In games, romance is often an end-goal. A relationship is the reward at the end of a quest chain or a gift-giving minigame of sorts, or it’s the fulfillment of a character’s potential and meaning. There are exceptions, of course, but there are few great romances in gaming, doomed or otherwise. And there’s very little that would fall into the rom-com category.
When I first started playing Firewatch [official site], I was delighted when the melancholy opening gave way to a lightness of touch. There are bright, cheery moments, genuine laughs and a warmth that has nothing to do with any burning threat. This, I thought to myself, could be a tragedy-tinged comedic romance and I hadn’t realised how much I wanted to play such a thing until I was playing it.
