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[Betty]

Just finished, one of the best experiences i've ever had in any medium, the sense of mystery and tension grew and grew so gracefully.

I can appreciate the ending after hearing people's analysis on it, kinda like Last of Us, where I also felt it ended a little flat but realized it's actually a great, natural way to end things.

But... I would've liked a more climactic ending, maybe meeting Ned face to face and talking or encountering the bear as it attacks you and perhaps Ned or something.

Anyway, great game, looking forward to what the studio creates next.

Also, that Raccoon in the stove gave me the biggest jump scare since P.T

 

[benicillin]

I was really shocked when I read she was married, or in a relationship with someone else..

Now has that ever been explicitly explained? From what Delilah told me about Javier, which was probably an optional conversation that I have no idea why she'd lie about, is that she fucked up their relationship by basically running out when some serious stuff happened with his family and they ended things, but Ned's note in the research center said that they were still in a relationship. I think maybe that was just him trying to play you against each other and make you doubt her because he heard your more...amorous conversations?

 

[Fuchsdh]

Now has that ever been explicitly explained? From what Delilah told me about Javier, which was probably an optional conversation that I have no idea why she'd lie about, is that she fucked up their relationship by basically running out when some serious stuff happened with his family and they ended things, but Ned's note in the research center said that they were still in a relationship. I think maybe that was just him trying to play you against each other and make you doubt her because he heard your more...amorous conversations?

On the other hand, it's not something you explicitly get into with Delilah, and she (and Ned) have been there for longer. I don't think it's really the "intended" reading of the situation but I think it's a valid one based on the evidence in the game.

 

[Valkyr Junkie]

I thought Javier cheated on D? Or she cheated on him?

 

[benicillin]

I thought Javier cheated on D? Or she cheated on him?

According to the conversation I had with her, they were together for 5 years and while she was training for wildlife stuff his brother died in an accident and she never went home to help him cope. He said it was fine but when she came back he left her, and she was embarrassed that it was her own fault so she told her sister that he slept with a neighbor, and then says that Henry and her both came into the forest trying to deal with broken hearts.

 

[LiK]

According to the conversation I had with her, they were together for 5 years and while she was training for wildlife stuff his brother died in an accident and she never went home to help him cope. He said it was fine but when she came back he left her, and she was embarrassed that it was her own fault so she told her sister that he slept with a neighbor, and then says that Henry and her both came into the forest trying to deal with broken hearts.

i got that convo too. Delilah is a bit of an emotional user, imo. She was using Henry to cope with her loneliness but was too afraid to actually meet him in person. She had this fantasy about him and kept it that way. Sorta reminds me of online relationships, tbh.

 

[benicillin]

i got that convo too. Delilah is a bit of an emotional user, imo. She was using Henry to cope with her loneliness but was too afraid to actually meet him in person. She had this fantasy about him and kept it that way. Sorta reminds me of online relationships, tbh.

I love that you bring that up, because that's almost exactly what was going through my mind when playing the game. Because of the time period it was set in the concept of an "online relationship" didn't really exist, but I'd be really surprised if Campo Santo didn't use it as a frame of reference kind of.

Delilah was communicated to be someone who runs away from commitment and her and Henry's entire relationship was built on funny quips and a picture in their head of who the other person was. Delilah will draw you, but she doesn't want to actually see you in person because that would make you more "real," and making you real would introduce all the difficulties, responsibilities and needs that make real relationships hard - the stuff she runs away from.

I think the spark between them was certainly real, but it was never a relationship that was sustainable and they both have their own problems that they've been running away from to deal with before they could really determine that one way or the other.

 

[TheBryanJZX90]

I loved it and loved that this story was told as a game. Almost all games make you the chosen one who will save the realm or the galaxy or whatever. Games are, by and large, escapist fantasies. Firewatch wants to make sure you keep in mind that your escapist fantasies are just fantasies.

I think the disappointment by many that they didn't unravel a conspiracy or get the girl in the end was absolutely intended by the developer.

 

[Salz01]

I'll be the first to say it. I'd pay for DLC to have Henry go find Delilah, or have another summer there. Stalker Henry.

Also I looked through her outhouse to see if she left anything.

I didn't like the ending. The whole 'that's life' ending was boring.

