S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 seems like it will be well worth the wait

This story is part of our Summer Gaming Marathon series.

Rumblings about a sequel to the cult classic S.T.A.L.K.E.R, an atmospheric, yet janky supernatural shooter set within the radioactive zone around Chornobyl, have been around since 2010. The current version of the sequel from GSC Game World has been discussed since 2020. It was initially going to launch as early as April 2022, but due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, its development has been rife with delays, and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl was pushed back again and again, all the way until this September.

With only a few months to go until launch, GSC Game World finally had the game playable at Summer Game Fest this year. I went hands-on with S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, and it’s shaping up to be a brutal survival shooter that will be well worth the wait.

During my demo of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, I played through the first 30 minutes or so of the game. From the get-go, it’s clear that the game takes place in a brutal and unforgiving world, with the player character physically threatening the very person who’s helping him sneak into the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. From there, I had to slowly sneak through cracks in walls as I hid from helicopters flying overhead that were looking for intruders. I also saw some of the supernatural happenings of the Exclusion Zone, too, and immediately felt like something was off and unsafe. I was eventually able to get into the Exclusion Zone safely (for now), and my next task was to look for a bunker with the information I needed.

Of course, everyone was dead when I got there; that seems like it will be a common sight in the Exclusion Zone. After recovering what I needed, I was back out in the harsh outdoors environment and got to see some of its supernatural occurrences for myself. There are radiated puddles players will sometimes have to navigate through to pick stuff up, and small electric currents can overtake parts of the ground when certain objects are activated. That’s not to