Wartime survival sim This War of Mine is to appear on the Polish national curriculum starting next year. The game will be included in the list of school reading for Polish students who are 18 years of age or older.
This development comes about thanks to a program started by This War of Mine developer 11 bit studios and Polish prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki. The program began life back in early 2019 and has finally come to fruition. 11 bit studios CEO Grzegorz Miechowski says that this is the first time a game has been officially included "on a national level as school reading" in education. He hopes this will be a "breakthrough moment" for all artists creating games globally.
So how will This War of Mine work as an educational tool?
This War of Mine will start appearing as recommended reading for Polish students in the 2020/2021 school year. Since the game has an 18+ age rating in most territories due to its subject matter, it won't be available as reading for anyone under that age. According to an 11 bit studios press release, This War of Mine will be recommended for the human sciences: sociology, ethics, philosophy, and history. It'll be made available to all Polish high schools free of charge. 11 bit says this wouldn't be possible without official recognition from the Prime Minister and the Polish Ministry of Education.
Originally released in 2014, This War of Mine is a wartime survival simulator with colony-building elements. You control a group of civilians doing their best to survive in a city besieged by war. Unlike other war games, you won't be engaging in combat heroics; rather, you're simply trying to find enough resources to survive. If you're interested and you haven't checked it out yet, This War of Mine is available to buy on Steam. It's also on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
Do you think This War of Mine should be made available in other school curriculums? Let us know in the comments below!
