Why This “Broken” Release is Better Than Most Modern Games

[@cantgameright]

Yay! Patch 1.1 was HUGE and was an immediate improvement to A-life along with MANY fixes! Maybe the game can be considered "finished" now? What do you think?

[@Sekhatt]

Nope, they still need to fix whatever keeps making my performance tanks after an hour of playing ;P

[@cantgameright]

@Sekhatt maybe I can help, sounds like a memory issue, how much ram and vram you got?

[@lifedecoded9842]

@@Sekhatt i noticed lowering textures helped with that on my end

[@JohnSmith-dq7sr]

I tried playing the first stalker game and it kept crashing for me, though i was a kid, so might have been skill issue on my end😅 played and loved all the metro games. Ive had a great time in stalker 2 so far, the quest breaking bugs is my main issue. Im looking forward to experiencing a life now that I'm 3 days in 😂

[@marceloalejandro8228]

It won't be finished 'till they add back the entirety of the cut labs and Jupiter factory, at least for me Other than that 10/10

[@awkwardGardener]

It's difficult to describe just how happy I was when I realized that Stalker 2 was actually just more Stalker. It wasn't something changed to do popular new things, it was more of what we loved about the old games. It's a game that is actually what I wanted in a sea of disappointing new releases.

[@SloopJohnB91]

absolutely. part of me just expected it would be a little more linear and streamlined like Metro. The original trilogy always required a bit of imagination to believe you were in this big open world but now you can actually walk from one end of the zone to the other on this massive map. Part of me still can't believe we have STALKER 2, and while it's not perfect, it is better than what I expected. Can't wait to see what the modders do to this in a few years time.

[@eagleone5456]

You guys are delusional.

[@fatcheech1]

​@@eagleone5456how? The game is terrific and after today's patch is the full package amazing stalker experience everyone wanted. So wtf are you talking about?

[@DoctorDeathFPS]

I never been so happy to play such a frustrating anomalous, broken,beautiful mess!

[@DoctorDeathFPS]

@@SloopJohnB91the fact that there no loading screens between areas is wonderful!!!! So much more immersive!

[@S0RGEx]

A broken game can be fixed, and an unfinished game can be completed. An uncompelling, safe game can't be made more engaging.

[@fluffywolfo3663]

conversely, a broken but ambitious game that tried something is a hundred times more memorable than a safe game that didn't. Like, think of Borderlands 1 - balance was like a bull in a china shop, no story, but the guns and rpg elements got the franchise pretty far. Meanwhile, who remembers Rage 1?

[@shogun5411]

Well, I’m from Kyiv, and my family has some connection to Chornobyl story. The relative got a serious illness, presumably due to radiation received in 1986 and left us in 2021. For me and a lot of my people this world like something personal. I read the first books on Stalker when I was, I don't know - about 15 years? I was afraid from some point that I would just not live to see the game (well, you know). But, here we go. And yesterday I got news - Here’s 1.1 Patch. More fun is thing that I’m already in Pripyat for now, like the rest 10% who played this game) And I feel that I need to start new game, in case of A Life turn on

[@purple_1884]

Was happy to hear that game is already making profit. Stalker franchise has a bright future

[@schizojinx2247]

Stalker 2 is actually the future of the franchise and it is truly bright. Like 15 years ago Stalker clear sky got a article on the only game magazine in my country (which sadly gone bankrupt a few years later), so to see the all the hype and positive reviews from the community really makes me so glad for the devs for all the love they deserved.

[@feanor7080]

Modders will make this game one of the best of all time in a year or so. Mark my words.

[@chalounov]

They will. ​@@feanor7080

[@SteelBallsOfCopper]

Eh, you don't want it to become a popular franchise. Look at CD Project Red and what they will soon so to the Witcher.

[@purple_1884]

@SteelBallsOfCopper You have problem with woman being a main protagonist? Game's not even out yet

[@jack80156]

I was on the mission that Scar asked me to set Emitter in Promin. Cost me like 3 real days to finished it. I took detour after detour after detour after more detours because I need to run all the way from Rostok to Promin and I keep getting distracted. Finding new stash coordinates, little secrets, skirmishes which lead to more stuffs, hauling all those side loots back to Rostok and repeat. Whenever I set up my mind to Promin, another interesting thing drag me away from it. That's what I call an adventure. It's an experience you won't find in modern go to X to do Y games.

