Games at War

One of the sessions at Digital Dragons 2023 focused on how the Ukrainian game industry has responded to the invasion of their country by Russia.

Digital Dragons packed its entire two-day run full of seminars. Every hour on the hour, you had about a half dozen or more to choose from. The diversity of the tracks was pretty impressive, from technical talks that only a developer would truly appreciate to more general interest ones that had something for everyone. One of the seminars that fell into the latter category was one titled “Games of War”.

This seminar was presented by Yaraslau Kot, a Ukrainian-Belarusian developer currently working for The Farm 51. He has worked in the industry for nearly thirty years, and has an impressive resume that includes an MBA and a PhD, and he has authored over 100 books and articles about games.

Games of War focused on the Ukraine game industry’s reaction to the invasion of its country. Rather than going into hiding, Ukrainian developers got to work making new games. The games serve may purposes in wartime – the developers can hold on to some sense of normalcy, and the games that they make have many benefits for those who play them. Some serve a vital educational purpose, such as one game that helps children learn how to recognize and avoid booby traps set by the Russians. The games are also used to raise funds for relief groups, as well as to help a population avoid being overwhelmed by a feeling of helplessness. It’s also beneficial from a psychological perspective to allow people to give those who can’t join the fight to have a way to feel like they are fighting back.

Dr. Kot organized his presentation into sections based on one aspect of the war. He talked a bit about the significance of something to the Ukrainian people, and then showed the games that were developed along that theme.

Drones

It’s hard to think about the war without also thinking of the significant impact drones have had on the conflict, which is why you’ll find a number of games that feature drone combat. A number of these games share the same name, Bayraktar, which is the Ukrainian word for drone. Dr. Kot emphasized that a lot of the games coming out of Ukraine right now may have similar or even the same titles. The developers aren’t interested in fighting for copyrights or legal challenges – what’s important is that they are all working together to help their country. Sometimes this means that it’s best to share a game title in order to increase recognition and awareness.

The drone games coming from Ukraine run the full spectrum from casual games to serious simulations. A few of the games highlighted included e-Bayraktar, a drone game officially backed and promoted by the government, Strikeback, a C64 side-scroller game that is donating some of its proceeds to Ukraine, and Death from Above – a full drone warfare simulation that can be found on Steam.

Tractors

Tractors are a national symbol to Ukrainians and a source of pride for the people. No matter what happens, the tractors always go to work. The tractors have further enhanced their legend in the current war, as farmers have used their tractors to haul off abandoned Russian tanks and equipment that have run out of gas, broken down, or gotten themselves stuck.

Games inspired by the resilience of Ukrainian tractors include Grand Theft Tractor Ukraine, a game with an obvious source of inspiration.

Farmers Stealing Tanks has you driving a tractor to look for tanks to haul back to your farm. The power-ups in this game are cans of cucumbers. This may seem like an odd choice for a power-up unless you are aware of the story of the grandmother from Kyiv who brought down a Russian drone with a well-thrown can of cucumbers. Other tractor games include 300 Farmers, a take on Snake in which you try to tow as many tanks in a chain as you can, and another inspired by Limbo that has you trying to get your tank towing tractor past a number of obstacles.

Chornobaivka

Several games are inspired by the events of Chornobaivka. The airfield was captured by the Russians early in the war, but the Ukrainians were able to concentrate fire on the base and exact a heavy toll in equipment. The Russians kept moving new equipment back to the base, only to have it destroyed again. This has led the name Chornobaivka to become a symbol to the Ukrainian people that Russia can be defeated. You’ll find several games that go by the name Chornobaivka, and the ones Dr. Kot highlighted were arcade shooters or tower defense games in which your goal is to destroy copious amounts of Russian armor.

Snake Island

You’re probably aware of Snake Island, because the incident there received a lot of media attention in the US. The quote which grabbed the world’s attention, “Russian warship, go f*ck yourself,” was the response by the Ukrainian garrison on the island to the Russian ship demanding that the island’s defenders surrender. This has inspired a game of the same name, which is a tower defense game that has you building installations on the island to keep the Russian warships at bay.

Birds as Bioweapons

Russia has made it a habit of accusing the Ukrainians of employing all types of illegal weapons and tactics during the war. One of these claims is that the Ukrainian forces were using birds trained in the United States to deliver bioweapons developed in Ukraine to the Russian lines and motherland. Birds Attack is a side-scrolling action browser game that casts you as a weapons-toting bird attacking Russian soldiers and vehicles.

Javalline

The anti-tank Javelin missiles, known as Javalline in Ukraine, have earned legendary status in Ukraine. This has led to many memes and cartoons, including a “Love is...” take with the caption “Love is … when he gives you a Javelin”.

There are a number of casual shooter titles which arm you with a Javelin and then let you run amok among approaching Russian armor, but there is also Glory to the Heroes, a AAA first-person shooter currently in development that you can now wishlist on Steam.

Plastic Bags

There are certainly some games that would seem in poor taste were they to be released in peacetime, but during wartime they provide people with a way to deal with the destruction occurring around them. One of the inspirations for a group of games that fall into this category is the Russian practice of packing their dead into plastic bags and then simply disposing of them. Zero Losses is one of these games and one that actually casts you in the role of a Russian. Here you must drive a disposal vehicle to collect as many body bags as you can and deliver them to an incinerator to get rid of the evidence of all of those embarrassing war dead.

