Russian hackers have been attacking the Ukrainian Stalker 2 dev "for almost a year and a half" and now they've leaked a test build

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 screenshot
(Image credit: GSC Game World)

澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl developer GSC Game World says it's suffered attacks🔴 from Russian hackers for "almost a year and a half," and those attacks have now led to the leak of a test build of the hotly anticipated survival game.

"Our team has identified a vulnerability exploited by a group of Russian hackers attacking the company for almost a year and a half," the Ukrainian studio said in a . "Unfortunately, they were able to access and compris🥂e some of our leaked information intended for internal testing of various game aspects."&nꦡbsp;

The studio goes on to ask fans "not to look at or share any leaked materials from the game," which surely nobody wil🐠l do here on the internet. GSC Game World is quick to note that the leaked materials "are not release-ready" and don't reflect the game's goals, but they could still "ruin your experience of exploring the Zone by yourౠself." 

"Despite the issue, we will continue to ensure that the game will satisfy your expectations, as we hope," the sta⛄tement concludes.&nb꧅sp;

This incident comes just a few months after GSC Game World dismissed a blackmail th𒁏reat from pro-Russian hackers who hi𝔍jacked one dev's account "ꩵfor a collective work-with-images application." 

"They are threatening to use the obtained data for blackmail and intimidation," the studio said in March. "This is not the first attempt 🌟to hack and lꦉeak our data, including personal information. We have been enduring constant cyberattacks for more than a year now. We have faced blackmail, acts of aggression, hacks, attempts to hurt players and fans, and efforts to damage the development process or the reputation of our company." 

It's unclear if these two attacks are the work of the same group of hackers. Responsibility for the March hack w🌊as claimed on a Russian social network. 

GSC Game World 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:previously announced a price increase for Stalker 2's Ultimate Edition amidst Rus♏sia's ongoing invasion of the Ukraine, claiming it will help keep the quality of the included collectibles high despite the development and production challenges of wartime. 

澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:The name of the game🃏 was even chanꦺged to reflect the Ukrainian spelling of Chornobyl, rather than𒀰 the Russian 'Chernobyl' spel༺ling. 

Stalker 2 recently resurfaced with new footage for the first time in months, but it was a simple Ukrainian energy drink product placement. 

Austin Wood
Senior writer

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all w🉐hile playing as many roguelikes as possible.