A fresh 22-minute gameplay clip of a cancelled version of Metro 4—the one 4A Games internally referred to as Metro 2039—has surfaced online. The footage is crude. Very crude. But even through the unfinished graphics and placeholder models, the atmospheric horror that made us fall in love with the series shines through. The mechanics—underground shootouts, gas masks, flashlight recharging—are already recognizable. The game feels like a fully-fledged Metro game, albeit frozen mid-development.
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What did the leaked build show?
In short: this isn’t an alpha version, but rather a “proof of concept” with a bunch of placeholders. Nevertheless, it’s the one that makes it clear what 4A Games was aiming for from the start. Why the studio canceled development of this particular build remains a mystery. There was no official explanation. Apparently, the project was rebooted or radically rethought.
Two other Metro 2039 videos were previously leaked online, showing noticeably improved graphics. Those videos likely refer not to the canceled 2022 build, but to the current, still-active version. Incidentally, there’s talk that the official announcement of the new Metro game could happen as early as this month. And not just anywhere, but during Sony’s hypothetical State of Play—a showcase for third-party publishers that they hold regularly.
When can we expect an official announcement?
For now, it’s just rumors. 4A Games is keeping quiet. And it’s important to maintain a healthy dose of skepticism: in the age of generative AI, any leak could be fake. The video looks credible, but there’s no 100% guarantee. So, we’re keeping our fingers crossed, but not fanatically.