On the more casual end of the spectrum there is Ztetris, a game of Tetris in which the shapes are made or Russian body bags, and Manyu Catches Vanyu, a parody of a Russian knock-off of Nintendo’s Popeye Game & Watch in which a Russian woman must catch and collect the remains of her husband which have been packaged in bags.

Zombies

Zombies have been a part of gaming since its inception, but the familiar undead foes take on new meaning in the war. One of the terms the Ukrainians use for Russian soldiers is “zombies”, both a nod to the ‘Z’ painted on Russian vehicles as well as a reference to an army of soldiers rendered braindead and thoughtless by constant exposure to propaganda. Ukrainian Forces Unlimited is a horde-more game that pits your Ukrainian soldier against Russian army zombies. The Last Outpost takes its inspiration from Plants vs Zombies. Fight for Ukraine is a first-person action game that begins with you fighting for survival in Kyiv, but will eventually let you take the fight to Moscow.

Four Positions

Another Russian propaganda claim that led to inspiration for games is what Ukrainians call “Four Positions”. This refers to the Russian claim that their invasion was justified because Ukraine was planning on invading Russia from four different positions. Ukrainians can blast propagandists like Olga Skabeyeva with a flying Zelenskyy head that shoots lasers from its eyes.

Orcs

Even more popular than calling Russian soldiers zombies in Ukraine is referring to them as orcs. The wanton destructiveness of the Russian army, along with their habit of stealing everything from TVs to toilets from civilians, calls to mind the barbarism of orcs in the minds of Ukrainians. Ukrainians even sometimes refer to their country as Gondor, because it is surrounded by orcs and yet is managing to keep them at bay. Pixel World: Orcs Attack is one game that plays on this theme. It’s a mobile action game that pits you against an orc army emblazoned with the Z logo.

Kittens

Ukrainian soldiers are known as kittens, because they are well-disciplined and treat civilians with respect. The origin of this nickname can be traced back to World War II, but it has applied ever since.

The kittens as soldiers theme also helps the psychology of the Ukrainian people through humor, as evidenced by the game Cats at Arms. This is a mobile action-clicker in which you play as a cat army defending itself from an orc invasion.

Punishing Putin

Ukrainian games also help the population to vent their anger and frustration at the man responsible for starting the war. These games use humor to both make Putin seem small and ridiculous as well as to allow players to punch back at the dictator. Stop Putin has players attempting to stop Putin from ever being born in the first place by using a condom to catch Putin-faced sperm. F*ck Putin is a ragdoll physics game in which you can subject his body to explosive situations. Catch Crazy Dictator is a whack-a-mole style game I which the holes represent all of Putin’s residences and you’ll need to hit him as he pops out of one of them at random while holding a sign with a propaganda phrase painted on it.

Putin on the Bottle is an arcade game in which baby Putins wearing Z hats parachute down while you try to shoot them down with a cannon that shoots bottles. Sunflower Slap is a cathartic game in which you must make your way down Putin’s long table and then if you reach him, slap him silly with sunflowers. Musk vs Putin is done in a classic, side-scrolling brawler style in which you fight Putin as Elon Musk, who has one arm behind his back.

Ghost of Kyiv

Contrary to what many think, the Ghost of Kyiv is not a single individual. To Ukrainians, the Ghost of Kyiv is a collective image of all of its pilots, a reference to its air force. There are a number of games that share the Ghost of Kyiv name, from mobile arcade shooters that resemble 1942, to Ace Combat style action sims.

War Games

There are also games coming out of Ukraine that let you try your hand at defending the country on both a tactical and strategic level. UDFT – Ukraine Defense Force Tactics is available on Steam and resembles the Panzer General game series, putting you in charge of individual armored, artillery, and infantry units. Battle for Ukraine and Protect Ukraine give you command of forces on a grander scale that play out of a map of the entire country.

And Many More

Dr. Kot concluded his seminar by highlighting a number of additional games that were inspired by events in the war, other games, or by the spirit of the Ukrainian people. Forward to Victory is a game in which your charged with protecting busses with children or other evacuating refugees from Russian fire. Heart of Ukraine has you using blue and gold hearts to stop Russian tanks. Kremlin 3D is a mod of the classic Castle Wolfenstein game in which you fight Russians within the halls of the Kremlin as you hunt down Putin. Hentai Mission Ukraine cast you as an anime heroine with blue and gold hair who takes on the Russian army singlehandedly.

Ukraine War Stories is a narrative game that collects the experiences of ordinary Ukrainians, while Hollow Home is a This War of Mine style game set in a Ukrainian city on the front lines.

A Community Garden Outside of Kyiv is a game that gives each player a single sunflower seed to plant. Players then help to nurture the seeds planted by other gamers. They can then visit the garden in full bloom at the end of the day, and then the next day the garden is refreshed and ready to planted anew again.

I really enjoyed listening to Dr. Kot speak. It was interesting learning about how the Ukrainian people are coping with the invasion of their home through gaming, and seeing the many different forms the games took. I would encourage you to take the time to seek out some of these games yourself. Your purchases will help to aid the people of Ukraine, and the games may help you to gain some insight into what the people are experiencing.