Last Updated on Oct 27, 2025 @ 17:47:57 PM.
From the developer Mike Klubnika, who brought gamers Buckshot Roulette, comes a brand-new title by the name of S.P.L.I.T that puts players in the shoes of a hacker who is trying to help gather secret information for a select group of people. Before the game was released, I was granted the opportunity to try this game out early and see what horrifying moments dwell within.
The Gut-Wrenching Story of S.P.L.I.T
Avoiding spoilers, let’s start by talking about the story of S.P.L.I.T and how it follows a hacker who is based in a cabin out in the woods as they attempt to hack into a major corporation within the game’s fictional universe and retrieve some hidden information that some NPCs can use within the game.
From start to finish, the stakes always feel incredibly high within S.P.L.I.T, even when we don’t know much about the game world or why we are doing what we are doing. However, throughout the entire experience, the dark and gritty setting helps to provide a sense of dread within the story.
Within a few seconds of the game booting up, it is made clear that the player will eventually have to make some difficult decisions, which, for me, was a big plus, as it helped bring my attention even further into the game, as each second felt like it was counting down to a sad and harsh ending.
Even though S.P.L.I.T is a rather small story (depending on how long you take to solve the puzzles), it is full of twists, turns, and shocking moments that will stay with you for a very long time. For a while after completing S.P.L.I.T, I was still in shock at the ending I received, as I was completely taken aback by what had happened.
The Gameplay Was Both Challenging and Varied as it Kept Me Guessing
Now, understandably, I am not a hacker, so I cannot state how accurate this game was. All I can talk about is my experience with S.P.L.I.T and its gameplay mechanics. Jumping right in, one of the first mechanics I came across, which made me giggle, even though it probably shouldn’t, was simply typing in a chat room.
On TV, whenever we see hackers like this, it is common that they are just typing as fast as they can on a keyboard, hammering every button they can, and somehow it makes sense on the screen. During S.P.L.I.T, this was how the player would type within the chat room in the game, as each message was predetermined. This made me laugh, as I felt like a hacker on TV as I smashed away at my keyboard, even pressing numbers, punctuation, and any other button I could find, and it turned itself into sentences.
For me, this made what felt like a serious and rather dark moment feel witty, which in a serious and haunting game like this was very necessary. However, once I got further into the game, I realized this wouldn’t fly any longer as the game delved into its main mechanic.
As the game progressed, it eventually turned into a more realistic hacker sim as every keystroke was as accurate as can be. This meant that I had to be accurate with my spelling, ensure my capitals were in the right places, and so many other things that most games would ignore or let slide. This wasn’t the case in S.P.L.I.T, and for me, that is an incredible inclusion.
Due to this mechanic, the challenge of hacking into a system became a challenge in its own right, as I was having to rely on accuracy, information gathering, and input control to ensure that I was acquiring the right info from the information provided and putting that information in correctly in more ways than I can explain.
Although this added a challenge to the game, at first I did find it incredibly annoying, as there were a few occasions in which I felt I was doing the right thing, but I was instead missing something so minuscule that most people would miss it to the point that on one occasion I believed I had deadlocked myself by missing information and reset my game to ensure I hadn’t broken it (I hadn’t; I was just being dumb).
The only other mechanics that came into play were two very simple but powerful mechanics, one being a simple turning of the head, allowing me to move from different screens and interact with different objectives. And the other objective is a rather classic video game mechanic of placing words on the screen and having me type them out, both with speed and accuracy.
This was a very fun and, in some cases, stressful mechanic, depending on its moments, but it did fit the genre of the game, as when it was in use, it was timed perfectly and layered on the stress I was already feeling from the game’s story.
S.P.L.I.T
Summary
S.P.L.I.T is full of confusing and complicated moments due to some of its gameplay, but these moments feel gratifying once completed. The story, as well, is full of dark twists and turns that nobody could ever see coming, making it a showstopper.
HOURS PLAYED: 1.5
PLAYED ON: PC
- Story is incredibly gripping from start to finish as each moment is filled with dread.
- The game itself looks very good in terms of the computers, and other parts of the location.
- Gameplay is rather confusing to start as there is no real explanation, but it is satisfying to understand.
- Character model is very janky, but due to us only seeing him once in a blue moon it isn't a deal breaker.
For more Thumb Wars Gaming coverage, check out our review of Wuchang: Fallen Feathers or check out our interview with the executive producer behind Pera Coda as they talk to us about Disco Elysium.
Liam is a Senior Editor, Writer, and Critic for Thumb Wars and has been working with the team since day one. Liam is a big fan of all things gaming, as you will catch him playing all of the new releases from every genre you can imagine. Whether you find Liam gaming just for fun or spending his free time streaming, you will always find a smile on his face when it comes to all things gaming.
