Through the Darkest of Times
Developed by Paintbucket Games, 2020

July 20 this year marks the 80th anniversary of the plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler, primarily carried out by army officers. While resistance efforts like this and the non-violent White Rose student group are familiar to many, other courageous acts of resistance within Nazi Germany remain less known. Significant recognition of German resistance only began in the 1990s, with government commemorations starting in the early 2000s (Von Lengeling, 2002). Today, a memorial ceremony at the German Resistance Memorial Center will be attended by officials including Chancellor Olaf Scholz. This makes the strategy videogame, Through the Darkest of Times (TTDT), particularly interesting and timely as it offers a novel role in the commemoration and recognition of German resistance. It provides an engaging format for understanding the horrors of the Nazi regime, the shifting politics of the time, and the life of many of those opposed to Nazi rule. Through its immersive narrative, TTDT provides a unique and insightful look into the bravery and complexity of German resistance efforts.

Players make strategic decisions as the leader of a small group of resistors in Berlin. Gameplay alternates between story elements grounded in historical realities and a map of Berlin showing various missions available each week. These missions range from lower-risk actions like buying paper or paint to create and spread leaflets or write slogans on walls, to more dangerous tactics such as transmitting military intel, hiding Wehrmacht deserters or bomb making.

The story spans four chapters and an epilogue and includes weekly newspaper headlines of real events like the Reichstag fire. Chapter one begins with Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor in February 1933, covering the rise of pre-war fascism, the consolidation of power through legal means, and the shock and disbelief felt by some. The second chapter takes place during the 1936 Berlin Olympics, a platform for Nazi propaganda to reach an international audience. The third chapter is set against the backdrop of the 1941 occupation of France and invasion of the Soviet Union. If you make it that far, the fourth takes place towards the end of the war and the epilogue follows a year after war ends.

The 1930s atmosphere is captured through simple, muted artwork inspired by 1920s expressionism, the developers wanting to show what it might have looked like in the 1930s if the Nazis hadn’t banned it........

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