The highly anticipated fourth installment in the Metro series, titled Metro 2039, is set to be the focus of an upcoming Xbox showcase. This digital presentation, scheduled for Thursday, April 16th, will offer an initial glimpse into the new title from developer 4A Games.
4A Games has confirmed they will continue their collaboration with Dmitry Glukhovsky, the creator of the Metro novels, who is also an author and activist. The previous game in the series, Metro Exodus, released in February 2019, followed protagonist Artyom and his crew on a journey across Russia aboard a locomotive named Aurora. Metro Exodus introduced open-world elements and a more grounded narrative, with a focus on Artyom’s personal story and relationships, moving away from some of the supernatural themes of earlier games.
Xbox stated that Metro 2039 will be the fourth main entry in the series, drawing inspiration from Glukhovsky’s novels, which depict the lives of survivors in the Moscow subway tunnels after a nuclear catastrophe. The game has been in development for several years, and 4A Games has indicated that the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine has significantly influenced its development. 4A Games was originally founded in Kyiv, Ukraine.
The developers emphasized that Metro games have consistently featured strong political, anti-war, and emotional narratives. They confirmed that these themes will persist in Metro 2039, thanks to their ongoing work with Glukhovsky. Glukhovsky has been a vocal critic of the war in Ukraine, a stance that has led to him being sentenced to jail in absentia in Russia. 4A Games expressed pride in their friendship and co-creation with him for this new chapter of Metro.
Considering that Metro Exodus was released shortly before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the game’s dystopian setting now unfortunately resonates with the real-world circumstances faced by those affected by the war. The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014. It will be compelling to see how Glukhovsky and 4A Games integrate this historical context into the narrative of Metro 2039.
The digital broadcast is scheduled to begin on Thursday, April 16th, at 10:00 am PT / 1:00 pm ET on Xbox’s official YouTube channel. Further details are expected during this presentation.
English Translation:
Xbox’s Next Game Showcase is All About Metro 2039
4A Games’ fourth installment, Metro 2039, will be featured in an Xbox showcase this Thursday, April 16th, providing insights into the upcoming title.
A new Xbox-branded announcement is anticipated later this week. 4A Games confirmed today that they will host a digital presentation for the first-person action-shooter Metro 2039. This will be the first look at the upcoming fourth installment, set for Thursday, April 16th. 4A Games has confirmed they will continue to work alongside franchise creator, author, and activist Dmitry Glukhovsky on this project.
Metro Exodus was the last sequel game, released in February 2019. The game followed iconic protagonist Artyom as he and his crew fled the Moscow Metro and journeyed through Russia and parts of Kazakhstan on a locomotive called Aurora. It introduced a new open-world gameplay element. The team experimented with excluding mission markers to allow players to explore naturally. To maintain immersion, the game featured a minimalistic head-up display, with in-game information conveyed through Artyom’s gear and equipment. This was one of the first games in the series to focus more on Artyom’s personal story and relationships, foregoing some of the supernatural elements found in previous games for a more grounded narrative.
“This will be the fourth mainline entry from 4A Games in the series based on the iconic novels of Dmitry Glukhovsky,” Xbox stated, “all of which tell the stories of survivors of nuclear devastation living in the Moscow subway tunnels and the world that surrounds them.” Metro 2039 has been in active development for several years, and according to 4A Games, it will be heavily influenced by their experiences during the ongoing Russian invasion of their home country, Ukraine. 4A Games was founded in Kyiv, Ukraine, and later expanded to Malta.
“Metro has always had a hard-hitting, political, anti-war, and often emotional story—and you can be sure these themes will continue thanks to our ongoing collaboration with franchise creator, author, and activist Dmitry Glukhovsky,” the developer said last year. “Dmitry has always spoken out against the war in Ukraine from the start—a courageous decision for any Russian that has seen him sentenced to jail (in absentia)—and we are proud to have him as a friend and co-creator as we tell this next, and never more relevant, chapter of Metro together. Rest assured, you are in for quite the ride.”
It’s striking to consider that the last game, Metro Exodus, was released a couple of years before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Stripping away the supernatural elements of the games, the in-game dystopian world unfortunately mirrors the situations of those living through the war. The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014 with Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea. It will be interesting to see how Glukhovsky and the 4A Games team craft a story that weaves this piece of history into Metro 2039. The digital broadcast is expected to begin airing on Xbox’s official YouTube channel on Thursday, April 16th, at 10:00 am PT/1:00 pm ET. Tune in to find out more details.