![]() ![]() The result of that strange design decision is that no person playing the game is ever truly invested in a particular character. Only the Leader - that is, the person actually holding the Journal at that moment - is allowed to touch any of the pieces on the board. It has all the steps in a turn written out in order, as well as rules for passing the Journal to the next player at the table. The Journal is one of the books that comes in the box. It’s more like lobbying, really, or a kind of social experiment. ![]() I do not have many 10/10 rated games, but this is surely that. “Every game in my collection can be traded at some point,” they said, “but this is one that will stay forever. In an ironic twist, one of the most well-read reviews of This War of Mine: The Board Game comes from a survivor of the siege of Sarajevo. They told me how they began to circulate a letter from a survivor of the siege of Sarajevo, and how it helped them prepare mentally for the possibility of war. The developers were frightened of what might happen to their friends and family in Poland if Russian forces mobilized along the border. When I was visiting the team at 11 bit in Warsaw it was right around the time that Russian separatists had invaded Ukraine. Do we let the soldiers into the house or hide in the basement? Do we raid the abandoned grade school? Do we kill the cat or do we pet the cat? This War of Mine: The Board Game is effectively a solitaire game that supports up to six players and much of the tension comes from those players voting on what they should do next. Some of those shown here in a Facebook post are only available with the Kickstarter version. ![]() In addition to a two-sided game board, 200 cards and 186 tokens This War of Mine: The Board Game comes with a dozen top-quality miniatures. It’s a kind of port, and that is where it begins to lose its way. It isn’t simply an adaptation of the original. It’s a hell of a thing, and should not be missed. I even interviewed the Iraq war veteran turned game designer that was helping to make it. I visited 11 bit’s studio in Warsaw, Poland while they were finishing it up. It’s a remarkable work that forces the player to linger on the outcomes of war, not simply glory in pulling the trigger. We’ve written about This War of Mine the video game plenty of times before here at Polygon. Now I’m afraid that I may have scared everyone off completely. Unfortunately, I elected to kick things off with This War of Mine: The Board Game. And besides, the pile of new games isn’t getting any shorter. I figured that a couple of friends, some adult beverages and a quiet corner in the basement might be just what I needed. Just a few weeks ago I kicked off a weekly board game night here at my house. ![]()
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