 

[Ninjatogo]

Just finished it last night.
Such a strange, "game". I'm not sure what the rest of you thought when they first revealed it, but I was under the impression it would be murder mystery or something. I know it turned into that at the end, but then it was for some characters that we never meet. The whole, "shit happens", "that's life", theme was pretty boring imo and made for a WEAK ending.

It was such a build up, I genuinely expected them to stop the credits and put you back in the game for the real twist. I sat through it and, "itwasfuckingnothing.jpeg". Instead it was just real-life drama that I can get everyday for free. -.-

Not a terrible experience, just don't think I can wholeheartedly recommend it at the current price.

 

[noomi]

As Raven117 explains above, to be anti-climactic is sort of the point. These are people flirting with each other and flirting with the idea of running away from their problems, but won't see it through for life reasons. It's the same reason why they imagine a grand scheme to begin with; to avoid having to deal with the actual issues in their lives.

Yeah, I get that. I really did enjoy the game though, it was quite beautiful, the story interesting, and the voice acting was top notch. After all that build up of a conspiracy and there being something much bigger going on, I was just anticipating some kind of jaw dropping ending.

Great game for one playthrough, maybe after some years go by and I forget the story I'll give it another go hehe.

it's like the end of a nice long honeymoon with Destiny. it just ends.

Hi Lik

Hah, I hear ya. The honeymoon phase with Destiny was really something though. Sadly, I haven't touched that game for a while now. Miss the good ole days with DGAF OT spamming

 

[E-phonk]

I follow a lot of the sentiment in this thread. When I finished the game, I actually thought there still was more to the story and that my choices made me miss certain parts of it - but the biggest weakness to me is that my choices didn't influence the final outcome all that much.

It's because they teased so much "weirdness/mythical/whodunnit/whocanyoutrust" in the early game that the backlash/dissapointment is justified imo. Just like in Lost, there is so much red herrings, that the explanation of "this guy you don't know followed you around and tried to scare you for not really very good reasons" is such a bummer as a resolvement.

I also didn't like that however H interacts with D has no infuence on their outcome. I didn't even mind that it ended like that in my personal storyline, but reading afterwards that there isn't a way to chance that outcome kind of made me reflect more negative about the experience The character interaction itself was great though, and it's what saved the game for me personal.

 

[LiK]

Hi Lik

Hah, I hear ya. The honeymoon phase with Destiny was really something though. Sadly, I haven't touched that game for a while now. Miss the good ole days with DGAF OT spamming

yea, I miss the guys, I don't miss the game. not even sure how they can still stomach it. not even sure if i'll return for the next expansion. maybe if they have more trophies.

sorry to the folks here for the OT.

 

[locke_21183]

It's also a great irony that for her, literally running away from him as he approaches her tower, *is* actually confronting her real-life and allowing him to do the same. It's a form of disengagement that allows them to re-engage with what they've been running away from, even though it's another act of running away itself.

 

[Automatisch]

At first I felt a little let down you didn't get to meet, but after the initial disappointment I decided I actually kind of like how it ended. It's kind of interesting to think about the dialogue from the perspective that Delilah never really had any intention of meeting in the first place, and really just enjoyed flirting as a means to feel good without having to actually commit to anything. It's in her nature to run away from everything, and it makes sense that she wouldn't have waited for you in the end.

 

[Mob]

I was eagerly anticipating this release and just before it came out I injured my arm so I had to wait for that to recover to play it. Avoiding any info about this game since it came out was so difficult but I'm glad I made the effort.

I started and finished my first playthrough on Sunday, I intended to just play for an hour but I couldn't put it down. When I reached the end I was gutted. Not for a lack of payoff or not being able to meet Delilah or any of the other complaints that I have since read but simply because Henry's escape had come to an end and he had to somehow face what he had been running from. I really empathised with him and felt pretty terrible for the guy.

When I went to bed I couldn't sleep, I kept thinking about what Delilah was avoiding by spending her summers isolated as a lookout supervisor, what Ned had gone through since Brian died, the arc between Ron & Dave (the rangers), what Henry had to go back to in his real life and ultimately the things that I have been avoiding for years and how I avoid them.

I can't remember the last time a video game occupied my waking thoughts like this.

I started and completed a second playthrough on Monday choosing different dialogue options. I understand people saying they felt their choices didn't ultimately matter but for me the second playthrough was a subtly different experience. Information I had received on the first playthrough was withheld this time and some new information was received as a result of the different dialogue options I chose. I enjoyed the second go round as much as the first, especially as this time I found the last ranger note and felt some closure for Ron & Dave.

