Metro 2039 is the next mainline game in the Metro series: a story-driven single-player first-person shooter from 4A Games, published by Deep Silver. It takes you back to the tunnels of the Moscow Metro in the year 2039, under a regime called the Novoreich, as a new protagonist known as the Stranger. It launches on 4 February 2027 according to 4A Games and Deep Silver as of 13 November 2026. This overview sticks to what 4A Games and Deep Silver have officially shown, without spoilers for the earlier games.
Metro 2039 in one paragraph
Metro 2039 comes out on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC (Steam, Epic Games Store and Xbox on PC) on the same day on all platforms. In some territories, including Asia, Australia and New Zealand, it unlocks on 5 February 2027. It is a single-player game with no announced multiplayer, rated PEGI 18, USK 18 and ESRB M. Pre-orders opened on 13 October 2026; editions and bonuses are covered in our editions guide, the launch time in our release date guide.
The interest is there. 4A announced one million Steam wishlists on 1 May 2026, the game won the gamescom Award for Best Visuals in 2026 and was nominated in the Most Wanted category of the Golden Joystick Awards 2026. According to 4A, the Metro series as a whole has sold 50 million copies.
Setting: Moscow, 2039, six years after Metro 2033
A quarter of a century after nuclear war, the last survivors live in the tunnels of the Metro beneath a poisoned Moscow. The story takes place six years after the original Metro 2033.
Metro Exodus left Moscow behind. Metro 2039 brings the series back to the Moscow Metro, but not only underground. The trailers and store pages also show the surface: swamps, irradiated streets of Moscow, stations with their own communities and, of course, tunnels.
The story is original. 4A Games wrote it in collaboration with Dmitry Glukhovsky, the author of the Metro novels, and it is not based on any particular book.
The Stranger and Hunter’s Novoreich
The factions of the Metro have been united under one leader: the fanatical Spartan Hunter, “the first Spartan”. His regime, the Novoreich, headed by a “Führer”, rules through propaganda and fear and is waging a new war for the surface against a “dark and terrifying enemy”. Its motto is “if it’s hostile, you kill it”.
You play as the Stranger, a loner living in the wilderness beyond the city who is haunted by violent nightmares. The ghosts of his past force him to return to the Metro, a place he swore he would never go back to. He is also the first fully voiced protagonist in the series; more on that in our languages guide.
A story shaped by the war in Ukraine
4A Games was founded in Kyiv in 2005 and moved its headquarters to Malta in 2014. It has offices in Malta and Ukraine, and most of the team works in Kyiv and remotely across Ukraine, through power cuts, on generators and in shelters during attacks.
According to 4A, Metro 2039 tells its story from a Ukrainian perspective, and Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 directly shaped the game. The themes 4A names are the consequences of war, the price of silence, the horrors of tyranny and the cost of freedom. The studio calls it the darkest chapter of the series.
Dmitry Glukhovsky lives in exile outside Russia. After criticising the invasion, a Russian court sentenced him in absentia to eight years in prison.
Gameplay pillars from 4A
The store pages and official announcements list these building blocks:
- Single-player campaign – no multiplayer has been announced.
- Stealth and combat – sneaking and what 4A calls “brutal” gunplay.
- Crafting – making supplies, even in the middle of a fight.
- Survival – radiation, repairing worn equipment and recharging your electronics.
- UV tool – a device for uncovering secrets.
- New routes – cutting and blasting your way through to new paths.
- Shatun – a new rifle.
- Blueprints – schematics and modifications for hand-crafted weapons.
Under the hood runs 4A’s own 4A Engine. Metro 2039 is the first game in the series built from the ground up for ray tracing. On Xbox Series X, PS5 and PS5 Pro, 4A promises a 60 FPS Performance Mode with ray tracing at launch. Official PC requirements have not been published yet.
Frozen stories and the return to the tunnels
4A calls one of its storytelling tools “frozen stories”: scenes made of objects and bodies that you piece together into small stories of your own. 4A describes it as environmental storytelling.
Familiar threats are coming back too. 4A has confirmed the return of the Nosalis mutant.
Do you need to play the previous games?
No. According to the official FAQ, Metro 2039 is a good starting point for newcomers: a new protagonist and new characters, while veterans will recognise the ties to the existing world. Deep Silver still recommends going through the story so far (Metro 2033, Last Light, Exodus) if you want the full picture.
If you do, start with our series order guide and the story recap. The recap contains spoilers for the earlier games.
Trailers so far
The official trailers from the @metrovideogame YouTube channel, in order of release:
- 16 April 2026 – Official Reveal Trailer and Reveal Showcase
- 20 April 2026 – Gameplay Teaser
- 7 June 2026 – Gameplay Reveal – Hunter
- 24 August 2026 – Collector’s Edition Teaser Trailer
- 25 August 2026 – Gameplay Trailer – Renegade
- 3 September 2026 – Release Date Reveal & First Console Gameplay Trailer
- 13 October 2026 – Pre-Order Now!
Join our Discord and talk about Metro 2039 with other players: GamersTogether Discord.
FAQ
A story-driven single-player first-person shooter from 4A Games, published by Deep Silver. It combines stealth, combat, survival and crafting.
On 4 February 2027 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, according to 4A Games and Deep Silver as of 13 November 2026. Some territories, including Asia, Australia and New Zealand, get it on 5 February.
No. The story is original, written by 4A Games in collaboration with Dmitry Glukhovsky, the author of the Metro novels.
The Stranger, a loner from the wilderness beyond Moscow who returns to the Metro. He is the first fully voiced protagonist in the series.
No multiplayer has been announced. The stores list the game as single-player only.
Information verified on 13 November 2026. We will update this article once the official requirements are out and again after launch. All guides are in our Metro 2039 section.