STALKER 2 delayed until 2023

During the Xbox Extended Games Showcase seen today, Microsoft shared a video made by Ukrainian game developer GSC Game World about its work on STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl and the situations the team faced during early days of the attack by Russia.

The developer diary titled “Game Development During the War” shows how the lives of their team members changed since February 24. “The workday begins with a siren?” said Anton Kukhtytskyi, lead concept artist. “During the bombing, we run to the bomb shelter. This is my cat’s carrier bag. My cat died in the shelling in the first week of the war,” said Andrii Maksiuta, voice director.

The video shows parts of the city that were attacked. It also shows other places had to use to work (including a bathroom and a corridor). “It’s not easy to write violent quests when there’s a war outside your window,” said Dariia Tsepkova, narrative designer.

“Since the start of the war, I’ve had no contact with my parents. It is an indescribable horrible feeling, not knowing whether your loved ones are alive,” said animator Oleksandr Levchenko.

Many employees joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine to defend their country, including Dmytro Iassenev, lead AI developer. “I never imagined a war in Europe in the 21st century. We’ll see you at release. Slava Ukraini!”

Oleksii Ivanoc, community manager: “I am defending my country form the Russian aggressors.”

Maksym Hnatkov, narrative designer: “After our victory I’ll return to the game.”

A trailer called “Enter the Zone” was also shared, which also confirms the game has been delayed until sometime in 2023. The game will no lnger be launched in Devcember 2022 because of the continuing war.

[Sources]: Xbox (YouTube): Xbox Games Showcase Extended – YouTube – [Archive]. GSC Game World (YouTube): S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Dev Diary: Game Development During the War – [Archive].