Russian President Vladimir Putin has taken action to reduce dependence on foreign game products and overcome import restrictions. In this context, he wants to develop an independent gaming ecosystem within the country. As part of the plan, he aims to launch a Russian game console.
Russia takes action for domestic game console
According to sources in the Russian government, Putin announced that the country is ready to support its players. In this context, he emphasized the need to create domestic hardware, software and cloud infrastructure. He instructed government officials to study the feasibility of this project and provide a timeline.
Experts believe it could take at least 10 years to build a system from scratch. Kommersant, one of Russia’s largest newspapers, said the country currently lacks modern technologies. This makes it difficult to develop domestic game consoles, game engines and online services.
Russia has long had a great e-sports culture. However, the gaming industry is largely based abroad. With geopolitical tensions with both the US and Europe on the rise, Putin wants to develop domestic gaming expertise and production capabilities.
If successful, this move could provide Russia with billions of dollars in funding. It could pave the way for Russia to rival gaming consoles such as Xbox and PlayStation. But many question whether local demand alone can sustain such an ambitious project in the long term.