Last night Emilia left our abode to scavenge for food in the ruins of a local supermarket. When she arrived there, she encountered a soldier assaulting a woman and tried to intervene, but the soldier shot her.

When news of Emilia’s death reached the shelter, her companions fell into a dark depression. Bruno has not eaten in two days and Katia was wounded after fighting off raiders. Now they are desperate.

Most videogames depict war like a Disneyland theme park ride. But this European indie title is sheer hell. The aim is not to win the war, simply to survive it. Control your survivors and manage your shelter; reinforce the walls to protect yourselves against night time raids, construct radios to hear news from the outside world, barter for food and materials, and craft items. This is The Sims as envisaged through war-torn Sarajevo.
Protecting children in this world is harrowing, but the game places as much emphasis on humanity as it does horror.

8/10