Stalker 2

[MrSquished]

Just bought this game on a small sale, was waiting until some things got patched. Pretty excited, I rarely play any single player games.

 

[EXCellR8]

I think I'm just about at the 50 hour mark... didn't get around to playing for a couple of weeks. I still like, though I have my fair share of gripes. I've started running into issues with shader compilation when the game is starting; I've needed to clear the DX cache a couple of times in order to get the game to even work. Not the end of the world, but kind of annoying. I've also experienced some kind of memory leak issue where all of a sudden the game uses nearly all 64GB of ram in my PC and then it's unresponsive. Last time I managed to force close the game and it was good, but one other time I needed to hard reset.

There's also some definite QoL type issues, and problems with the AI still linger. These will likely be fixed in time, but it does break the immersion and create a less-than-desirable experience overall. For example, there was on instance where I went into a bunker, hopped down a broken stairway so I couldn't get back out. Now, that's all fine and good but as I proceeded into the bunker a group of like 6 or 7 enemy NPC's spawned behind me and simultaneously opened fire lol. Another instance, and this is more of a spoiler, so It'll get added below:

Spoiler: Side mission woes

There's a mission titled "Just Business" that you get in the westernmost area of the map, south of the Tornado anomaly and Devils Mushroom artifact scanner. Basically, you need to go into a bandit base and take them all out. Very STALKER, nothing real crazy. Except, the bandits have trapped a Pseudo-giant enemy in some containers that you can optionally use to help you clear out the base--if you don't want to do so yourself. Saves ammo I suppose, but I didn't trick out my arsenal so a mutant could steal all my kills. Here's my issue, if you do decide to take the monster on, good ****** luck! If it weren't for the beast's AI flaking out, I would never have taken it down. Nor would I have had the patience, just way too much of a bullet sponge for basically no reason.

Here's what it took to kill it, just to give you an idea:

• 3 grenades
• at least 20 buckshot
• several clips of .45 ACP
• 2 mags of whatever the AR16 takes
• ...and the AI glitch

Like, are ya kidding me? I think when it got stuck on the map I stood there and fired all that ammo just to see if it was actually killable. I can't imagine actually fighting it head on while it's mobile, and attacking with telekinesis and ground slams. Was just a really dumb "haha game is hard" type moment. Mind you I've been playing on normal difficulty the entire time and this would have been an absolute roadblock.

Title definitely still needs some work, but I'll put it down and get back to it again soon.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Title definitely still needs some work, but I'll put it down and get back to it again soon.

I have more hours in, but I am at the same point with the game unfinished. More interested in starting a new playthrough now that the economy and many other issues have been positively tweaked. Knowing where to find the best gear will remove a lot of the grinding, as will understanding what is worth my time and what isn't.

 

[sze5003]

While I do like the changes that have happened so far to the game I feel like there will be more A-Life related changes to come that may or may not affect existing save game files.

I feel like the AI is a little better now but still needs improvement. They really have to work on stopping them from aimbotting you through cover and walls.

If I am in an open field and it's 1 vs 6 they shoot me through trees and other small cover items. It's better to charge them with your shotgun or pistol. They still shoot through walls and automatically spot you once you are within the vicinity.

I think I'm almost done with the lesser zone but honestly have not found any useful gear other than the viper, my toz shotgun and a merc suit. Seems a lot of the stashes I've been clearing have only basic items. And I'm still spending majority of my cash repairing my vest and weapons.

 

[EXCellR8]

I wish the stealth was more realistic; enemies can spot you through dense vegetation and structures way too easily--as pointed out by others. I'm close to the 70 hour mark and there's still a LOT of map to explore, which is cool. I'm doing pretty well with gear/upgrades and coupons and got to a point in the story where decisions do change how the factions react. I'll put some spoilers in below.

Enjoying the very nice performance increase with a new GPU (thanks IEC!), which makes the combat a little easier. Was tricky to get kills in certain areas before when there were FPS dips, but that's basically gone now. I think my go to weapon of choice is the Veteran/Vintar, which uses the 9x39 rounds. Very good range and damage; experimenting with different firefights I am FAR more effective with headshots/knockdowns with that gun vs the AR16 or GP37. I actually prefer it over the SVD too, since it's got a built-in silencer. Highly recommend.

