S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl Reviews
STALKER 2 is a hard game to review. On sheer potential, this game is absolutely amazing. Moving around the Zone looks and feels fantastic. The gun play is great plus there’s tonnes of variety, and replayability. Unfortunately, there’s some serious problems with the game, which isn’t uncommon with the STALKER series. Mod support is also limited, but it does fix some of the glaring issues. Over time, much like Skyrim, mods will transform this game into something much better, and more stable. If you can accept its weaknesses, or just want to support the devs and loop back to it in 6-12 months, then I recommend it heartily.
Stalker 2 is a game that I didn’t think would happen, and in a form I didn’t expect in 2024. It’s a game that eschews a lot of modern design sensibilities, both for good and bad, and that doesn’t really play like anything else made this decade. It’s a fantastic retro shooter, an excellent exploration sim, and at times, terrifying horror experience and melancholy musing on the industrial legacy we leave on the world. For some it will be frustrating, unclear and punishing, while others will revel in the freedom on offer. If you enjoyed the previous games, you already bought it. Otherwise, if you wanted a more desolate isolation than a Fallout offered, a more chaotic shooter than Call of Duty, a less structured apocalypse than Last of Us, or just really missed those moments in Far Cry 2 when your assault rifle jammed for the sixth time mid-gunfight, it’s time to hop the fence and enter the zone.
At its core, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is an awfully good game with a solid story, an awesome atmosphere of the Zone, and generally great gameplay. Audiovisually, it's a beautiful game, and its gameplay mechanics, along with its higher difficulty, won't give you anything for free. Excellent! If only it weren't knocked off its imaginary pedestal by some pretty serious technical issues, ranging from not-so-good optimization to pretty major bugs, game crashes, inability to complete quests and other flaws that simply ruin this otherwise great experience.
Review in Czech | Read full review
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl managed to meet many of my expectations. Looking at it in a simplified way, it delivers everything there is to love about the franchise with a series of improvements and modernities that make the experience better as a whole, even if we have a stumble here and there.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Stalker 2 is proof of a game being too ambitious for it’s own good. If it had a much more condensed map or better travel system it would have made for a much more enjoyable experience and would have likely helped with polish. It had genuine Game Of The Year potential. As is, Stalker 2 is a good game with a story that will keep you engaged with its twists and turns. The games survival mechanics fit the game well and add to its challenge. The few bugs that remain arent game breaking and in general if you step into the Zone you should enjoy your time there. As much as one can enjoy a radioactive land filled with mutants anyway.
Stalker 2 is a game as frustrating as it is captivating, delivering an immersive world and gripping narrative, but its performance, technical issues, and poor AI hold it back from reaching its full potential. Dedicated fans will undoubtedly find brilliance here, but for now, it's a flawed gem that may shine brighter with future updates. Review copy provided by company for testing purposes.
Stalker 2 sounds like an amazing game on paper with all the immersive elements you need to thrive. However, playing it is another story. There are some sound ideas here, but the gunplay, inventory systems, and countless bugs, just don’t do it any favors. Stalker 2 is a game you need to experience on its terms, so your mileage will certainly vary on how tolerant you are to its rigid structure. Regardless of the incredible story of what is behind this game’s history, I just couldn't find a compromise between what this game offered and what I wanted from it.
Excellent yet occasionally monotonous graphics are worthless without a solid plot and well-implemented narrative. With well-written characters and quests that don’t feel like "filler" content, STALKER 2 establishes new standards and gives true meaning to the phrase “The Zone is alive.” While the campaign is marked by occasional bugs, don’t pay attention to them. These aren’t bugs—they’re ANOMALIES!
Review in Unknown | Read full review
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl feels like a two-sided coin. On the one hand it offers one of the best open world experiences to be found in an FPS, but on the other it has significant technical problems. We still recommend playing it and not being put off by some of the obstacles, because it is an experience worth trying.
Review in Italian | Read full review
STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl recaptures the franchise's signature blend of emergent gameplay, atmospheric design, and hardcore survival mechanics in a stunningly realized Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. While the game is packed with content and breathtaking visuals, its glaring technical issues and unpolished systems hold it back, making it a game worth revisiting after future patches.
In the inhospitable Chornobyl Zone, as depicted in STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl, the few humans you encounter may be more dangerous than the radioactive monsters that devour them.
Review in Greek | Read full review
An alluring and uncompromising open-world survival shooter held back by poor optimization and an absence of AI interactions.
Through COVID-19, an invasion, and a war, GSC Game World capture the soul of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series wonderfully and shows the heart of those who made it. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl has so much to love, and features a thoroughly engrossing open-world, fantastic quest design which can be approached in a manner of ways, and gunplay that is unmatched. While the core game is something I will be replaying for years to come, I’m equally excited for the mods and spin-offs that will give us another 15 years of new experiences to have and share. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is a game like no other, and even with its issues, doesn’t stop it from being my Game of the Year.
The world is a bleak, inhospitable wasteland, full of miserable people requiring you to traverse a miserable landscape in search of more miserable people within a miserably optimized game. And within all this misery, is a surprisingly moreish and eye-wateringly brutal first person shooter.
Despite the technical challenges, STALKER 2 won me over with its atmosphere and engaging RPG mechanics. The game delivers a unique experience by combining exploration, intense combat, and impactful decisions in a dense and immersive setting: the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is one of those titles that must be tried at least once to grasp its essence. It is definitely not for everyone because it requires time, dedication and skill to master a gameplay formula that relies mainly on survival and exploration. The Zone is a hostile and unforgiving area that cuts no one any slack, where a weapon jammed at the wrong time, a move too instinctive or a distraction can prove fatal. The narrative component is one of the game's strong points, not only for the main story but also for the many side missions that weave equally articulate and interesting events. In addition, much of our actions will affect reputation with factions and characters, opening new paths or closing doors. Net of some uncertainties from the technical point of view, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 offers a challenging, fulfilling and dynamic experience perfectly capable of satisfying players who like a challenge.
Review in Italian | Read full review
While some parts of the game still need a bit of time in the oven, I can see myself coming back to the Zone.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is recommended for its hardcore survival style with an open world full of secrets and branching narratives. Despite its technical issues and difficulty, the immersive atmosphere and challenging gameplay make it a unique experience worth playing.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is an ambitious masterpiece and a worthy sequel that brings the series to the new generation with stunning graphics and deep mechanics. It’s not perfect, but it more than makes up for it with its unique atmosphere and relentless focus on survival. If you’re a fan of hardcore games, challenges, and open worlds filled with danger and mystery, this game is for you. However, its technical demands and challenging mechanics might deter less experienced players. Despite its flaws, the experience is immersive enough to recommend without hesitation.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl would have been one of the candidates for game of the year, but unfortunately, a terrible technical state spoiled the overall feeling of the gameplay. The game's great world and gameplay, coupled with strong atmosphere, music and acting is offset by bugs, errors and optimization problems.
Review in Polish | Read full review