History Literature / Metro2033

* DeathWorld: The surface. In this frozen hellscape, if the mutants don't kill you, then the radioactive air will.
* DespairEventHorizon:In Metro 2033, [[spoiler: Anton, after his son Oleg dies]]

* RagnarokProofing: Massively averted. Survivors live in squalid conditions and the metro is a maze of crumpled concrete and rusty pipes. Even most firearms are improvised and only a few can afford a still operating prewar automatic weapon. This is only 20 years AfterTheEnd.

* CrapsackWorld: Oh boy howdy, you'd better believe it. One for the ages, and on multiple levels. Consider:
** Even if ''all'' the supernatural and more "conventional" SF elements (mutants, psionics) were taken out, you'd still have mass extinction, an uninhabitable surface and a post-apocalyptic society of only a few thousand people driven underground...the [[{{HumansAreTheRealMonsters}} members of which apparently have learned nothing from the great devastation and go right back to killing, raping and enslaving each other over ideology, religion and profit.]] Totalitarian hellholes, a power block preaching unrestricted cut-throat post-apocalyptic capitalism, outlaws prowling the tunnels and ruling some outlying stations, crazed cults lurking in forgotten service areas...and only a few stations being relatively calm, somewhat egalitarian places, which still have rather harsh laws and atmosphere. By itself, that is a pretty grim picture.
** Now add to that the "classic" SF/survival horror stuff such as [[{{NuclearNasty}} mutants]] of all sizes which turn many of the tunnels into [[{{DarknessEqualsDeath}} potential deathtraps]], making travel by armed caravan necessary...and even then, the mortality rate is rather high (besides, getting chewed up by some monstrosity is a much more powerful primal fear than catching an outlaw's bullet). There's a reason, beyond outlaws and enemy "nations" raids', that tunnel entrances are fortified and constantly manned. And that's not the only front to worry about, if you're especially unlucky: your station's gate/airlock to the surface might have been damaged and breached at some point, creating an opening through which horrors from the surface can enter your station. On the upper platform level. Which is usually where the living quarters are...
** Now add to ''that'' the actual overarching plot from the book, the threat by the Dark Ones. Yes, at the very end of the novel they [[spoiler: actually turn out to be benevolent and the entire thing has been a huge misunderstanding, or [[{{StarfishLanguage}} incapability]] [[{{MindRape}} of communication]] on their part. They wish humanity NO harm.]] But to the average Metro denizen during the events of the book, they ''do'' appear as an incomprehensible, utterly terrifying, inhuman force, much worse than the "common" mutants, because in contrast to those the Dark Ones are clearly sentient, evoke supernatural dread and, on close contact, severe insanity in humans, and seem to slowly, and purposefully, advance along one Metro line, threatening to engulf Artyom's station. The utter terror the VDNKH inhabitants feel is quite understandable.
** And as if all that were not enough, add to '''that''' all the truly weird supernatural stuff going on, such as the mysterious tunnel noises; the "soul cacophony" from the pipes; unexplained temporal and spatial anomalies; sudden attacks of extreme anxiety, or vertigo, or plain insanity, while travelling through some of the tunnels, with some humans suffering these and others, who travel in ''the same group'', being unaffected; people simply disappearing without a single trace, leaving neither blood or body (parts) nor equipment, clothing, ''nothing at all'' behind, with these disappearances occuring in tunnels which have been shown to be clean, well-lit and perfectly safe (by Metro standards, at least) only a few days prior; the weird, but horrifying death-sentence effect of the Kremlin's stars up on the surface, and its ambiguous nature (we never learn for certain whether it is tied to [[spoiler: the BlobMonster in the Kremlin basement]] or is some other unrelated, but possibly symbiotic, force); and quite a few instances of similar fun stuff. Totalling all of that up, and considering the fact that many denizens of the Metro are armed at all times, [[{{AteHisGun}} eating one's gun]] is bound to seem an easier, less painful and less psychically stressful solution for quite a few of the inhabitants than facing the Metro in all its "glory" every single day.

