Metro 2039 received a fresh reveal at the State of Play on September 3, 2026. Developed by 4A Games and published by Deep Silver, the post-apocalyptic FPS will arrive on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series starting February 4, 2027. This PS5 Pro–captured sequence offers a more tangible look at exploration, combat, gear management, and several survival mechanics for the next installment.
From a gameplay perspective, Metro 2039 sticks to the series’ core while introducing updated systems. The game emphasizes a tense progression driven by exploration, tactical confrontations, and an interface woven into the world, with limited on-screen clutter. The controls are designed to keep players under pressure, balancing escapes, close-quarters combat, and the unreliable weapons, in tight environments that leave little room for improvisation. 4A Games also says it aims to deepen environmental storytelling, with zones crafted to tell fragments of the story through their very mise-en-scène.
The new reveal alternates between exploration, infiltration, and skirmishes across several zones of the Moscow Metro and the contaminated surface. Footage tracks The Stranger, the game's new lead, as he moves between tunnels, ruined buildings, and irradiated areas. The clip also highlights the variety of environments, the mutants, a handful of new weapons, and the survival systems that underpin the entire journey.
After Metro Exodus, which broadened the series’ horizons, Metro 2039 returns to the Moscow subway, now under the grip of a fascist regime that has absorbed the former independent factions. The player assumes the role of The Stranger, the series’ new protagonist, portrayed as a loner plagued by violent nightmares and forced to undertake a perilous journey back to a place he swore he’d never return to. The studio notes that this marks the first fully voiced main character in the franchise, in an installment billed as the darkest to date.
Our preview of Metro 2039:
A game we got to try early, for a few hours, during a press preview. For accuracy, we played via NVIDIA GeForce Now on PC. You start with a cinematic that plunges you straight into the action, then a quick tutorial to reclaim your weapon, and you’re off into the contaminated zone.
Our take:
Graphically, the title looks pretty good and runs smoothly, even if the image quality can be a touch uneven. It’s a game that leverages a wide range of PC configurations to please the eyes.
On the gameplay side, it’s fairly dense to master (especially for newcomers or for players like us who hadn’t touched the Metro saga in a while…). You need to ration your ammunition, avoid wasting gas mask capsules, and pause to scavenge ammo and mini‑kits from your backpack.
Once you’ve got the mechanics down, you still need to figure out which button does what, and a small extra tutorial on that would have been welcome. But overall, the control scheme remains quick to pick up.
As for the game itself, it’s very feature‑rich, blending the best mechanics from the old Metro titles (you don’t reinvent the wheel) and, during exploration, it occasionally evokes The Last of Us. But let’s not overdo the comparison—Metro 2039 has its own identity, based on what we’ve seen, and that’s something pretty valuable.
One small drawback is the aiming, which feels tailored for seasoned FPS players, though even newcomers will adapt quickly (our muscle memory woke up and slipped back into the groove in no time).
From what we’ve seen, Metro 2039 looks like a very promising title in its genre and will surely delight fans of the franchise. All that remains is to wait for its release (or try it at a few gaming shows) to form your own opinion!
Among the elements highlighted, 4A Games is stressing the care given to environmental storytelling. Andriy "mLs" Shevchenko, creative director, talks about "frozen narratives" to describe hand-built spaces where objects, silhouettes and set pieces let players piece together small stories. Jon Bloch, executive producer, adds: "Nothing is pre-fab: everything is unique and anchored in reality", a stance that reflects the studio's desire to maintain a world that is credible, dense and readable.
The studio also stresses the importance of its in-house engine, the 4A Engine, developed and refined for more than fifteen years. Jon Bloch puts it this way: "The 4A Engine is tailor-made to build the games we want to make," noting that this technology should let the studio push further on visuals and technical aspects. The briefing also highlighted the weight of the development context: the Ukrainian team at 4A Games explains that the war has profoundly altered the direction of the project. "Everything we had imagined for this new chapter of Metro has changed," says Błoch (Note: ensure correct spelling), while Shevchenko talks about an approach carried by "a distinctly Ukrainian perspective."
Exploration is gaining importance thanks to new tools and a more developed progression system. A cutting torch and breaching charges let you open passages or hidden caches, while a UV lamp joins the flashlight and night vision to reveal certain clues or detect mutants. The plans (blueprints) uncovered along the way are then used to craft new weapons, upgrade gear, or reinforce elements like the gas mask visor or the battery life of the backpack. The Metro Exodus workbench also returns, enabling ammo and filter crafting, weapon cleaning to reduce jams, or a full reconfiguration of setups. Survival management remains a constant priority, with gas masks, filters to monitor, radiation levels, and electrical gear to keep in top shape.
The firefights also evolve with the arrival of new mutants and a combat system more focused on adaptability. Enemies now cooperate to harass the player and force constant strategic adjustments. Among the new features is the "Shaton" (spelling is not finalized), a silenced pneumatic rifle that fuses the Helsing and Tihar concepts from earlier installments. Powered by makeshift field-made projectiles, it can also be upgraded to fire rarer, exceptionally potent projectiles that can be recovered from enemies. 4A Games also confirms that every weapon category now has a secondary ammo type, designed to encourage experimentation depending on the situation. The studio nevertheless aims to preserve the heavy-feel shooting, tight, fast-paced engagements, a reactive AI, and that constant pressure characteristic of Metro when resources are scarce.
With this new reveal, Metro 2039 more clearly outlines the direction 4A Games has chosen for its fourth main installment. In the coming months, players will get to explore more areas, encounter more characters, and see more gameplay sequences ahead of its scheduled release on February 4, 2027.
And for the other trailers, head here:
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