Faisal Ghaffar 
This War of Mine: Final Cut resurfaces in the aftermath of an impending war to deliver its ever-relevant message once more.
Overview
Few devs know the value of their platform as well as 11 Bit Studios. Everything the development company does with This War of Mine is intentional and designed to further its goal of creating a world in which children never witness the horrors of war. A year after the release of This War of Mine in 2014, 11 Bit Studios collaborated with War Child to raise £400,000 ($493,420) for anti-war efforts around the world. In more recent times, 11 Bit Studios helped contribute to the outpouring of support for Ukraine by donating 100% of the proceeds from This War of Mine to the Ukrainian Red Cross.
Driving Force Behind The Game
The driving force behind 11 Bit Studios, whose work can be found throughout This War of Mine. Rather than controlling soldiers or trained enemy soldiers, the player is cast as a group of civilians attempting to survive a siege in the fictional city of Pogoren. With little combat experience, they must scrounge by until a cessation of hostilities is reached, avoiding starvation, poor weather, and flying shotgun pellets until the bitter end.
Central Story in Game
This War of Mine has no central story other than “there is a war in Pogoren.” This War of Mine’s storytelling excels due to its hands-off approach. Everything players discover about an individual and the occurrences of the war is entirely determined by their own choices. Every character in the game is dealing with the war in their own unique way, and how players react to that reality is entirely up to them. The radio offers statuses on the war via broadcast, which aids in worldbuilding.
This War of Mine needs to rely on characters to maintain the player involved in the absence of a central story. All controllable characters have their own backstories, which players discover through gameplay. Players can also learn a lot about the morals of the characters by how they respond (or do not respond) to what other protagonists do while foraging for food at night. As they go about their day, they comment just on actions of many other protagonists and lament their squalid living conditions.
What makes the Game Interesting?
The survival gameplay in This War of Mine is extremely harsh. Not only are supplies limited, but when scavenging, players must also manage a small inventory. Because key items, such as wood, have small stack sizes, players must sacrifice other essential items. Players must also avoid hostile NPC attacks and navigate maze-like structures. All of this is completed under strict time constraints. This is the central conflict of the scavenging sequences at night.
It is this tension which it makes nighttime multiplayer so appealing. The transition from safe, uninhabited areas to hostile areas is seamless. As the game progresses, players will face off against armed soldiers to body armour and stronger enemies who stand in their way of vital items.