Also on the second playthrough I paid more attention to Henry's typed journal sheets, a shame you couldn't collect them like other notes but the zoom function was adequate to read them. I liked seeing where his head space evolved over the course of the game. In the first few days he's writing about his family and what he's left behind, by day 76 he is fully immersed in his escape from reality, in this journal entry he writes about staying up late watching a meteor shower and talking with Delilah. He talks about coming back next year and how the Forest Service like to keep the same people in the same lookouts so that they get to know the areas better and he hopes he can be in Two Forks and Delilah can be in Thorofare again. Then the entries for the last few days ooze Henry's paranoia and self-doubt, and one thing that jumped out at me was his relief that Delilah had also heard the cough on the radio.

My one complaint is that I would have liked to have seen more of the short time-skip days. I think a couple more brief hiking errands and another night time dialogue fest between Henry and Delilah would have been perfect. The day 76 journal entry I mentioned above would have been a fantastic brief scene.

Having said all that I do understand this game isn't for everyone, I think some of the criticism it has received is fair but my experience with this game was absolutely fantastic.

Thank you Campo Santo for an unforgettable gaming experience, I can't wait for your next project!

 

[ElTorro]

Yeah, the ending was disappointing. Especially because all of Ned's misdirections just made no obvious sense to me. In addition, there are lots of little things that make the story feel unbelievable; like the fact that Delilah didn't know about the science station, or that the scientists just left expensive equipment behind for no good reason. And why did they need this radio equipment in the first place? Maybe I missed a note that explains everything, but in the end everything just felt so disconnected and anticlimactic.

 

[Fuchsdh]

Well, this ridiculous conspiracy video made me realize just how slap-dash a lot of the mistakes are in the narrative: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpKFxN1tukg

The fact that Delilah can see the fence from her vantage point and the sheer ridiculousness that she would hike so far to drop off the walkie talkies instead of talking in person... grr.

 

[Misha]

I just finishes this. definitely unsatisfied like most people. I thought the dialogue between Delilah and Henry was great and it was enjoyable wandering through the different areas of the map. I liked early on how Henry was getting paranoid about seemingly nothing and greatly prefered that to Ned's manufactured scares. I think it would have been a lot better without Ned. It was hard to really care about him and it generally felt like a thrown in twist. I also think the beginning was sorta overdone. It would have functioned pretty much exactly the same whether his wife died or if they got a divorce or even if he was just trying to spend time apart for the summer

Oh and the conversation system was great. felt very natural and definitely amplified the strengths of the game.

 

[Zekes!]

Just finished this too. I agree with the posters who mentioned Henry and Dalilah's relationship being like an online relationship. That's probably why it resonated so much with me, as I did some online dating in my early 20'd and had this distant "talking" relationships with a couple people.

That said, I definitely agree the whole Ned stuff was weak. I would have preferred it if that was all left unanswered and was just some weird happenings

 

[ced]

Finished it last night.

I enjoyed it enough but was pretty disappointed in the linearity of it.

The reveal of Brian being dead actually had an impact on me. The story reminded me a bit of Ethan Carter, a different kid who was unintentionally killed by family.

I didn't like how it ended last night but thinking back on it now I think it fit pretty well.

 

[benicillin]

Holly Green wrote a wonderful and personal article for Paste about how the relationship between Delilah and Henry is portrayed in the game, I highly recommend giving it a read. I think it really gets to what is at the heart of how Firewatch handles their relationship.

Henry and Delilah’s repertoire is witty and fast paced. Anyone who has encountered that kind of spark can sense it. It’s the kind that gets your blood racing and your thoughts pulsing when you’re in the moment. But despite any vulnerability you may exchange with Delilah when you’re playing as Henry, it always ends the same. Ultimately she realizes pursuing a romance between them would be foolish. Delilah withdraws as the game comes to a close. She does so passive aggressively, misleading Henry at the last second and slipping away in a tepid confrontation that leaves little significant resolution.

It’s uncanny how that mirrors the reality of inconvenient love. It dissipates like a thought unfinished, a child conceived and miscarried within a day. It slips through your fingers before you begin to grasp it, processed only in retrospect, in memory, when it has already begun to fade. It is a tragedy all of it’s own. The things that were never meant to be always are.

