Atomic Heart’s launch week was surrounded by a lot of controversy, with developer Mundfish facing backlash for its Russian connections in relation to the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war, not to mention the racist caricatures found within the game.
Earlier this week, he posted PC Gamer A story about the game being criticized for having a racist cartoon inside Atomic Heart. The respective cartoons are found in Resident Evil-style game save rooms, where players can take a break from the action and watch old episodes of Nu, Pogodi! It is a Soviet cartoon that started in 1969.
Atomic Heart devs:
“The Mundfish team thanks the PC Gamer contributor for bringing this lack of sensitivity to our attention. We apologize if using the vintage cartoon or music has caused hurt or insult. We will edit the parts in question.”
— Kat Bailey (@The_Katbot) February 24, 2023
The show can be summed up as a Soviet version of Tom and Jerry, starring a wolf who repeatedly tries to get his hands on a rabbit, and the problem is in Episode 12, “The Museum,” which first aired in 1978. The episode features a statue that is a racist depiction of an African tribesman. People criticized Resetera Insert animation without any warning or context.
Mundfish responded to PC Gamer’s report in a statement saying, “The Mundfish team thanks PCGamer for bringing this issue to our attention. We’re sorry if the use of old animations or music hurts or offends. We will edit the parts involved.”
On the other hand, the studio has not yet responded to the Ukrainian government’s allegations, nor has the game been deleted from any digital store, as the Ukrainian government demanded in its recent statement.