The Last Worker takes a dystopian look at the future of the games industry itself

gamesindustry.biz:

The Last Worker, a dystopian look at the future of capitalism from developers Oiffy and Wolf & Wood, is a game that's unafraid to wear its political leanings on its sleeve. While it directly addresses the consequences of workplace automation and corporate layoffs, there are plenty of other timely messages to be found under the game's surface, from issues of climate change to critiques of a content-driven throwaway culture.

At its core, however, it's a game very much concerned about end-stage capitalism, a theme that The Last Worker director Jörg Tittel concedes could prove potentially divisive – not that he seems altogether too concerned about that when he sits down to speak to us, shortly after the game's launch event at BAFTA in Central London. Indeed, Tittel is keen for the game to encourage discussion among players, and a change in attitudes in how they approach both video games and society in general. Of course, any game focused on a dystopian future of capitalism is bound to split opinions.

"It's interesting, because when people on the right hear the words 'end-stage capitalism,' they think I'm attacking capitalism," Tittel notes. "It's like saying my grandma has a terminal disease – it doesn't mean I hate my grandma. It just happens to be the end stage of capitalism, it's an ill creature at the moment. Does it make me a lefty to point that out? Is a doctor trying to heal somebody 'woke' now?"

The game guides the player through Tittel's vision of this ill creature by putting them in the shoes of Kurt, the eponymous 'Last Worker' at Jüngle, a futuristic parody of Amazon. Kurt has found himself as the company's sole remaining human employee after years of successive layoffs saw all of his colleagues being