S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: A Journey Unprepared

InfoThis is a summary of the following YouTube video:

Right now, I cannot recommend: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 - Heart of Chornobyl (Review)

Skill Up

Nov 20, 2024

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Gaming

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is unfinished and buggy

  1. The video is sponsored by Nvidia GeForce RTX 40 series GPUs, highlighting their performance in games like Alan Wake 2 and Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered. The sponsorship details are excluded from the academic summary.
  2. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is developed by GSC Game World, a Ukrainian studio affected by the Russian invasion, impacting their development process. Some team members relocated to the Czech Republic, while others remained in Kyiv, showcasing their resilience.
  3. The reviewer emphasizes the unfinished state of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, citing poor performance, game-breaking bugs, and underdeveloped systems as reasons for not recommending the game currently. The expectation is that the game will improve in the future.
  4. Despite its current flaws, the game has moments of brilliance, such as immersive experiences in the wasteland, engaging encounters with rival groups, and rewarding discoveries of new weapons or armor.
  5. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is described as a challenging and deliberately frustrating game, designed to test players' endurance. It offers a raw, immersive experience without the conveniences of typical AAA games, appealing to a niche audience.
  6. The game is compared to Fallout, but without the 'training wheels,' offering a more stripped-down, challenging experience focused on survival and exploration in a dangerous environment.
  7. The reviewer advises against playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 in its current state due to its unfinished nature, suggesting that waiting for future updates will provide a better gaming experience.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is currently unplayable

  1. The game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is currently plagued with severe performance issues, making it unplayable on some PCs. Users have reported crashes during shader compilation, and even high-end systems struggle to run the game smoothly.
  2. On a high-end PC with an RTX 4090, i9 13900K, and 64GB RAM, the game was tested at 4K max settings without DLSS and FSR, resulting in a laggy and inconsistent 40 FPS. Adjusting settings and enabling DLSS improved FPS to around 60, but with significant fluctuations, especially in towns where FPS could drop to 30-40.
  3. The FPS numbers are misleading as the game feels much slower than reported, with 60 FPS feeling like 40 and 30 FPS feeling like 20. Even with DLSS 3 frame generation and Nvidia Reflex, the game remains sluggish and inconsistent.
  4. The game's visual appeal is marred by numerous glitches, including texture popping, warped textures, and broken lighting and reflections. These issues detract from the game's potential beauty, which is evident in its environment design and weather effects.
  5. Lighting issues are prevalent, with transitions between internal and external spaces often resulting in incorrect lighting. Reflections are also problematic, with unrealistic light reflections and inconsistent internal lighting, making it difficult to discern intentional design from glitches.

Game plagued by bugs and glitches

  1. The game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is currently not ready for launch due to significant performance issues, numerous bugs, and imbalanced design elements. These problems severely impact the gaming experience, making it advisable to wait before playing.
  2. One of the major issues is the poor visibility during gameplay, such as firefights in dark environments where players are forced to shoot blindly due to lack of lighting. This realistic approach negatively affects playability.
  3. A persistent visual effect simulating radiation poisoning cannot be disabled, causing discomfort to players. This effect, along with other visual glitches like floating objects and flickering UI elements, detracts from the visual experience.
  4. Audio issues are even more disruptive, with a major glitch causing weapon sounds to fail, which diminishes the immersion during combat. Positional audio is unreliable, misleading players about enemy locations, which complicates gameplay.
  5. Quest-related bugs are prevalent, such as objectives not updating in the UI, leading players to waste time on already completed tasks. This can be frustrating and time-consuming.
  6. A specific bug related to the player's stash location caused significant inconvenience, as the stash was not where the map indicated, leading to unnecessary encumbrance and wasted time searching for it.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is currently unplayable

  1. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is currently plagued with numerous bugs and performance issues, making it unfit for launch. The game suffers from critical bugs that affect gameplay, such as incorrect map markers and audio misfires, which severely impact the player's experience.
  2. The game is still technically playable, but the frequency and severity of the bugs make it a frustrating experience. The reviewer reached a point where they had to stop playing due to these issues, despite understanding the challenges faced by the developers.
  3. The game is set in a vast wasteland, similar to Fallout 3 and 4, but without the AAA polish. It features a main quest line and various side encounters, but the experience is described as arduous and unforgiving.
  4. The storyline is based on the novel 'Roadside Picnic,' but it takes a long time to become engaging. The reviewer spent 25 hours in the game and found the plot confusing and meandering for the majority of that time.
  5. The game's introduction is particularly off-putting, lasting 45 minutes and failing to explain core game systems. This results in players dying due to a lack of understanding and facing unclear objectives.
  6. Overall, the game makes a poor first impression, with issues like over-encumbrance and unclear objectives adding to the frustration. The reviewer advises against spending time or money on the game in its current state.

