S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl
- November 30, 2023
- GSC Game World
- 16h median play time
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Get on Epic Games StoreS.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is the unforgiving FPS survival adventure in a dark science-fiction open world. Scavenge for gear and resources, hunt for wonders, make hard decisions to survive and pave the path through the Chornobyl Anomalous Zone.
PC
Windows
Xbox Series X|S
Cloud
Xbox
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Reviews
- optimization8,052 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The optimization of "Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl" has received widespread criticism, with many players reporting severe performance issues, including stuttering, frame drops, and crashes, even on high-end systems. While some users have managed to achieve stable performance through mods and tweaks, the general consensus is that the game requires significant optimization and bug fixes to reach its full potential. Players are advised to wait for patches before purchasing, as the current state is often described as unplayable or frustratingly inconsistent.
“Despite the performance issues, I'm having a great time with the game.”
“The game has a ton of potential, but there's a lot of issues for now; I have a 32gb ddr5 6000hz, a ryzen 7 9800x3d and a rtx 4090, if I have performance issues everyone will.”
“The game is good, but the optimization is so bad that I can't recommend it until they fix the performance.”
“Sadly, the optimization is equal to that of Star Citizen and Escape from Tarkov.”
“The performance is abysmal; the fact that you need a $2k-3k PC to run this game at 100 fps without crashes and constant frame drops is baffling.”
“The game is poorly optimized, at times buggy and missing some features that fans have been waiting for.”
- story7,415 mentions
- 26 % positive mentions
- 69 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The story of "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl" is generally praised for its engaging narrative, rich lore, and atmospheric world-building, which effectively draws players into the post-apocalyptic setting. However, many players report significant issues with quest progression due to bugs, particularly in the latter half of the game, leading to soft locks and uncompleted missions that detract from the overall experience. While the main storyline is compelling and features familiar characters from the original trilogy, the numerous technical problems have left some players frustrated and unable to fully enjoy the narrative.
“The story is captivating and keeps you on edge, and the world itself really influences your decisions with how easy it is to immerse yourself in this unforgiving hellscape.”
“The story pulls you in with its rich lore, deep moral choices, and memorable characters.”
“The atmosphere is thick with tension, the graphics are jaw-dropping, and the storytelling is masterful.”
“I've been locked out of quest objectives for an annoying amount of time on multiple occasions.”
“The game is still pretty raw, there are quests with bugs, doors not opening, video memory overload that makes you restart the game every now and then, but it still feels good to be able to emerge into stalker world again and have a good time playing game from the past, but improved in a good way.”
“The story is also made in such a way that you'll think you're 'meeting Hanako at embers' maybe 5 or more times before it's actually the last quest--and I'm saying it before even reaching the main quest with 43 hours on my first playthrough.”
- graphics3,771 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 51 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The graphics of "Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl" have received mixed reviews, with many praising the stunning visuals and atmospheric detail made possible by Unreal Engine 5. However, players have reported significant performance issues, including frame rate drops and graphical glitches, even on high-end systems. While the game captures the essence of the original series with its immersive environments, the optimization challenges have led to frustration among players, suggesting that the graphics, while impressive, come at a cost to gameplay experience.
“The graphics are stunning, with breathtaking realism and eerie yet lovely lighting, giving the zone a new lease on life.”
“From the very first step into the zone, Stalker 2 captivates you with its stunning visuals and meticulous attention to detail.”
“The graphics look amazing, with incredible attention to detail that really brings the desolate beauty of the Chernobyl exclusion zone to life.”
“There is a truly amazing game here, but it's muddied under a layer of poor performance/optimization, AI issues, graphical issues, and weird damage models for weapons.”
“The graphics are very disappointing.”
“The graphics are a huge step up from the previous games, making those irradiated landscapes look hauntingly beautiful.”
- gameplay3,629 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl" has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its nostalgic feel reminiscent of the original games while also highlighting significant technical issues. While the core mechanics, such as exploration, survival, and combat, are engaging and maintain the series' signature atmosphere, players have criticized the game for its bugs, performance problems, and the absence of previously beloved features like the A-Life system. Overall, the gameplay is seen as solid but in need of refinement and optimization to fully realize its potential.
“The gameplay is familiar and feels like grabbing some old clothes out of the closet and finding out that they still fit you perfectly.”
“Gameplay is challenging and rewarding in regards to gunplay and artifact hunting.”
“The gameplay strikes a perfect balance between exploration, survival, and combat, with deep RPG mechanics that reward thoughtful decision-making.”
“The gameplay is a mix of survival, exploration, and combat, but it feels like a downgrade from the previous titles, lacking depth and innovation.”
“The gameplay loop boils down to: loot, shoot, and pray the game doesn’t glitch out or crash, which makes for a frustrating experience.”
“The core gameplay issues are numerous, including broken mechanics, poor balancing, and baffling design choices that drain all the fun.”
