Except that it quickly becomes apparent that that is only the facade, and the player is being quite severely limited and led around by the nose, not only precisely where, but also when, the designers choose to do so. In fact, throughout my time with the game, the one thing I found most jarring was thinking about all that lost potential being cruelly dangled in front of me. Of what the whole could have been if the narrative (which held my attention throughout) had been used as a starting point, and transplanted into a truly open world, where I was free to wonder around limited only by whatever equipment I had at my disposal, free to make my own trails, go off the beaten path, and take risks.

Firewatch was the best interactive novel I’ve played through. I enjoyed it and have no regrets about picking it up. I just think it could have been a much more compelling game.