[@finegent96]

Amen exactly why I can’t put the game down. I usually can’t stop rushing to main objectives for dopamine hits but this game is a constant adventure, thought I was starting to outgrow the hobby until I played this the first time a couple weeks ago

[@stanislavkimov2779]

I suppose adventure is when you need to plan the logistics. Not just rush the MMO/Ubisoft-style map with dozens of markers, while you have an endless inventory and fast-travel.

[@estai3409]

Done around 400 hours as for now. I did finish the main quest, got my own best ending... And loaded last save before "noncomeback" part of the game. I want to find EVERYTHING! Tiniest stash with few bottles of vodka and several shots for pistol would bring me more joy than hours spent in CoD or Assassin's Creed. Just because it is hard to reach, because i'm sure that there are a lot of people who gave up, and also because it proves me that i can figure out how to reach that exact stash. It is very similar to "IKEA effect". When you buy, dunno, a chair somewhere it won't be so worthy as a chair from IKEA, because you made some effort to make that chair from details. And no frozen pizza will be able to compete with homemade. And i get exactly that feeling from finding new easter egg or reaching very complicated area to collect things that i don't even need. It's joy, a feeling games used to deliver. Finally i feel it again 🥳🥳🥳

[@_The_God_King_]

Yeah man; im about 130 hrs in; i had stopped exploring as much to wait todo that with A-Life implemented but man the endings are really cool. I dont have much to complain about with them. (I do but its minor) Its a real gem of a game; it might be rough around the edges at the moment, but it shines and can be cut into somehing priceless.

[@nightdog007]

true! I'm just forsed myself to stop going on all stuff around and finish the story to replay from the clear beginning with all fixes and a-life with desire to try another ending, yet i'm played 130 hours and still didn't actually discovered even a half of all stuff that game have there to be found

[@rageplays89]

I went from playing Black Ops 6 (which I deleted shortly after the Christmas update in frustration) to this game... Stalker 2 blew me away, all imperfections aside. This is what passionate game development looks like. We need more companies with this passion.

[@DmytrykTHEGAMER]

+1000000!❤

[@Bigdolfmoney]

This is my first stalker game and I’m loving it. About 70hrs into it on Xbox series x

[@PerfectDeath4]

Took me 93 hours to finish the story; though I did rush the later stages of the game because I wanted to see were the story would go.

[@MrSomethingLost]

Welcome to the Lore fellow Stalker.

[@CplHunter1027]

I'm in the exact same boat, both it being my first stalker game and playing on the Xbox.

[@hexen9946]

It is great that you liked it! But also it is kinda not full story without previous games, because many main characters from Stalker 2 were also main guys in previous games, and it is crazy to see where their story have gone after all that

[@MrSomethingLost]

@@hexen9946 Damn.. that feeling when you recognize locations from the older games in stalker 2. its such a great experience :)

[@Artem_Borodii]

Much love from Ukraine)

[@Maartwo]

Love to Ukraine too. Got many Ukrainian friends and colleagues at work. Very great people.

[@GoeHybrid]

Слава Украине!

[@perturbatorya9451]

stay safe bro

[@handsomejamesgrandinternet2106]

Cheers from sunny Zaporizhzhia:)

[@dog5778]

The amount of call backs in the game was amazing. Not just the big stuff. The little references are great. My personal favorite is the description of the veteran vintar, which is something loners could say around campfires in call of Pripyat.

[@wrmusic8736]

yeah for anyone who played the original three - it's chock full of lore connections as well as recurring minor characters... some of which turn into major characters

[@subpar5360]

When I read that description I thought it sounded so familiar, blew my mind when I realized that.

[@domainmojo2162]

Hope they got the guy from the very 1st mission- "Let's go on and be heroes!"

[@giantnerd14]

I forget where it is, but you can find a building made up like the menu screen from Shadow of Chernobyl.

[@o0XxShimmyxX0o]

Jokes aside, one of the best if not the best essay about the new STALKER, -the transition to the Linkin Park concert and the underlying connection about accepting the shortcomings of a clear passion project was smooth af. You spoke exactly my thoughts I didn't quite verbalize yet.

