Ukraine War Stories
Starni Games · 2022 · Choose Your Own Adventure, Interactive Fiction, War, Visual Novel, RPG
PC
Very Positive88% · 1,081
This game is free to play. Get it on Steam →
Screenshots
About Ukraine War Stories
Ukraine War Stories is a set of visual novels about the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Set in the early months of the war, it tells the stories of civilians trapped on Russian-occupied territory. In their shoes, you will not be a fighter, only a survivor.
The novels will take you from the first volleys of the war in Hostomel, to the terror in Bucha, to the defiant resistance in Mariupol. You will have to keep yourself and your loved ones safe, and eventually escape to safety. This will take courage and resourcefulness — and sometimes, sacrifices.
Based on real events
Every novel is a dramatization of eyewitness accounts and real events recorded in the area, condensed into one story.
The gameplay is text-based and accompanied by music and illustrations. The game's art comes from authentic war photographs taken in the areas where the stories take place.
Truly free — no catch
The full game is completely free (no in-app purchases, etc) + a free Demo is available until the full game is released. We do not try to profit from this project. Our goal is to share the recent experiences of the people of Ukraine with a worldwide audience.
Devs are from Ukraine
Developed by a small team located in Kyiv, Ukraine, working from our office despite the wartime conditions. As a Ukraine-based company, we could not sit idly by as the war rages in our country, with enemy forces stopping 3 km short of Kyiv itself, and a large portion of Ukraine being occupied.
One of the guys from our team was caught by the Russian invading forces in Bucha (where one of our stories takes place) and had to hide in a garage basement for a week with his family until they managed to evacuate. His house was plundered and looted by the Russians along with many other houses in the town. He told us his eyewitness account, which we used along with other public sources. A lot of our relatives' or friends' lives were also affected. Fortunately, everyone on our team survived so far, but the war continues…
THREE STORIES
The game includes three interactive novels about some of the first towns that were hit during the invasion: Hostomel, Bucha, and Mariupol. In each story you will play a civilian, completely outmatched against the invading Russians. Your only task is to keep yourself and your loved ones safe, and escape with your lives. But remember: as a civilian, you can only do so much.
Hostomel
Available in Free Demo
On Feb 24, 2022 Ukrainians woke up to the sound of air raid sirens and rocket strikes. A massive Russian airborne attack upon the outskirts of Kyiv followed. The town of Hostomel was among the first targets.
This is where it all began.
As a retired aviation engineer, Oleksiy Borisov is not equipped to handle the challenges of the war. In this role, you will have to manage your survival resources, and take care of your group's emotional needs. It's not about winning the war — it's about seeing your loved ones to safety.
Bucha
Available in Full Game for free
After a week of intense fighting, the North-Western outskirts of Kyiv fell to the Russians on Mar 5, 2022. Like many other small towns in the area, Bucha was under a month-long occupation. This occupation was among the most brutal in the history of warfare.
Yarik Kravchenko and his sister Vika came to Bucha to wait out the assault on Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. Their mother Yana is a medic defending the capital, while Yarik and Vika are stuck in Bucha, unable to escape on their own. And the occupation is becoming more brutal by the day.
In this story, you will be the most vulnerable in the face of the war. You will face tough choices, and a happy outcome will not be assured.
Mariupol
Available in Full Game for free
In the 8 years of the war, the city of Mariupol had already fallen under attack before. Back then it was over quickly. Now, it's about to become one of the biggest and bloodiest sieges of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Dima Kornienko is a talented surgeon and a native of Mariupol. When the war comes to his city once more, he finds himself on the frontline along with other medics. Your staff is well-trained and motivated, but the situation in the city is growing desperate, and supplies are quickly running out.
In this story, hard choices will have to be made — choices nobody can make for you. To save as many as you can, you must keep track of your hospital's readiness and your own mental state. You'll help no one if the hospital collapses… or you do.
Support the project!
The project is fully free, so if you liked our free Demo, please, support us by pressing Add to your wishlist and Follow.
Spread the word
You could offer us extra support by spreading the word about the project. Your support and feedback are very important to us.
Talk directly with the devs
Join our Discord channel and talk directly with the Devs:
https://discord.gg/m9PK6VHZ8n
The novels will take you from the first volleys of the war in Hostomel, to the terror in Bucha, to the defiant resistance in Mariupol. You will have to keep yourself and your loved ones safe, and eventually escape to safety. This will take courage and resourcefulness — and sometimes, sacrifices.
Based on real events
Every novel is a dramatization of eyewitness accounts and real events recorded in the area, condensed into one story.
The gameplay is text-based and accompanied by music and illustrations. The game's art comes from authentic war photographs taken in the areas where the stories take place.
Truly free — no catch
The full game is completely free (no in-app purchases, etc) + a free Demo is available until the full game is released. We do not try to profit from this project. Our goal is to share the recent experiences of the people of Ukraine with a worldwide audience.
Devs are from Ukraine
Developed by a small team located in Kyiv, Ukraine, working from our office despite the wartime conditions. As a Ukraine-based company, we could not sit idly by as the war rages in our country, with enemy forces stopping 3 km short of Kyiv itself, and a large portion of Ukraine being occupied.
One of the guys from our team was caught by the Russian invading forces in Bucha (where one of our stories takes place) and had to hide in a garage basement for a week with his family until they managed to evacuate. His house was plundered and looted by the Russians along with many other houses in the town. He told us his eyewitness account, which we used along with other public sources. A lot of our relatives' or friends' lives were also affected. Fortunately, everyone on our team survived so far, but the war continues…
THREE STORIES
The game includes three interactive novels about some of the first towns that were hit during the invasion: Hostomel, Bucha, and Mariupol. In each story you will play a civilian, completely outmatched against the invading Russians. Your only task is to keep yourself and your loved ones safe, and escape with your lives. But remember: as a civilian, you can only do so much.
