheld radioyour only contact with the world you've left behind. But when something strange draws you out of your lookout tower and into the forest, youll explore a wild and unknown environment, facing questions and making choices that can build or destroy the only meaningful relationship you have.

    A Note: Firewatch is a video game about adults having adult conversations about adult things. If you plan on playing with a younger gamer, that might be good to know going in.

    Includes

    * A stunningly beautiful wilderness environment that expands as you explore.
    * A tailor-made story: the choices you make shape the narrative and build relationships.
    * An edge-of-your-seat mystery.
    * Secrets and discoveries to be made over every hill.    … Expand

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 9
  3. Negative: 0 out of 9
  1. IGN
    Sep 20, 2016
    93
    It is among the very best of the first-person narrative genre, and it reminds us what video game storytelling is capable of in the right hands. It’s a game I can see coming back to every year or two just to revisit its beautiful sights and memorable characters – just like a good book.
  2. ICXM
    Oct 17, 2016
    90
    Everything other than the technical aspects of the game are so good that I can’t help but heartily recommend it.
  3. XboxAddict
    Oct 25, 2016
    90
    An immersive, and at times eerie, experience. It is the video game equivalent of reading a mystery, suspense, or thriller novel - one that you won’t wish to put down until you reach its' conclusion.
  4. MondoXbox
    Sep 24, 2016
    85
    A heartfelt and intimate experience, putting us in the shoes of a fragile man who chose the isolation of nature to escape a great pain. It's more an interactive tale rather than a proper game, but its good story and awesome sceneries make it worth the experience. Too bad for the frequent and annoying stutters and frame-rate drops: it could have used some more optimization.
  5. ZTGD
    Oct 11, 2016
    85
    You may not like the story it tells, and you may not feel totally satisfied with the outcome; but when the story is told in such a well crafted manner it doesn’t really matter. Anyone who appreciates a good mystery will definitely get something out of Firewatch; just don’t let your mind race to much, as you may end up feeling a little let down.
  6. COGconnected
    Oct 4, 2016
    85
    This is a definite step up from what PlayStation 4 owners received not too long ago.
  7. XBLA Fans
    Oct 13, 2016
    60
    Firewatch is one of my favourite walking simulators because of its engaging script and lasting story, but it is by no means the revolutionary, life changing experience that I had built it up to be in my mind. It's actually more of an ordinary, pedestrian experience, and that is kind of what makes it successful.

See all 9 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 48
  2. Mixed: 14 out of 48
  3. Negative: 13 out of 48
  1. MrMT
    Apr 28, 2022
    10
    Absolutely wonderful interactive narrative experience. This really stretched the video game storytelling form, and I loved it.
  2. GamePartisan
    Aug 28, 2022
    9
    This game falls into what I believe is the 'love it or hate it' category. I'll start off by saying this; It is a good game, it achieves soThis game falls into what I believe is the 'love it or hate it' category. I'll start off by saying this; It is a good game, it achieves so much in its limited time and its storytelling is innovative while still providing a unique sense of isolation amongst the games' beautiful setting of the Wyoming wilderness. However this is not a typical game, it is one that relies on the player being (in the least pretentious way possible) an intellectual, someone who values a story and its characters over the gameplay and its challenges. If you think you might enjoy a game like this then I'd say it is a must play but If you lack the attention span or just generally don't like games that involve thought beyond what is presented to you, avoid this.… Expand
  4. Dr_Zaroff
    Mar 30, 2017
    8
    Engaging, beautiful, well-written, and well-acted. Some of the scenes and moments that the game creates are stunning. I remember walkingEngaging, beautiful, well-written, and well-acted. Some of the scenes and moments that the game creates are stunning. I remember walking through what appeared to be a burnt down patch of forest, but small saplings were beginning to grow through the ash. Simply a stunning, thoughtful setting. Those moments were scattered throughout and those were the moments that kept me walking.

    Not a perfect score due to some slow moments where the story halts, you get a bit lost, and end up just walking a bit aimlessly. Narrative games often have this issue, but these moments were not abundant. Still, they tended to break up the beauty and the engagement a bit too often.    … Expand
  5. ThaFlu84
    Dec 10, 2022
    7
    This game starts off promising and mysterious, but ends up being unimpressive mainly due to an uneventful ending. It just felt empty.This game starts off promising and mysterious, but ends up being unimpressive mainly due to an uneventful ending. It just felt empty. Throughout the game, there isn’t much to explore while hiking and a lot of what you find is uninteresting and unusable. Also, viewing the map is clunky as you have to frequently come to a stop to get your bearings and see where to go next.

    The characters, their backstory, and the banter between Delilah and Henry are the clear highlights of the game. It is interesting to hear them converse. There is a revelation in the game that is pretty shocking, but it is related to a secondary plot, so it does not feel as impactful as it would otherwise. I enjoyed this game and even played it twice, but sometimes it just felt dull and I was disappointed by the ending.    … Expand
  6. Bochenki
    Jan 13, 2022
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. To cover all the disadvantages of this game, I have to admit that it is way to short. The ending feels rushed, you do not have enough time to explore the storyline, nor the relationship between the characters. The ending is not satisfying at all, feels pointless and disappointing.
    On the other hand, these few hours were indeed a very well spent. An interesting setting, a story with a nice background (which cannot be said about the foreground unfortunately), likable protagonist, ambiguous characters - all of that works really well at the beginning. But then, if feels like they didn't have a slightest idea how to resolve all the mysteries they'd come up with.
    Like the two missing girls - their tent was destroyed, the police suspected our two protagonists and then - they were just found somewhere having the time of their lives. Or a whole espionage thing - instead of it being a major plot against our protagonists, it turns out to be a complete nonsense.
    I really liked the idea of exploring the theme of solitude, isolation and moral dilemma. Not showing characters' faces seem like an interesting idea to me, as well as the voice communication with D. The Easter eggs with the books left in the locations were a really nice touch.
    It is not a bad game, I enjoyed it while playing. It's just not polished and feels like they ran out of ideas.    … Expand
  7. B-Bog
    May 26, 2019
    4
    Wasn't really worth the 20 bucks for me. I was intrigued by the concept and thought it was kind of like one of those "choose your ownWasn't really worth the 20 bucks for me. I was intrigued by the concept and thought it was kind of like one of those "choose your own adventure" books, but the problem is this: Your dialogue choices don't actually make ANY difference story-wise. Which sucks, because those are the only choices you have in this game. The gameplay consists entirely of talking to your superior, Delilah (whom you never get to see), on the Walkie-Talkie, while walking through the national park and following her instructions.

    The visuals are pretty, but they're not so earth-shatteringly amazing that they could justify how incredibly laggy this game is on a regular Xbox One. Add to that a really short play-time with no real replay value and a VERY underwhelming climax and you've got yourself quite a mediocre experience. There were definitely moments in this game where I was enjoying myself and thought this could get really cool, but I was ultimately let down at the end.    … Expand
  8. LastHope17
    Dec 23, 2021
    0
    Meh. Tried it and it's clearly just going to be a depressing game. Also no options for motion blur on consoles, why!?

See all 48 User Reviews

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