- Metro 2039 developers have revealed how the Russia-Ukraine war affected the game's development and tone.
- Executive producer Jon Bloch told IGN that Metro 2039's narrative focuses on "the consequences of war".
- Creative director Andriy Shevechenko has also opened up about how the war affected the team first, before shaping the story and gameplay.
Ukrainian developer 4A Games, the studio behind the acclaimed Metro series, is bringing the darkest entry yet with Metro 2039, releasing next year. With previews now live, Metro 2039 developers have opened up about how the Russia-Ukraine war, which began in 2022, affected the game’s development and shifted the story’s trajectory into something much darker.
Speaking to IGN in an interview, Metro 2039 creative director Andriy Shevchenko explained how the Russia-Ukraine war impacted the team first, then the story, and then the gameplay elements, noting, “First of all, it’s impacted the team.”
“The world changes the team completely, their way of being, their way of thinking, and their way of understanding what’s going on in general,” said Shevchenko. “So, automatically it brings new visions and new philosophy into the game through the team.”
Executive producer Jon Bloch explained that “When Russia started its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it brought war to our doorsteps, and we had to change our approach about what kind of story we wanted to tell. We wanted to tell now the consequences of war, what happens when war comes to you.”
He stated the story’s darker shift was a “major change” from what they were previously developing, and that the war changed most of their plans overnight. Audio lead Pavel Ulmer then revealed that the Metro series became “too close to reality” because of the war, and that’s how their approach to Metro 2039’s narrative took a darker turn.
After Metro Exodus’ hopeful ending, it’s natural to expect the sequel to build on that optimism and explore the idea of hope in a bleak post-apocalyptic setting. However, that’s certainly not the case with Metro 2039.
Metro 2039 is currently on track for a February 2027 release, with 4A Games developing the post-apocalyptic title and Deep Silver spearheading publishing. Metro 2039 also crossed 1 million wishlists in record time, a first for the Metro series, before Gamescom 2026, so fans are definitely anticipating the FPS title.
