Forced Abroad
Days of a Forced Labourer
Experience the story of 19-year-old Jan, who is deported from Rotterdam to Germany in 1945. A visual novel based on real diary entries: personal, moving and historically accurate.
About the game
January 1945. The young Dutchman Jan is lucky: he escapes the Nazi round-up that is deporting all young men from Rotterdam to forced labour. But a few weeks later, he too is conscripted and deported to Germany. He records his experiences during the final months of the Second World War in his diary.
In Forced Abroad, players immerse themselves in this diary: They experience the situation in occupied Rotterdam, the brutality of deportation, and the inhumane conditions in the Munich-Neuaubing forced labour camp. But they also encounter moments of hope and resistance.
The game is based on the diary of the real Jan Hendrik Bazuin. The illustrations were created in collaboration with Barbara Yelin, one of Germany’s best-known comic artists and Germany’s first professor of comics.
The narrative closely follows the original entries and brings to life an often-forgotten chapter of Nazi history.
Gameplay
Forced Abroad is a visual novel with a focus on storytelling. Players leaf through Jan’s diary, accompanied by atmospheric illustrations and music:
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Read and experience: The story unfolds page by page
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Make decisions: At certain points, players choose between different course of action
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Collect items: Historical objects provide background information on the Nazi era
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Explore the gallery: Collected items can later be viewed alongside contextual information
The controls are deliberately kept simple: the game is also suitable for people with no gaming experience.
Education & Use
Forced Abroad was developed in collaboration with the NS-Dokumentationszentrum München (National Socialist Documentation Centre Munich) and is available free of charge. The game makes the topic of forced labour accessible on an emotional level: through the protagonist’s personal perspective, players can put themselves in his shoes.
The relatively simple language, the illustrated style and the absence of explicit depictions of violence make the game suitable for younger audiences as well.
Learning objectives
Players engage with key themes:
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Forced labour under the Nazis: What did forced labour mean for millions of people in Europe?
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Occupation and everyday life: How did the Nazi occupation change life in the Netherlands?
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Humanity under extreme conditions: How does one maintain hope and dignity?
Culture of remembrance: Why is it important to engage with individual fates?
Areas of application
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History (Secondary Levels I/II): The Nazi era, the Second World War, forced labour, occupation
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Ethics / Religion: Human dignity, empathy, dealing with historical suffering
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German / Foreign Languages: The game is available in German, English and Dutch and is suitable for use in conjunction with reading materials such as The Diary of Anne Frank
- Politics / Social Studies: Human rights, persecution, historical responsibility
Target audience
Recommended for ages 12 and over (bpb recommendation). Suitable for individual and group work. Playing time approx. 1–2 hours.
Teaching materials
The Munich Documentation Centre for the History of National Socialism provides extensive accompanying materials:
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Historical background information
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Multi-part teaching series with engaging methods
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Reflection tasks on the game’s content
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Links to current topics such as forced labour in global supply chains