Ukrainian Developer GSC Game World first announcedSTALKER 2: Heart of Chornobylin 2010. After a long period in development hell, the game resurfaced in 2018 and made wavesduring the Microsoft E3 Showcase last year. Unfortunately, the Kyiv-based studio was forced to suspend development due to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.
While the indefinite delay is to be expected given the situation in Kyiv, the war had a more surprising effect on the game’s development. Earlier today,STALKER 2’sdeveloper changed its subtitle’s spelling fromHeart of ChernobyltoHeartof Chornobyl.
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“Chornobyl” is the Ukrainian spelling of the region’s better-known Russian name. The plant and surrounding Exclusion Zonewhere theSTALKERgames take placeare located in Northern Ukraine. GSC Game World did not issue a statement regarding the change, though one can infer that it’s a way of protesting Russia’s aggression against the studio’s home country. Fans will noticeSTALKER 2’snew subtitle on the game’s Steam page and description, though some listings and promotional art still display the oldHeart of Chernobylsubtitle.
The difference between the Russian “Chernobyl” and Ukrainian “Chornobyl” might seem insignificant to those not directly connected to the conflict. However, the long and often fraught relationship between Russia and Ukraine means that even minor linguistic differences become politicized. Many Ukrainians, for example, resent that foreigners often refer to their country as “The Ukraine.” They feel that saying “The Ukraine” implies that the country is merely a province or vassal state of Russia, despite existing as an independent nation since 1991.
Ukrainians also have a similar attitude toward the name of the country’s capital, preferring the Ukraine spelling of Kyiv to the Russian “Kiev.” There was even an online campaign under the hashtag KyivNotKiev as part of a more significant push to encourage foreigners to refer to locations in the country by their Ukrainian place names instead of the more popular Russian versions. ChangingSTAKER 2’s subtitle toHeart of Chornobylis thus a tiny part of a larger movement. Viewed in that context, the new name is a wholly unsurprising move fromthe Kyiv-based GSC Game World.
While it’s predictable that the Ukrainian studio wound take a side in the ongoing conflict, GSC Game World is far from the only one.Take-Two Interactive recently suspended all salesand downloads in Russia and Belarus. Meanwhile,Frostpunkdeveloper 11 Bit Studios announced it would donate all proceeds fromThis War of Mineto the Ukrainian Red cross. In addition, other studios offered large donations to humanitarian organizations helping the Ukrainian people.
STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobylis in development for PC and Xbox Series X/S.
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