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Metro 2039 is the next game in the highly regarded post apocalyptic FPS and, fresh off its new reveal, there's a trickle of info to digest about what's coming. While surviving in a dirty and contaminated underground train system is still front and center for the experience, there are some big changes.
The last game, Metro Exodus, saw regular hero Artyom looking for safe haven on the surface in an attempt to leave the tunnels behind. This time, Metro 2039 looks to be heading back underground and, for the the first time ever, the game won't star it's regular protagonist.
Metro 2039 release date
We have a very firm, if broad Metro 2039 release date of Winter 2026, as confirmed at the end of the game reveal.
That could cover a wide range of months but let's assume the studio is aiming to have it out for Christmas, when game sales peak. That would likely mean October or November time. If it misses that and, let's face it, most game are delayed, then expect something more in the February to Easter Window.
Metro 2039 platforms
It should come as no surprise to see Metro 2039 is coming to PS5, PC and Xbox when it releases in Winter.
There's no exclusivity locking 2039 to any platform so everyone will get to mask up at the same time when it arrives. It's always been a graphically demanding game, which probably explains it not being among the upcoming Switch 2 games lineup upfront. But that's not to say it might not make it to Nintendo-land in the future, as previous games did eventually make the jump several years after the original release.
Metro 2039 trailer
The very first Metro 2039 trailer seems to be really specifically dialling into two things the series has always had: Nazis and nightmare hallucinations. The main character of the reveal might actually be Hunter, a returning character who's had interactions with the Dark Ones that appear here rather than the new hero, The Stranger. Hunter is nominally the villain of this story, as an all new Fuhrer, overseeing a new regime in the tunnels.
Metro 2039 setting
All we know for sure about the setting of Metro 2039 so far is that it takes place in Moscow, and is going back to the tunnels after Metro Exodus' more open world hubs. Creative director, Andriy Mls Shevchenko, stated this in the initial reveal: "So we're going back to the tunnels and leaning into what makes Metro 'Metro' - the intensity of darkness, the intimacy of closed spaces and the feeling that every step forward. Every decision made has a cost."
Co-creative director Pavel Ulmer confirmed the location, saying, "Metro 2039 takes you to the dark heart of the Moscow Metro, where the last survivors of the nuclear apocalypse struggle to exist in the dark tunnels and subway of the ruined city".
Who's the new Metro 2039 hero?
For the first time in the series Metro 2039 won't star Artyom, the long running silent protagonist of the games (and slightly less silent in the books). There's an all new voiced hero taking center stage this time - known only as 'The Stranger' this character is "plagued by his violent nightmares [and] forced to undertake a harrowing journey back down to the Metro, a place he swore to never return" according to co-creative director Pavel Ulmer.
That's not a lot to go on but the idea The Stranger has spent time away from the Metro is interesting given the surface world is largely uninhabitable, and Metro Exodus was all about finding somewhere people could live outside of the tunnels.
Metro 2039 story
Metro 2039's story paints a very different world to the one we've seen before - of various stations and factions carving out their own post apocalyptic niche as best they can. "The underground factions and station communities have all been united," creative director Andriy Mls Shevchenko has said in 2039. Which sounds great... except it's "under one banner, the NovoReich, led by a new Fuhrer". So that's less good.
This new Fuhrer is a familiar name too: the legendary Spartan Hunter. He's a prominant character in the books but his fate has been up in the air in the games until now - presumed dead or taken by the supernatural Dark Ones. Previously he's been a positive figure, admired by other characters and appearing in the first game as mentor like figure to previous hero Artyom. After that there are references to him scattered throughout the subsequent games.
But, while Metro 2039 sees Hunter return, he's now this new Fuhrer, who "promises a new life for the people up on the surface. In reality, they are trapped down in the Metro, flooded with propaganda, misinformation and fear," explains creative director Andriy Mls Shevchenko. "The people suffer under his authoritarian regime and the brutal belief, if it's hostile, you kill it."
If you want some down the barrel action while you wait for Metro 2039 then check out out list of the best FPS games.
