{"id":2111831,"date":"2026-08-26T07:01:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T04:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2111831"},"modified":"2026-08-26T07:01:00","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T04:01:00","slug":"metro-2039-is-a-game-about-war-that-actually-has-something-to-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2111831","title":{"rendered":"Metro 2039 is a game about war that actually has something to say"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article \" data-ads=\"true\" data-article-type=\"previews\" data-article-group=\"other\" data-paywalled=\"false\" data-premium=\"false\" data-sponsored=\"false\" data-type=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article_header\" data-component=\"article-header\">\n<div class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n<nav class=\"nav_breadcrumbs\" data-component=\"nav-breadcrumbs\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\">\n<ul class=\"nav-links\">\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Home<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/previews\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Previews<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/metro-2039\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Metro 2039<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_details\" id=\"main-content\">\n<h1 class=\"title\">Metro 2039 is a game about war that actually has something to say<\/h1>\n<p class=\"strapline\">Ukrainian developer 4A on how &#8220;the consequences of war&#8221; have changed the game amidst Russia&#8217;s invasion.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_asset\">\n<figure class=\"headline_image_wrapper\">\n<p>        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"headline_image\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-header.png?width=690&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;dpr=3&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official screenshot showing soldiers in all black suits and gas masks against a grey ruined city and grey cloudy sky\" loading=\"eager\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-header.png\" data-lightbox width=\"690\" height=\"388\"><figcaption>\n          <span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Deep Silver \/ 4A Games<\/cite><\/span><br \/>\n        <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"metadata\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Dom Peppiatt avatar\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/pxl_20220402_110941365.portrait_V04meYj.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1044\" height=\"1130\"><\/p>\n<p>  <img alt=\"Dom Peppiatt avatar\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"pxl_20220402_110941365.portrait_V04meYj.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1044\" height=\"1130\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\n                  <span class=\"article_type\" data-slug=\"previews\"><br \/>\n                    Preview<br \/>\n                  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"by\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/dom-peppiatt\">Dom Peppiatt<\/a><\/span>                    <span class=\"job_title\"><br \/>\n                      Deputy Editorial Director<br \/>\n                    <\/span>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"published_at\">\n<p>Published on   <time datetime=\"2026-08-26T07:01:00+00:00\" data-auto-time-zone=\"true\" data-year=\"numeric\" data-month=\"short\" data-day=\"numeric\" data-hour=\"numeric\" data-minute=\"numeric\">Aug. 26, 2026, 7:01 a.m.<\/time>\n              <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mypop-header-wrapper\">\n<p><button class=\"mypop-button button wide\" data-state=\"follow\" data-type=\"tag\" data-uuid=\"beb49e3b-3c4f-4f7a-8520-0b2370f7626e\" data-name=\"Metro 2039\" data-follow-text=\"Follow Metro 2039\" data-unfollow-text=\"Following Metro 2039\" data-aria-follow-text=\"Follow Metro 2039\" data-aria-unfollow-text=\"Following Metro 2039\" data-popup=\"true\" data-force-login=\"true\" aria-label=\"Follow Metro 2039\" title=\"Follow Metro 2039\"><br \/>\n  Follow Metro 2039<br \/>\n<\/button>          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>Earlier this year, publisher Deep Silver and developer 4A Studios published a blog post outlining its vision for Metro 2039. The studio revealed the game &#8211; being developed primarily in Ukraine amid the continued Russian invasion &#8211; is darker <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/metro-2039-much-darker-out-this-winter\">and focuses on the &#8220;cost of silence, the horrors of tyranny, and the price of freedom&#8221;<\/a>. How could it not be? The developers turn up to work every day not knowing if the power will go out, if they will have to take cover from a drone strike, if they will be able to see their loved ones that evening, or eat hot food when they get home. This is a game being developed in the middle of a warzone, and you better believe the final product is going to reflect that.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"aside right\">\n<h2>Metro 2039<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Developer:<\/strong> 4A Games<\/li>\n<li><strong>Publisher:<\/strong> Deep Silver<\/li>\n<li><strong>Availability:<\/strong> Out February 2027 on PC (<a href=\"https:\/\/store.steampowered.com\/app\/2590240\/METRO_2039\/\">Steam<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/store.epicgames.com\/p\/metro-2039-086260?lang=en-US\">Epic<\/a>) <a href=\"https:\/\/store.playstation.com\/en-us\/concept\/10009337\">PS5<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.xbox.com\/en-gb\/games\/store\/metro-2039\/9nt5pb1rz9ld\">Xbox Series X\/S<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/aside>\n<p>&#8220;I think the landscape has changed significantly [since we developed the previous games in the series],&#8221; says Jon Bloch, executive producer at 4A Games, when I ask him if the context of Metro 2039&#8217;s production has altered the vision for the sequel. &#8220;The previous games were about preventing war; the themes and the morals and all that supported this idea that revolved around &#8216;how do we as humans stop the cycle that we keep finding ourselves in&#8217;. And when Russia started its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, that brought war to our doorstep. Now, our team has been living in a state of war for the last four and a half years. And that changes things. Significantly.