 

[KissVibes]

Wanted to share my thoughts on the game. It's a little long-winded so I apologize for that.

It's been a little over a couple weeks since I've played Firewatch and I haven't shaken the experience. My mind has drifted back and forth on my feelings regarding the game. My initial experience was one of absolute bemusement; in the final moments of the story I couldn't help but feeling slighted in how the mystery and suspense, that just started to build, fizzled out in a handful of minutes.

The sensation was that of getting halfway into an incredible book and then having it snatched away from you. It felt like finishing up the first season of some show you found surfing Netflix and finding out it was canceled and you'll never know what happened after that captivating cliffhanger finale. It felt unfinished. It felt unfair.

We all know how the story goes. This is the spoiler thread, after all. By the end of things, I felt that the game didn't give me enough breathing room to process things. It never reaches the highs you're expecting and doesn't provide enough lull in between the few highs it has. You could make the argument that as an active participant, I have control over how soon the narrative moves along. That's a valid point. However, I felt that the game was always nudging me to move forward via dialog between the two principal characters, Henry and Delilah.

If it had a bigger sense of urgency behind it then you could possibly make a case for the rapid-moving and concise nature. Instead it's along the lines of 'Hey, what are you doing? Keep moving until something happens.'

Speaking of Henry and Delilah, I have to give a huge nod to the voice acting and writing for the banter between the two. It felt very real and because of that, I was able to attach to both characters immediately. Which is both welcomed and impressive, considering the pacing issues. There's also small narrative things to pick up in the environment too -but again, taking the time to seek them out seemed counter to what I felt like the game wanted from me.

I want to stress that these were my initial reactions to the game. I was far more nit-picky when discussing what had happened with friends that had finished the game, but these are my original thoughts at their most refined. The game has stuck with me since its release on February 9th. I could not stop thinking about the game. The experience has invaded my free thought and I haven't felt this way about a 'video game' story since I played Spec Ops: The Line from start to finish in one setting.

I've come to the personal conclusion that Firewatch works so well because it just sort-of ends. The ending and its abrupt nature feel completely intentional and not a misfire by the writers, whom I understand to have been heavily involved in Telltale's The Walking Dead, a personal highmark for video game narratives.

How you think the mystery is playing out isn't how it plays out at all. Its a lot more simple and feels like an eye-rolling "Oh, duh" moment. Yeah, sure, there is an outside influence playing on the mutual vulnerabilities of Henry and Delilah; but once the light is shone on that manipulation, it feels fairly obvious and sometimes there's nothing wrong with that.

The real life parallel I keep drawing to it is when I was home alone as a young teenager and I heard what sounded like a person breaking into my home. I got so wrapped up in the idea that I never considered the obvious: The neighbor's dog that always got into our yard had once again knocked over the trashcans. Which is exactly what had happened.

Not every story needs to have a grand ending. Every time we get paranoid about the car that's been driving behind us for a while is a stalker looking to carve the eyes out of your head, It's someone headed the same direction we are; or someone lost trying to follow you looking for familiarity so they can get to wherever they're headed. I think the story of Firewatch is a more complex version of that.

The narratives in a lot of games feel pretty disposable, so having one stick with me and trying to break it all down mentally to discern my feelings on it wasn't as tedious as it may sound. I actually found it pleasant. I went from repining about my experience, to feeling good about it, to discussing it at length with my friends.

No doubt that Firewatch will be a very polarizing game and many people will draw all sorts of conclusions and create theories on the game. I think that's awesome. Games like Firewatch, which have been called "walking simulators," act as coffee table games in my eyes. They can be quite polarizing yet inspire larger conversation and help push interactive narratives forward at the same time.

Oh and as a minor thing, I think having you see another person at the end of the game, in the form of the co-pilot on the helicopter was a mistake. The game makes it a point to keep you from really being near another living person. The feeling of isolation mirroring the isolation Henry felt from his wife. It's what made Delilah such a credible tether and effectively sold her as someone to grow attached to.

You never really see the two girls and you never really see Ned. Just silhouettes. I wish they had kept that theme up to the very end.

 

[Bluth54]

I finished the game a couple of hours ago. The game itself was a fun ride but I felt let down by the ending.

