Agent_KaryoFirewatch was meant to spark a subgenre but its influence didn’t spread. A decade on, we ask why Roblox and Minecraft are more
justdaveisfineI got to admit - I only played Firewatch briefly (~20 minutes). I just remember walking around and replying to a lady on the radio before stepping away and never jumping back in.
It seems I missed what the reactive storytelling was supposed to be about.
EltingIts the kind of game who’s value can be gotten out of a youtube video. It was hardly the first game of that subgenre either, Gone Home comes to mind.
🔍🦘🛎It’s been like 10 years, but I still feel guilty I never bought Oxenfree after watching a Lets Play. I did get the sequel.
You know what, I remain not at all sold on Firewatch, or Edith Finch. I get that it’s a new genre, but they just didn’t do anything for me. Weirdly, Come Home did work for me a bit more, despite not being all that different.
Oxenfree on the other hand, I thought that game was really brilliant. It really evoked that feeling of being 16, hanging out with friends trying to be cool, sussing out who likes who. There’s a sense of adventure and terror in being that age, and with the addition of just a little bit of creepy mystery, you’ve got a real great recipe for a unique experience.
I also really liked their system for interrupting characters’ monologues and being able to get back to them later with a quick “oh, what was I saying?”, it’s essentially like being able to pause a cutscene, actually play the game for a bit, then return to it.
Personally, Edith Finch and The Vanishing of Ethan Carter really played to some themes of family and nostalgia that hit home. Something about returning to a place you moved from and seeing things in a different light now that you’re older just makes for a beautiful story.