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>As 4A navigates the reality of making a video game during war time, Bloch says the studio needs to reflect on &#8220;the consequences of war&#8221;, and &#8211; essentially &#8211; write what it knows. Metro 2039 was never an apolitical series, not by any means, but its assessment and commentary on the politics of war was more detached. More &#8216;what if&#8217;.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Metro 2039 World Premiere Trailer | gamescom Opening Night Live 2026\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fijVZlJ9rNc?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/fijVZlJ9rNc\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Metro 2039 World Premiere Trailer | gamescom Opening Night Live 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>Here&#8217;s the latest Metro 2039 trailer from Gamescom Opening Night Live.<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=fijVZlJ9rNc\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;There was more of a grey morality in the past,&#8221; continues Bloch. &#8220;Players were encouraged to question all these things that were happening and ask: &#8216;Was that bad? Was that good? Was there something in the middle? Is it something that you can&#8217;t really determine?&#8217; But in a situation like this, as the story explores what authoritarian regimes do, and what happens when one takes over, and what happens as they grow and take more and more power\u2026 there is nothing good about that. There is only evil involved in that. And so the grey morality of the past needs to be more defined now. It needs to be more specific and clear. And so our approach needed to change and, therefore, the story needed to change.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>As a result, Metro 2039 &#8211; for the first time in the series&#8217; history &#8211; has a voiced protagonist in the form of The Stranger; a new character begrudgingly entering back into the doomed metro tunnels below Moscow to face a new threat. The hitherto divided denizens of the subterranean society have settled their differences and formed a unified, totalitarian regime under a new banner &#8211; the Novoreich &#8211; led by the charismatic Hunter. This new leader, who Metro veterans may remember from the very first game\/book in the series, promises a new life for the metro survivors above ground. And he won&#8217;t let anything, or anyone, stand in the way of his ambitions.<\/p>\n<p>The Stranger being a character that can talk is important, says Block, because 4A wants to be more explicit in its commentary this time around. The writing team &#8211; which includes the original Metro series author and exiled critic of the Russian government, Dmitry Glukhovsky &#8211; wants us to understand The Stranger&#8217;s place in this world as he encounters the &#8220;worst of humanity&#8221;, and how his &#8220;choices, actions, consequences, and the cost of securing a future&#8221; play out.<\/p>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"image_wrapper\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a ruined city\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-3.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a ruined city\" data-autosize=\"bounds_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-3.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<span class=\"loading spinner large\"><\/span><\/p>\n<nav class=\"pagination--hoverable\">\n<div class=\"previous\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Previous\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\"--icon-mask-image: url(&quot;\/static\/solid\/angle-left.svg&quot;)\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"next\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Next\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\"--icon-mask-image: url(&quot;\/static\/solid\/angle-right.svg&quot;)\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<div class=\"details_overlay\">\n<div class=\"counter\">\n<span class=\"current\">1<\/span> <span class=\"of\">of<\/span> <span class=\"max\">4<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"details\">\n<div class=\"button-wrapper\">\n<button aria-label=\"Toggle information\" class=\"toggle button outline\"><\/button><br \/>\n<button aria-label=\"Close fullscreen gallery\" class=\"close button\"><\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"thumbnails-wrapper overflow-shadow-x\">\n<div class=\"thumbnails\">\n<button class=\"thumbnail active\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-3.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a ruined city\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-3.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a ruined city\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-3.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-headline_vbc3ySH.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing first-person view of dual-wielding guns looking up some stairs\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-headline_vbc3ySH.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing first-person view of dual-wielding guns looking up some stairs\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-headline_vbc3ySH.