* HopeSpot: Horrifying example in the novel. A huge portion of the final chapter revolves around Artyom finding hope, understanding and reasons to fight to for the world at large. [[spoiler:The missiles launched from a nearby base then destroy the Dark Ones, causing Artyom to lose hope, remove his gas mask and sink into complete despair]].

* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: Oh yes. The Metro is sprinkled with all sorts of weird phenomena, but the narration usually presents different explanations for each of them, and whether the cause is supernatural or not is often left ambiguous. [[spoiler:Is the [[BlobMonster state]] of the Kremlin the result of a biological weapon or ''trapped demons''? Is the huge object Artyom sees in a parallel tunnel the Great Worm or a giant drilling vehicle? Is the insanity-inducing noise in the tunnels caused by spirits in the pipes or harmonic oscillations?]]

* UsefulNotes/MoscowMetro

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Artyom should've better stayed at [=VDNKh=].

* NuclearNasty: the surface world is made of this. Looks like in this verse, hard radiation actually does produce monsters, mutants and dinosaurs, 1950s style. And bioweapons produce {{Blob Monster}}s.
* OnlyElectricSheepAreCheap: The people of Metro live on a monotonous diet of mushrooms and pork (even 'shroom tea!). Any kind of normal crops are (logically) extinct and most wildlife apparently [[IncrediblyLamePun went out with a blast]] too... Even the measly mushrooms which feed both humans and their livestock have to be grown on a substrate of [[spoiler:[[{{Squick}} fresh feces]],]] all because of a lack of proper soil. [[EverythingSoundsSexierInFrench Bon appetite.]] And for that matter, quality bullets are rare too - no wonder they've become the currency.
** One of the crazy {{Cult}}s inhabiting the underground decided to skip the whole "grow mushrooms and raise pigs" part, [[IAmAHumanitarian when it comes to hunger]]. A bleak ScavengerWorld indeed...
* PracticalCurrency: Bullets are used as currency. Practical, but also means that combat [[AbnormalAmmo involves shooting money]].
** It's also stated that [[KarmaMeter every bullet spent on goodies is a bullet not used to kill someone.]]

* RagnarokProofing: Massively averted. Survivors live in squalid conditions and the metro is a maze of crumpled concrete and rusty pipes. Even most firearms are improvised and only few can afford a still operating prewar automatic weapon. This is only 20 years AfterTheEnd.

* ScavengerWorld: Self-explanatory.

** Also WhatMeasureIsANonHuman and UncannyValley.

The novel was followed by two sequels, ''Literature/Metro2034'' and ''Metro 2035''.

* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: Mutants are almost entirely absent in ''Metro 2035'', even above ground where you'd think they'd be everywhere. Only time that mutants make an appearence is late in the book when Artyom encounters a pack of non-hostile mutated feral dogs.

The novel was followed by two sequels, ''Metro 2034'' and ''Metro 2035''.

* AscendedExtra: Hunter, in Metro 2034.

* DespairEventHorizon: In Metro 2034 [[spoiler: Melnik reveals Artyom to have gone insane for a short period of time after the events of 2033. Apparently, he got better and even married in the span of one year, but all we have in Melnik's word on it - and he doesn't even say Artyom's name. Of course, we all remember how communication in the metro is fallible… ]]
** In Metro 2033, [[spoiler: Anton, after his son Oleg dies]]

* KillItWithFire: Whatever made the webs in 2034 dies a fiery death when Homer sets them alight to clear the path.
** More prominently in that book, this is what [[spoiler: Hunter plans to do to the infected station. He would have done it too, if the local soldiers [[KillItWithWater hadn't flooded the station]] first.]]

** The Metro 2034 book states that the garrison unit of the Sevastopolskaya station regularly receives small batches of cucumbers, potatoes and tomatoes for soldiers, albeit sickly looking and wilted (As well as copious amounts of ammunition, weapons and medical supplies). [[spoiler:Justified since this exact station provides a significant amount of electricity for those who can pay for it and is constantly under the siege of mutants from the surface. None of the access tunnels can be blocked due to the need of frequent maintenance of hydroelectric generators near underground rivers. An attempt to clean out adjacent station and close the airlocks failed due to something that killed a group of grizzled professionals and left no trace of their bodies or equipment. The radio operator only heard one of the soldiers chanting a simple kiddie prayer before all communication was lost.]]