 

[Ambitious]

Just finished it. So.. that's it? That's seriously it? Christ.

Even though I really enjoyed the majority of the game, I still feel like I completely wasted my time. I planned to replay it and use different dialogue options, but that's off the table now.

 

[Empty]

i played this today and liked it. beautiful game, very effective in certain elements and a great way to spend my time.

however firewatch feels like a fantastic game scaled down so much. in its opening three days it dangles tons of potential for exploration, traversal systems, managing fires through knowledge of world, slowly developing relationships, telling little stories in its world and really making you feel the isolation of the setting. then has only the most basic mechanics and jumps massively through time, robbing you of the characters sense of place, to ram you through the telling a gripping story that's not actually that good. it's fairly similar to gone home and scratches the itch i've had since loving that game, but feels a lot more frustrating as gone home feels entirely defined by the limited form it takes and its story wouldn't be served best in any other manner, in fact its power largely comes from its limitations. firewatch on the other hand feels almost bioshock infinitey in its scaled downess. gone home is a perfect short story, firewatch is a big novel awkwardly edited into a gripping film.

i'm pro the ending. i think it makes the most sense for its characters and feels a bit in the mood for love/lost in translation, people who share a moment in time but ultimately a passing, limited one defined by the particular moment. i was struck by it and i think they played it nicely, some people think they should have gone into more depth, but i think the pain of "this is over, but what can we even say here" is powerful. less is more.

i do however feel like a lot of the criticism is true and earned, in that they tried to be way too clever in subverting audience expectations, and ended up feeling like they were trying to have their cake and eat it and is constructed such that you can see the artifice behind it too clearly. they want a story where you feel genuine tension and curiosity at the conspiracy angle and puts their characters at peril, but also to feel clever for not doing something really pulpy and telling an ordinary character story about people avoiding lives in the wild. ultimately however they satisfy neither group at all, the conspiracy stuff splutters as its not about that and annoys ppl for caring and if you like the character angle (like i did) you wonder why they had to concoct that stuff in the first place instead of just letting things emerge more naturally from delilah and henry.

curious to see their next game.

 

[hendersonhank]

This is a long thread...do we know who Delilah was talking to the time Henry heard her talking to somebody else?

 

[Super Moop]

Just beat and clearly I liked the ending more than a lot of other people. I had a problem with how Ned was able to stage the conspiracy element, but I actually respect the hell out of Campo Santo for 1). Not going the supernatural route 2). Making the story more about the characters than anything else (it really worked for me) and 3). Having the answer not be so extraordinary.

Fantastic music as well.

 

[Izcarielo]

This is a long thread...do we know who Delilah was talking to the time Henry heard her talking to somebody else?

This. I dont know the answer to this either.

 

[Stoze]

This is a long thread...do we know who Delilah was talking to the time Henry heard her talking to somebody else?

It's heavily implied she was just talking to one of the other lookouts (or reporting it to someone higher up), more specifically about your/Henry's tower that was broken into. Hence her saying "he doesn't know", which refers to Henry not knowing who trashed the place.

 

[inpHilltr8r]

Ooof, right in the feels. Bravo!

 

[KalBalboa]

Just finished it.

I can really appreciate what this game set out to do. While I have some of the pacing and ending issues a bunch of people in this thread have I also have a respect for all the emotionally wrestling these characters went through.

One thing I like is how the core relationship and Henry's state of mind with respect to Julia are determined by player agency. At least... it felt that way.

 

[KalBalboa]

For what it's worth, I actually enjoyed the tone and themes of the ending. I suppose the writing could've been tighter in general, though.

 

[topplehat]

I really liked this game, am still digesting it.

Does anyone else think that Henry's paranoia about what was happening was meant to show or be a parallel to the dementia Julia had? Not sure if that was intentional or what, but when he thinks he was losing his mind I wondered if Henry was also suffering from Alzheimer's, or if there would be a crazy plot twist where Henry was losing his mind and Julia was fine the whole time. Basically something like Shutter Island.

 

[Not Spaceghost]

I kinda wrote off the ending as a way of the game saying "by the way Henry your adventure is over time to get back to reality" like everything that was supposed to be this crazy mystery just wasn't actually a mystery and Henry / Delilah just wanted it to be a huge distraction from their own shitty problems.

