The war between Russia and Ukraine is intensifying, and no team is more affected by this reality than GSC World, the creators of STALKER 2. When war broke out, the team split into two, with half evacuating the country and the other half staying behind. The company fell victim to a cyberattack after deciding not to release STALKER 2 in Russia. It even suffered a server fire that destroyed an entire floor of its new office in Prague.
It goes without saying that creating a game under these conditions can be extremely stressful. Considering everything that’s happened, and the war still going on, the question of how the team is getting through this was at the forefront of my mind when I visited the studio earlier this month. Impressively, GSC’s answer to all these questions is development with a human-centered approach. The result? A Ukrainian developer has given the world a project of which he can be proud, a work of national pride – at a time when people desperately needed it.
iGamesNews
My window into the tumultuous past few years of GSC World was Slava Lukyanenka, the lead producer on STALKER 2 and one of the many employees who decided to leave the country when the war began. We had a brief chat about the unique environment in which STALKER 2 was developed and the impact the war in Ukraine had on the game and its developers, below.
iGamesNews: When the first STALKER came out, it was created against the backdrop of the Chernobyl incident and its aftermath. In light of recent events and the ongoing war in Ukraine, the creation of STALKER 2 faced a completely new context. How does this impact the design process here?
lukianenka: There is no direct impact, so we don’t use the game as a promotional thing. We don’t want to be too literal. While the whole team was traveling – half of us in Kiev, half in Prussia and some scattered across Europe – we still needed to keep delivering. we can’t no reflected in the game. But we do it indirectly. We do this through story, through environment, through the feeling of decay.
Obviously, in addition to the struggle, we are trying to embrace a part of Ukrainian culture. Throughout the area you’ll see things we couldn’t do in the original because we didn’t have the technology; you can see old bus stops with beautiful mosaic pictures that have been there for generations . These are part of Ukrainian culture. There are characters that can show you symbols that are important to Ukrainians.
Beyond that, there are places where you can feel safe. There you can find radios playing Ukrainian music. We’ve signed a lot of cool bands for you Feel Like you’re in Ukraine – This should make players feel like they’re not in a regular Soviet country, but [specifically] Ukraine.
iGamesNews: Given the obvious real-world context, why was it so important for the team to embrace Ukrainian culture in this way?
lukianenka: That’s how important it is. For many Westerners, it’s difficult to distinguish STALKER from other post-Soviet territories, as there are other games using similar settings. The devil is in the details. Since all our artists and most of the wider team are from Ukraine, when you can take something from your childhood memories and put it into a game so people can see what you looked like as a kid, it’s possible It’s fun and different from other games.
iGamesNews: You have all been under tremendous pressure in the past few years, so the development of this game has been very good. Can you tell me how you felt during this time? How does the team feel as the game comes to an end?
lukianenka: I think the greatest thing about our studio is that difficulty makes us stronger. It’s a huge challenge when a studio moves to another country and causes everyone to rethink how we have to work and how we deliver. When our studio caught fire, it not only slowed us down, it made us rethink again how we organize our work and talk to each other. I would say we’re only able to do this because people in the studio look out for each other. Second, they care about the product. It sounds like they don’t care about the game but themselves, but in reality we couldn’t have delivered this game w ithout the developers and our team. That’s why looking out for each other and putting people first allows us to keep working.
iGamesNews: Considering that the team has been personally affected by the war, can you talk about the pressure that has been with you over the past few years? What does it look like?
lukianenka: This is difficult to answer, because as soon as you ask me, I start to reflect [chuckles]
iGamesNews: What are you reflecting on?
lukianenka: what happened and how they changed the course of our work and the way we interact with each other. Let me tell you a story. Imagine you are starting over, trying to implement a part of the gameplay, but one day another rocket hits Odessa. Someone died there—not someone from the studio, but a loved one of someone in the studio. A few weeks later, one of my developers decided to join the military. On the one hand, as a professional, this was a really bad idea and I needed to talk him out of it. But he had made up his mind and he knew it was the right thing to do and I knew it was the right thing to do, so there was nothing to do but figure out another way to keep growing.
These things happen all the time. Yes, it’s stressful. At some point you get used to it, but not in a way where you’re apathetic about it, but in a way where you have people around you who you can rely on and get through it together.
The greatest thing about our studio is that difficulties make us stronger
iGamesNews: Do you feel safe now? Uncomfortable, but more comfortable with the situation?
lukyaninka: It seems we are used to it. I wouldn’t say I feel normal. It’s a situation that you keep in mind, which creates extra anxiety, but like I said, it’s a lot easier when you’re not alone. Online, we have a lot of friends from Ukrainian game development who have been supporting us and are by our side when we face challenges.
iGamesNews: Last question; how does it feel as the race is coming to an end and you are about to reach the finish line?
lukianenka: Anxious! When you show it to other people, you just keep digging and digging, thinking it’s total bullshit. But when you show it to people, they say, this is awesome! Well, maybe we’ve actually done something here. I would say the closer I get to the launch, the more anxious I get. But at the same time, after years of development, finally showing it to people is critical for us to achieve that goal.
If you’re curious about our thoughts on STALKER 2, you can read our game preview here. STALKER 2 will be released on November 20th on Xbox Series X, Series S, and PC.