* PutOnABus: [[spoiler: Artyom in Metro 2034. Melnik mentions him only in passing. The Artyom we see in that book is a different one.]]

* MirrorUniverse: the novel ''Noon Void''. In this AU Moscow is alive and well... but the metro became a DeathWorld.

* PromotedFanboy: Everybody can potentially become one: Dmitry Glukhovsky has created the ''Metro 2033 Universe'' project, so anybody can submit their novel set in the Metro (not limited to Moscow anymore - the most popular ones not written by Dmitry himself are set in Petersburg) and if Dmitry accepts it, it is then released in Russia and becomes canon. However, due to the series' unexceptional popularity, few works become known outside Russia.

* LighterAndSofter: several sequel novels that add details about what's going on beyond big cities. It's still a postapocalypse, there are still no civilization except in isolated spots, but hell, its ''the surface''! You can see the sun, the sky, rain, snow! You can breathe the air and walk without being attacked by some monster, mutant or dinosaur! You don't get that depressing feeling that humanity is obsolete anymore! And one novel even gives us a [[HiddenElfVillage peaceful village]] of Tolkien fans/Elf-wannabes in the middle of pristine, uncontaminated wilderness.
** When the protagonist of said novel first encounters these "Elves", he wonders if they are savages who would want to skin people alive. No, they are not. It's a perfectly nice WackyWaysideTribe living a happy pastoral life.

''Metro 2033'' is a novel written by Dmitry A. Glukhovsky. It first appeared as a WebSerialNovel in 2002, with the first print edition released in 2005. It went on to become a best seller in Russia, and helped establish a successful franchise. The story follows the 20-year-old Artyom, as a promise to a mysterious stranger forces him to leave the relative safety of his home station, ("ВДНХ"), and find his ways through the dangerous Metro.

The book is set [[BeneathTheEarth in the Moscow]] [[UsefulNotes/MoscowMetro Metro system]] [[AfterTheEnd twenty years after a devastating nuclear war]]Various factions - including [[ANaziByAnyOtherName The Fourth Reich]], [[DirtyCommunists The Red Line]], and [[ProudMerchantRace The Gemeinschaft]] [[UsefulNotes/HanseaticLeague der Ringstationen]] - inhabit the stations. That is, the stations that have not yet succumbed to [[ThePlague diseases]], tent fires, cave-ins or mysterious mass deaths. The tunnels between the stations are populated by rats, mutants and unexplainable but very lethal phenomena. Oh, and don't even think about [[DeathWorld going up to the surface]].

** One of the expanded universe novels, ''Британия''[[note]]Britannia[[/note]], features Scottish survivors of the Great War living in the [[http://arranmoffat.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/tubeORIGINAL.jpeg Glasgow subway]]. The Glasgow subway is not sunk deep enough[[note]]Moscow Metro average depth: ~33-55 metres - Glasgow subway average depth: 8.8 metres[[/note]] to defend against even conventional strikes [[note]]damage from fascist bombing, as well as the remains of the destroyed Merkland Street station, can still be seen in the tunnels south of Partick Station)[[/note]], it isn't nearly large enough to support any population in the way the Moscow Metro[[note]]UsefulNotes/MoscowMetro length: at least 192 miles - Glasgow subway length: 6.5 miles[[/note]] can. Whilst this error is excusable for the sake of narrative, it is still somewhat perplexing, as a bit of research shows that the ground beneath Glasgow is lousy with abandoned mineshafts, which could well be deep enough to shelter in the event of nuclear war.

''Metro 2033'' is a novel written by Dmitry A. Glukhovsky, and set [[BeneathTheEarth in the Moscow]] [[UsefulNotes/MoscowMetro Metro system]] [[AfterTheEnd twenty years after a devastating nuclear war]]. First appeared as a WebSerialNovel in 2002. The first print edition came in 2005. It went on to become a best seller in Russia. The story follows the 20-year-old Artyom, as a promise to a mysterious stranger forces him to leave the relative safety of his home station, ("ВДНХ"), and find his ways through the dangerous Metro.