 

[sappyday]

I liked Henry's and Delilah's relationship even till the end, but my biggest problem was the whole mystery angle to it all. That had no payoff at all and felt forced into it. They could've had different scenarios to build their relationship more. The missing girls thing was a lot more interesting and dealing with them was the best parts of the game.

It just feels like the whole stalking thing was there for the trailers since they needed a way to get people into the game.


Also the performance is fucking bad and made me not enjoy the game that much. (PS4)

I'd give it an overall 2/5. 3/5 when they fix the shitty framerate/clipping/invisible walls/etc. I appreciate more developers doing these unique games but sometimes it needs a bit more substance, and I'm not just saying that in terms of content.

 

[ColdPizza]

I just don't understand why Ned would lead Henry to the cave key after going through all of that trouble to hide the truth? What am I missing?

 

[Ricker]

I loved that they show you the pictures you took when the credit rolls,nice touch but damnit,I didnt take all my film,like I forgot to take a picture of the dead kid inside the cave...

Liked it enough but near the end,it was chugging so bad for me that I always had to hit square to run...also not sure I understand why the hell I got hit in the back of the head and knocked out...

Might replay it one day with different convo choices,like being a dick all the time to Delilah

 

[Dmax3901]

I enjoyed the game but yeah was left feeling a little cold from the ending. I wasn't expecting to see Delilah in the flesh or anything but I dunno... sitting there in her tower then getting in the chopper felt kinda anti-climactic.

For while there I really thought the game was going to end with some sort of interrogation and all the photos you'd taken and items you'd decided to keep would either exonerate or incriminate you. Wishful thinking.

Still think the game was worthwhile however.

 

[casparnic]

I loved this game, and love the Campo Santo guys.

But I was stunned by the decisions to "introduce" game mechanics at the beginning of the game in ways that are not consistent with the rest of the game. For example, you pick up the backpack using a prompt at the beginning . . . and then never do that again. Instead, you always pick up the backpack automatically when you choose to open the door of your tower. Likewise, you are prompted to put the backpack into the back of the truck using prompts, but when you get out of the truck, the backpack isn't there, and you don't have to use prompts to get it out. WTF? These are tiny, tiny issues, but they are surprisingly dissonant game design decisions. Most of the rest of the game was consistent and incredibly well designed, so this really surprised me at the beginning.

 

[Chickadee]

In case anyone is interested, did the Fotodome photo feature in the game and took pictures in case anyone is interested.

The photos are gorgeous!

 

[LordOfChaos]

Done, took my time with it.

I know many felt let down with the conspiracy/payoff, and so was I a little, but I felt that wasn't really the point. It was about Henry and Delilah's running away from their problems and the summer they spent semi-together. I dunno, it's hard to explain, but I thought it was fine, looking back.

Henry and Delilah never meet after all that :'(
I kind of knew that would happen though, as soon as stuff started getting hairy, and especially after the body. When the helicopters were coming, knew she would leave.

With the main point of the game being H&Ds relationship, I wish we had more banter. I don't think the game would have benefited from more fetch quests, but there were long sections of walking where they could have talked more.

The resolution was bittersweet, but thinking back on it, I don't know that I would have ended it any other way. Seeing Delilah, it would take away from the whole building a relationship without knowing how either of these people look (apart from white, with shorts for H). And it would take away from the drive home point about them not running from their problems anymore.



I liked the experience overall and look forward to Campo Santos next productions.

 

[LordOfChaos]

Oh, Ron and Dave, they could likely carry a Firewatch DLC/2 of their own. If you missed it, here's the story

"It's basically a sad version of Brokeback Mountain. Dave is gay, Ron isn't. Ron isn't even aware of Dave's romantic interest in him. Ron must be pretty thick, since it seems the town knows Dave's gay: He gets into trouble with the law in the park (this is never discussed explicitly) and gets beaten at a bar in town. One can assume he was killed or committed suicide, possibly in the park. It's a very tragic story of unrequited love. Delilah says Ron went off with his girlfriend Debbie (which didn't last) but no one knows about Dave -- probably because he's dead somewhere in the park. (Suicide in national parks is a sad thing that happens. I also think those missing person flyers from 81' also were a suicide case).
What this means for the story: Just as Ned represents the madness that can overtake Henry and Delilah if they continually avoid reality, Dave shows that the woods can eat you alive if you stay in them. Dave should have told Ron how he really felt and he should have moved out of the town once his sexual preference was known, resulting in hate acts. Though his situation is more complicated and urgent than Henry and Delilah, he also should have faced reality and left the woods behind. If he had, he may have had a boyfriend and be happy far away from the park. Also, I find it incredibly sad that Ron makes fun of Dave's gay cowboy anthem found in "the shitter" without knowing it's Dave's."

