S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 PC Review | GameWatcher

Very similar to in Arkady and Boris Strugatsky’s Roadside Picnic – which served because the inspiration for the unique Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl and its two number-less follow-ups (stylized S.T.A.L.Ok.E.R.) – there’s one thing inherently alluring about GSC Recreation World’s depiction of the Zone, a cursed location the place the legal guidelines of physics usually are the other way up and everyone seems to be on the lookout for one thing that may’t be discovered wherever else. In Stalker 2, not a lot has modified, which is each good and unhealthy.

Neither Clear Sky nor Name of Pripyat, which had been rushed out the door in 2008 and 2009 respectively after the primary Stalker’s success in 2007, considerably altered the method that separated the new child IP from the competitors within the FPS house. 15 years later, Coronary heart of Chornobyl (now Ukrainian spelling) guarantees the identical, which is admittedly refreshing within the face of like 100 open-world video games which are chasing the identical developments. Some latest pre-launch previews referred to as Stalker 2 “an open world shooter with the guardrails eliminated,” which is the type of factor that diehard followers of the sequence liked to listen to. After spending sufficient time with the sport, I’d say that description is ideal.

On the core of Stalker 2, programs and mechanics are the identical: It’s a survival open-world shooter via and thru. Anybody approaching this as a Far Cry title could have a nasty time. It rewards each preparation and persistence, which is why reviewing it underneath strain after a far-from-ideal overview code timing state of affairs has been taxing, to say the least. It’s a recreation that marches to the beat of its personal drum, and that immediately makes it priceless in right now’s AAA local weather. I’m absolutely anticipating many reviewers and gamers to not vibe with this one based mostly on that alone. That stated, it’s additionally riddled with flaws that shouldn’t be missed and have little to do with the sport doing its personal factor.

After many ups and downs, together with a cancelled earlier iteration, hacks, and leaks, and the invasion of Ukraine, the very fact alone that GSC Recreation World has reached the end line with such an bold undertaking needs to be celebrated. By and huge, Stalker 2 doesn’t fail to ship a flashier continuation of the ‘irradiated’ survival fantasy that the three older video games provided. Few recreation worlds are as absorbing and genuinely threatening and ruthless because the Zone, however in its dedication to continuity and iterating on previous efforts, rusty bits that ought to’ve developed extra over 15 years have been preserved as an alternative.

The ‘superior AI programs’ overvalued in promotional supplies aren’t a lot totally different from what was discovered within the three authentic video games. Positive, human enemies are vaguely higher at truly occurring the offensive than in different FPS titles, however that doesn’t make them very good, and nonetheless stroll in line into bottlenecks when you’re affected person sufficient. This additionally applies to the fearsome creatures and mutated freaks that plague nearly the whole Zone. They appear higher than earlier than, however their assault patterns – and even some animations – haven’t developed almost as a lot because the UE5-powered graphics. It’s jarring to a level, as the sport as a complete appears to be like (and sounds) considerably pricier, however its precise behaviour isn’t very totally different and incessantly feels caught previously.

After all, Bethesda Recreation Studios’ Starfield suffered from many of those points final yr, however that recreation was nonetheless sure to rusty tech. Stalker 2, in the meantime, is sporting all kinds of recent visible developments – and has some killer cutscenes – however recurrently comes throughout as dusty. Likelihood is diehards will love this, as a part of Stalker’s enchantment at all times was the ‘eurojank’ component, however I’d say it hurts the sequel’s probabilities of discovering extra devotees.

Regardless, such ugly bits don’t sink the core gameplay loop of trekking throughout an enormous map the place each step may very well be your final (be happy to savescum as a lot as you need) and nobody likes one another a lot. The Zone is gorgeous even when it exhibits its uglier aspect, and by side-stepping trendy developments, GSC has crafted a residing, respiratory world that’s stuffed with surprises however by no means appears like a ‘guidelines open world’ (I get pleasure from these, however video games like this one are essential to maintain issues contemporary). Whereas some sections haven’t landed in addition to they need to as a result of technical points, there are a lot of instances when all the pieces comes collectively and also you get one lengthy trek that feels harmful and scary in a manner that’s extremely uncommon to expertise whereas enjoying one thing that appears this costly.

Motion and gunplay are weighty, albeit restrictive at instances. That is by design. Skif, the protagonist, isn’t meant to be a hero or a badass gunman. He simply occurred to be on the improper place on the improper time and is on the lookout for solutions within the very worst place on Earth. No lite RPG programs to be discovered right here, simply your expertise, persistence, and discovering (and caring for) tools and weapons wherever you may. This implies you may luck out with a pleasant bag of loot present in a shocking place and blast via encounters that may be tough in any other case, but in addition you could usually end up in powerful spots and terribly unprepared, as there’s no level-gating of any type. As for the mysterious anomalies that make the Zone much more tough to traverse, there are greater than earlier than, however by no means are too tough to bypass, which appears like a missed probability to take that hazard – distinctive to this world – to the following stage.