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039_qZB5f9I.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a character in black combat uniform and gas mask from below\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039_qZB5f9I.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a character in black combat uniform and gas mask from below\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039_qZB5f9I.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-9.png\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a Nazi-like officer walking down a corridor with Nazi-like banners and imagery\" height=\"720\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-9.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a Nazi-like officer walking down a corridor with Nazi-like banners and imagery\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-9.png\" height=\"720\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fullscreen_info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nCaption          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"attribution\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nAttribution          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-gallery-caption\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"advert_container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&#8220;Now that war is here, we need to talk about the consequences of it,&#8221; continues Bloch. &#8220;We&#8217;re not building this based off of literal real-world events, but Metro has always been political and it continues to be that in the lessons and the morals that the game tries to teach.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"2\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>&#8220;<\/strong>I can only add that, as a Ukrainian, I totally agree with Jon,&#8221; adds Pawel Ulmer, co-creative director and lead audio designer at 4A. &#8220;And, as the war is already on-going, considering prevention of it, unfortunately, is kind of an outdated topic at this point,&#8221; he laughs. &#8220;So using the power of storytelling, as a developer, we have this chance to show people what can <em>actually <\/em>happen if the world would stop working on preventing war. And ironically, we&#8217;re making [a game] in a world which is already dead! But our world &#8211; the real world &#8211; still has a chance. Metro was always about the cult of war, the propaganda, people dying, and the cost of others&#8217; ambitions. It didn&#8217;t become politicalised; it always has been. But what&#8217;s become uncomfortable is that the franchise&#8217;s very nature is getting too close to reality.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Ulmer goes on to tell me that, internally, 4A Games has this &#8216;it&#8217;s funny because it&#8217;s true&#8217; kind-of joke that flits around the team. He tells me that the team jokes that the story of creating Metro 2039 is going to be much more &#8220;let&#8217;s say, <em>interesting <\/em>and <em>dark<\/em>&#8221; <em> <\/em>than the actual story of the game.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I mean, obviously, the team is taking this like true fighters, like people of steel. And sometimes you cannot wrap your head around it &#8211; when you go to complete a task and it&#8217;s like &#8216;oh no, I can&#8217;t, there&#8217;s a drone attack&#8217; or something. And the team will be like &#8216;no, no, I can do it&#8217; and it&#8217;s just\u2026 extraordinary. It&#8217;s unbelievable in so many ways,&#8221; he laughs. Ulmer is incredibly breezy, jovial even, in the face of a subject matter I can&#8217;t even begin to empathise with from my office in the suburbs of a quiet UK city.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a beautiful view of a ruined viaduct at sunset\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-4.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a beautiful view of a ruined viaduct at sunset\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-lightbox data-uri=\"metro-2039-4.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><figcaption><span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Deep Silver \/ 4A Games<\/cite><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;During our lives, this has never happened before,&#8221; Ulmer shrugs. &#8220;There are no parallels you can draw &#8211; no examples of how people coped with this, or worked their way through that. From what the team is experiencing, I can only emphasise the strength of spirit, body, and soul. It&#8217;s enormous. We put all the negativity and aggression into the product &#8211; in a good way, you understand? I sometimes cannot understand how this is even possible myself. [But I think] the final game will represent what we have been through to make it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"3\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In the 20-odd years that I&#8217;ve been doing [game development], the major part of my job has been solving problems &#8211; game development problems,&#8221; adds Bloch. &#8220;But some of the problems that we&#8217;ve had to solve, some of the challenges we&#8217;ve had to overcome with this development\u2026 never in a million years would we have ever imagined that we would have to figure out how to get around these things. There is no job title, manager title, or creative title that would fit the things we have to focus on and to deal with on a daily basis.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"image_wrapper\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a meeting of NPCs in a dark room\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039_8vTanST.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a meeting of NPCs in a dark room\" data-autosize=\"bounds_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039_8vTanST.