Various factions - including [[ANaziByAnyOtherName The Fourth Reich]], [[DirtyCommunists The Red Line]], and [[ProudMerchantRace The Gemeinschaft]] [[UsefulNotes/HanseaticLeague der Ringstationen]] - inhabit the stations. That is, the stations that have not yet succumbed to [[ThePlague diseases]], tent fires, cave-ins or mysterious mass deaths. The tunnels between the stations are populated by rats, mutants and unexplainable but very lethal phenomena. Oh, and don't even think about [[DeathWorld going up to the surface]].

* CrapsackWorld

* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: Mutants are entirely absent in ''Metro 2035'', even above ground where they are supposed to be everywhere. No explanation is ever given to this and the only mutants that are even mentioned are The Dark Ones. This is made even stranger by the fact that the world otherwise still behaves as if they existed. Station entrances need to guarded heavily, but it's never explained why. People keep dying in the surface by getting mutilated and having their guts ripped out and it's never explained how.

** When asked of a Trotskyist Commissar, it results in him thinking carefully about his answer. When asked of a Christian minister, people [[WhatTheHellHero give Artyom horrified looks.]]

The novel was followed by two sequels, Metro 2034 and Metro 2035.

In 2010, the Ukrainian game developer 4A Games created a loose VideoGame adaptation of the novel, known eponymously as ''{{VideoGame/Metro 2033}}''. Much like the original novel, the game has also received a sequel.

* IgnoredEpiphamy: ''The entire human race'' had this after the war. Pretty much everyone mourns the near-complete destruction of the world. Does it stop them from murdering each other for its remains? Of course not.

* YouBastard: [[spoiler:You wanted them to defeat the horrifying inhuman monsters and live in peace? Well, turns out those monsters were only antagonistic for... [[AppealToNature reasons]], and you're a horrible person for wanting the ''VDNKh'' residents to not die.]]

* EldritchLocation: The Kremlin, [[MaybeMagicMaybeMundane maybe]]. The Kremlin remains perfectly intact despite the bombs having demolished nearly all of Russia, and there is a rule among stalkers to never look at its stars. Artyom reads a book describing the stars of the Kremlin being used to bind demons. Later, he foregoes the rules and looks at its stars, passing out shortly afterward.

* HumansAreBastards: Only gets worse. By the end of the book, a mother is willing to sell her son for 20 bullets and, while Artyom is gagging at the thought, Ulman just shrugs and says she's no different from the others trying to support themselves.

* TheHunter: Hunter and the Order he belongs to. ''Any danger should be eliminated by any means necessary''.

* TheUndead: Well, maybe. Some characters claim parts of the subway is haunted, others explain it as the result of hallucinogenic gases.

Various factions - including [[ANaziByAnyOtherName The Fourth Reich]], [[DirtyCommunists The Red Line]], and [[ProudMerchantRace The Gemeinschaft]] [[HanseaticLeague der Ringstationen]] - inhabit the stations. That is, the stations that have not yet succumbed to [[ThePlague diseases]], tent fires, cave-ins or mysterious mass deaths. The tunnels between the stations are populated by rats, mutants and unexplainable but very lethal phenomena. Oh, and don't even think about [[DeathWorld going up to the surface]].

* ComeWithMeIfYouWantToLive: [[spoiler:Although granted, it's more "You're Coming With Us Whether You Like It Or Not Since You're Unconcious From Almost Being Hanged".]]
* [[ContemplateOurNavels Contemplating Our Navels]]: The preferred past time of all Metro inhabitants, including stalkers, merchants, and cannibalistic cultists!

* MyHovercraftIsFullOfEels: Much of the Russian cultural specific dialogue, phrases, and nuances were translated rather literally into English. This results in funny occasions when characters will ask if they have noodles on their ears[[note]]The correct English equivalent would be if "you're pulling their leg"[[/note]].