STALKER 2 is a new entry into the franchise, developed by GSC Game World. The title faced several delays prior to its release because of a lot of factors, including the Russo-Ukrainian War.
Despite multiple delays, the game is finally here and brings a lot of things to the table. From an interesting post-apocalyptic atmosphere to the horrors of survival, STALKER 2 will take you through a ride.
However, now seems like a good time to tell you that the review won’t touch upon any storyline details because we don’t want to spoil it for you. The game has a lot to offer, especially in terms of the story, so plot points and narratives will be left out for the most part.
With that said, here’s our review of STALKER 2.
STALKER 2 drops you into the Heart of Chernobyl and asks you to survive
The good thing about this title is that it’s a first-person shooter, meaning you won’t be able to see your character’s appearance, which means, there’s no elaborate character creator.
The moment the game starts, you’ll be dropped into a cutscene that introduces the environment, and then the game tells you to survive.
During the introductory sequence, you will be introduced to some of the frequently occurring enemy types that you will come across throughout your entire journey in STALKER 2.
Apart from the basic inventory screen, you have a flashlight at your disposal, and this is, by far, the most important asset that you have.
The second important piece of equipment that you’ll get is your Detector. This is a key item that will help you detect artifacts, which will give you several benefits, especially in terms of protecting you from the environment.
Mechanics-wise, the game is pretty simple. You have the standard mechanics that you will come across in any shooter, so if you’re familiar with shooting games like Call of Duty or Battlefield, it’ll be a walk in the park for you.
This isn’t exactly a horror game, so you won’t encounter ghosts, but you will encounter a lot of mutated beings as you progress through the different areas of STALKER 2, and if you’re not careful enough, there are potential jump scares at every turn.
When it comes to the different gauges on your HUD, you have the standard weapon ammo counter and the health meter.
Below the health meter, you have the stamina gauge, which depletes as you sprint. The weight of your inventory also has an effect on how quickly your stamina depletes. You also have a radiation meter which fills up whenever you’re passing through a radiation zone.
The inventory is quite an interesting bit in this game, but more on that later. Apart from these three meters, there’s a compass that is right on top of your screen, and there’s a hidden hunger meter.
When you’re hungry, you won’t be able to shoot properly or move quickly enough, and the only way to recover from this is by eating something.
From canned food to bread to sausages, you’ll come across a lot of different food items in STALKER 2, which while removing hunger, will not affect your radiation meter.
As for your Stamina bar, you can quickly replenish this by consuming Energy Drinks (no brownie points for guessing that), and Water. There’s also Vodka that you can drink to reduce Radiation, which is a rather quirky bit in this game.
STALKER 2 adds a lot of realism to combat and survival and then some
The combat in STALKER 2 is as realistic as realism can be. You have a lot of weapons at your disposal, most of which you will be looting from the world.
You will have to buy a lot of these weapons from different vendors spread out across the world, but most of these weapons can be earned by looting fallen enemies or as rewards for completing different sidequests and main story quests.
GSC Game World seems to have taken a page from the old Far Cry titles where your weapon will jam. Now, as you use a weapon, its durability will go down, and once it’s away from its pristine condition, the weapon will jam.
So, it’s important to keep repairing your weapons as and when possible otherwise you’ll end up facing some deadly problems.
Irrespective of the difficulty that you play on, there’s still a sense of realism that’s added to the game. For example, melee shots won’t be enough to take down an enemy. The weapons aren’t hitscan either, so there’s a little issue with the accuracy, which is okay honestly.
STALKER 2 wasn’t meant to be a shooter game, it’s a survival experience, and in the way its set, these weapon behaviors, and everything else, the way it’s designed, fits very well.
The inventory is unique too because apart from the regular weight requirements that’s seen in popular RPGs, STALKER 2 features an additional grid-styled inventory management system, which adds an additional layer of challenge to the overall experience.
Another feature not governed by difficulty is the ammo that is available at your disposal. Unlike most shooters, whenever you loot an enemy, you’ll have a limited amount of ammo that you’ll get from them.
So, if you’re really looking to stock up on ammo, then make sure you have enough credits because you’ll have to buy it.
Weapons can also be upgraded, so you won’t have a lot of trouble surviving the Zone if you have enough money and materials at your disposal. With that said, let’s move on to who you will be fighting in the game.
