FAQ

The following FAQ is taken from the official website for Firewatch.

Tell me about Firewatch!
Firewatch is a single-player first-person video game where you, as a man named Henry, explore the Wyoming wilderness after taking a summer job as a fire lookout. What is supposed to be a peaceful respite from your complicated life takes a turn when you start to question some of the things that are happening to you. Your only human connection is over a handheld radio, which you’ll use to speak with Delilah, your supervisor, about the things both of you are experiencing.

Well that’s a real tease.
We know, we know. We’ll go deeper into the story throughout development, but as Firewatch is early in its development AND a mystery story, we don’t want to give too much away.

When is it out?
Firewatch doesn’t have a release date yet but we’d love for it to come out in 2015.

What platforms is it on? When will it be on my…?
We’ve currently only announced Windows, Mac, and Linux but would love the game to be on a console and are actively exploring the prospect. Long-term we want the game to be playable by as many people as possible and will aim to be on any platform that fits the design of the game!

I don’t even need to read more—I want to pre-order it now!
Thanks, but we’re not accepting pre-orders for a while. If you want to know the moment the game will be available for purchase, subscribe to our company newsletter—we rarely send email, and we promise it’s worth it when we do.

Who is making it?
The game is being developed by Campo Santo, a new independent video game studio in San Francisco. This is Campo’s first game, but its members have made some games you might’ve enjoyed, including Mark of the Ninja, Brutal Legend, The Cave, Bioshock II, and The Walking Dead: Season 1. You can learn more about Campo Santo at our company site.

Who is your publisher?
The game is being published as a joint venture by Campo Santo and Panic Inc., a Portland-based software company. This is the first major video game release from both companies, and you can read more about their relationship here and here.

I want to keep up with the game!
Great! We’ve got an excellent dev blog right here and we’re on Twitter and Facebook—but I’ll be honest, the dev blog and Twitter are the prime spots.

Can you tell me more about the development process?
I could, but you’d really enjoy the dev blog quite a bit more—there you can find art and processes of the game, photos from the studio day-to-day, livestreams, Q&As with the team, etc.

That Firewatch image is great! I’d love it on a poster or something to drape over my sculpted body!
Depending on when you’re reading this, there may be one of our very limited screen-printed posters available on the company store. If not, you can find shirts and all sorts of goods there.

What technology are you using?
Firewatch is being developed in Unity with lots of help from the add-on community. Along with other tools for various purposes, the game world is making use of SECTR Complete—an excellent piece of Unity streaming middleware developed by our friend Nathan Martz at Make Code Now! We’re also using proprietary dialog and event tools, both of which we plan on talking about on the Campo Santo dev blog.

What is your studio's spirit animal?
Red panda, or Red Cat-Bear, if you prefer that name.

Did environment artist Jane Ng both ask and answer that last question?
Yes; it’s a question she considers frequently.