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<span class=\"loading spinner large\"><\/span><\/p>\n<nav class=\"pagination--hoverable\">\n<div class=\"previous\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Previous\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\"--icon-mask-image: url(&quot;\/static\/solid\/angle-left.svg&quot;)\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"next\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Next\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\"--icon-mask-image: url(&quot;\/static\/solid\/angle-right.svg&quot;)\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<div class=\"details_overlay\">\n<div class=\"counter\">\n<span class=\"current\">1<\/span> <span class=\"of\">of<\/span> <span class=\"max\">3<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"details\">\n<div class=\"button-wrapper\">\n<button aria-label=\"Toggle information\" class=\"toggle button outline\"><\/button><br \/>\n<button aria-label=\"Close fullscreen gallery\" class=\"close button\"><\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"thumbnails-wrapper overflow-shadow-x\">\n<div class=\"thumbnails\">\n<button class=\"thumbnail active\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039_8vTanST.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a meeting of NPCs in a dark room\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039_8vTanST.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a meeting of NPCs in a dark room\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039_8vTanST.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-6.png\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing you shooting at a zombie-like enemie at night, half-lit by fire\" height=\"720\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-6.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing you shooting at a zombie-like enemie at night, half-lit by fire\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-6.png\" height=\"720\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-7.png\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a guard watching over a ruined city from a platform in the foreground\" height=\"720\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-7.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a guard watching over a ruined city from a platform in the foreground\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-7.png\" height=\"720\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fullscreen_info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nCaption          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"attribution\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nAttribution          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-gallery-caption\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"advert_container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>I only played a short section of the game in preparation for my interview (and preview, coming in a separate article), but already it&#8217;s very clear that this game has something to say. It&#8217;s not angry, or pessimistic, or defeatist. But rather a totem to 4A Games&#8217; indomitable spirit. There are some hauntingly beautiful moments, tiny vignettes telling the story of struggling families carving out moments of comfort in a world that is <em>literally<\/em> killing them. Even in the dank homes kitbashed together from military hardware, there&#8217;s this sense of cosiness and solidarity &#8211; of a people sticking its middle finger up to the surface and saying &#8216;fuck you&#8217; to the mutants, the raiders, the radiation. It&#8217;s not hard to make sense of this from the Ukrainian perspective.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"4\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Making games is hard under normal circumstances, but having played about two hours of Metro 2039 I&#8217;m floored by what the team has managed here. As well as being a competent shooter with remarkable graphics and a story inspired by the harshest of real world events, the crushing sense of claustrophobia and threat humming in the world of Metro 2039 makes previous games in the series seem almost relaxed. They say diamonds are formed under pressure, I suppose, which I say to Ulmer.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s surreal, but the show must go on!&#8221; he laughs.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"poll_wrapper\" data-fixed=\"true\" data-hashid data-init=\"false\" data-poll-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>Earlier this year, publisher Deep Silver and developer 4A Studios published a blog post outlining its vision for Metro 2039. The studio revealed the game &#8211; being developed primarily in Ukraine amid the continued Russian invasion &#8211; is darker <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/metro-2039-much-darker-out-this-winter\">and focuses on the &#8220;cost of silence, the horrors of tyranny, and the price of freedom&#8221;<\/a>. How could it not be? The developers turn up to work every day not knowing if the power will go out, if they will have to take cover from a drone strike, if they will be able to see their loved ones that evening, or eat hot food when they get home. This is a game being developed in the middle of a warzone, and you better believe the final product is going to reflect that.