Hands-On: Metro 2039 Kicks Off With A Bang And Doesn’t Let Up

The Metro series is classic gaming at this point. With the first game kicking off 16 years ago in 2010, Metro 2033 put 4A Games on the map. Based on the popular book series by Russian author Dmitry Glukhovsky, you’ll explore a post-apocalyptic Earth following a nuclear war, which is now filled with opportunistic humans and fearsome creatures.

It’s a simple premise, but the way the world is fleshed out has wowed fans for the past decade and a half, and since the original game, we’ve seen three sequels (one of which is a VR title). But the last mainline game (Metro Exodus) was back in 2019, and now it’s time for 4A Games to bring back their flagship franchise. Metro 2039 is due out next year, and we got the chance to play an early build.

If you haven’t followed along with the Metro series from 4A Games so far, 2039 is still a good place to start, as it reintroduces the world and provides a brand-new protagonist to follow. This is four years after Metro Exodus, where you’ll take control of “the Stranger.” With nightmares in tow of this new haunted hellscape, he heads into Moscow, and learns about an overwhelming force called the Novoreich.

This time around, our hero has a speaking role, which elevates the story a bit and adds a little more urgency. Starting with a scuffle, you’ll end up getting out of the underground and into the fire pretty quickly. In our time with the game (a few hours), we spent it interacting with a few Metro citizens. But the vast majority of our experience was out in the open world, where everything is exactly as terrifying as it needs to be.

Playing this on a high-end rig was a blast, as Metro 2039 is one of the most detailed first-person shooters I’ve seen to date. Tons of objects are strewn about the wasteland to help add to the theme, but they feel purposefully placed. The sound design is off-the-charts great, and I recommend playing it in a dark room with headphones.

Voice direction is fantastic all-around, as you can stand in a hall and hear multiple distinct voices very clearly. 4A Games outdid themselves here, as the liveliness of the underground is nicely juxtaposed to the lifelessness of the surface.

That thoughtful level of design extends pretty much everywhere. There’s a very interesting tablet aesthetic that serves as the menu, and the weapon system is deep to match. The gunplay feels responsive and impactful, and it nails the gritty feel of post-apoc weaponry without making the player feel hopeless.

In our demo, the Stranger felt particularly powerful and appropriately equipped to take on such staggering odds. There are variable ammo types to suit different situations (and suddenly provide a second wind if you run out of primary ammo), and a lot of gadgets to manage: night vision, black light, gas mask, and a flashlight, among others.

The labyrinthine tunnels of the Metro and the open-ended areas of a once-thriving city work well together, especially with the micro-storytelling angle that 2039 takes. There are a lot of little stories to find and experience, but nothing overstays its welcome. That even goes for the supernatural-esque portions of the story, which are framed a lot like the classic shooter series F.E.A.R.

I’m already drawn in, and I’ve only played a few hours of Metro 2039. It’ll need to keep up the pace from this preview build, but it’s already on a great track, and there’s still time to polish anything that needs it. Expect it in February 2027 on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X

This preview was conducted through NVIDIA GeForce NOW.