I’ve been waiting for this game for a long time. Not just since the announcement — but since I sat next to my dad years ago watching him play Shadow of Chernobyl. That first exposure to the Zone etched itself into my brain. I didn’t know what anomalies were, and I didn't really caught the gist of the story. I didn’t care. It was the atmosphere that stuck.
14 years passed. I grew up. The games stayed with me, though. I've completed the original games multiple times, I know the stories by heart. There's something in particular in this universe that never truly lets you go.
When the sequel was released, it felt like I was being called back - not just to a game, but to something personal. Something unfinished. Then it stumbled.
I spent my first hour in the game cranking the settings up and down in order to squeeze out a few additional frames just for the game to become stable enough. Okay, I get it, Unreal Engine 5, Lumen, yada, yada, yada, but the squeeze was not worth the juice. In some particular moments all this unsettled graphic jumble just begins to flicker or/and ghost.
Still, if not for these particular moments, games looks clean and crisp. New assets look cool, the reimagination of the old landmarks hold you in an awe. Zone really is alive,
The story is a touchy subject. The game, obvious as it is, wasn't quite ready for the release date, and it shows how abruptly some story points come and go without further elaboration. Side content also lacks despite the game having a whole lot of places for it to unfold. Still, I think that it is one of the most thrilling story projects that came out in recent years. No game has gripped me as tight as Stalker 2, storywise. The story throws various metaphors and rhetoric questions into you and feels no remorse in playing on your soul's strings. Many people didn't like it that much as I did - and I wholeheartedly understand it. It's controversial, to say the least. but still is sharp and very dramatic.
Gameplay-wise, Stalker 2 has its moments of brilliance, especially when the world and AI systems work as intended. Crucial point - when. That's where the game's foundation begins to crumble. The gameplay has sufficed a downgrade from the previous parts. Promised A-Life 2.0 simulation was scrapped by release and the spawn system worked as in Far Cry, where the game would spawn ♥♥♥♥ around you without said simulation. This feature is yet to be restored in the future patches, if we were to believe the developers update roadmap. Mutants are nothing special, really. The only few additions were chemical and electrical poltegheists and psy-deer. Both lack featurewise and are, as all the current mutants, just a simple bullet-sponges. You shoot them until they die without any strategy at all. The fights against pseudogiants and psy-dog are just pure struggle and suffering. Artifact hunting has sufficed a downgrade too. Reset timers are now linked to a ingame timer, not to an Emission, which breaks the immersion and reworks an working game mechanic in a worse way. Gunplay feels good and dandy, guns really are the strong point of the game. They sound good, they are animated well, and there's satisfying physicality to it. However, the exploring element of the game lacks. Stashes are not worth to be found, and while the world and locations are beautiful and it's interesting to look and lurk around - in 99% of the cases you won't find anything of value.
Despite the rough edges, the bugs, and overall flawed impression, I can’t bring myself to walk away. Because beneath it all, Stalker 2 has a soul - and it’s the same soul that made me fall in love with the series all those years ago. It speaks softly, through atmosphere, through quiet stories, through the feeling of standing alone under a leaden sky. And even when it falters, it keeps trying.

The developers clearly care. You can see it in the patches, in the writing, in the way the world is built not just to impress, but to be remembered. The Zone isn’t done yet - neither in story, nor in spirit. And if they keep listening, keep polishing, and keep believing in what they’ve started, I think it’ll grow into something truly unforgettable.

So here I am, still wandering. Still listening.
Because the Zone never really lets you go.
And honestly? I’m okay with that.