Firewatch Review: A Sizzling Tale of Love, Loss, and Loneliness

I love to get lost within a beautiful, well-crafted world. The feeling of being surrounded by a world you don’t know creates a sense of exploration and mystery. When you top that feeling with a well-crafted ensemble of characters, as in the case of Firewatch, you’ve created something close to a perfect world. But we know things can’t always be perfect, and while Firewatch is a brilliantly executed idea with a fantastic group of characters, I couldn’t help but feel the entire experience was less than it could have been, as if something was missing, and it left me cold.

Finding Paradise

But this relationship between Henry and Delilah is a driving force to be reckoned with. The days pass with Henry completing mundane tasks like gathering supplies, checking out downed phone lines, and cleaning up beers can. All the while though, Delilah is hard at work, chipping away the brick wall that Henry has built around his life. Slowly, but surely, she begins to learn details and reasons for why Henry has chosen to banish himself to the Wyoming wilderness. And as a result, a friendship begins to form.

This might sound boring for a lot of people, but there’s something comforting about just being able to take in the world around you. Sadly, the friendship that fosters between our two companions doesn’t have long to flourish, and before Henry can make a move, a piece from his past as a firewatcher comes barreling back into the picture like a gunshot and disrupts their idlyic small-town life.

Trouble in Paradise

The plot of the entire game takes a sharp turn into the danger zone, and Henry and Delilah find themselves smack dab in the middle of one of the biggest conspiracies of the century. They cling to each other, striving to find answers as Henry explores the depths of the Wyoming wilderness looking clues. Someone is watching them. Someone is planning something.

Each new clue, and every new encounter brings more to the fire, fueling the idea of a conspiracy. But just when things start to feel more sinister than ever, and when things really begin to spiral out of control, the story ends. The solution to Henry’s greatest mystery feels dropped into your lap like a bag of bricks. The brilliant writing and excellent voice-casting runs headfirst into a solid and immovable wall of rock. Everything that you’ve spent the past few hours working towards just sizzles out as the conclusion of the story brings the entire experience to an unfulfilling close.

The Bigger Picture

I enjoyed my short time in the world of Firewatch. The world is beautiful and the voice acting is excellent. But Henry and Delilah’s story is far too short, and the resolution of the game’s story relies far too much on a backstory that isn’t given the breathing room it needs. It’s an emotional rollercoaster that just teeters back down to a merry-go-round, leaving me with a detached feeling that everything I had spent the past few hours working towards has been all for nought. 

Even if the abrupt, unfulfilling ending doesn’t completely tie the experience together, I’ll still remember plenty of the funny and heart wrenching moments between Henry and Delilah that I had the pleasure of eavesdropping on. The game’s world, and its brilliantly crafted ensemble of characters is more than enough to leave me with a warm feeling deep in my heart, even if it isn’t a fully-developed flame, for Firewatch.

This review is based on a download code provided by the publisher. Firewatch will be available digitally on February 9, for 19.99. The game is rated M.

Josh Hawkins

Guides Editor

Joshua holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and has been exploring the world of video games for as long as he can remember. He enjoys everything from large-scale RPGs to small, bite-size indie gems and everything in between.