Ukrainian-Maltese studio 4A Games has officially unveiled Metro 2039, the fourth game in the post-apocalyptic shooter series that returns players from the Russian wastelands to the Moscow metro system.
Ukrainian-Maltese studio 4A Games has officially unveiled Metro 2039, the fourth game in the post-apocalyptic shooter series that returns players from the Russian wastelands to the Moscow metro system.
Unlike the previous part of Metro Exodus, where events unfolded in open spaces, Metro 2039 returns players to the Moscow subway. According to creative director Andriy Shevchenko, the developers focused on the intimate and claustrophobic atmosphere of the first parts.
The main character will be the character The Stranger — a recluse, who for the first time in the history of the series will be fully voiced. The storyline is built around his return to the metro, where previously independent groups have united under the dictatorship of the Novoreich faction. It is led by the Spartan Hunter, who appeared in the first part of Metro.
During the presentation, the developers showed early gameplay footage:
Minimalist interface: The game continues the tradition of using in-game objects instead of classic UI (e.g., a mechanical clock to track time).
Tactical combat : A system of weapon misfires and limited ammunition is demonstrated, forcing the player to pay attention to the technical condition of the equipment.
Level Design: The team uses a «frozen story» approach—each location is hand-detailed through objects and environments to tell the micro-stories of its inhabitants without the use of dialogue.
Metro 2039 is being developed using the 4A Engine, the studio’s own game engine that has been in use for over 15 years. According to executive producer John Block, using proprietary technology instead of third-party solutions allows the team to independently implement the necessary functionality for specific game design tasks.
4A Games noted that most of the developers remain in Ukraine, which directly influenced the creation of Metro 2039. John Block noted that after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion, the game’s plot was completely revised. It now focuses on themes of tyranny, the price of silence, and the fight for freedom.
«Our games are based on and inspired by the novels of author Dmitry Glukhovsky — an outspoken critic of the invasion of Ukraine. His courageous stance came at a personal cost to him — a life in exile from his native Russia, where dissent is a crime,» the studio says.
According to Andriy Shevchenko, reality forced the developers to choose an approach presented from a purely Ukrainian point of view, but «it’s still a story about Metro, taking place in the Metro universe.»
«When the full-scale Russian invasion began, it changed the lives of everyone in the studio, but most of all, the lives of our team and their families in Ukraine. Even today, most of our team members work from different parts of Ukraine,» Shevchenko noted.
The developers recalled that the studio originated in Ukraine and is still made up mostly of Ukrainians, but the team includes representatives of over 25 different nationalities. 4A Games assures that they develop their games with a Ukrainian spirit.
Metro 2039 is in development for Xbox Series S|X, PlayStation 5, and PC on Steam and the Epic Games Store. It is scheduled for release in the winter of next year. Currently, the game’s Steam page only lists English localization support.
