Summary
The video games industry has grown into one of the biggest forms of entertainment in the world. It now competes with television and film in both sales and artistic quality. While most well-known developers are based in the USA or Japan, the industry is nevertheless a worldwide creative entity.
In recent years, Eastern European developers have grown in number and exposure,creating some of the best AAA and indie gameson the market. Coming primarily from Russia and Poland, these games present amazing worlds filled with creativity and depth. Often touching on themes of war and politics, these games have become critical hits, successful franchises, and indie classics.
This atmospheric RPG horror game was originally a remake of the cult 2005 classicPathologicbut would grow in scope, becoming its own game.Pathologic 2follows the story of Artemy Burakh, a surgeon who returns to his hometown to find his father has died. The game is played over several days as the town slowly succumbs to a mysterious plague, which the player attempts to stop. The in-game time continues, regardless if missions arecompleted or not.
Pathologic 2is filled with a bleak atmosphere, with a strange surrealism running through the game. The town is split into different sectors, with each section’s status changing with the player’s actions. The setting is desolate and creates a constant sense of tension throughout.Pathologic 2is a cult favorite among many and is a unique and memorable survival RPG that fans of horror games will love.
Dying Lightis an open-world first-person action game thatpromotes exploration and parkour. In the game, players are dropped into the fictional city of Harran to infiltrate the remaining population and retrieve sensitive stolen files. The city is overrun with zombies and has been strictly quarantined from the rest of the country. Players soon find themselves mixed up with the warring factions while trying to survive the ever-present threat of the undead.
InDying Light, players explore a vast city, craft and upgrade weapons, learn new skills, and defeat terrifying monsters. During the day, players can explore freely, avoiding enemies, while jumping from rooftop to rooftop. During the night, though, the most dangerous, near-unkillable enemies emerge.Dying Lightis a fun action horror game with a vibrant and challenging open-world setting that will appeal to fans of FPS shooters and survival horror games.
This highly atmospheric stealth survival shooter became a cult classic among gamers. Loosely based on the 1972 Novella, Roadside Picnic, the game presents an alternate reality where the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone has become a mysterious and otherworldly place.
Players control a man suffering from amnesia, known as The Marked One. His task is to venture into the zone to kill someone named Strelok. The game blends FPS, survival, and RPG mechanics, creating a game filled with depth and immersion. WhileS.T.A.L.K.E.Rreceived mixed reviews on release, partly due to the many bugs in the game, it has since grown into an influential survival open-world title that has produced multiple sequels, including one set to launch in September 2024.
Inspired by the real-life siege of Sarajevo,This War of Mineis a powerful survival game that follows the struggles of civilians living within the ruins of a war-torn city. In the game, playerscontrol a group of survivorsliving in a damaged house and must keep them alive until a ceasefire is called. Exploring is only possible at night when it is safe enough to emerge outside. Here, the player can gather materials and interact with NPCs.
During the day, players can upgrade and craft different tools, trade items, cook food, and heal the group of survivors.This War of Minewas critically acclaimed on release and would go on to sell millions of copies. It was highly praised for its dark and gritty gameplay depicting civilian life during wartime.
This city-builder survival game places players in an alternate history, where the world has been plunged into a volcanic winter. Set in the late 19th century, the player controls a small colony of survivors as they struggle tosurvive against the deadly cold. Players are tasked with managing the resources and workforce of the growing settlement and can introduce laws to boost productivity, such as child labor or capital punishment.
Everything from food and healthcare, to work and housing must be managed in the game, with political unrest rising when these needs are not met.Frostpunkis a unique survival game that offers players strong political dilemmas, challenging gameplay, and a bleak setting. Fans of both survival and city-builder games will love this addictive gaming experience, where player decisions have lasting consequences on the world.
Based on the novel by Russian author Dmitry Glukhovsky,Metro 2033is set within the ruins of nuclear-decimated Moscow, where the remaining survivors are forced to live underground in the metro system. The game follows Artyom, who is tasked with saving his home station from the various enemies that lurk in the darkness of the tunnels.
Metro 2033is primarily a first-person shooter that uses survival horror elements to create an immersive gaming experience. The game would become a cult classic that was eventually remastered asMetro: 2033 Reduxand included the first and second games in the series. On release, this superior version was critically praised for its enhanced gameplay, graphics, and atmosphere.
Disco Elysiumis described as a non-traditional role-playing game, where players takecontrol of an alcoholic detectivesuffering from amnesia. As the player works to solve a murder case, the world and history of the detective are slowly revealed. The game has no true combat system, with all interactions played out via a dialogue tree or skill checks. The success of these checks is dictated by the various character abilities; Intellect, Psyche, Physique, and Motorics.
The game was written and developed by Estonian novelist Robert Kurvitz, who created the in-depth history of the world partly using the Marxist theory of Historical Materialism. The game was universally acclaimed on release for its signature art style, in-depth character customization, deep storytelling, and freedom. It is often cited as one of the best video games ever made.
The Witcherfranchise has steadily grown to become one of the most well-regarded fantasy settings in modern entertainment. Beginning with the original novel series by Andrzej Sapkowski, the series follows the adventures of Geralt of Rivia, a monster hunter for hire. The game series based on these novels would grow with each release, withThe Witcher 3: Wild Huntbecoming CD Projekt Red’s biggest success.
The Witcher 3is an expansive open-world game that follows Geralt’s quest to find his long-lost ward, Ciri. The game is filled with political intrigue, warring factions, dangerous criminals, and roaming monsters. The quests from the smallest side job to the large-scale story missions feelfun and immersive.The Witcher 3is a masterclass in open-world game design and is largely considered one of the best games ever made.
