At the end of the 2-hour extended Xbox presentation , which took place on the evening of June 14, the Ukrainian studio GSC GameWorld showed two new videos about the long-awaited game STALKER 2 – a new and very strong release of the development diary and an introductory in-game cutscene called “Enter the Zone» / Enter the Zone .

Devblog: During the War

The first video, Dev Diary: During the War, contains footage from the pre-war GSC Game World Kyiv office and shows how the lives of workers have changed since February 24 and the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The video brings together the stories of GSC GameWorld employees from different Ukrainian cities – Kiev, Irpen, Mariupol. It is intended to once again remind the whole world that the current reality of Ukrainians and Ukraine is a merciless and cynical war, and Russia is an aggressor country that supports terrorism. Many employees have now temporarily left their jobs and are defending Ukraine in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and many could not tell their story for security reasons.

“War changes everything. Divides life into “before” and “after”. It forces you to get used to the new reality, where you have to look for more “safe” places in your own house.

Some of the Ukrainians had to leave their native country, others – to devote themselves to volunteering or to move towards danger with weapons in their hands, because they need to protect their own.

GSC Game World is a Ukrainian company, so our history is similar. Everyone is in their place and is making efforts for the victory of Ukraine. At the same time, without leaving the development of the game STALKER 2: Heart of Chernobyl, the release of which has become even more important and symbolic for us. Although previously it was impossible to imagine that it was possible to strive to release the game even more.

111 days since the war came to the house of every Ukrainian. And she continues. Still harvesting its crops and grief. Until now, we resist and believe in victory.”

GSC GameWorld

In the description of the video on YouTube, the developers of GSC Game World added a link to the UNITED24 fundraising platform, which helped raise more than $52 million in support of Ukraine in the first month , and called on the world to continue to help.

“ Enter the Zone “ / Enter the Zone

As part of GSC GameWorld’s presentation at the Xbox Extended Presentation, there was also an aptly titled introductory cutscene. The video simultaneously refers to the original stalker – style and graphics – and to the famous Netflix show “Amazing Wonders” (the moment where the sky is illuminated in red, and it seems that the Mind Flayer is about to appear).

The video, in particular, shows a truck moving along the road in the direction of the Exclusion Zone. In addition to the driver, there is an unknown device inside the truck. On the way, the driver listens to the radio. On the air – an interview with Dr. Dalin, head of the Research Institute of the Chernobyl anomalous zone. The Announcer asks if the Perimeter surrounding the Site is sufficiently protected in case of a sudden release of energy, and he assures that safety was a priority during the construction phase of the facility.

“The Zone opens up a new world for us! We may remain in the old for fear of change… but tell me, would you like our descendants to remember us as cowards? Or those who have decided to take a step towards a new, better humanity?”

Dr. Dalin about NIICHAZ

At this time, a storm is raging on the horizon and this is obviously a release of paranormal energy from the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, and the radio announcer talks about the evacuation and recalls that a similar incident recently occurred in the same region.

At the end of the video, they show that in fact the truck is carrying another passenger lying unconscious in the back, and the video ends with a frame with a stalker standing in front of a powerful anomaly. Also in the video, GSC GameWorld once again confirmed the new release window for STALKER 2, which was already announced the day before – the shooter will be released in 2023.

A day earlier, GSC GameWorld confirmed that there would be no Russian voice acting in STALKER 2 – only Ukrainian and English.

GSC Game World abandoned the Russian voice acting of STALKER 2 and postponed the game to 2023