GSC Game World

GSC Game World is a developer and publisher.

GSC Game World Webpage, Facebook

A Ukrainian development studio based in Kyiv, known internationally for the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and Cossacks series. GSC Game World ceased operations in late 2011 but returned officially three years later.

The history of GSC Game World

Cossacks and other RTS games

GSC Game World was founded in 1995 by Sergey Grigorovich. However, the debut game from the Kyiv-based team wasn't released until late 2000. It was a real-time strategy game titled Cossacks: European Wars. Their second project was finished much faster, resulting in the release of the FPS Codename: Outbreak in October 2001.

The first expansion for Cossacks: European Wars, titled Cossacks: The Art of War, was released in February 2002. In September that year, the team released a second add-on, Cossacks: Back to War. The studio ended 2002 with Hover Ace, a futuristic racing game inspired by the WipEout series.

GSC Game World's next strategy title arrived in 2003. Using a system heavily inspired by Cossacks, American Conquest depicted the struggles and conflicts of early American colonization. Like the studio's previous RTS, the game soon received an expansion - Fight Back, released in 2003.

In 2004, the studio released the futuristic shooter FireStarter as well as Alexander, a strategy game developed with Ubisoft and based on the movie license. In 2005, the studio released the second installment of the Cossacks series, Napoleonic Wars, followed by a standalone expansion titled Battle for Europe. That same year also brought Divided Nation, the second add-on for American Conquest. The studio's push into strategy games culminated in the fantasy-themed Heroes of Annihilated Empires, launched in the fall of 2006.

The first S.T.A.L.K.E.R.

In March 2007, GSC Game World released its greatest work: the expansive FPS S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. The game was first announced in April 2003 (then subtitled Oblivion Lost), and although the developers had to abandon many of its ambitious features, it ultimately achieved artistic and commercial success, gaining cult status. Over time, the title spawned two standalone expansions: Clear Sky, released in September 2008, and Call of Pripyat, released in October 2009.

In August 2010, the studio announced a sequel. Unlike the original, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 was planned for release not only on PC but also on consoles. However, the occurrence of layoffs showed that GSC Game World was struggling. During the development of this project, the studio's staff was cut from 200 employees to just 50.

The studio's closure

News broke in December 2011 that GSC Game World had shut down. Soon after, the studio canceled work on S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. According to reports, Sergei Grigorovich's personal issues, combined with his dissatisfaction with the project's progress, led to the cancellation.

The closure of GSC Game World prompted its veterans to establish new studios such as 4A Games, known for the Metro series, and Vostok Games, developers of Survarium and Fear the Wolves. A particularly interesting case is West-Games, which was founded in 2012. The studio planned a spiritual successor to S.T.A.L.K.E.R. called Areal, but the Kickstarter campaign became controversial when a scam was uncovered and ultimately failed. In December 2014, the studio announced that it would develop a game called S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Apocalypse. Soon after, however, GSC Game World returned...

...stronger than ever - Cossacks 3 and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2.

In December 2014, GSC Game World returned to business and confirmed that it held full ownership of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.. Ukrainian developers revealed they were working on a new title, later identified in spring 2015 as the third Cossacks installment. It premiered in September 2016 and was expanded in December with Days of Brilliance. Despite positive reception, players expected only one thing from the studio…

May 2018 brought the fulfillment of fans' hopes with the official reveal of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. The new production would use Unreal Engine, offering a significant upgrade over the challenging X-Ray Engine that powered the first game. The title was slated for PC and Xbox Series X/S, and although development progressed smoothly - with the developers regularly sharing updates and gameplay footage - fans of the series had to be patient.

The situation worsened on February 24th, 2024, when Russia launched an armed invasion of Ukraine, impacting the game's development. In their documentary War Game, GSC Game World developers shared what it's like to create a video game during wartime.

In March 2024, the S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Legends of the Zone Trilogy compilation, containing all earlier releases, launched on consoles. The project was a collaboration between GSC Game World and the Polish studio Mataboo. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, as it came to be known, suffered from a series of delays over the years. The last delay shifted the release date to November 20th, 2024. The developers successfully met this deadline.

The release and success of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl launched to strong critical reception, achieving Metacritic averages of 73-74/100 depending on the platform. Players were more positive about the game, as shown by its "very positive" reviews on Steam. Even though GSC Game World nailed the artistic side, the game had problems - mainly bad PC optimization, technical bugs, and an A-Life system that didn't work right. Nevertheless, the developers quickly began working on patches.

Alongside its artistic achievements, the second S.T.A.L.K.E.R. also proved commercially successful. Impressively, SteamDB recorded over 121,000 people playing at the same time around launch. Furthermore, two days after its debut, it was announced that the game had already sold one million copies. It's also worth noting that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl has been available on Game Pass since launch, both on Xbox Series X/S and on PC.