The Ukrainian government has said it will ask Sony, Microsoft and Valve to pull Atomic Heart from sale on their digital stores in the country.
The game, which features Soviet and Russian military themes, was released forPC,PlayStationandXboxconsoles on Tuesday, just days before the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
It has become the subject of controversy over its ties to Russia, including claims that the Russian government stands to benefit financially from its release due its majority ownership of investors in the game.
In a statement initially issued to Ukrainian websiteDev.au(and later in English toPCGamesN), Ukraine’s deputy minister of digital transformation, Alex Bornyakov, urged platform holders to limit distribution of the game in other countries too.
“Regarding the situation with the release of the game Atomic Heart, which has Russian roots and romanticises communist ideology and the Soviet Union, The Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine will send an official letter toSony,Microsoft, andValverequesting a ban on selling digital versions of this game in Ukraine,” he said.
“We also urge limiting the distribution of this game in other countries due to its toxicity,potential data collectionof users, and the potential use of money raised from game purchases to conduct a war against Ukraine.
“According to media reports, the game’s development wasfunded by Russian enterprises,” the statement added. “Therefore, we call for all users worldwide to avoid this game.
“We also want to emphasise that the game developers have not publicly condemned the Putin regime and the bloody war that Russia has unleashed against Ukraine.”
In addition to its retail release, Atomic Heart wasmade available via Xbox Game Passfor console and PC on Tuesday.