Spoiler: Faction Alignment

During the mission "Wishful Thinking" you can side with either the Ward or Noontide (i.e. ex Monolith fanatics). I sided with Ward because of their influence, access to gear/resources, and general presence in the game world and story. Turns out this makes the game a bit easier, and is beneficial for a number of reasons--but a lot of folks went with Noontide because it's more "STALKER" canon. Turns out though, Noontide reverts back to Monolith after this mission regardless, and they become the actual bad guys again--they're like the Zone's boogeymen. I suggest making a save before the decision in the SIRCAA facility so that you can explore both avenues.

Almost at the end of my winter vaca, so I'll try and get some more additional hours in, but after that I may need to shelve it for a bit.

 

[sze5003]

I wish the stealth was more realistic; enemies can spot you through dense vegetation and structures way too easily--as pointed out by others. I'm close to the 70 hour mark and there's still a LOT of map to explore, which is cool. I'm doing pretty well with gear/upgrades and coupons and got to a point in the story where decisions do change how the factions react. I'll put some spoilers in below.

Almost at the end of my winter vaca, so I'll try and get some more additional hours in, but after that I may need to shelve it for a bit.

Same..I try to play stealthy as much as I can it as much as the game currently allows.

There's an artifact, a blue flower if you did the poppy field sidequest in lesser zone. It's supposed to mask your scent and make you harder to detect if you have it equipped while you sleep.

There's a couple of items within lesser zone before I head out through the northern checkpoint.

 

[MrSquished]

Looks like I'll wait for more patches to start this game lol

 

[EXCellR8]

Good ol STALKER damage logic... my armor/helmet protects me from high caliber projectiles in firefights just fine, but I go underground and take two hypervelocity buckets to the dome and I'm down for the count 🤪

I did do the Poppy Field sidequest, but must've missed the artifact. I'll circle back at some point when I play again and grab it. I do have a fully-equipped suit with 5x arts, that isn't giving me any rads... so that's neat. One of the "legendary altered items" was causing many peoples' games to crash when equipped, but I'm not sure if that is still the case.

You can get that weird ball item from that pulsing bubble near Zalissya easy enough, just gotta crouch behind cover when it's "inhaling" which is kinda creepy. Says it has some kind of projectile recovery affect but I've not seen any difference.

 

[Racan]

I’m not going to buy this game until some major patches are released. First and foremost, they should address the CPU bottleneck. I’ve heard they’re using an early version of UE5, so maybe they could update it to a more recent version that offers better CPU utilization.

They are doing it:

Stalker 2 says to hell with it, let's just update our entire Unreal Engine implementation in new roadmap for the rest of the year

The Zone is getting a 5.5.4 makeover, with devs whispering they might even take a look at UE5.6.

www.pcgamer.com

Maybe I'll even buy the game after I see benchmarks.

 

[Stg-Flame]

They are doing it:

Stalker 2 says to hell with it, let's just update our entire Unreal Engine implementation in new roadmap for the rest of the year

The Zone is getting a 5.5.4 makeover, with devs whispering they might even take a look at UE5.6.

www.pcgamer.com

Maybe I'll even buy the game after I see benchmarks.

See, this is why I wait a long time before touching new games these days. All the major issues that so many games had (Witcher 3, Borderlands 3, Dying Light 2, etc.) I never experienced and it looks like all the major issues this game has had should be fixed by the time I get around to grabbing it on sale and finally playing it. Far too many people just want to be the first to play something, but they get a sub-par experience due to bugs and performance issues.

 

[sze5003]

There has been quite a few updates to the game since I last posted. I haven't played it since either. From what I understand they may have made it more difficult now with monsters now actually patrolling properly and enemies now able to loot bodies. I absolutely hate those mind control gnomes that snatch your weapon out of your hand and throw it where you can't find it on the map anymore. I think I stopped right after I encountered one of those on the wild island. So make sure you save frequently because if they take your weapon you are pretty much screwed.

 

[DigDog]

i waited for years, then i had to buy a new GPU, then i had to upgrade my OS, to play Stalker 2, and when i finally did, i was disappointed.

1. it's AGAIN the same story.

Look, what was fun was the anomalies and the artifacts. Just give us anomalies and artifacts SOMEWHERE ELSE and we'll be happy, but noooooooo, no, it's again the same maps and the same story.