Hostomel
Available in Free Demo
On Feb 24, 2022 Ukrainians woke up to the sound of air raid sirens and rocket strikes. A massive Russian airborne attack upon the outskirts of Kyiv followed. The town of Hostomel was among the first targets.
This is where it all began.
As a retired aviation engineer, Oleksiy Borisov is not equipped to handle the challenges of the war. In this role, you will have to manage your survival resources, and take care of your group's emotional needs. It's not about winning the war — it's about seeing your loved ones to safety.
Bucha
Available in Full Game for free
After a week of intense fighting, the North-Western outskirts of Kyiv fell to the Russians on Mar 5, 2022. Like many other small towns in the area, Bucha was under a month-long occupation. This occupation was among the most brutal in the history of warfare.
Yarik Kravchenko and his sister Vika came to Bucha to wait out the assault on Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. Their mother Yana is a medic defending the capital, while Yarik and Vika are stuck in Bucha, unable to escape on their own. And the occupation is becoming more brutal by the day.
In this story, you will be the most vulnerable in the face of the war. You will face tough choices, and a happy outcome will not be assured.
Mariupol
Available in Full Game for free
In the 8 years of the war, the city of Mariupol had already fallen under attack before. Back then it was over quickly. Now, it's about to become one of the biggest and bloodiest sieges of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Dima Kornienko is a talented surgeon and a native of Mariupol. When the war comes to his city once more, he finds himself on the frontline along with other medics. Your staff is well-trained and motivated, but the situation in the city is growing desperate, and supplies are quickly running out.
In this story, hard choices will have to be made — choices nobody can make for you. To save as many as you can, you must keep track of your hospital's readiness and your own mental state. You'll help no one if the hospital collapses… or you do.
Support the project!
The project is fully free, so if you liked our free Demo, please, support us by pressing Add to your wishlist and Follow.
Spread the word
You could offer us extra support by spreading the word about the project. Your support and feedback are very important to us.
Talk directly with the devs
Join our Discord channel and talk directly with the Devs:
https://discord.gg/m9PK6VHZ8n
What Steam players say
Recent verbatim reviews from Steam — separate from playze.io community reviews below.
This is propaganda to make people think Russia is nothing but bad. I have studied both sides of this conflict. Both sides have lost lots of civilians! Is Ukraine the good guys? The civilians are the good guys but the government is very corrupt! Russia invaded because they had . a conflict brewing years before 2022. Ask yourself something if you had a bad conflict brewing at your borders would you allow it to get worse? No you wouldn't! Do some research on what the Ukraine military' did when they invaded Kursk! Russia was able to take it all back but lots of war crimes happened in Kursk by Ukraine! Before you believe anything study both sides! I don't agree with war, especially stupid wars but I recognize Russia's reasoning . Russia is not perfect matter of fact I feel like they made several mistakes in this war but trust me if Russia wanted to they could wipe Ukraine out but they don't because they are fighting all of Nato and they see Ukraine as family , the leaders of the west are using Ukraine . Read up on what a proxy war is !. That's what Ukraine is and Russia is fighting more then just Ukraine! Once you understand the world you realize major change needs to happen!5 found this helpful
I read the negative reviews and I can't really see how telling the stories of the horror of a war is propaganda. Unless of course you are in the agressors' clan. The world (at least the true free world) witnessed the war crimes that have been committed. Now, maybe the game does fall short in terms of stories outcomes and choices and this may be a valid point, But I think these users missed the point . The game is meant to tell the stories so they are not forgotten, just like we recount the stories of WWI and WWII so they are not forgotten. I don't believe the creators had in mind to produce an absolute hit that everyone would want to lay their hands on. Hence the price of the game: Free. Personally, I liked it. It did what it was supposed to do, making me realize how lucky I am to live in a country at peace, and how tough some choices would be if I were in their shoes. It makes you see how civilians pay the high price in this unbalanced disaplay of power. You are defenseless as civilian.2 found this helpful
Help a family to survive the war and escape to a (currently) safer town! This game's giving a really shocking insight of the beginning of the Ukraine war and therefore you are able to imagine, that the mentioned topics are very dark and traumatic ones. Unlike many other visual novels this one really feels like an actual game, because depending on your decisions an old man (protagonist) lives or dies. Don't give up hope, if you wish to win this game.1 found this helpful
*Ukraine War Stories*, developed and published by Starni Games, is an experience that deliberately resists being categorized as conventional entertainment. Rather than presenting war through the familiar lenses of strategy, combat, or heroism, it focuses on the quieter, more harrowing reality of civilian survival during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The game unfolds as a collection of interactive narratives inspired by real testimonies, placing players in the roles of ordinary people caught in extraordinary and dangerous circumstances. This perspective alone sets it apart, shifting the emphasis from action to human vulnerability and moral uncertainty. The structure is built around several self-contained stories, each depicting a different scenario drawn from real locations affected during the early stages of the conflict. Instead of dramatizing events for spectacle, the writing maintains a grounded and often restrained tone, allowing the situations themselves to carry emotional weight. Players are frequently asked to make decisions under pressure—whether to trust strangers, how to respond to armed soldiers, or how to prioritize safety over dignity. These choices rarely feel emp…1 found this helpful
This one hurts to play, and it should. These aren't just stories, they're the stories of thousands of real civilians caught in a war that doesn't make any sense. A simple game with a powerful message. Everyone should play this.
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