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"aside right\">\n<h2>Metro 2039<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Developer:<\/strong> 4A Games<\/li>\n<li><strong>Publisher:<\/strong> Deep Silver<\/li>\n<li><strong>Availability:<\/strong> Out February 2027 on PC (<a href=\"https:\/\/store.steampowered.com\/app\/2590240\/METRO_2039\/\">Steam<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/store.epicgames.com\/p\/metro-2039-086260?lang=en-US\">Epic<\/a>) <a href=\"https:\/\/store.playstation.com\/en-us\/concept\/10009337\">PS5<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.xbox.com\/en-gb\/games\/store\/metro-2039\/9nt5pb1rz9ld\">Xbox Series X\/S<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/aside>\n<p>&#8220;I think the landscape has changed significantly [since we developed the previous games in the series],&#8221; says Jon Bloch, executive producer at 4A Games, when I ask him if the context of Metro 2039&#8217;s production has altered the vision for the sequel. &#8220;The previous games were about preventing war; the themes and the morals and all that supported this idea that revolved around &#8216;how do we as humans stop the cycle that we keep finding ourselves in&#8217;. And when Russia started its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, that brought war to our doorstep. Now, our team has been living in a state of war for the last four and a half years. And that changes things. Significantly.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>As 4A navigates the reality of making a video game during war time, Bloch says the studio needs to reflect on &#8220;the consequences of war&#8221;, and &#8211; essentially &#8211; write what it knows. Metro 2039 was never an apolitical series, not by any means, but its assessment and commentary on the politics of war was more detached. More &#8216;what if&#8217;.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Metro 2039 World Premiere Trailer | gamescom Opening Night Live 2026\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fijVZlJ9rNc?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/fijVZlJ9rNc\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Metro 2039 World Premiere Trailer | gamescom Opening Night Live 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>Here&#8217;s the latest Metro 2039 trailer from Gamescom Opening Night Live.<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=fijVZlJ9rNc\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;There was more of a grey morality in the past,&#8221; continues Bloch. &#8220;Players were encouraged to question all these things that were happening and ask: &#8216;Was that bad? Was that good? Was there something in the middle? Is it something that you can&#8217;t really determine?&#8217; But in a situation like this, as the story explores what authoritarian regimes do, and what happens when one takes over, and what happens as they grow and take more and more power\u2026 there is nothing good about that. There is only evil involved in that. And so the grey morality of the past needs to be more defined now. It needs to be more specific and clear. And so our approach needed to change and, therefore, the story needed to change.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>As a result, Metro 2039 &#8211; for the first time in the series&#8217; history &#8211; has a voiced protagonist in the form of The Stranger; a new character begrudgingly entering back into the doomed metro tunnels below Moscow to face a new threat. The hitherto divided denizens of the subterranean society have settled their differences and formed a unified, totalitarian regime under a new banner &#8211; the Novoreich &#8211; led by the charismatic Hunter. This new leader, who Metro veterans may remember from the very first game\/book in the series, promises a new life for the metro survivors above ground. And he won&#8217;t let anything, or anyone, stand in the way of his ambitions.<\/p>\n<p>The Stranger being a character that can talk is important, says Block, because 4A wants to be more explicit in its commentary this time around. The writing team &#8211; which includes the original Metro series author and exiled critic of the Russian government, Dmitry Glukhovsky &#8211; wants us to understand The Stranger&#8217;s place in this world as he encounters the &#8220;worst of humanity&#8221;, and how his &#8220;choices, actions, consequences, and the cost of securing a future&#8221; play out.<\/p>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"image_wrapper\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a ruined city\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-3.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a ruined city\" data-autosize=\"bounds_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-3.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<span class=\"loading spinner large\"><\/span><\/p>\n<nav class=\"pagination--hoverable\">\n<div class=\"previous\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Previous\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\"--icon-mask-image: url(&quot;\/static\/solid\/angle-left.svg&quot;)\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"next\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Next\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\"--icon-mask-image: url(&quot;\/static\/solid\/angle-right.svg&quot;)\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<div class=\"details_overlay\">\n<div class=\"counter\">\n<span class=\"current\">1<\/span> <span class=\"of\">of<\/span> <span class=\"max\">4<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"details\">\n<div class=\"button-wrapper\">\n<button aria-label=\"Toggle information\" class=\"toggle button outline\"><\/button><br \/>\n<button aria-label=\"Close fullscreen gallery\" class=\"close button\"><\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"thumbnails-wrapper overflow-shadow-x\">\n<div class=\"thumbnails\">\n<button class=\"thumbnail active\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-3.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a ruined city\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-3.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a ruined city\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-3.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-headline_vbc3ySH.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing first-person view of dual-wielding guns looking up some stairs\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-headline_vbc3ySH.