https://www.reddit.com/r/Firewatch/comments/46oo0r/spoilers_can_we_talk_about_ron_and_dave/

 

[Chickadee]

Oh, Ron and Dave, they could likely carry a Firewatch DLC/2 of their own. If you missed it, here's the story

"It's basically a sad version of Brokeback Mountain. Dave is gay, Ron isn't. Ron isn't even aware of Dave's romantic interest in him. Ron must be pretty thick, since it seems the town knows Dave's gay: He gets into trouble with the law in the park (this is never discussed explicitly) and gets beaten at a bar in town. One can assume he was killed or committed suicide, possibly in the park. It's a very tragic story of unrequited love. Delilah says Ron went off with his girlfriend Debbie (which didn't last) but no one knows about Dave -- probably because he's dead somewhere in the park. (Suicide in national parks is a sad thing that happens. I also think those missing person flyers from 81' also were a suicide case).
What this means for the story: Just as Ned represents the madness that can overtake Henry and Delilah if they continually avoid reality, Dave shows that the woods can eat you alive if you stay in them. Dave should have told Ron how he really felt and he should have moved out of the town once his sexual preference was known, resulting in hate acts. Though his situation is more complicated and urgent than Henry and Delilah, he also should have faced reality and left the woods behind. If he had, he may have had a boyfriend and be happy far away from the park. Also, I find it incredibly sad that Ron makes fun of Dave's gay cowboy anthem found in "the shitter" without knowing it's Dave's."

https://www.reddit.com/r/Firewatch/comments/46oo0r/spoilers_can_we_talk_about_ron_and_dave/

That's crazy! I totally didn't pick up on that! O__O

 

[LordOfChaos]

That's crazy! I totally didn't pick up on that! O__O

Yeah it's all those notes you probably thought were useless hidden around caches and places lol

Speaking of which, I felt through the game that the stuff you kept would be used as evidence and decide something at the end, but the keep button didn't do much in the end.

 

[Chickadee]

Yeah it's all those notes you probably thought were useless hidden around caches and places lol

Speaking of which, I felt through the game that the stuff you kept would be used as evidence and decide something at the end, but the keep button didn't do much in the end.

Yeah! I thought they were evidence, but I didn't connect them into their own story. They seemed too vague to me.

Well, I noticed when I "kept" certain items, the next day you'd see them tacked up in your tower. Kinda like you see here:

 

[Coffinhal]

Came here to find thoughtful posts about the experience that other had. Instead, I just read this (and people only complaining about the ending, because they expected the twist of the century and aliens coming down to Two Forts Tower)

Just finished it last night.
Such a strange, "game". I'm not sure what the rest of you thought when they first revealed it, but I was under the impression it would be murder mystery or something. I know it turned into that at the end, but then it was for some characters that we never meet. The whole, "shit happens", "that's life", theme was pretty boring imo and made for a WEAK ending.

It was such a build up, I genuinely expected them to stop the credits and put you back in the game for the real twist. I sat through it and, "itwasfuckingnothing.jpeg". Instead it was just real-life drama that I can get everyday for free. -.-

Not a terrible experience, just don't think I can wholeheartedly recommend it at the current price.

This is bad faith, and stupid. Or you'll have to explain to me what in the game is everyday drama ? you get stuck everyday 2 months in the middle of a forest with no one out there ? you found bodies in a cave everyday ? you found out that someone has been recording your conversations everyday ? you see an enormous fire everyday ? you find out that your wife has Alzheimer everyday ? ; and is fiction not about re-telling in many forms what life is about (including everyday drama) ? or you just like super heroes blockbusters and Star Wars ?

Also the "game" with the quotation marks tells us a lot about your vision of video games.

-

Well some understood the game though.

I have said it before, and I will say it again. I loved the ending. It was a perfect conclusion to a game focused on isolation and running from problems.

I can understand people that were let down due to it not being a "conspiracy" or something bigger. They did a good job teeing that up actually...We have been conditioned as gamers to expect that sort of pay off.