2. the combat feels off.

This is a big problem. The previous 3 stalker games did already have the problem that early shotguns and pistols were crap, but once you got up to the AK then fighting became reasonable, and when you stepped up to M16s and past that, shooting got really good. Bullet drop and actual travel time. And, overall, a decent AI. As the player, you would have the advantage if you were further away, because you would aim better than the AI. If you got too close, well, that was a mistake, don't get too close.
But, in S2 the enemies just hit you immediately. The instant you peek out, they hit you. At distances so far that i'm not sure the enemies have even rendered, they hit you. They follow you behind walls, behind hills. They spot you standing still in vegetation, at night, crouched.
The game tries to resolve this by giving you bottomless healthkits, but i want some kind of skill-payoff to enjoy the game.

3. progression is artificially restricted.

I mean, there's ways around it, but the game really really wants you to spend 20+ hours with SMGs. The early maps have NOTHING hidden that slightly over the power level of everything else. There's death triggers everywhere that leads to the part of the game where the good stuff is.
This is because S2 is vastly more cinematic than S1/S1.2/S1.3 .. which can clearly be seen in the scripted fight with the chimaera in the swamps. I spent two hours trying to kill the damn thing, to find out you are SUPPOSED to run away. But the game doesn't really give you the chance to try to kill it - you don't have the gear, or the ammo, or even the terrain to fight it.

4. there is not much to explore for.

Aside from the fact that i've already played these maps three times, there's very little to nothing unique hidden in weird places, which was sort of a signature for the previous games. It's just food, ammo, medkits.
I remember .. idk, Clear Sky, at one point i find a RPG with 2 rounds of ammo. This is a massive discovery, and i am not going to just casually fire this weapon at the first mob that comes around - i'm keeping it for when i really need it. Well .. i spent hours carrying the goddamn thing around, because i was paralyzed at the idea of wasting it. (and then finding out it's actually crap)
But Clear Sky gave me a special weapon because i went exploring, but also limited it to only 2 shots so i could maybe ruin one or two encounters, but not all the game.


Overall i found the game design to be very poor. Bad balancing of .. everything, from the AI, to the stupid damage when you walk in the immediate vicinity of barbed wire, the tankiness of the mobs, the game trying to tie you down to an expected progression, like, yeah we want you to run this mission full of radiation, but no, you can't come back later when you have the anti-radiation gear, we want you to run it NOW because we decide what is fun. And a game that is 90% gun shooting, having bad shooting really ruins the game.

looking at all 4 games, and assuming zero bugs, i would put S2 .. last. Having played them out of sequence, i still think they were best the way they came out, with Shadows of Chernobyl being the best, Clear Sky second, Call of Pripyat third, and Stalker 2 last. It was almost a chore to play, it only got .. "fun" when i had a exoskeleton with sprint, and a kitted out Dnipro, by which time the other exo guys were no match at all - why was this not balanced AT ALL ? Why is it that i can run that gauntlet house in Pripyat, kill 30 exos, and walk away with more than i had started with? It shouldn't be possible.

i'm sorry but, i feel really passionately about the previous stalker games. I remember being in Call of Pripyat, and finding a really nice stash with a OTs-14 in perfect conditions, and ammo for it. Now .. this gun is not as modern as my modded G3, and as such is inferior in just about every way. BUT, it's got a bigger bullet, with the additional bullet drop and reduced range that comes with it, but since i'm just now fighting in CQC in a town, this would be perfect, the moment for this weapon to shine, AH if only i could afford the extra carry weight !!

This level of balance just does not exist in S2. New weapon? Nah, mine is already better. new armor? nope. New .. something? no such thing exists. And S2 is so ridiculous that, they've made like 20 different (vaguely) exoskeletons, and when you've been deemed by the Holy Developers to have suffered enough and now are allowed to use exos, you start finding all these rare exos every-****-where because hey, we designed them, YOU MUST CONSUME OUR CONTENT.

This just doesn't compare to early stalker. I would carry a G3 rifle, and a sniper, because the sniper had that little extra range that would allow me to take the enemies without fighting, and earn me enough to keep my stuff repaired, but then i also kept at home a modded TR-301 for short-run missions, because it was better in handling BUT would wear out much faster.

 

[DigDog]