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing first-person view of dual-wielding guns looking up some stairs\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-headline_vbc3ySH.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039_qZB5f9I.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a character in black combat uniform and gas mask from below\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039_qZB5f9I.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a character in black combat uniform and gas mask from below\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039_qZB5f9I.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-9.png\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a Nazi-like officer walking down a corridor with Nazi-like banners and imagery\" height=\"720\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-9.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a Nazi-like officer walking down a corridor with Nazi-like banners and imagery\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-9.png\" height=\"720\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fullscreen_info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nCaption          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"attribution\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nAttribution          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-gallery-caption\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"advert_container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&#8220;Now that war is here, we need to talk about the consequences of it,&#8221; continues Bloch. &#8220;We&#8217;re not building this based off of literal real-world events, but Metro has always been political and it continues to be that in the lessons and the morals that the game tries to teach.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"2\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>&#8220;<\/strong>I can only add that, as a Ukrainian, I totally agree with Jon,&#8221; adds Pawel Ulmer, co-creative director and lead audio designer at 4A. &#8220;And, as the war is already on-going, considering prevention of it, unfortunately, is kind of an outdated topic at this point,&#8221; he laughs. &#8220;So using the power of storytelling, as a developer, we have this chance to show people what can <em>actually <\/em>happen if the world would stop working on preventing war. And ironically, we&#8217;re making [a game] in a world which is already dead! But our world &#8211; the real world &#8211; still has a chance. Metro was always about the cult of war, the propaganda, people dying, and the cost of others&#8217; ambitions. It didn&#8217;t become politicalised; it always has been. But what&#8217;s become uncomfortable is that the franchise&#8217;s very nature is getting too close to reality.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Ulmer goes on to tell me that, internally, 4A Games has this &#8216;it&#8217;s funny because it&#8217;s true&#8217; kind-of joke that flits around the team. He tells me that the team jokes that the story of creating Metro 2039 is going to be much more &#8220;let&#8217;s say, <em>interesting <\/em>and <em>dark<\/em>&#8221; <em> <\/em>than the actual story of the game.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I mean, obviously, the team is taking this like true fighters, like people of steel. And sometimes you cannot wrap your head around it &#8211; when you go to complete a task and it&#8217;s like &#8216;oh no, I can&#8217;t, there&#8217;s a drone attack&#8217; or something. And the team will be like &#8216;no, no, I can do it&#8217; and it&#8217;s just\u2026 extraordinary. It&#8217;s unbelievable in so many ways,&#8221; he laughs. Ulmer is incredibly breezy, jovial even, in the face of a subject matter I can&#8217;t even begin to empathise with from my office in the suburbs of a quiet UK city.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a beautiful view of a ruined viaduct at sunset\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-4.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a beautiful view of a ruined viaduct at sunset\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-lightbox data-uri=\"metro-2039-4.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><figcaption><span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Deep Silver \/ 4A Games<\/cite><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;During our lives, this has never happened before,&#8221; Ulmer shrugs. &#8220;There are no parallels you can draw &#8211; no examples of how people coped with this, or worked their way through that. From what the team is experiencing, I can only emphasise the strength of spirit, body, and soul. It&#8217;s enormous. We put all the negativity and aggression into the product &#8211; in a good way, you understand? I sometimes cannot understand how this is even possible myself. [But I think] the final game will represent what we have been through to make it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"3\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In the 20-odd years that I&#8217;ve been doing [game development], the major part of my job has been solving problems &#8211; game development problems,&#8221; adds Bloch. &#8220;But some of the problems that we&#8217;ve had to solve, some of the challenges we&#8217;ve had to overcome with this development\u2026 never in a million years would we have ever imagined that we would have to figure out how to get around these things. There is no job title, manager title, or creative title that would fit the things we have to focus on and to deal with on a daily basis.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"image_wrapper\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a meeting of NPCs in a dark room\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039_8vTanST.