Ukrainian survival video game sequel drops amid war | The Express Tribune

Ukrainian studio GSC on Wednesday released a long-awaited sequel to its hit S.T.A.L.K.E.R. video game, fine-tuned during the Russian invasion which forced many of its staff to leave the country, reported AFP.

The post-Apocalyptic first-person shooter Game is set in a fictional version of the exclusion zone around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant that was hit by a deadly accident in 1986. The sequel, called S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, was first announced in 2010 and postponed several times.

The November 20 release marks the end of a long and chaotic journey for the GSC Game World staff, some of whom have joined the army while others fled to Prague as Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The Game's contaminated zone is filled with danger where monsters and rival human groups run riot.

"The war affected our lives... (but) not the creative process," chief executive Ievgen Grygorovych told AFP in the Czech capital.

Staff meet online, including a large weekly get-together for around 500 employees. "Most have stayed in Ukraine, but we don't feel like we have a split team," Grygorovych added.

The Prague office includes three floors and a motion pictures studio, all adorned with Ukrainian flags as well as spider webs, a Halloween leftover. The 38-year-old Grygorovych, born only days before the Chernobyl disaster, joined the studio founded by his brother at 14. He describes himself as "a pretty good programmer, technical artist and game designer".

"I'm introverted, and I didn't like to spend energy by telling others what to do. So I learnt how to do everything myself," he said.

The game's Ukrainian character is more contemplative and disillusioned than those in other shooter games created in the United States, Japan or elsewhere in Europe.

"We have a different culture, language, way of thinking," said Grygorovych. "So the Game is culturally different and played differently."

GSC, which has sold over 15 million copies of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games, introduced S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 at the Gamescom fair in Germany last year.