[@AllisterCaine]

Yep. I raged at the bugs while full on fanboying this game like it's Christmas and my birthday at the same time... 😅 We all know where this game will get. It will have a place in our hearts for the next 17 years, and I am absolutely golden with that. Let's play ALL the mods 😂

[@tyronesalterego2199]

04:30-04:50 is exactly why i pre ordered the game without having played the OG games at a point where i knew nothing about the Stalker universe outside of the 1972 movie. And for the same reason, i just clocked 100 hours, and have only left SIRCAA recently. The "cultural fidelity" and level of detail and respect that went into it, the tiny nuances and nods to our culture, are immensely well made. But it isn't only that, it is a gateway. And also a statement. I, an adult man, cried tears of joy to see my history and culture being represented in a game like this. Btw, does anyone know what music is playing during this bit?

[@ashroskell]

I had no clue what I was doing for the first 30 to 40 hours of the game. Hadn’t played the first one and didn’t even have a grasp of what my real goals were in all that time. Not sure I really understand it now? If it wasn’t for the brown markers that delineate the main quest, I wouldn’t have a Scooby Doo what the main quest is! But I am LOVING it! I haven’t been bored for a single moment. I lost sleep over whether to betray a fellow stalker at the Poppy Field so I could get paid twice. I gave him what he wanted, got the location of an awesome gun from him, then shot him and took back an icon that I’d already promised someone else. It showed me I can’t be trusted, but like the world, in the absence of witnesses, it doesn’t care, doesn’t judge me. That is unique in gaming in my experience.

[@nightdog007]

If you checked his stash you may aknowledge that you did the right thing because that dude tricking other stalkers to came into anomaly, die there and loot them all after that

[@ashroskell]

@ : Oh, he was clearly a bad guy, since he even says as much and makes a little speech about how a, “true stalker,” looks out for themselves above all other considerations. It’s clearly a test case for the player. But that makes me no better than him, at best.

[@nightdog007]

@@ashroskell well, the hint already was given by quest giver when he said that nobody normal will live at that field :D

[@ashroskell]

@ : Indeed. I still agonised over it, since it felt like a crossing point. I had to decide what kind of Stalker I was going to be. He didn’t see it coming in the end. I became neither hero nor villain, but an anti-hero, which is how I’ve played the game since. To borrow (paraphrase) from the Bard, “As I am I do not seek battle, nor as I am, do I shun it.” Especially if there’s something to be gained from it.

[@rix1602]

The main difference between games such as Starfield and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is that I can easily picture how to fix one without changing core aspects of the game. In order to fix S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 you have to get A-Life to Work, improve performance, fix some remaining bugs and bring some QoL back like player stats, PDA detailled info, maybe a "global chat" and some more visual distinction between factions... I don't see how to fix Starfield without reworking all planets, changing the main quest fondamentally and moddifying the gameplay loop to be more enjoyable.

[@Ronhulsasha]

Patch 1.1 fixes all major bugs to me (fps drops everywhere), i'm playing without issues now. How many time was needed to fix other "broken" games?

[@NotRealChandlerBing]

What you mean? Is there any increase of fps in the patch?

[@joaocardoletto]

I can confirm that, Patch 1.1 made it more stable for me, even with more things happening on the map.

[@pira707]

@@NotRealChandlerBing not really. Some parts will still tank fps, and despite all the delusional fanboyism going on my 9800x3d struggles. I changed my dlss to every single option and none of them worked it's cpu bound until they fix it.

[@Ronhulsasha]

@@NotRealChandlerBing idc, but i increased my settings from middle to almost all epic and have stable 30+ fps on 3060 laptop, without fps drops, before i have 60 locked with constand drops to 8-15

[@myron_2402]

​@@NotRealChandlerBingA minor, but what's he talking about is that before there was a bug where fps could randomly drop to 7, and now it's gone.

[@MarakMocam]

A little story about a great success that went out of business to make more money. The business was Radio Shack. They sold all sorts of electronic components to make things so electronic people, from hobbyists through professionals, would come to them to buy parts but they also sold other things like the Tandy computer systems and the Xenix OS (a derivative of the older Unix systems). They sold all sorts of electronic items and people, who'd come in for the components & such, would often buy other things - which sold for more and higher profits. As such, the "bean counters" recommended getting rid of all those stupid components that weren't selling and focus on the high profit electronics stuff. That showed a short-term increase in revenue followed by a complete collapse of the chain. People would come in to buy the parts they needed and when those parts weren't there anymore, they stopped coming in - which was why they bought the other stuff, just buying "neat things" on top of what they had come there for.

