Second Runner Up: Campo Santo (Firewatch)
Campo Santo is a small development team based out of San Francisco, CA made up of some former Telltale and Double Fine devs, among others. For years the team has been working on their first title, Firewatch, and boy did they deliver.
Firewatch is an incredibly personal game, more about exploration and introspection than anything else. There are basically two characters in the entire experience, both expertly voice acted. You play as Henry, a man who’s taken a summer job at Yellowstone as a Park Ranger to try and escape his life. His guide and supervisor is Delilah, another Park Ranger who communicates with him via walkie talkie.
Where Firewatch really succeeds its with its character development and relationship building, as Henry and Delilah grow closer and closer over the days. Campo Santo made a brilliant move in casting Rich Somner (Harry Crane in Mad Men) as Henry, and Cissy Jones (Katjaa in The Walking Dead: Season 1) as Delilah. The actors do a marvelous job of fleshing out their characters and adding emotional depth to the story. As the two spend more time out in the wilderness, strange things start to develop, and the only support each has is the voice on the other side of the radio.
Firewatch really is a fascinating experience, one part peaceful and relaxing as you explore the stunning Yellowstone wilderness, and one part incredibly tense once events start to escalate.
Campo Santo has also worked hard to bring even more to fans of the game, launching their title on PS4 and PC earlier this year and then later bringing it to Xbox One as well. They’ve also released a number of patches and updates, including an in-game audio tour, free-roam mode, and PS4 Pro support. Whatever Campo Santo has planned next, we’ll be eagerly anticipating it.
