Threads of War, a Ukrainian tank game in the spirit of Battle City (1985, Famicom) with roguelike elements and vyshyvanka-style graphics, has been released on Steam.
As a reminder, Threads of War is a game created by 13-year-old Askold Kostyushko (the boy was 11 years old when development began) under the supervision of his father Andriy Kostyushko, director of the Kyiv-based game studio Creoteam (Collapse, Football, Tactics & Glory). Askold was responsible for programming, and Andriy for game design, graphics, and music.
All the graphic elements of Threads of War are made from Ukrainian embroidery patterns. The game presents in an allegorical style the counter-offensive operations of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in 2022: the liberation of northern Ukraine, the Slobozhansk operation, the liberation of Kherson, etc. 25% of the project's revenues will go to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
In addition to pure gameplay, Threads of War also has a narrative part that, in the spirit of embroidery, tells the story of the fate of the Ukrainian military.
Threads of War has roguelike elements, i.e. bonuses and progression, the ability to play with two players, a map editor, and stylized 8-bit Ukrainian folk music. And of course, Ukrainian localization.
In honor of the release, Threads of War is available with a 10% discount for only UAH 111. It is worth supporting such an interesting reinterpretation of a classic.