[@jaysherman2615]

I remember that. I would go to Radio Shack for project components and over time I wouldn't be able to find a single useful component. I feel like they could have become a electrical supply store for commercial, industrial and hobbyist purposes and made a success in that niche part of the economy. Instead they tried becoming a Best Buy with a tenth of the inventory and floor space. -

[@majorgruber5925]

Yeah, I was so suspicious that it was just going to be a "by the numbers" recreation of the original games. And the tutorial/introduction made me even more nervous. But once I'd entered Garbage, all my doubts were pretty much swept away. It is the company's love letter to fans. I'm about 65 hours in and finally poised to head into the Swamp to continue the story. It's a constant set of distractions and diversions as I find more and more to explore as I go. The first time I got stuck in water due to being over-burdened, and hopped back to a safe depth, it was almost a deja vu experience - "noted and will have to take that into account from now on." So olde skool. Nice reflection. Will be looking forward to the next.

[@artemorlov2082]

When this video appeared on recommendations, I didn't even expect that it would be also about Stalker) As ukrainian and also LP fan, thanks for the video, it was pleasure to watch it

[@colonel__klink7548]

Stalker 2 did something that is really incredible. It kept core structural aspects of the original (though A-life is JUST starting to come to life. My first time beating it.. the game was utterly empty...) However what they did is took the storytelling to a whole new level. I even went back to beat Shadow of Chernobyl again after stalker 2? I was actually dissapointed on how little storytelling with the main plot and concepts there was and how hard it is to even find it. None of it is lain out well in your PDA and the NPCS don't tell you much. Just "we merchants want to get to the center of the zone and you're the guy who will do it. " It's cumbersome enough that I only wound up getting the true ending because I knew that i had to trigger the mission at some point and checked my pda for it just before dealing with the brain scorcher. However Stalker 2 is organic and the lore building is so great. I fought through, i fought EVERYONE, literally everyone and the ending actually shocked me. But the strangest thing? I didn't feel like I was duped. I actually laughed delighted. All the clues in retrospect were there. Everything lined up. The details added up and the ending was so much more profound and possibly beautiful as a result. And i see clues supporting the other endings too so I'm curious now, i'm going to try the ward one and see where it tkes me. Stalker 1 never gave me that feeling. Stalker: Call of Pripyat was like "what... what did I even accomplish?"

[@n0vi]

CoP's whole point is investigating downed choppers. That's what you're there to do and you do it.

[@PerfectDeath4]

Most people were disappointed with CoP's story since it really wasn't much outside of adding some extra lore. But it was a pretty good base to just pop into the zone, explore, etc. I've seen some people kinda upset about Stalker 2's story line being too linear, though, that might be due to missing A-Life stuff. Stalker 1's main story was definitely linear, probably more so.

[@colonel__klink7548]

@PerfectDeath4 I remember turning on a "spoiler free" review as I was downloading stalker 2. I turned it off just as soon as they spoiled a point that in the first town you have to pick between ward and the loners, asserting that this decision was meaningless. It actually isn't. I beat the game first with a fat middle finger to the ward (I love the zone.) Changing sides with the second playthroigh changes some stops you make, changes how characters treat you, changes cutscenss and cutscens rewards. There are THREE possible outcomes in the slag heap based on how you make this first decision. The first if you talk to stalkers, climb the tower, report to the ward when they tell you to talk to them and promise to help them but ultimately do things the stalker way instead when you get the meeting with the ward in tbe office at the slag heap you get almost thrown out when you open the door. Offered only the ward badge for helping. If you side stalker without talking to them they pin you to the table roughly and use the offer of a unique rifle for cooperation. If you go pure ward you get a new mission raiding one of the crime bosses, and later you get treated as a trusted friend at the slag heap. However they do not offer that unique rifle and only offer the badge. This early choice changes how you experience this part of rhe game in significant ways including rewards. It is in fact consequential. The story isn't linear hell it's got at least 4 endings

[@PerfectDeath4]

@@colonel__klink7548 Yeah, there are a lot of parallel routes that ultimately can lead to a similar "node" where you can branch again. Like we can side spark, then ward, then spark. Eventually you get into a no-return point in relations but it still looks like we can switch sides almost the whole way through until near the end. This does change the difficulty of things, like having the ward badge usually makes things easy until a point down the line when a group of sparkers decide they want to try and kill the player to take the badge (even if we are allied to their faction, they are semi-rogue). Making enemies with the ward seems to be harder mode especially if when done early enough, but it does net more loot! I think some people say it is linear because of these main connecting nodes and how they can't just do whatever because... I guess they want the story to adapt to everything? Like when they can't kill important NPCs. =P I get that some areas are locked out or won't spawn later quest important things so you can't just rush Pripyat after murder hoboing skif's artifact back and turning the zone into your new flat. Meme as that would be. xD

[@roman--s]

Most immersive open world game of this year. One of those that take more than month to check all world surprises without any boring quests. Any other game this year can give it? Nope. For shure game of the year. Even for those who never been fans of this world.