The biggest enemy in STALKER 2 is the one that you won’t expect
When you first start off STALKER 2, you will come across both human and mutant enemies, but a few hours into the game, you’ll come to realise that they’re not the worst of enemies.
The biggest and the meanest enemy that you’ll come across in the game is the Zone itself. The region, with its various anomalies and hazardous zones is something that will act as the enemy that you’ll have to overcome.
And that is where GSC Game World has excelled. The Zone is unpredictable and will force you to adapt to different strategies when it comes to approaching a problem.
The Zone and its environmental hazards aside, you will come across Mutants, Invisible enemies, mutated felines, and a host of other human enemies including fellow Stalkers as you try to survive.
When coupled with the Zone, these enemies are as deadly as ever, and you will have to be extremely careful if you want to survive every single encounter in the game.
Do choices matter in STALKER 2?
In most games, choices do matter because they have an effect on the way the game ends. Although we’ve promised to not touch upon the storyline at the very beginning of the review, we’ll tell you this, choices matter.
For example, in some side quests, you’ll be given two options to end the quest. Of these two options, one might give you a monetary benefit, while another might end up rewarding you with a weapon that can make your pursuit easier.
You can also choose dialogues when engaging in a conversation. Some of these dialogues can result in a more peaceful result, while others will put you in instant combat situations.
At every point, you get a choice with respect to how you would want to approach the game.
The environment is grim and enough to give you a sense of doom
Let’s face it, you’re in an environment where there’s been a nuclear disaster, so it’s evident that you won’t see a lot of colorful objects and bright chirpy birds.
The entire region around you is torn and broken into bits and pieces. Danger lurks at every corner, making survival extremely difficult.
STALKER 2’s environment adds to the foreboding feeling of doom, which further creates this specific aura around the game, adding to its mystery.
You’ll see random lighting strikes and dust storms happen around you. There’s an active day-night cycle. And while this does not have any particular effect, the nights are more dangerous during the day because your visibility is extremely reduced.
You do have a flashlight, but even that’s not enough to help you survive the dark. So, undertaking missions is definitely a task when you’re navigating through the Zone at night.
The Zone also reacts a lot to your actions in a certain ways. You will come across different anomalies around you, each of which have a unique interaction depending upon their element type.
For example, if you’re in a radioactive zone, your screen will turn pixelated, while if you’re in an area with toxic chemicals, the top of your screen will turn green.
In conclusion
STALKER 2 does a lot of things correct, and for a game that’s been in development for so long and has faced so many obstacles, the game is pretty remarkable.
I do have a few gripes with the game, the first being the lack of a multiplayer option, which the developers have confirmed, will be coming in a later update.
STALKER 2, in its massive open world, has a lot of potential for PvP content where you randomly come across another Stalker who’s trying to survive just like you.
The developers could adopt a similar strategy like the Fields of Hatred zones in Diablo 4, which is an open PvP zone. This feature would add a new layer to the aspect of survival in the game.
My second gripe is that you can’t modify the keybinds or check the keybinds at all. During the initial prologue section, you’ll be shown the controls once, but that’s about it.
Although the keybinds are pretty generic and easy to remember, sometimes you just want to change the default setup to something that you’re more comfortable with.
STALKER 2 could also have done with some sort of mount system or vehicle system because traversing long distances on foot can be really annoying.
Another interesting feature about this title is that if you’re ever bored of the main story quests, there are a lot of side quests for you to explore, and each of them has a unique mission to offer.
My final issue with this game is its compass system. Although it’s like any other top-of-the-screen compass, it can be a bit confusing and misleading at times.
The overall narrative is pretty rewarding and there are so many ways to approach a challenge. And even when you’ve cleared a dangerous bit and you’re opening the boxes around for loot, you’re likely to come up empty.
STALKER 2 is unpredictable, and it makes you feel human at the end of the day. You don’t level up to get stronger. Instead, you unlock more powerful weapons and gear as you progress through the story.
And even with the strongest equipment, you’re not a god, you’re a mortal. And no matter how powerful you get, the Zone will always find a way to hit back at you, harder and stronger than before.
Reviewed on: PC
Code Provided by: GSC Game World
