Making a game during the Russian invasion

Salma October 4, 2024

0 0 3 minutes read

Making a game during the Russian invasion

GSC Game World A screenshot from Stalker 2 shows a ferris wheel with obvious signs of decay and decay in a desolate landscape of dead trees, a dilapidated block of flats and various debris. An eerie gray mist covers the scene and specks of black ash fall from the sky. — The area around the reactor – including Pripyat’s famous abandoned wheel – has been recreated in the game.

“I can say that maybe part of our studio is currently working under the constant threat of execution,” said Evgeniy Kulik.

Evgeniy is a technical producer on Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl, an upcoming video game developed by Kyiv-based developer GSC Game World.

It’s a title that fans of the original title, released in 2007, have been waiting for a while.

But it may not have happened at all, because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

BBC Newsbeat spoke to Evgeniy about how the developers of Stalker 2 are moving forward, losing their partners in battle, and why the studio feels it’s so important that they finish the game.

The nuclear reactor at Chernobyl was closed in a new shelter in 2022 to prevent radiation leaks.

EPA A gray industrial building with various pipes, walkways and platforms attached to it stands in front of a large dome-shaped building of the same color. The ground is covered in snow and the steel buildings show signs of rust and age. — The nuclear reactor at Chernobyl was closed in a new shelter in 2022 to prevent radiation leaks.

The Chernobyl power plant was the site of the world’s worst nuclear accident.

In 1986, when the country was controlled by the Soviet Union, there was an explosion at a nuclear power plant 90 miles from the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.

At least 31 people died after the incident and the explosion caused a fire that burned for 10 days, sending radioactive smoke across Europe.

A 30-mile zone was set up around the nuclear plant to keep people out, although the Ukrainian government had already started allowing tourists into the area before the Russian attack.

The original Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl, was set in an alternate timeline where a second nuclear disaster struck, creating a series of mutants and other unnatural things.

Players take on the role of a character tasked with exploring a post-apocalyptic setting and navigating the various factions fighting for control of the wasteland.

The decision to stop the game at this point was controversial – one developer said “the blood was still warm and flowing in our veins” – even 30 years later.

But the game became a huge hit, and Stalker 2 was first announced in 2010 – with the aim of building on the original survival style of play.

In 2018, GSC Game World announced that it was working on an April 2022 release date.

But just two months before that came, Russian troops and planes began crossing the border with Ukraine.

The war had begun.

‘We load guns with one hand and make a game with the other’

Lead producer Mariia Grygorovych made plans to release the Stalker 2 team in Kyiv before the Russian invasion.

Alastair McKevitt A woman sits against a dimly lit amber background, in an interview-type set. She smiles softly, her long, curly red hair falling over her shoulders. — Lead producer Mariia Grygorovych made plans to release the Stalker 2 team in Kyiv before the Russian invasion.

Stalker 2 is now due out in November, but a documentary about the making of the game was released this week.

It shows members of the development team talking about the dawn realization that Russia is about to attack.

Executive producer Mariia Grygorovych remembers sending buses to wait outside the company’s offices in Kyiv, ready to transport workers and their families to Ukraine’s western border.

In the end, just over 180 made the trip when the attack began, 139 chose to stay and help the war.

Some joined the military while others continued to work on Stalker 2 during their careers.

Those who moved eventually established a second studio in Prague, Czech Republic, rebuilding motion and audio capture studios from scratch.

It also features team members who stayed in Ukraine talking about fighting for their country while continuing to work on the game.

“We load our weapons with one hand and make our game with the other,” said another.

The team drove across the country to reach the Ukrainian border with Slovakia

GSC Game World A group of people, seen in the background, sit on a couch as they walk down the highway. The car appears to be full of passengers, and the sunlight fills the horizon in the distance. — The team drove across the country to reach the Ukrainian border with Slovakia

Rejecting Russia

Speaking to Newsbeat during the Gamescom show in Cologne, Germany, Evgeniy tells Newsbeat that most of Stalker 2’s Russian fans were not supporters during the early days of the war.

After controversy arose, the game’s subtitle was changed to Heart of Chornobyl, to reflect the Ukrainian spelling of the name.

Russian voiceovers and subtitles have also been removed, and GSC has refused to release the game in Russia.

Developers have accused Ukrainian dissidents of regular attempts to hack its servers.

“We tried to get the support of those people,” said Evgeniy. “But instead we got a lot of bad stuff.

“So we decided to join the sanctions, let’s say.”

Stalker takes its name from the bandit-like characters that enter its so-called Anomalous Zone.

GSC Game World A computer generated rendering of a character wearing a classic gas mask with a hose connecting the mouth to an oxygen tank on their back. They wear a thick coat with a hood on top, and in the background is a vague image of exploding metal structures. — Stalker takes its name from the bandit-like characters that enter its so-called Anomalous Zone.

Ukraine tried to keep cultural events going during the war – it won Eurovision in 2022 again its biggest music festival made a comeback this summer.

Evgeniy feels the same about Stalker 2.

“We would like to remind the world that Ukraine is capable of making good games as well,” he said.

“Sports are part of culture, like music, movies, art, books and so on.

“So, yes, it’s an important job in the world.”

Evgeniy says the studio also owes it to workers who have improved their lives by traveling, or joining the military, to see their work.

And the studio wants to honor friends and colleagues who died, like Volodymyr Yehzov, an engineer who was killed defending Bahkmut from Russian forces.

“All those people worked hard to make this happen and we have to move forward to make this happen and appreciate their effort,” Evgeniy said.

“To make this happen in the memory of those people.”

War Game: The Making of Stalker 2 can be viewed on YouTube.