I fell in love with PIONER when it was released in early access on December 16, exclusively on Steam. It’s a post-apocalyptic MMORPG with serious potential, which is what I alluded to in my full review of the game. It has an unmistakable charm, despite being rooted in an irradiated, glum, and perilous world, fraught with mutants, bandits, and lethal anomalies.
PIONER was pieced together by GFA Games, a small studio with roots in the likes of STALKER and Metro. Recently, I had the opportunity to interview the studio’s founder and CEO, Aleksandr Nikitin, about the future of his game and why PIONER simply had to be an MMORPG, despite a troubling climate for the genre.
Why Post-Apocalyptic PIONER Had To Be An MMO
Talking to Aleksandr Nikitin, I was curious to learn why PIONER wasn’t a single-player game, given that it’s the studio’s debut title, and soaring out of the gate with a PvPvE MMORPG seemed like one hell of a bold ambition. According to Nikitin, opting for the MMO format was a strategic choice as much as a creative one.
Single-player games can certainly be self-contained as complete works or replayable like a movie you can rewatch multiple times.
However, much like the difference between a movie and a TV series, MMOs have clear advantages: beyond delivering new content and expanding the world, we can develop the story in front of players and allow them to become a part of it.
Nikitin suggested that the choice to develop an MMO was an intentional one from ‘the very beginning’ of the studio’s foundations. From a rocky origin that saw the studio traverse a financial downturn, the COVID-19 pandemic, and an outbreak of war, GFA Games stayed true to the notion of making a stellar MMORPG for an eager audience.
We have both large-scale content already in progress, and active development of new content for future patches and expansions.
If players say they want more raids and we see that this mode is statistically more popular than expected, we need to be ready to postpone something else and increase the priority of what players want, because we are making this game for them.
It is important to preserve our vision that brought players to us in the first place, and finding this balance is truly critical for an MMO.
In my PIONER review, I revealed how well the game works as an MMORPG title, and how it can be compared to something like Fallout 76. It’s grittier and more serious in how it delivers content, but it’s just as entertaining and is loaded with enough original content to keep players engaged.
GFA is Aware of the Struggles
The MMORPG space is a rocky, tumultuous one, and the sentiments of the genre ebb and flow. It was just a few days ago that we saw Ashes of Creation, an early access MMORPG that raised millions of dollars, implode as the entire studio was laid off.
Nikitin is wholeheartedly aware of that but is willing to compete with the downturn to create something special:
Even legendary giants like Lineage 2 and World of Warcraft are facing serious challenges right now. Next-generation giants like TESO, FF, and F76 are also going through a rough period, while AAA projects like New World are simply shutting down.
The MMORPG genre truly struggles to survive and compete with session-based games.
In our view, the only viable path forward is to combine genres, taking their strongest elements and creating a mix.
That’s what GFA Games did with PIONER. It has arena-based elements like traditional multiplayer matches, some battle royale mechanics, the classic MMO vibe, and the post-apocalyptic action-RPG feel you get from games like Metro and Fallout. It’s an open-world construct with multiple maps, countless threats, and stacks of missions to solve, and progression is everywhere.
What’s Next for PIONER
Nikitin was generous enough to give me a look behind the veil of what comes next for PIONER.
There are plenty of aspirations to go above and beyond at GFA Games, which is great news for anyone neck-deep in PIONER, but also for anyone curious about the game and wanting to experience it on other platforms.
We have ambitious plans to lay the foundation for a console release, further develop the game’s story, and create new modules.
We plan to focus on developing and optimizing the in-game economy.
We also plan to delight players with new content that was not ready for inclusion in the intitial early access version but already has strong groundwork. This includes new locations such as Big Earth and Shadowlands, new world bosses, and a number of features that are only now beginning development based on player requests.
Throughout the interview, it’s clear how much Nikitin and his team value community feedback. That’s the gist that I got from the game when I was testing it ahead of the early access launch and experiencing it after it dropped. It’s the only way to develop a game that only survives if people are actively playing it.
In my opinion, PIONER is an underrated gem of the MMORPG space that deserves way more attention.
Have you played PIONER? Let me know if you’re enjoying it on the Insider Gaming Discord server.
For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out my interview with an anti-cheat CEO trying to make a difference
Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
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