Final previews of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 released: journalists are delighted with the atmosphere and gameplay

Foreign gaming publications have released the final previews of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl. The journalists shared their impressions after several hours of testing the shooter from the Ukrainian studio GSC Game World.

The reviewers note that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 impresses with its scale and open-world detail. Gamesradar writes:

«It’s hard to express how big S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is until you first open the map — a distance reveals its staggering size, but even the immediate area is full of interesting places to explore».

IGN emphasizes that the game offers a variety of options for passing and solving tasks.

«I couldn’t help but think back to the hundreds of hours I spent playing Fallout 3 or Fallout New Vegas — some of my favorite games of all time — and felt the same doubts about the right decisions in certain situations», — the reviewer notes.

Eurogamer wrote about the reactivity of the game world:

«In my short stay in the Zone, I often saw how these systems work. In one case, when I was sneaking along the wall of the complex, a mutant rushed at me, but right before the attack, he got caught in a fire anomaly, which caused him to run screaming back to the» Zone.

Journalists note that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 remains true to the spirit of the original trilogy, maintaining the atmosphere of danger and survival. Gamesradar writes:

«S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, to be honest, almost comically demonstrates how little it cares about the player. At one point, I survived a tense shootout with three bandits, only to die when I failed to bandage a bloody wound in time».

Reviewers emphasize that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 demonstrates an amazing technological leap compared to the previous installments, which were released more than 15 years ago. IGN notes:

«When I wasn’t counting my miserable ammunition supplies and my hunger rate, I was admiring the beautiful fields of red poppy flowers».

Eurogamer emphasizes that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 offers a unique experience among modern open-world games:

«In an era of precise souls-like games and carefully curated experiences like God of War: Ragnarök, the flexibility and adaptability of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2’s irradiated sandbox is refreshing and intriguing».

But the VG247 edition

«S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is not without its problems. The preview version contains bugs ranging from Bethesda-level weirdness to more serious glitches that disrupt gameplay. I got my mission-giving character stuck in combat mode even after I killed the people who were shooting at him. I managed to make the game crash by selling extra weapons too quickly».

However, the observer adds:

«Considering that half of the team works remotely from Ukraine, where the war is currently going on, I sympathize with them and can forgive these glitches — but it’s worth keeping in mind as the full release is coming».

Despite the technical shortcomings, VG247 gives the game a generally positive review, comparing it to the Fallout series:

«S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 — it’s a worn leather jacket, stitched up where it’s torn, with various stains and a used flask hidden in it. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 has some scars, it’s not the prettiest thing in the world, and sometimes you feel like it’s barely holding together, but damn it, it’s very cool».

In general, despite some technical problems in the test version, journalists were impressed with S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 and are looking forward to the full release of the game.

And the release of «S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl» is coming soon — November 20. The game will be released on PC and Xbox Series X/S, and will be available immediately on Game Pass.