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a meeting of NPCs in a dark room\" data-autosize=\"bounds_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039_8vTanST.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<span class=\"loading spinner large\"><\/span><\/p>\n<nav class=\"pagination--hoverable\">\n<div class=\"previous\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Previous\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\"--icon-mask-image: url(&quot;\/static\/solid\/angle-left.svg&quot;)\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"next\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Next\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\"--icon-mask-image: url(&quot;\/static\/solid\/angle-right.svg&quot;)\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<div class=\"details_overlay\">\n<div class=\"counter\">\n<span class=\"current\">1<\/span> <span class=\"of\">of<\/span> <span class=\"max\">3<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"details\">\n<div class=\"button-wrapper\">\n<button aria-label=\"Toggle information\" class=\"toggle button outline\"><\/button><br \/>\n<button aria-label=\"Close fullscreen gallery\" class=\"close button\"><\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"thumbnails-wrapper overflow-shadow-x\">\n<div class=\"thumbnails\">\n<button class=\"thumbnail active\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039_8vTanST.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a meeting of NPCs in a dark room\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039_8vTanST.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a meeting of NPCs in a dark room\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039_8vTanST.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-6.png\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing you shooting at a zombie-like enemie at night, half-lit by fire\" height=\"720\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-6.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing you shooting at a zombie-like enemie at night, half-lit by fire\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-6.png\" height=\"720\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Deep Silver \/ 4A Games\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-7.png\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a guard watching over a ruined city from a platform in the foreground\" height=\"720\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/metro-2039-7.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Metro 2039 official image showing a guard watching over a ruined city from a platform in the foreground\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"metro-2039-7.png\" height=\"720\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1280\"><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fullscreen_info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nCaption          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"attribution\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nAttribution          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-gallery-caption\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"advert_container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>I only played a short section of the game in preparation for my interview (and preview, coming in a separate article), but already it&#8217;s very clear that this game has something to say. It&#8217;s not angry, or pessimistic, or defeatist. But rather a totem to 4A Games&#8217; indomitable spirit. There are some hauntingly beautiful moments, tiny vignettes telling the story of struggling families carving out moments of comfort in a world that is <em>literally<\/em> killing them. Even in the dank homes kitbashed together from military hardware, there&#8217;s this sense of cosiness and solidarity &#8211; of a people sticking its middle finger up to the surface and saying &#8216;fuck you&#8217; to the mutants, the raiders, the radiation. It&#8217;s not hard to make sense of this from the Ukrainian perspective.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"4\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Making games is hard under normal circumstances, but having played about two hours of Metro 2039 I&#8217;m floored by what the team has managed here. As well as being a competent shooter with remarkable graphics and a story inspired by the harshest of real world events, the crushing sense of claustrophobia and threat humming in the world of Metro 2039 makes previous games in the series seem almost relaxed. They say diamonds are formed under pressure, I suppose, which I say to Ulmer.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s surreal, but the show must go on!&#8221; he laughs.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"poll_wrapper\" data-fixed=\"true\" data-hashid data-init=\"false\" data-poll-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home Previews Metro 2039 Metro 2039 is a game about war that actually has something to say Ukrainian developer 4A on how &#8220;the consequences of war&#8221; have changed the game amidst Russia&#8217;s invasion. Image credit: Deep Silver \/ 4A Games Preview by Dom Peppiatt Deputy Editorial Director Published on Aug. 26, 2026, 7:01 a.m. Follow [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,253],"class_list":["post-2111831","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-eurogamer-net"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2111831","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2111831"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2111831\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2111831"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2111831"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2111831"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}