S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Dead, Studio Starts anew with MMO Project ‘Survarium’

In case you weren’t fully aware, Stalker 2 is pretty much dead as a doornail. The project was left behind by developer GSC Games who announced the sequel back in 2010. The company was unfortunately shut down in December 2011 as was their work on the upcoming title.

The company isn’t sitting idly with their thumbs a twiddle, no; they’re hard at work on their next project as a new team called Vostok. Their project? A free-to-play MMO entitled Survarium.

On their new website, Vostok explains why Stalker 2 went dark:

“Our company appeared in March 2012 in Kiev. Ten years earlier, when at GSC Game World we started developing the renowned S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game series and continued working on it until December 2011 when the studio was unexpectedly shut down and the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 project – frozen.

We did not reach agreement with the rights owner regarding the use of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. brand, that’s why we made the decision to move forward as an independent studio with a new project. That day became our starting point for Vostok Games.”

On the homepage, Vostok posted details about their upcoming MMO project and its future-based setting:

“Impassable woods advance onto cities from every side, maddened animals and birds attack industrial complexes, military structures, warehouses and power plants. Strange plants and mushrooms grow through concrete and steel,” reads the announcement blurb.

“Scientists all over the world haplessly try to cope with the anomaly sprawling across the Earth with terrifying speed. Countries collapse, anarchy spreads throughout the world. Now force dictates who to survive.”

Vostok was founded by key GSC staff, and will be working to get Survarium out the door and onto the PC by the end of 2013.

Should I ask who was really waiting for Stalker 2, or should I just go ahead and queue the sad violin sound myself?

[via EuroGamer]