It’s as if the game’s developers looked at how well-regarded media like Requiem for a Dream, Angela’s Ashes, Push, and Dancer in the Dark, and decided that video games needed something that was equally bleak and depressing. In fact, This War of Mine seems to exist purely to be an argument for the idea of Games as Art, with Art in this case being a substitute for “ misery porn“. It’s unrelentingly grim and dark, the kind of game that’s meant to be endured rather than enjoyed. It serves as a harsh, brutal reminder of…well, how harsh and brutal war can be.įrom a more realistic point of view, though, I have to admit: there’s literally zero chance I’ll play this game ever again.Īre those two points of view in conflict? Possibly, though I’ll do a little eliding myself by saying that, though I think This War of Mine is an Important game, that doesn’t mean I think you should rush out and buy it immediately.

Considering how cheap life tends to be in video games, and how quickly and easily most games tend to elide over the human cost of violence and destruction, it’s nice to have This War of Mine as a counterpoint. From a purely philosophical point of view, I suppose I’m glad This War of Mine: The Little Ones exists.

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