Hunter Returns to Metro 2039, This Time as a Villain

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4A Games, a Ukrainian studio, has announced the details of Metro 2039, the next installment in the Metro series based on the novels by Russian author Dmitry Glukhovsky.

The game’s unveiling, created with Xbox, confirms the developer’s statements that Metro 2039 will be their most ambitious title yet, and the main character perfectly embodies this increased complexity.

Artyom was the main character for the first three games, but now Hunter takes the lead. He’ll be exploring the dark, underground tunnels of Moscow – lit only by candlelight.

If It’s Hostile, You Kill It

Hunter is a recurring and important character throughout the Metro series, even though he’s central to the story of Metro 2039. He first appears in Metro 2033, initiating Artyom’s quest to fight the Dark Ones with a visit to his station. Later, in Metro Exodus, though initially presumed missing, Hunter’s dog tag unexpectedly saves Artyom’s life.

I’ve heard stories about Hunter, and man, he was a legend. He really threw himself into protecting the Metro and everyone in it, taking down anything he saw as a danger. But after what happened with the Dark Ones, he changed. He came back… different. Broken, they said. It led to some really bad stuff – he ended up wiping out entire stations full of infected people. It was a total tragedy, honestly.

After Miller left Moscow five years prior, a power gap emerged, which Hunter exploited to bring the Metro under his radical control.

The Novoreich, a dangerous faction, is determined to retake the surface world and controls the people living in the Moscow Metro through intimidation and manipulation. This is the harsh reality the player, known as the Stranger, encounters when they arrive in the ruined city.

‘Darker Than Anything You’ve Seen Before’

Using propaganda and fear to control people in the Metro isn’t recent, but until now, no single group had completely ruled the tunnels.

The new game’s world will depict the devastating consequences of unchecked power in the hands of those who are flawed and unstable.

Following his harrowing encounter with the Dark Ones, Hunter was deeply traumatized and became erratic, ultimately resulting in the destruction of several infected space stations.

Dmitry Glukhovsky, the author of the Metro series, says the story of Metro 2039 will be his darkest yet, and the most mature he’s created with 4A Games. That’s a bold statement considering how serious the previous games were, but it’s based on very real events that inspired this new direction.

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I was really shocked to learn that Dmitry Glukhovsky had to leave Russia back in 2022, right after the invasion of Ukraine. It’s awful, but because he’s spoken out against the government, he’s now considered a wanted person back home. It’s just a really sad situation.

He’s wanted to tell the Metro 2039 story for years, but felt he needed to wait until the world mirrored the darkness within it. Now that he believes the world is clearly in a bad state, he feels the story isn’t science fiction anymore – it’s simply relevant to everyone’s lives.

Next time you’re feeling down about the world, remember there’s a silver lining: without its problems, we wouldn’t have the compelling story of Metro 2039. A good outlook is a great asset when venturing into the Metro, right after having a fully loaded shotgun!

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2026-04-16 20:09