Firewood

About

"Firewood is a single-player 2D adventure game with psychological horror elements, featuring an old man seeking redemption after his wife's death. The game offers a twisting plot, hand-drawn graphics, and grim music. It took five months to create, with everything done from scratch."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

61%

Audience ScoreBased on 62 reviews

story14 positive mentions

gameplay3 negative mentions

The game features an interesting and engaging story that explores deep themes of loss and guilt.
The atmosphere is well-crafted, with impressive music and visuals that enhance the overall experience.
Despite its simplicity, the game provides a unique psychological horror experience that can resonate with players.

The gameplay is repetitive and lacks meaningful puzzles, often reducing the experience to walking and item collection.
The story can be confusing and is marred by poor writing, including grammatical errors and awkward dialogue.
The game is very short, with many players feeling it doesn't justify its price due to the lack of content and replayability.

story
59 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
69%
7%
The game's story is a mixed bag, with some players finding it engaging and thought-provoking, particularly in its exploration of themes like loss and personal demons, while others criticize it for being unclear, convoluted, or lacking depth. Many reviews highlight a psychological horror element, with a focus on atmosphere, but note that the narrative can feel disjointed or underdeveloped, leaving players wanting more clarity and resolution. Overall, the story serves as a central draw for some, but its execution varies significantly, leading to a range of opinions on its effectiveness.
- “A great psychological horror game with a depressing story; I recommend it strongly.”
- “The story talks about how a man is haunted by his wife's passing and the nightmares he faces.”
- “The story unravels as you continue into the game, and while not everything makes sense, it has a satisfying ending.”
- “The story makes no sense whatsoever, and even if it did, it's bland and uninteresting.”
- “The story was somewhat unclear, especially the ending.”
- “Some aspects of the story will get clear answers, but there are simply too many moving parts for a game that clocks in at less than an hour, leaving much of the deeper plot and meaning obscured.”
gameplay
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
70%
18%
The gameplay has been criticized for its repetitiveness and simplicity, primarily involving walking, backtracking, and solving easy puzzles, which many find tedious and unengaging. Players note that the mechanics feel stretched and lack depth, with a short overall playtime of about an hour, leading to a general sense of dissatisfaction with the experience. While there are no significant technical issues, the gameplay fails to meet expectations, leaving it feeling uninspired compared to other titles.
- “However, I think some adjustments need to be made with respect to story pacing, visual fidelity, and the engagement of the gameplay before I can give an actual recommendation.”
- “At least in terms of the gameplay, I had no issues in terms of glitches/bugs - but I do wish they'd not make the items in your inventory so transparent since it's hard to see what's there.”
- “The story is nice, but the gameplay is kind of bad; it's all about backtracking and some easy puzzles.”
- “The gameplay consists of simply walking left and right, entering a room, collecting an item, leaving the room, and moving on.”
- “The gameplay feels a bit stretched, with empty rooms and very basic maps (go all the way left, go all the way right) - this, coupled with slow walking speed, makes the game tiresome at times.”
music
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
40%
20%
The music in the game is generally praised for its originality and ability to enhance the atmosphere, with many users finding it gorgeous and immersive. However, some noted issues with abrupt transitions and repetitive loops that detracted from the experience. Overall, while the soundtrack is appreciated, opinions on its value relative to the game's price vary.
- “The music and visuals were all original and rather impressive.”
- “The atmosphere is excellent, and I was really impressed with the sound and music used.”
- “Just a real leisure game with some spoopy bits and a very fitting soundtrack.”
- “Except, well... those sudden ones and one looped music in one place (forgot which).”
- “I have no idea what the piano keys and song are meant to imply.”
- “Jumpscares were cheap, but the music and ambiance did keep you constantly tense.”
atmosphere
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
69%
8%
23%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its excellent sound design and music, which enhance the overall experience and contribute to a creepy, immersive environment. While some players appreciate the moody visuals and tension-filled moments, others feel that pacing issues and disjointed puzzles detract from the atmosphere. Overall, the atmosphere stands out as a highlight, effectively creating a sense of unease and intrigue.
- “The atmosphere is excellent, and I was really impressed with the sound and music used.”
- “Decent story told with a very good atmosphere.”
- “The developer definitely has potential, and does a fine job at creating a creepy atmosphere.”
- “Instead of adding to the atmosphere, this makes it feel like you are slogging through to get to the next plot point.”
- “There’s decent atmosphere in the moody, run-down halls of the place but you won’t notice much when you’re gritting or giggling through another idiotic jumpscare.”
- “The game does have a few slow moments where you need to figure out what to do, but it still keeps the creepy '... oh what is behind this door' atmosphere that will keep you on the edge of your seat in the later game.”
graphics
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
42%
25%
The graphics received mixed reviews, with some praising the original art style and charm reminiscent of other indie titles, while others criticized them as simplistic, pixelated, and poorly executed, often describing them as lazy or ugly. Despite a few positive mentions of the visuals contributing to a creepy atmosphere, many reviewers noted significant issues such as graphical errors and a lack of engaging gameplay, leading to an overall negative perception of the graphics quality.
- “The music and visuals were all original and rather impressive.”
- “I liked the art style and the music is really nice; I can't blame it for its price tag.”
- “Good artwork with a creepy atmosphere.”
- “Very short, basic graphics bordering on lazy drawings, minimal action as you basically open doors, go to places, pick up things and finally put them in the most obvious spots.”
- “Graphics are well... pixelated with distortion effects put on, giving resemblance to the game 'Distraint', which gameplay-wise is similar.”
- “Ugly visuals, awkward interface, poor writing, no puzzles (you don't call something obvious a puzzle, do you?), lame attempts at making screamers, ridiculous achievements one can't miss, glitches from the very beginning, overall nonsense.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, likening it to a walking simulator, though some appreciate that it only lasts about an hour.
- “The gameplay is as repetitive and tedious as it could possibly be.”
- “It's a bit tedious, like a walking simulator, but it only takes an hour, so there's that...”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game lacks significant replayability, with many users suggesting it is best purchased on sale due to its short length and limited content. Comparisons to other titles highlight a similar experience, but ultimately, players may feel disappointed if expecting more replay value.
- “No real replay value to it, though, so I personally suggest this one as a sale buy or you may end up feeling a bit let down.”
- “It is a short game with no replayability value, and I notice it's similar to Home, a 2D exploration/horror game I've thoroughly enjoyed.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Overall, stability in the game is mixed; while some players report no significant glitches or bugs affecting gameplay, others highlight numerous issues such as visual problems, an awkward interface, and various glitches from the start. The inventory transparency also detracts from the user experience, making it difficult to identify items.
- “Ugly visuals, awkward interface, poor writing, no puzzles (you don't call something obvious a puzzle, do you?), lame attempts at making screamers, ridiculous achievements one can't miss, glitches from the very beginning, overall nonsense.”
- “At least in terms of the gameplay, I had no issues in terms of glitches/bugs - but I do wish they'd not make the items in your inventory so transparent since it's hard to see what's there.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by unintentional comedic moments, such as amusing spelling and grammar errors that evoke laughter, as well as hilariously awkward walk cycles that add to the overall comedic experience.
- “There were strange spelling and grammar errors that completely killed the mood and made me laugh out loud.”
- “The walk cycles are so hilarious it hurts.”

Buy Firewood

1h Median play time

2h Average play time

1-5h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 3 analyzed playthroughs

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