Liquidators

Released Sep 2020

Chernobyl, USSR, 1986. Three nuclear plant workers go on a daring mission to prevent a radioactive fallout that would affect half of Europe. Every moment is permanent, and all is at stake.

95% positive · 1,231 reviews

Done

All announced content has been released

Medium confidence

Done

All announced content has been released

Medium confidence

Where to get it

Free on Steam

Steam Free

Evaluation

Liquidators is a free-to-play, first-person atmospheric horror experience set during the Chernobyl disaster, developed and released on September 30, 2020 by a small volunteer team. The game received two post-launch patches: a feature update on December 1, 2020 adding quality-of-life improvements and bug fixes, and a small bug fix update on March 8, 2021. That March 2021 patch is the last recorded communication from the developer. The December 2020 update mentioned a few minor items still to come (controller support, small design tweaks, an end-screen timer), but no subsequent update was ever released to deliver these, and no further developer posts have appeared since March 8, 2021. The developer described Liquidators from the start as a student project created by volunteers with no monetization, and the store page characterizes it as a self-contained experience. There are no announced expansions, no unreleased DLC, no roadmap, and no seasonal or ongoing content structure. Given the nature of the project — a volunteer-made, free educational experience — and the absence of any developer activity since March 8, 2021, the game is best understood as a finished, complete product. The minor outstanding items mentioned in the December 2020 patch notes were never delivered, but no formal commitment was made and the developer has not communicated any ongoing development intent in over five years.

Evidence

Small bug fix update — the last recorded developer communication. No further posts or updates have appeared since this date.

news post · Mar 8, 2021 source development ending

medium

Game launched as a free, self-contained experience created by a volunteer student team with no monetization plans.

news post · Sep 30, 2020 source ambiguous

medium

Media

Details

Developer

Gray Unit

Publisher

Gray Unit

Achievements

—

Platform

Windows

Controller

—

Steam Deck

Not rated

Players

Single-player

Stylized Surreal Atmospheric Horror First-Person Historical 1980s Perma Death Nonlinear Realistic Exploration Cold War Multiple Endings Adventure 3D

About this game

EPILEPSY WARNING: Do not play if you are sensitive to flashing lights.

Based on true events, this first-person, atmospheric horror experience will have you traverse the radioactive bowels of the Chernobyl blast site, carefully orienting your every step based on the readings of your Geiger counter. Each liquidator has their own set of skills to provide a variety of approaches for each hazardous challenge. Whether they all make it out, or succeed at all, is in your hands.

This project is dedicated to all the liquidators, first responders, and support units that responded to the Chernobyl disaster. Through interactivity, people can experience the simulated danger and horrors of their missions firsthand. It is our goal to raise awareness/support for the people that contained the fallout.

Originally, we did this by promoting donations for Chernobyl Children International and similar organizations in lieu of paying for the game. However, as the devastating war in Ukraine has unfolded (including the terrifying standoff at Chernobyl), we are now asking that players donate to the UNICEF fund for affected Ukrainian children.

UNICEF Ukrainian Children's Fund: Since Steam no longer allows links on storefronts, we ask people to search for "Unicef Ukraine" on their browsers and donate on the official Unicef website for Ukrainian war victims.

(We are not affiliated with UNICEF, Chernobyl Children International, or any other organization. We chose to showcase UNICEF and Chernobyl Children International because of their reputation. This game was an independently developed student project by a small team of volunteers from various backgrounds.)

Last evaluated Jun 24, 2026