As a result of the outcry over the Ukraine war, the video game world begins to move to isolate Russia

A Cyberpunk 2077 promotion is displayed in a video game store in Moscow, Russia on Dec. 10, 2020.

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 As a result of the country's invasion of Ukraine, video game companies are beginning to halt operations in Russia.

CD Projekt, the publisher behind the sci-fi title Cyberpunk 2077 and the popular role-playing game franchise The Witcher, announced on Thursday that all sales of its games in Russia and Belarus would be halted. It will also halt all sales in the countries via its GOG games distribution platform.

"The CD PROJEKT Group as a whole stands firm with the people of Ukraine," the company said in a statement Thursday.

"While we are not a political entity capable of directly influencing state matters and do not aspire to be one, we believe that when commercial entities band together, they have the power to inspire global change in the hearts and minds of ordinary people."

The move could have a significant impact on CD Projekt's business, as roughly 9% of its sales in the previous year came from Russia and Belarus, according to an investor report.

On Wednesday, Electronic Arts announced that the Russian national team and all of the country's clubs would be removed from its FIFA soccer titles and NHL football game series.

"EA Sports stands in solidarity with the Ukrainian people and, like so many voices across the football world, calls for peace and an end to the invasion of Ukraine," the company said in a tweet on Wednesday.

On Friday, the company went a step further, announcing that it is now prohibiting all sales of games and content in Russia and Belarus.

Ukrainian Digital Minister Mykhailo Fedorov demanded earlier this week that Microsoft and Sony block all Russian and Belarusian accounts and cancel any planned gaming events in the two countries. He also requested that the companies not allow Russian or Belarussian gamers to compete in international esports events.

"We are confident that such actions will motivate Russian citizens to take proactive steps to end the disgraceful military aggression," Fedorov said in a letter posted on Twitter on Wednesday.

Multiple requests for comment from CNBC were not responded to by Microsoft or Sony.

Microsoft President Brad Smith announced on Friday that the company would "suspend all new sales of Microsoft products and services in Russia" and would cease "many aspects of our business in Russia in compliance with governmental sanctions decisions."

Esports

The esports industry has also been impacted by the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

Russia has a thriving esports industry. Esports Earnings' list of the top-earning esports players in the world includes eight Russians, with Yaroslav "Miposhka" Naidenov ranking 11th.

On Tuesday, German esports organizer ESL announced that Virtus.pro and Gambit would be barred from competing in the ESL Pro League in June.

"We made the decision that organizations with obvious ties to the Russian government, including individuals or organizations subject to alleged or confirmed EU sanctions related to the conflict, will not be allowed to be represented," ESL said in a website update.

ESforce Holding, a division of Russian tech firm Mail.ru, owns Virtus.pro, while Gambit is a subsidiary of telecoms group MTS. Players from both teams will be able to compete "under a neutral name, without representing their country, organization, or their teams' sponsors on their clothing," according to ESL.

ESL also stated that all scheduled competitions in the Commonwealth of Independent States, which includes Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus, have been halted.

Why does it matter?

The video game industry's decision to cut ties with Russia may have a significant impact on the country's economy. According to data firm Statista, Russia has a thriving gaming market worth $2.3 billion in 2021.

Microsoft and Sony are two of the world's largest video game distributors, with their respective Xbox and PlayStation platforms.

According to Lewis Dean, research director of gaming at analysis firm IDC, mobile platforms like Apple's iOS and Google's Android, as well as PC game distributors like Valve's Steam, would truly bite.

"Russia is a mobile market first, a PC market second, and a console market third," Dean told CNBC.

Apple and Google did not respond to a request for comment from CNBC by the time this article was published. So far, both companies have limited sales in Russia and removed Russian state-owned media outlets RT and Sputnik from their app stores.

"PlayStation has the largest installed base, so if a company on the console side has a particularly difficult choice from a purely financial standpoint, it's Sony," Dean said.

Valve is the "largest digital PC game distributor in Russia, so that would be another significant shoe to drop if they suspended services," he added.

When CNBC contacted Valve, the company did not respond immediately.