Instead we got an ending much more grounded in reality. An ending where you completely failed at your job. The forest was burning.

You looked down and had a chance to put back on your wedding ring. There are no conspiracies. Delilah was out in the woods a little "messed up" same as you and didnt' want to see you.

You cant run from your problems even into the woods, there aren't conspiracies, you don't always get the girl. Welcome to life.

The suspense was very Hitchcock-esque, reminded me a lot of Psycho. This is the kind of game that pushes forward the medium, and some people are so used to getting entirely satisfied when it's come to entertainment. Worst form of critique has always been the one that focused on a tiny angle to justify your opinion, and criticizing what it isn't rather than what is is and what it achieves.

 

[kiguel182]

Finally played and finished the game. I really loved it.

The sense of paranoia it creates in you is great. You really start thinking of this big conspiracy and D encourages this paranoia too. It works. The fact that in the end it was a mad men messing with you seemed underwhelming at the time but in retrospective it makes sense. you were manipulated just like Henry and D were. It worked for me.

The little sideplots, the interactions with the environment and the gorgeous visuals and soundtrack all come together to make this game work for me.

The biggest fault I found was with the excessive time skips that maybe could be used to flesh out Henry's relationship with D.

Anyway, I really liked the game. It totally grabbed me until the end.

 

[Blizzard]

I finally played and finished this game, all in one night. According to Steam it was about 4.7 hours.

• + I thought Delilah's voice acting was great in most places, and the atmosphere plus that were high points.
• + Some parts legitimately felt spooky to me, but thankfully there weren't crazy jump scares.
• + The map and compass were neat.
• - There was a lot of hiking and backtracking that didn't feel totally necessary.
• - I didn't think the slow climbing animations (especially for small logs) were necessary.
• - A couple of moments made Henry's actions seem unbelievable in regard to Delilah. Even if you go along and never make her mad, and you act all interested in her, there's one point where you're forced to turn off the radio for a while. Even weirder, this is a point where you're worried, she's worried, you're worried about her drinking...and that's the point you don't even want to chat? Then you turn it back on and it seems to make no difference.
• - Similarly, there are mystery books all over the place, obviously pointing towards Brian and/or Ned. With tons of things in the game, you talk through them with Delilah, saying "Huh I wonder what this means" or whatever. "Hey I found an old outhouse." But if you find a Boy Scout camp with adult mystery novels stashed in it? Nope, you don't mention them at all.

I can understand the ending being so divisive. I wasn't personally happy with it, but I can also understand the feeling of sadness and disappointment as the player identifying with Henry.

That's just not something I personally seek out in games. Real life is harsh, cruel, sad, and disappointing already -- I don't usually want more of it in fiction.

 

[Blizzard]

I finally played and finished this game, all in one night. According to Steam it was about 4.7 hours.

• + I thought Delilah's voice acting was great in most places, and the atmosphere plus that were high points.
• + Some parts legitimately felt spooky to me, but thankfully there weren't crazy jump scares.
• + The map and compass were neat.
• - There was a lot of hiking and backtracking that didn't feel totally necessary.
• - I didn't think the slow climbing animations (especially for small logs) were necessary.
• - A couple of moments made Henry's actions seem unbelievable in regard to Delilah. Even if you go along and never make her mad, and you act all interested in her, there's one point where you're forced to turn off the radio for a while. Even weirder, this is a point where you're worried, she's worried, you're worried about her drinking...and that's the point you don't even want to chat? Then you turn it back on and it seems to make no difference.
• - Similarly, there are mystery books all over the place, obviously pointing towards Brian and/or Ned. With tons of things in the game, you talk through them with Delilah, saying "Huh I wonder what this means" or whatever. "Hey I found an old outhouse." But if you find a Boy Scout camp with adult mystery novels stashed in it? Nope, you don't mention them at all.

I can understand the ending being so divisive. I wasn't personally happy with it, but I can also understand the feeling of sadness and disappointment as the player identifying with Henry.

That's just not something I personally seek out in games. Real life is harsh, cruel, sad, and disappointing already -- I don't usually want more of it in fiction.

One more thought adding to this...it's tough saying anything without spoiling the OTHER game, but I agree with someone who mentioned Ethan Carter.

The overall feeling of pretty environments and touching-but-depressing story is similar.