Stalker 2 excels in exploration, not story

  1. The introduction of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is widely criticized, with many agreeing it is poorly executed. However, the game improves after the title card, though the main story remains weak and lacks engaging characters.
  2. The protagonist in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is minimally developed, with little personality, and the story feels like a wild goose chase for the first 15 hours. Even when the plot becomes clearer, it remains unconvincing.
  3. Players are advised not to engage with S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 for its story, as it is not the game's strong suit. Instead, the game is recommended for its exploration, side content, and core gameplay, which allow players to create their own narratives.
  4. The game draws inspiration from the book 'Roadside Picnic,' which tells the story of treasure hunters, or stalkers, who explore a zone filled with dangerous anomalies left by aliens. These anomalies defy classical physics and are highly dangerous.
  5. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2's strength lies in its depiction of the exclusion zone, a vast area filled with mysteries and dangerous anomalies. Players learn to survive these anomalies through trial and error, mirroring the journey of real stalkers in 'Roadside Picnic.'
  6. The game features a dynamic world where players encounter both friendly and hostile characters, including bandits and armed factions. These interactions often involve decision-making, adding depth to the gameplay.
  7. Players can choose how to interact with other characters, whether to help, ignore, or betray them, and the game provides enough flexibility for these decisions to feel impactful.
  8. However, some scripted encounters in the game do not work as intended, leading to unexpected outcomes, such as being attacked after helping a wounded character.

Game needs improvements before recommendation

  1. The game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is currently not ready for launch due to poor performance, numerous bugs, and imbalanced design elements. These issues significantly detract from the gaming experience.
  2. Players encounter scripted events that require specific actions to progress, which can disrupt the player's personal storytelling and immersion in the game. This rigidity in gameplay can lead to broken scenarios if not followed precisely.
  3. The game offers numerous side quests, often involving tasks like killing enemies or retrieving items. While these quests can feel like typical open-world busywork, the game's surprising elements can make them more engaging.
  4. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 focuses more on the player's personal story through exploration and decision-making rather than a fixed narrative. However, bugs and poorly scripted events often lead to disappointment, though successful moments are highly rewarding.
  5. The core gameplay loop consists of survival, combat, and stealth, all of which have significant issues. The stealth mechanics are particularly problematic, being described as broken.
  6. Survival systems in the game are underdeveloped, with elements like hunger and radiation exposure being easily managed due to abundant resources. This lack of challenge makes these systems feel superficial.
  7. The encumbrance system is notably frustrating, with a low weight limit that quickly leads to encumbrance, slowing movement and draining stamina. This system is seen as a major hindrance to gameplay enjoyment.

Game hindered by bugs and design flaws

  1. The game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is currently not recommended due to significant performance issues, numerous bugs, and poorly designed elements that affect gameplay.
  2. Players experience frustration with the game's encumbrance system, which limits the amount of items they can carry, forcing them to walk slowly back to base without fast travel options.
  3. A critical mission exacerbates this issue by providing an item that exceeds the weight limit, requiring players to traverse long distances while encumbered, which detracts from the enjoyment of the game.
  4. Combat mechanics are a mix of positive and negative aspects; while the gunplay is satisfying with a focus on tactility and recoil, the AI is inconsistent, sometimes clever but often lacking intelligence.
  5. The variety of mutant enemies is limited, with many feeling like reskinned versions of the same type, leading to repetitive and uninteresting encounters.
  6. Mutant enemies often employ straightforward attack patterns, running directly at the player, which necessitates carrying a shotgun for effective defense, reducing combat diversity.
  7. Stealth mechanics are fundamentally broken, with enemies able to detect players unrealistically, even through walls, making stealth approaches ineffective and frustrating.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 needs more development

  1. The stealth mechanics in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 are currently flawed, making it difficult to perform silent takedowns without alerting nearby guards. This undermines the game's theme of stalking, suggesting a need for significant improvements in stealth gameplay.
  2. The survival elements in the game are currently placeholders, but with future balancing or mods, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 could offer a compelling survival experience that enhances exploration.
  3. Combat against human enemies is generally well-executed, but battles with mutant enemies require further development to improve the overall gameplay experience.
  4. The core gameplay elements of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 are a mix of impressive and unfinished features, with none being polished enough to justify enduring their current shortcomings.
  5. GSC Game World has announced plans for future updates, including two DLC expansions and a multiplayer mode, which are expected to bring technical improvements, bug fixes, and quality of life changes.
  6. The anticipated timeline for resolving the game's issues is estimated to be 12 to 18 months, indicating a long-term commitment to enhancing the game post-launch.
  7. Despite its current state, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 captures the unique fantasy, setting, and vibe of its predecessors, suggesting potential for a compelling survival RPG experience once fully developed.
  8. The reviewer expresses hope that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 will eventually become a game worth revisiting, similar to the original titles, which were also buggy at launch but became highly regarded over time.
  9. The recommendation is to wait for future updates before playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, as the current version is not recommended due to its unfinished state.

Nvidia enhances gaming with AI technology

  1. Nvidia's GPUs are essential for demanding games like S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, providing necessary power for high performance.
  2. Beyond raw power, Nvidia GPUs feature proprietary technology that enhances hardware capabilities, such as Nvidia DLSS 3.
  3. DLSS 3 uses AI to generate additional frames, potentially doubling or tripling frame rates in games, enhancing performance significantly.
  4. This technology allows for over 100 FPS at max settings and 4K resolution, which is otherwise unattainable without DLSS 3.
  5. DLSS 3 is supported by a wide range of games, including new releases like Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered and Red Dead Redemption on PC.
  6. Nvidia Reflex is another feature that improves gameplay responsiveness, supported by many games alongside DLSS 3.
  7. Over 600 games are enhanced by Nvidia's RTX technology, with more being added monthly, showcasing the impact of AI-powered gaming enhancements.