- atmosphere3,573 mentions
- 61 % positive mentions
- 37 % neutral mentions
- 1 % negative mentions
The atmosphere in "Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl" is widely praised for its immersive and haunting quality, effectively capturing the eerie essence of the Chernobyl exclusion zone. Players appreciate the stunning visuals, dynamic weather effects, and detailed sound design that contribute to a sense of tension and danger throughout the game. Despite some technical issues and bugs, the game's atmosphere remains a standout feature, drawing players into its richly crafted world and evoking nostalgia for the original series.
“GSC Game World has truly outdone themselves, delivering an immersive, atmospheric, and visually stunning experience that sets a new benchmark for survival horror games.”
“The atmosphere is breathtaking—it’s immersive, haunting, and so alive that you can almost feel the cold, damp winds of the zone on your skin.”
“The atmosphere, ambience, and visual design are simply fascinating.”
“It ruins the atmosphere when you are supposed to be in Chernobyl and everyone has an American or English accent.”
“The atmosphere in this game is about as thick as Fallout 4's atmosphere; in fact, this game feels more like I'm playing heavily modded Fallout.”
“The only redeeming quality of the game is the atmosphere and world design.”
- stability2,275 mentions
- 6 % positive mentions
- 1 % neutral mentions
- 93 % negative mentions
The stability of "Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl" has been a significant point of contention among players, with many reporting a wide range of bugs, glitches, and performance issues. While some players have experienced relatively smooth gameplay with minimal issues, the majority highlight frequent crashes, soft locks, and graphical glitches that detract from the overall experience. Despite these challenges, many fans of the series express optimism for future patches and improvements, acknowledging that a certain level of jankiness has historically been part of the Stalker charm.
“Performance-wise, it runs great for me (on a 4070, i5-13600kf) 99% of the time; there are a few niche areas where performance gets odd, but still entirely playable and these areas seem to be very small.”
“Game runs great, looks incredible and is overall just a great game to play.”
“To be honest, this is probably the most polished and bug-free game I've played in a release in recent years.”
“Unfortunately, it is a buggy mess, with mission softlocks and crashes preventing progress.”
“The game is buggy and core systems don't work properly, such as: some of the side-quests are buggy and some of them can't be finished after you die just after completing the quest and then when you spawn it's not completed but in the dialog options there is no option to complete it.”
“Despite the buggy mess of a game, with the constant crashes (my main concern at the moment) weird NPC AI behavior (sometimes) a-life being broken, lots of stuttering, graphical glitches, engine problems (I have to mod it in order to stabilize this game, it crashes every few hours now instead of every 30 min), this game has potential.”
- music555 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many praising its haunting and atmospheric qualities that enhance the overall experience, particularly during tense moments and explorations. However, players have reported frequent audio bugs, including abrupt music cuts and sound dropouts, which detract from immersion. While the soundtrack features a variety of Ukrainian artists and effectively captures the game's tone, some fans feel it lacks the nostalgic essence of the original series, leading to a divide in opinions on its effectiveness.
“The music and general sound effects and voice acting are really great.”
“The soundtrack perfectly complements the game's tone, balancing tension and melancholy.”
“The haunting ambient soundtrack and unsettling environmental noises combine to immerse players in the zone's foreboding embrace.”
“Every now and then an audio/music cue will start but then half a second later the game's audio dies and it ruins the moment.”
“Atmospheric ambiance and ambient music often just cut in and out and really just takes me out of an otherwise amazing experience.”
“The music is all wrong, gone are the atmospheric sounds and far-off screams that made the originals great, instead replaced by pretty meh and predictable background music.”
- humor298 mentions
- 97 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with many players finding the numerous bugs and glitches to be amusing rather than detrimental to the experience. From NPCs getting stuck in odd positions to absurd dialogue and quirky AI behavior, these moments often elicit laughter, contributing to a lighthearted atmosphere despite the game's serious themes. Additionally, the voice acting, particularly in English, is frequently described as hilariously bad, adding to the overall charm and comedic value of the game.
“Some of the bugs are funny, like corpses occasionally snoring as if your bullets have merely tucked them in for a nap.”
“I can't help but admit that I adore the developers' sense of humor, especially those messages on walls that give you fake ladders or lead you to hard-to-reach places for stash with trash loot.”
“The game is a lovable buggy mess where half the bugs are weird or funny.”
“And the price of almost 100 EUR is an unfunny joke for what it is offering.”
“It's not funny when you find an artifact for 1,000 coupons, but repairing a single suit after an anomaly costs 15,000.”
“Honestly, just way too buggy at launch, and not funny bugs but insane game-breaking bugs that make you backtrack 3 hours of game time to fix.”
- grinding190 mentions
- 2 % positive mentions
- 16 % neutral mentions
- 82 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it tedious and unengaging due to long travel distances, repetitive tasks, and bullet sponge enemies. While some appreciate the challenge and sense of accomplishment from grinding, others feel it detracts from the overall experience, leading to frustration and burnout. The game's economy and inventory management further contribute to the perception of grinding as a chore rather than a rewarding gameplay element.
