After several games companies stopped operating in the country, Russian president Vladimir Putin has reportedly instructed his government to investigate the potential of developing its own game consoles.
It’s not just Xbox and PlayStation that are rumored to be working on new console hardware at the moment, including portable devices, as a new report suggests that Vladimir Putin wants to create multiple systems for the Russian market.
In terms of video games, Russia is most synonymous with worldwide smash Tetris, which was created by Russian game designer Alexey Pajitnov back in 1985.
Today though, the country’s gaming talent isn’t exactly a major force on the international stage, with only a few notable exceptions, such as Pathlogic developer Ice-Pick Lodge and IL-2 Sturmovik publisher 1C Company.
While Putin is unlikely to be much of an expert on the country’s gaming scene, he is reportedly looking into the idea of developing Russian gaming consoles.
According to local media reports, Putin issued an order following a meeting last week, where he instructed the government to ‘weigh requirements for organising production of both stationary and portable game consoles in Russia’.
Putin is also said to have ordered the development of an operating system and a cloud system for delivering games to users, according to Russian outlet Kommersant. A deadline for the order is reportedly set for June 15, 2024.
Don’t expect Russian spins on Microsoft and Sony’s consoles, however, as the newspaper states that market participants say ‘there is no competence to produce their own PlayStation and Xbox consoles, and creating such a system from scratch will take up to 10 years’.
It’s claimed Putin has entrusted this task with Russian technology company VK, which specialises in social media and email services.
According to the outlet, a more realistic option for Russia is to source gaming hardware from China to create a portable console similar to Valve’s Steam Deck, although even that seems an ambitious goal given the lack of expertise in Russia for such things.
The plan comes after gaming companies like Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo all ceased operations in Russia in 2022, following the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
This isn’t the first time Putin has shown interest in gaming. Last year, the Russian president ordered the creation of an esports tournament with various games from Russia and its allied nations, including World Of Tanks and League Of Legends.
