Zarnitsa 2.0: A New Military-Patriotic Game for Russian Schoolchildren
How the New Version of Zarnitsa is Conducted in Russian Schools
In February 2025, Russia launched the second season of the military-patriotic game «Zarnitsa 2.0» for schoolchildren. It is organized by the new Pioneer movement «Dvizhenie pervykh» (“Movement of the First Ones”), «Yunarmiya» («Army of the Youth») and the «Voin» (“Warrior”) network of youth patriotic centers. «Verstka» found out that students are being forced to register for the competition in large numbers, and in some cases, even to participate. In addition, the editorial team obtained a training manual for the game, which includes instructions on working as a “war correspondent” and escaping captivity.
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What is «Zarnitsa 2.0»
From February 2 to March 16, Russian schools are hosting the qualifying stage of the military-patriotic game «Zarnitsa 2.0.» The participants — teams of schoolchildren and college students aged 7 to 21 — are trained in basic military skills and modern warfare technologies, such as drone operating. Each student selects one of seven roles: squad commander, war correspondent, engineer-sapper, medic, UAV operator, political instructor, or stormtrooper. A mentor forms a team and registers it on the official website. The competition progresses through several levels: school, municipal, regional, district, and national. The game also involves children from the occupied regions of Ukraine.
The nationwide «Zarnitsa 2.0» has been held since 2024. That year, more than 600 students aged 11 to 17 participated in the final stage of the game. Their squads performed tactical missions such as capturing and holding positions, storming fortified areas, reconnaissance, and artillery strikes. Around 400 veterans of the so-called Special Military Operation (SVO) served as mentors for the children, and the environment was designed to resemble real combat conditions, including trenches, bunkers, and military equipment. The final took place in Volgograd Oblast and was broadcasted live, hosted by “war correspondent” Maryana Naumova. The winners were announced at Mamayev Kurgan, near the «Motherland Calls» monument in the Volgograd region of Russia.
When did the first «Zarnitsa» appear and what did it involve?
In 1967, «Pionerskaya Gazeta» (The Pioneers’ Newspaper) published an order from Marshal of Artillery and Hero of the USSR Vasily Kazakov. As the commander of the All-Union Military-Sports Game «Zarnitsa,» he called for the formation of pioneer squads and battalions from 6th to 8th-grade students to participate in the competition. The game was designed to teach schoolchildren military skills and instill patriotism.
Over the years, «Zarnitsa» had developed clear rules. In the school stage, students from 3rd to 8th grade formed squads of boys and girls, which together made up a school battalion. In the final stage, teams from 5th to 8th grade competed. According to a 1967 issue of «Pionerskaya Pravda,» each squad in the All-Union finals consisted of 31 children. The teams were supervised by an adult — either a teacher or a military officer from a nearby unit. In addition to methodological recommendations, special assignments for the game were published in «Pionerskaya Gazeta.» Each squad had roles such as commanders, sappers, signalers, cooks, or editors of the combat leaflet. Throughout the year, students prepared for physical competitions and quizzes to earn points, which were counted at the end of the year.
The winning school team advanced to the district- or city-level tournament. There, students were supervised by an officer, and competitions took place at a military base or with military participation. Events included shooting, disassembling and assembling a firearm for speed, setting up a tent, making a fire, chemical protection drills, firefighting, and first aid. There were also quizzes, a combat leaflet contest, and navigation competitions. The winners advanced to the regional «Zarnitsa,» then to the republican level, and finally, the top 100 squads competed in the All-Union tournament. In the 1990s, the game lost its large-scale format and continued in a fragmented way at the school level.
In 2025, the final is scheduled for September. On February 19, the Telegram channel for «Zarnitsa 2.0» reported that one million students had registered for the game. «Verstka» found that at least three schools are forcing students to register en masse for «Zarnitsa 2.0.» Two teachers from regional schools and one student confirmed this. A teacher from Novosibirsk also reported that children are being forced to participate in the game.
«They set a target number»
A 7th-grade student from a school in Kirov reported that in mid-February 2024, his class was taken out of lessons for a presentation about «Zarnitsa 2.0» and urged to register. «There’s some kind of quota — schools receive a plan, and each class has to meet it.» According to the student, the teacher personally registered each student.
Source: video «Military Correspondents Ogurtsova and Stavtseva Zarnitsa 2.0 – 2025» from VKontakte.
To register in the «Zarnitsa 2.0» system, students must first register online with the «Movement of the First.» Two more teachers from schools in Vladimir Oblast confirmed to «Verstka» that students were being mass-registered for «Zarnitsa 2.0» and «Movement of the First.» «We were ordered to register a quarter of the school’s students [from 1st to 11th grade],» one teacher said. «Of course, we did it.»
Another teacher from Vladimir Oblast in Central Russia told «Verstka» that a school advisor registered students over the age of 15 at the end of autumn using their school email addresses. Parents were informed in advance. «They set a target number and say that this many children must be registered. It’s not even necessary for all of them to participate,» the teacher explained. In her school, a team for «Zarnitsa» always forms anyway, because there are children, including those from patriotic clubs, who want to participate voluntarily.
A teacher from a state school in Novosibirsk told «Verstka» that «Zarnitsa» had already been held for 5th and 6th graders in late February, and participation was mandatory. «Students moved through military-themed stations,» the teacher said. «They were all in formal uniforms, and many teams also wore soldier caps, St. George ribboni badges, and similar attributes.» At the “stations”, students had different assignments, such as solving a military-themed crossword puzzle. According to the teacher, students were also forced to march.