“You'll need a second life for grinding to level 200.”
“A bit grindy sometimes.”
“Don't be fooled by the high review scores; there is almost nothing here that isn't tedious, jank, or just flat out annoying and frustrating.”
“Unfortunately, I don't want to cheese them every time, but the alternative of fighting them on the same playing field is quite frankly tedious and unrelenting when dealing with packs.”
“The only major gripe I have with the game are the long walking distances between objectives/quests, which do get tedious after a while.”
“Fighting mutants is tedious and pointless: you can’t loot them, so you’re basically wasting time and resources.”
- emotional126 mentions
- 95 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game has garnered mixed responses, with many players praising its deep narrative and the ability to evoke strong feelings through moral dilemmas and character interactions. While some found the story to be a heartfelt journey that resonated with nostalgia and personal connections, others criticized it for lacking emotional depth and failing to engage players fully. Overall, the game is seen as a complex emotional experience, though its impact may vary significantly depending on players' familiarity with the franchise and its characters.
“I had an excellent, frustrating, joyously heartbreaking time with this game, and I'm just completely satisfied. I'm still kind of staring at the ceiling a day later in a food coma, thinking about what I just experienced.”
“The story is an emotional rollercoaster—I cried three times, and I’d do it all over again.”
“The emotional weight of the story resonates strongly, making every decision feel impactful.”
“The biggest issue with this game for me is the boring story.”
“Boring story, boring quests; they fail to suck you into the world or main character.”
“Nothing like the originals, lifeless open world, awful performance, visuals that look like they are from 2015, a running simulator in the mid to end game that gives you waypoints to go to that are over 2 kilometers away, and an extremely boring story that fails to revive the interest in the factions from the originals.”
- replayability87 mentions
- 26 % positive mentions
- 70 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is a mixed bag, with many players praising its multiple endings, branching storylines, and significant player choices that enhance replay value. However, some express concerns about its current linearity and lack of features like New Game Plus, which could limit long-term engagement. The active modding community and ongoing developer support are expected to improve the game's replayability over time, making it a potentially rich experience for players willing to wait for updates.
“The choices you make throughout the game have significant consequences, adding depth and replayability.”
“The story unfolds in a non-linear fashion, allowing players to influence the outcome based on their choices, which adds a layer of replayability.”
“This game is oozing with things to do and kill, with multiple endings, tons of hidden goodies, and mod support; Stalker 2 is full of replayability and has a bright future ahead of it.”
“The game feels like less of what we had before at a much higher cost with just as many issues; however, it's significantly more railroaded, so replayability feels as if it just won't be a thing here.”
“- absolutely 0 replayability, there's no new game plus or anything.”
“I'm probably not gonna mention the very linear storyline, which gives the player pretty much no agenda on how or when to handle things, and which is close to absolute zero in terms of branching or replay value.”
- monetization69 mentions
- 4 % positive mentions
- 17 % neutral mentions
- 78 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game has drawn mixed reactions, with many users labeling it a "cash grab" due to its perceived lack of depth and numerous bugs, contrasting it with the passion-driven development of earlier titles. While some players appreciate the absence of microtransactions and ads, others feel misled by marketing promises and believe the game fails to deliver a complete experience, leading to frustration over its pricing and unfinished state. Overall, the sentiment leans towards disappointment, with calls for a return to more authentic game development practices.
“Deeply atmospheric and unspoiled by modern monetization practices.”
“Given the financial challenges many players face today, microtransactions, when executed with care, offer a viable way for developers to maintain and enhance the game's ongoing development while ensuring that players have the flexibility to engage with the title in a manner that suits their individual circumstances.”
“By offering this mode for free, with the option for microtransactions to enhance the experience.”
“Stalker 2 sadly feels more like a cash grab that they hope will net them some money due to the modding community behind it.”
“Game should have just been scrapped, at this point it is just a cash grab; I bought the ultimate edition, glad Steam has a refund policy.”
“This is clearly a cash grab for market share rather than a passion project which the original titles had the feeling of.”
- character development13 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 54 % neutral mentions
- 23 % negative mentions
Character development in the game has received mixed reviews; while some players praise the depth and emotional engagement with companions, others feel that it lacks substance, with only a few characters standing out. The voice acting has been criticized for being cheesy, which detracts from the overall experience. However, the character design and visual fidelity are consistently highlighted as top-notch, enhancing the game's immersive quality.
“The voice acting and character development are top-notch, making you genuinely care about the fate of your companions and the outcome of your journey.”
“Despite the bugs, the story and character development shine.”
“Other than the character design and environments, it doesn't feel like S.T.A.L.K.E.R.”
“There is basically no enjoyable character development; the only exception for me was Strider and Dalin. Most of the main questline feels like a walking simulator.”
“Gameplay mechanics have seen a significant overhaul, incorporating more nuanced systems for exploration, combat, and character development.”