Since sources are scarce and quick journey isn’t a factor (guides at sure places can take you to sure different places for the best value), each bullet counts. Sadly, most enemies stay ‘spongy’ in a manner that doesn’t actually mesh nicely with the realism that’s protecting nearly the whole recreation. Attempt to land these headshots and ensure to place plenty of cash into upgrading the weapons you want utilizing, as some superior encounters might be hair-splitting in any other case. Additionally: Don’t overlook to drink and eat.

Equally (and to the shock of no veteran), monsters like Bloodsuckers and Controllers can even require you to strategy issues in a different way, but there isn’t something new about their fight behaviours 15 years later. Once more, they make for creepy enemies that may (and can) catch you off guard, however diehards gained’t be startled. It is best to see a transparent sample by now when you’ve learn this far: Stalker 2 is essentially the identical recreation, however a lot larger and higher wanting (the dynamic days and nights in addition to the climate occasions are significantly gorgeous).

The one factor setting it other than its predecessors is a a lot deeper narrative that packs extra branches and decision-making than you’d count on. With a number of factions with deep lore and connections to the Zone’s previous, a good variety of subplots and pivotal moments handle to each shock and intrigue. Nonetheless, newcomers ought to brace for many mumbo jumbo that just about 100% requires performing some further studying when you haven’t carried out your authentic trilogy homework. Very similar to its overarching recreation design, Stalker 2’s narrative is unflinchingly dedicated to its most ardent followers, and that’s each a power and a weak point.

As I strategy the later elements of the primary quest, nonetheless, I additionally start to assume there’s a disconnect between Skif’s paper-thin motivations and his very major character-y actions, serving to people everywhere in the Zone solely to acquire solutions. Positive, he’s a person who seems to have misplaced all the pieces, however there isn’t a sufficiently big hook that absolutely justifies all his treks and meddling in affairs of the Zone.

One other big query mark going into this sequel was its efficiency and total polish, and I’ve received each good and unhealthy information. The excellent news is that any trendy PC able to operating demanding AAA video games made with UE5 needs to be nice with the best mixture of settings, with the DLSS 3 Body Technology choice being the one toggle you shouldn’t skip when you’ve received a contemporary Nvidia card. AMD’s FSR answer can be out there and helps, however doesn’t obtain the identical ends in my expertise. It’s a gorgeously realized recreation due to the marketed photogrammetry and scanning tech, and whereas some in-game animations are rusty, the cutscenes are typically nice.

The unhealthy information is the sport will be fairly unstable and buggy – no less than in its pre-launch state – for causes utterly unrelated to the {hardware} (in my case, nicely above the advisable settings). Averaging round 100 FPS with Extremely settings and whereas utilizing DLSS’s High quality mode with FG on, ‘emissions’ rendered the sport a stuttery mess till a patch was launched, with GPU utilization happening as an alternative of up for no obvious purpose. Such issues have been cleaned up now (no less than in my expertise), however some areas appear to be plagued with UE5’s notorious ‘stutter battle’ whereas others which are extra visually demanding are clean as silk. This one ought to’ve stayed within the oven for even longer, I’d say.

Maybe extra worrying is the very fact the sport oftentimes downright breaks, with crashes inflicting the drivers to behave up till the PC is rebooted, textures in some random areas going haywire, property floating round throughout cutscenes, and quest markers randomly disappearing. Likewise, audio additionally likes to partially minimize itself out, solely to return again via fixed pausing and unpausing. All of it provides up, ultimately inflicting an in any other case immersive expertise to really feel bumpy and something however clean. After all, the developer is promising to repeatedly replace the sport after launch, but it surely’s a tragic state of affairs after so many delays and a 15-year hole between the equally flawed originals and the sequel.

I’m unhappy to report that, regardless of some noticeable enhancements due to the launch-day patch throughout most areas, Stalker 2’s cracks have solely grow to be wider the additional I’ve ventured into the Zone. Extra egregiously, my progress has been broken by saves which have gone corrupted for no obvious purpose and crashes throughout essential quests. Completely different settings haven’t altered this behaviour for the higher, which is why I’m strolling away from this recreation (no less than for now) after essentially the most troublesome overview course of I’ve ever needed to endure.

It’s an particularly irritating conclusion to my time with the sport, as I’ve drastically loved lots of its elements and imagine there’s an exquisite coronary heart beating underneath all its damaged bits, however I can’t in good conscience suggest that you simply make the leap at this cut-off date. GSC Recreation World’s a number of struggles to get this large undertaking to the end line shouldn’t be missed, however our obligation as recreation journalists is to guage video games at launch and never theorize about what they may very well be later down the road. Because it stands, this one ought to’ve stayed simmering for a number of additional months no less than, and solely masochistic diehards will get true enjoyment out of it now.

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