This War of Mine: Final Cut

Even 8 years after its initial release, This War of Mine is still a worthy survival game that shows us how cruel wars can be, and considering what is going on in the world right now, there can't be a better time to play it.

This War of Mine: Final Cut offers more content than previous versions and creates some powerful narratives. Runs tend to play out in a similar fashion despite the variables on offer but it's certainly worth experiencing.

Despite some minor technical flaws, This War of Mine remains a poignant and, unfortunately, relevant game to this day. It is no surprise that it was the first video game in history to be added to a school curriculum. Its depiction of the harsh reality of war for civilians makes it one of the most unique games to come out of the previous decade.

An experience whose moral value probably exceeds the playful one, and whose didactic value manifests itself spontaneously and apparently unconsciously.

This is a beautifully crafted cautionary tale about the horrors of war and the true devastation it can rain on ordinary civilians. Like real war, every story you play will be different with different outcomes, and you’ll be led to make increasingly more desperate and erratic choices to ensure the survival of your characters.

This War of Mine: Final Cut is not the survival game that we know. It is a game that teaches the brutal part of wars, history and its mechanics. As a console edition it is impressive with additional graphics work and new stories; the controls can be a little tricky, though it is highly enjoyable.

It’s impossible not to think about what real people in different parts of the world are going through right now when playing This War of Mine in 2022. That’s part of the point. Buying a video game perhaps isn’t the best way to support those people, but This War of Mine: Final Cut captures the true horror of war in a way that few video games will even try, let alone succeed, and for that, it’s an absolute must-play. If you’re like me and waited nearly eight years to check This War of Mine out, it’s time to fix that mistake.

By offering a realistic look at war by positioning yourself at the head of a group of civilians trying to survive, This War of Mine offers a different approach to survival games but does not avoid some pitfalls. Admittedly, the game mechanics are always the same and can quickly tire you. In addition, certain aesthetic choices somewhat taint the visibility of the infiltration phases and the writing is sometimes clumsy. But it would be criminal not to salute a game which manages to convey a strong message, which knows how to place the player in front of his own conscience at all times without falling into voyeurism or bad taste. A devilishly interesting experience.

This War of Mine: Final Cut closes an important path for 11 bit studios and does so at the most appropriate time, when it's really important to raise awareness of what war really means for ordinary people. From this point of view, the game still does its job very well and the three extra stories add further narrative depth to the package, which however remains designed for mouse and therefore turns out to be rather cumbersome when playing with a controller.

An enduringly clever inversion of traditional survival genre tropes coupled with a palpably tragic and gut-wrenching experience, This War of Mine: Final Cut offers up 11 bit studios magnum opus in its perfect form. By packing in all of the DLC released to date in addition to the stellar Stories expansions and providing a pin-sharp 4K presentation, This War of Mine: Final Cut is an ageless, horrifying and inventive survival effort that everybody should play without delay. This is as essential as survival games get and its mediation on the desperate plight of civilians during a time of war has never been more resonant.