The recently released Atomic Heart had to take criticism even before its release. We explain where the accusations against the developers come from
Shortly after the much-discussed release of Hogwarts Legacy Atomic Heart a shooter is released, which also repeatedly causes discussions in connection with the Ukraine war. What the controversy is about in this case and what accusations are being voiced against the development studio Mundfish, we summarise for you here:- Where did Mundfish come from, and why does it matter?
- What is the developer”s position on the Ukraine war?
- Is Atomic Heart Soviet propaganda?
- Is Mundfish sharing data with the Russian government?
- Is Russia making money from Atomic Heart sales?
A Russian development studio
(The official website) of Mundfish states that the studio was founded in Cyprus in 2017. In fact, it is an open secret that the founding members and also the studio are actually from Russia. For example, (CEO Robert Bagratuni) and (Art Director Artem Galeev) previously worked at companies in Moscow. As recently as 2019, a YouTube video also introduced the studio in Moscow, (at minute 3:27) explicitly mentioning the location:
In addition to the Chinese company Tencent, the developers also count Gaijin Entertainment (publisher of (War Thunder) and Gem Capital among their investors. The latter are also Russian companies. Gaijin Entertainment was accused of indirectly financing pro-Russian separatists in the Donbass in 2021. The (publisher had sponsored videos of a YouTube channel) that reported on the People”s Republic of Lugansk, which is supported by Russia and not recognised under international law. The videos in question were eventually taken offline.
A leading Gem Capital employee, Anatoliy Paliy, (is believed to have previously worked for the Gazprom corporation). Gazprom is in turn controlled by the Russian government, which holds a stake of over 50 per cent in the company
In sum, it can be said that developer Mundfish is strongly rooted in its home country Russia, but prefers to leave this fact unmentioned. In addition, there are indications that the investors have connections to the Russian government, but these cannot be definitively proven. At the latest since the Russian attack on Ukraine, however, the studio”s origins alone have aroused scepticism among some players.
What does Mundfish say?
But what do the developers themselves say about the issue? Unsurprisingly, Mundfish is keeping a very low profile, but due to many questions they were forced to publish a statement on Twitter, which, however, remains very vague:
Guys, we have noted the questions surrounding where we, at Mundfish, stand. We want to assure you that Mundfish is a developer and studio with a global team focused on an innovative game and is undeniably a pro-peace organization against violence against people.
– @Mundfish AtomicHeart (@mundfish) January 16, 2023
They are a development studio with a global team
and are irrefutably a pro-peace organisation that opposes violence against people
Furthermore, it is stated that they do not want to comment on politics or religion. The statements can, of course, somehow be understood as a statement against the war in Ukraine, but they remain completely unspecific.
In view of the consequences that criticising the Ukraine war can have for Russian citizens, it remains understandable, of course, that a Russian company does not want to publicly identify itself as an opponent of the war. At the same time, the criticism that followed the statement is understandable; many fans would have liked a clearer statement here.
Is Atomic Heart Soviet propaganda?
But what does Atomic Heart communicate about the game itself? Some people say that the game glorifies the Soviet Union by creating a utopian version of the communist dictatorship. The (reconstruction of the Soviet Union is, after all, also Putin”s goal), moreover, you even play a KGB agent, i.e. a representative of the regime at the time.
Looking more closely at the trailer, visuals and lore, however, the impression of a propaganda game cannot necessarily be shared.
Right at the beginning of the story, the seemingly utopian society is attacked by its own creations, the robots. It is rather a dystopia that depicts possible negative consequences of social developments or new technologies. Also in our test we get the impression that Atomic Heart does not glorify the Soviet Union!
Player data for the Russian government?
A report from the website ain claimed in early 2023 that Mundfish, according to its own privacy policy on the Russian store”s website, was collecting user data and potentially sharing it with Russian authorities such as the FSB intelligence service.
The developers contradicted this claim to Gamesradar saying that the quoted terms were outdated and wrong, and that they would not collect user data in the game or on the website. The shop was also shut down to convince fans of the studio”s integrity
However, Mundfish did not address in the statement whether any data was collected at an earlier stage.
Does Russia deserve Atomic Heart?
Although Mundfish cannot be shown to have any direct links to the Russian state, it is not unlikely that some of the profits from the sale of Atomic Heart also end up in the pockets of the government there.
This applies, for example, to sales in Russia, where the game is distributed via the platform VKPlay. This belongs to the company VKontakte, which in turn is effectively controlled by Gazprom. Gazprom, after all, is more than 50 per cent owned by the Russian state.
It is also possible that Russia benefits from international sales through connections to Mundfish”s investors. Here, however, the situation is ambiguous.