War Game 2.0
«Verstka» obtained a manual for conducting «Zarnitsa.» The material describes games for children aged 7 – 10, 10 – 13, and 14 – 17. Among the challenges is the game «Signalman,» which is played like «Broken Telephone.» «The task is to transmit information with minimal distortion,» the manual states. Another station is «Orienteering.» «Using a compass, determine North, South, West and East. Based on cardinal directions, assemble a topographic map of the schoolyard or another familiar area for the teams,» the manual explains.
As part of the «Heroes in Uniform» quiz, there is a blitz round called «What Do You Know About Our Army?» where students are asked, for example, what is currently the heaviest Russian tank, the motto of the Airborne Forces, and how many stars are on a senior lieutenant’s epaulet.
One of the documents obtained by «Verstka» also includes descriptions of competitions by specialty for the qualifying stage of «Zarnitsa 2.0.» Among the various military specialties are the positions of commanders, “war correspondents”, and political instructors.
According to the manual, a student in the role of commander must demonstrate attentiveness, physical fitness, logical thinking, and knowledge of «the history of the Motherland and the basics of military service.» For example, in the task «Combat Mission,» the student must memorize the location of a «planned ambush,» as reported by reconnaissance, on a diagram and indicate enemy fire positions on a map to the unit. In the «Cold Calculation» category, the student must determine how many contract soldiers can be sent on a combat mission if not all of them are in the barracks.
In the political officers’ competition, the game’s premise is as follows: «The participant is a member of the digital defense unit tasked with preventing a series of cyberattacks on the fictional forward command post ‘Svetlitsa.’» The student must protect the command post by verifying information sources and stopping attacks on digital military infrastructure. For example, a young political instructor is given a cybersecurity challenge. «One of our communication nodes reports that it is under cyberattack. They have provided a screenshot of all system processes. Examine it and find the suspicious process that could be a virus,» the instructions state.
In another challenge, the political officer must identify who conducted the cyberattack. The premise states: «Today, an urgent message about a possible cyberattack on an important military server was received at the command center. Several system users are suspected of compromising security, and your task is to analyze system logs and determine who carried out the attack.» The participant is provided with logs of connections, IP addresses, and user actions. According to the premise, «the attacker» stands out by having sent the most requests. The student must identify them and determine their IP address.
Students are also given a task to find a hidden message in a Ministry of Defense invoice. The document lists military supplies such as assault rifles, machine guns, and sniper rifles, but the enemy has hidden a secret signal using steganography — a method of embedding text within other messages. After analyzing the document, the student discovers that the «enemy» has provided a room number where the «Zarnitsa» player must go next.
Among the challenges is an imitation of being taken prisoner: the participant is locked up, but in the room where they are held, there is a window through which their team can see them using binoculars. The student must use Morse code to send the message «escape» — blinking with the left eye represents dots, and blinking with the right eye represents dashes.
Young war correspondents must be able to describe events in a picture provided by the teacher for five minutes without long pauses. The moment a pause occurs, the time stops, and the next participant takes a turn. The winner is the one who speaks the longest.
In another task, the “war correspondent” must create a «fake» — although the organizers use this term figuratively. The student secretly receives a card with the title of a well-known fairy tale and must describe it without using the words written on the card or related words. This task is described in the manual as «creating a conditional fake.» The listening participants must recognize and state the original title. The winner describes a new fairy tale. «The participant who identifies the most conditional fakes and, accordingly, the one who creates the most such fakes wins,» the «Zarnitsa 2.0» materials state.
The participant playing the role of a UAV operator must demonstrate basic drone piloting skills. The student is prepared for the competition in advance: first, teachers provide literature on drones, then training is conducted on a simulator on a school computer or under the guidance of a mentor. As part of the competition, the student must show proficiency in the «Drone Academy: Bear Patrol» simulator, demonstrating takeoff and landing, hovering in place, controlling the UAV’s flight direction, and navigating obstacles.
«Let’s Work Together»
In 2024, the first «Zarnitsa 2.0» gathered around 800,000 schoolchildren from 9,000 schools across Russia. Finalists received, in addition to «useful prizes» (which were not publicly disclosed), travel certificates within Russia from the Rosmolodezh program «More Than a Journey.»
In January 2025, State Secretary — Deputy Minister of Defense and Vladimir Putin’s niece Anna Tsivileva proposed holding a family «Zarnitsa,» where entire families could participate. «The proposals deserve support; let’s work together,» Putin responded.
A teacher from a state school in Novosibirsk believes that such lessons aimed at fostering patriotic spirit are pointless and interfere with essential subjects. «Lessons are constantly canceled for some event like this. It infuriates me because the main function of school is to provide general education, not this nonsense,» she told «Verstka.»
Another teacher said that, on average, at least one lesson per week is lost to activities «promoting love for the homeland.» «We’re required to make posters for the blockade of Leningrad, for pioneer heroes — when do we have time for this? Either you sacrifice a lesson, or you take students’ extra time, and you don’t get paid for that hour,» she added. «Zarnitsa 2.0» in her school lasted an hour and a half, and students had to stay after class. According to the teacher, she tries to sabotage such demands from the administration as much as possible. «But in this school, they want too much. So much so that I’m already considering leaving the profession,» she lamented.
A teenager from a Kirov school, who spoke with «Verstka,» said that he used to support participating in school «Zarnitsa» games because he backed the war in Ukraine. But after the death of Wagner PMC leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, everything changed. «After he was murdered, I went through a process of disillusionment. I started watching and reading independent media and followed many political YouTube channels,» the student said. According to the teenager, two years ago, when «Zarnitsa» was held at his school (but not as part of the unified «Zarnitsa 2.0» concept), his homeroom teacher persuaded him to participate. «The next year, I flatly refused. I plan to do the same this year — I consider such events highly pro-military,» he noted. He is disturbed by the idea that the authorities are trying to «raise soldiers» out of children.
Cover: Dmitry Osinnikov
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