Metro Exodus Animator Passes Away Fighting Against Russians In Ukraine

Our respects to the dead and condolences to the family of the fallen. War is a devastating construct that leaves only death and chaos in its wake, no matter the reason for the vicious conflict. As it turns out, another life has just been taken in Ukraine in the midst of the ongoing bloodshed. 

Standing tall on the receiving end of the bullet, trying to protect his home, his country from the invading swath of Russian forces, an animator for the Metro game series—Andrii “Nizrok” Korzinki—has passed away during a “combat mission in the struggle for independence.” 

The report comes from Leonid Stepanov—the Gameplay Designer at Remedy Entertainment. On a side note, the studio is famous for developing high-quality titles like Alan Wake and Control. Leonid seems to be an acquaintance of the deceased as he takes to Twitter to break the news and share a few words about Korzinki.

The Rundown:

• Metro game animator called Andrii “Nizrok” Korzinki has been killed by the Russian invaders in Ukraine. 
• Korzinki was a talented animator known for his work on the Metro game series, such as Metro Exodus and Metro Redux. 

Leonid Stepanov tweeted in relatively recent times, thereby making the saddening announcement and remembering Korzinki for the brave man he was. The Remedy Entertainment developer has linked to a Vimeo page of some of Andrii Korzinki’s prominent animation highlights, should you choose to check them out.

Andrii "Nizrok" Korzinkin (@korzinkin_3d) died while performing a combat mission in the struggle for independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. A talented animator, incredible person and real hero. Rest in peace, friend. We all miss you. https://t.co/2OC83CMdfU

— Leonid Stepanov (@Leonid_Games) October 2, 2022

Andrii had a fond interest in designing the 3D models of various creatures and monsters in the Metro franchise but was also held responsible for developing and working on the skin, rig, keyframe, and mocap within the AAA game projects he was in. Here’s a “Batwing” from Metro Exodus that Andrii was known for creating. 

It’s been said that the gifted 4A Games’ — the developer of the Metro franchise — animator drew inspiration from Cory Balrog, the man responsible for spearheading God of War for the PlayStation 4 and now PC. When Cory started his journey in the gaming industry, he was also an animator, quite similar to Andrii Korzinki. 

In light of just that, Andrii began to outreach and venture toward other obtainable skills as well, including the likes of coding and design—both of which are counted essential for game development. He ambitioned to craft the project of a lifetime one day, but unluckily, that is not going to be a possibility for the skillful animator. 

His friends and acquaintances have also taken to the famous social media platform to share a few words about how he was and what influence Korzinki’s presence made in the studio. Apparently, the country hero is going to belong to the history books as a “wonderful person and an extraordinary professional.” 

With more and more lives being taken every single day, it appears that there’s no end to the Ukraine vs Russia debate. It’s outright heartbreaking to visualize this many people getting slaughtered every day just for protecting the integrity of their homeland. Andrii Korzinki will be missed. Glory to the heroes!