Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl developer GSC Game World has outlined its first post-launch patch, which aims to make a number of key fixes.
GSC’s post-apocalyptic first-person horror shooter has enjoyed a big launch, with over one million copies sold since going on sale last week. But it's dragged down by significant bugs and crash issues (check out IGN’s Stalker 2 review for more).
Now, the developers have revealed what players can expect from the first update, due out this week on both PC and the Xbox Series X and S versions of the game. Highlights include much-needed crash fixes, main quest progression fixes, graphics fixes, and adjustments to NPC behavior.
GSC said future updates will make analogue stick dead zone bugfixes and A-Life system bugfixes. Free in-game content is also coming to the game - expect more on that when GSC shares its roadmap later in December.
To help you survive in the Zone, we've got a list of Essential Stalker 2 Tips and Tricks, plus a guide on Things to Do First in Stalker 2 to help you through the early game, and Things Stalker 2 Doesn't Tell You - everything we wish we knew before we started playing. Save time scouring the wasteland with our Artifacts checklist and locations guide, and every Stash location we've found so far.
Stalker 2 suffered a number of understandable delays, most recently in July when the game was due out in September. GSC said at the time that the extra two months would give the developers the chance to fix "unexpected anomalies," aka bugs.
GSC has also been vocal about the challenges the studio faced getting Stalker 2 up to scratch after a mixed reaction to its debut public showing last year. At gamescom 2023, GSC addressed what some had called a “downgrade” sparked by Stalker 2’s then latest gameplay trailer. At the time, GSC told IGN it was still targeting a visual quality and level of polish suggested by Stalker 2’s eye-catching 2021 trailer despite the horrendous conditions suffered by the staff amid the war with Russia.
Stalker 2: Heart of Chornoby’s first post-launch update patch notes:
Crash Fixes, including:
- Issues and memory allocation failures, which previously caused the game to exit unexpectedly, particularly around rendering, skeletal meshes, and quest-related cutscenes.
Main Quest Progression Fixes, including:
- Several bugs blocking the main quest progression, NPCs getting stuck in objects, incorrect quest markers, and issues with quest cutscenes.
- Revision of the main quests (like Visions of Truth or A Minor Incident) to ensure smooth transitions, avoiding rare cases of players not being able to proceed further.
Gameplay & Balance Adjustments, including:
- Fixing the price of the weapons with upgrades installed compared to their value without attachments.
- NPCs behavior, including the way they act when lacking a shelter during the Emissions.
Cutscenes & Visual Fixes, including:
- Rarely missing facial animations, misplaced NPCs, and visual inconsistencies like detached heads and clothes clipping.
- Quality and stability improvements of the visual effects.
Softlock Fixes, including:
- Issue where players were unable to close the trade screen after putting ammo in a wrong slot while playing on a gamepad.
User Interface Improvements, including:
- Quest notifications now showed correctly during dialogues.
- Corrected texts and missing interaction prompts.
Noted to be addressed in future updates:
- Analogue sticks dead zones bugfixes.
- A-Life system bugfixes.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
