Gaming leaves Russia

With the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many gaming companies have announced that they are suspending their operations in Russia. Here’s a quick round-up of all the latest actions in the industry.

• Microsoft suspends new sales in Russia. And they already pulled the Minecraft from Russian AppStore and Google Play Store.

• Epic Games stops commerce with Russia in their games. This is in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. However, they are not blocking access to communication tools, so they remain online. The company believes the free world should keep all lines of dialogue open.

• Nintendo has put eShop in Russia to maintenance mode. This is due to the fact that their payment processing service no longer accepts payments in Rubles.

• Playstation pulls Gran Turismo 7 from sales in Russia. There’s no official confirmation from Sony or Polyphony Digital, but the game’s page in the Playstation store says: “Release date pending confirmation.”

• CD Project Red stops sales of all its games in Russia and Belarus. “To our brothers and sisters fighting for their home country – stay strong!” – ends their message. In addition, GOG – CD Project Red-owned game store teamed up with select developers and publishers to support humanitarian aid for victims in Ukraine.

• Activision Blizzard announced the suspension of new sales of and in games in Russia while this conflict continues. The company and its employees also have raised over $300,000 to organizations providing immediate relief in the region.

• Amazon has stopped working on the Russian localization of the New World. Amazon Games confirms that decision is a direct response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

• Electronic Arts stops selling games and content in Russia and Belarus. Games and content will no longer be available for purchase on Origin or the EA app, including through in-game stores. The company also works to remove its titles from other stores and stop the sale of new in-game content in the region.

As the war in Ukraine continues, many other companies will join their efforts to support Ukraine and condemn the actions of Russia. And we’ll keep you updated on all the latest developments.

You can also help Ukraine fight with Russian occupants via Savelife.

Read more:

• Adobe stops all new sales in Russia
• 10 technological failures of modern Russia, or why it won’t be able to survive on its own