Metro 2033 Redux

The Metro universe tells the story of the inhabitants of Moscow, whose city was destroyed by a nuclear strike in 2013. The only salvation turned out to be the metro, which was originally designed as a bomb shelter.

Humanity is leading a miserable existence in stations controlled by various factions (from Nazis to Communists). At some stations, monsters run wild, making it dangerous to move through the stations alone. But the greatest danger lies on the surface; staying there for an extended period is equivalent to death.

The main changes in the Redux version of Metro 2033 are related to graphics. The game has been transferred to a new version of the 4A Engine, using solutions relevant for 2015, which are also reflected in Metro: Last Light:

The Metro universe develops in an alternative reality and begins in 2013 after a global nuclear conflict when Russia, China, and North Korea exchanged missile strikes with NATO countries. Climate changes have turned the northern hemisphere into an icy wasteland, and rising water levels have destroyed all coastal infrastructure. States have been wiped off the face of the Earth, and anarchy reigns,

In Moscow, where the events of Metro 2033 take place, people have taken refuge underground, turning metro stations and bunkers into their home. But instead of uniting, the small population has divided along ideological, religious, or selfish interests, with some simply trying to survive. Often, one will have to fight their way through.

The metro network is abandoned and falling apart, physically isolating the stations, which forces one to go to the surface, where the harshest survival conditions exist. One must weave between destroyed buildings, avoid patrols of local armed gangs, various mutants, dangerous radiation levels, and induced psi-radiation. Due to a lack of filters, ammunition, and proper weapons, lone survivors quickly retreat from the surface back into the metro.

Metro 2033 is practically a corridor shooter, with small but meticulously designed game locations — life is present in the stations, people argue, communicate, and trade, despite the miserable standard of living and their dire situation. Sometimes, in the locations, one can find branches leading to interesting events, supplies, diaries, or secret passages.

All locations are made dark and ominous, perfectly conveying the atmosphere of post-apocalypse, desolation, and global catastrophe. Moving between stations, the character may hear strange noises, see incomprehensible flashes, and experience other visual glitches.

In the Redux version of Metro 2033, new locations for exploration (especially on the surface) and items (safes, notes) were added, and most short levels were combined into one.

The main character of Metro 2033 is a young man named Artyom, who grew up after the nuclear war at the VDNH station and was raised by his stepfather. Like everyone else, he is attached to his home station, helps its residents, works at a factory, learns to shoot, and defends his native home, which is on the edge of the "habitable zone."

For several years, this branch of the metro has been restless — the farthest stations are dying under attacks from the brutal Black mutants, who come from the surface and torment people with telepathic hallucinations. By the time the events of the game begin, the turn has come to VDNH — several of its residents have already died after a patrol due to the psi-influence of the Blacks.

The stepfather's friend asks Artyom to report the appearance of the Blacks in Polis — the largest and most powerful metro station, friendly to VDNH and other ordinary stations — and to ask for their help in destroying the Blacks. However, VDNH is too far from the central metro stations, so Artyom will have to go through a very difficult path, full of various dangers.

The narrative of Metro 2033 is linear, like the game itself, and focuses on the story of one person striving to save his station at any cost. The main details of the plot are narrated by Artyom himself, while others can be learned during cutscenes and dialogues by eavesdropping on the conversations of locals. Often, characters simply talk among themselves, not distracting the player from the gameplay.

A feature of the plot is the numerous secondary characters playing the role of companions — they join Artyom literally for 2-3 missions, after which they achieve their goals, die, or disappear. The constant interaction creates a sense of a living and open narrative.

Being a standard corridor shooter, Metro 2033 offers to move forward and solve most problems with the power of your weapon, but it is also possible to try to complete the game in stealth mode.

The plot is closely intertwined with the gameplay, as depending on the playstyle, the player will receive one of two endings — the main or the alternative. By committing bad deeds and hoarding resources, the player will get a bad ending, while good deeds, help, resource support, and minimal killings will lead to the alternative ending.

In the original, the stealth mode had issues, which is why most players chose the shooter mechanics for gameplay. This was also facilitated by the fact that signal traps were placed everywhere, raising the station's alert and provoking attacks from people (mutants) when the only chance to survive and move on was to take out everyone with a machine gun while hiding behind cover.

In Metro 2033 Redux, stealth has been improved with the ability to stun enemies or kill quietly; for a better gameplay experience, it is recommended to play the Redux version. Other gameplay changes include two new difficulties ("Survival" and "Spartan").

The player has a small arsenal consisting of commonly found homemade weapons and rare industrial ones that have survived since the nuclear war. There are also grenades and throwing knives. The metro population does not experiment much with weapons due to a shortage of ammunition.

People have learned to produce ammunition by hand, but it has low killing power. Meanwhile, industrial 5.45 ammunition serves as local currency – it can be exchanged for anything... or used against particularly dangerous enemies.

In Metro 2033, there is a diverse bestiary created based on the fictional creatures from the novel. Since both sides used not only nuclear but also chemical and biological weapons during the conflict, animals were affected and merged into terrifying organisms – hybrids of rats, dogs and cats, pigs and moles.

All mutants have their own habitats – some are found only in the metro, others prefer to live on the surface and rarely appear underground, while others, like "Librarians" and "Demons," simply cannot descend underground due to their size.

Mutants have been given a certain logic of behavior. The simplest ones, "Kikimoras," always attack in packs and scatter when they lose their numerical advantage, being nimble and fast. The "Orlozhuk" is a bipedal insect with a bird's skeleton and an eagle's face, covered in thick chitinous armor – it hunts alone and attacks in the dark, always charging head-on. The flying "Demon" stalks its prey and dives at it from above, lifting it into the air and dropping it. Due to their size and ability to fly, they are the most dangerous opponents.

In the Redux version of Metro 2033, the "Orlozhuk" was completely removed from the game, replaced by several types of "Bug Spiders" – a hybrid of tarantula, scorpion, and regular spider. They weave webs and attack in groups, never coming to the surface and fearing flashlight light.