[@finegent96]

I don’t care what the people who don’t like the game have said, it’s not perfect but like many here stated it’s such an amazing BREAK from the BS floating around in the AAA game world , took a break from playing with friends and PvP games to play this and haven’t stopped for a week and a half, these guys made a game that makes me enjoy gaming at a time I was beginning to wonder if I was just outgrowing it since I’m almost 30, nope I just needed a game like this. Imagine stalker 3. I’ll be playing that shit in VR at age 54 if I have to to support these devs

[@bumvel1764]

Greetings from Kharkiv. Thanks for making content about stalker and show so many details in game. I love it keep going

[@JERB2012]

Funny , this video comes out at the same day as patch 1.1 which has fixed so many problems that A-life is already returning to a much more normal state.

[@bork750plays]

I love STALKER 2 so much. Overall it's everything I wanted in a sequel and it's so immersive.

[@SpooofWithThreeOs]

As a crab, I feel represented.

[@saooran7364]

Moral of the story is that linkin park new vocal is aligned with monolith?

[@paganarh]

yeah, agree. i played first stalker from launch and it was so much worse. now with the second there are problems, but right now they released a proper patch fixing a lot of scripting errors and everything works. over 100h in now and I can tell that this game really delivers

[@UrsGerber]

What a magnificent piece. I absolutely agree with your take on the industry and what it has devolved into. Stalker 2 occupies my mind even when I am not playing, something the earlier Bethesta games used to do (and of course the original Stalker trilogy). I don‘t even pay attention to the AAA releases anymore because I know its just a bunch of „safe“ and proven practices all over again. Absolutely no interest in that kind of „entertainment“. Stalker 2 is exactly what I wanted, even with the bugs (which, yes, were plenty at release). The soul was still there. And that is what so many games are missing.

[@mniakan754]

I think the reason a lot of people loved this "broken" release more was that underneath all the broken stuff the game has soul and passion behind it and it really helped that the devs were upfront about everything not to mention their country got invaded in the middle of making things

[@shinyhotdog4195]

I had a day one save with close to 40 hours, I can't play for long, wife, kid, work. 1.03 erased my save. 9/10

[@nich_nikk]

8:50 yoooo Licking Pork mentioned

[@DoctorDeathFPS]

There’s already a straight stalker rip off in the works it has anomalies artifacts emissions and the whole 9 it’s also pvpve I forget the name but just saw a video the other day pretty sure it’s a south American studio making it. It actually looks insane. We’ll see though.

[@southernbrain691]

​@@DoctorDeathFPSname?

[@JBsoloman5000]

"It's not afraid to stress the player" - man, that is such a good sentence! Couple words capturing the main problem with today's games! Top tier video!

[@ulvicster]

Great review, thanks!

[@theslavbeing335]

Wow, amazing video, man! You earned my like and a new sub. I've beat the game once, after about 90 hours, i was expecting to play it again a few months later and choose a different story path, after a lot of patches, and maybe big mods come out. But right now, i dont even know if i can wait before plunging into the zone AGAIN. That is probably the best praise i can give to a game.

[@theunamedpotato]

just came across your channel and that was a killer intro with the crab analogy, subbed

[@hushpool3915]

5:18 It was a thing even in Shadows of Chernobyl. Some guns could be used that way to eliminate that one stalker you need to be dead without triggering others. For that reason, you need to be in a blind spot of their view and one shot target through the scope. But it worked pretty much like 50%/50% chance.

[@kwork95]

Fantastic video, and I couldn't agree more. There are many games that show personality and passion. Its usually never from big studios though. Stalker 2, to me, feels like a game that had a good amount of backing. But I think thats because I've been lucky to have only a hand full of bugs, and I'm a fan of the series. Still, I think its like bg3. An example of what a game can be when the devs and/or pubs are making the game because THEY want the game.

[@lenonlewis3988]

I have never heard of the Stalker saga and then i saw this game on Xbox Game Pass and i said maybe i will take a look at this game then i was absorbed for hours and btw this happened a week ago so I still dont finish stalker 2 (im still in the second zone) and i dont think im close to finishing because im enjoying exploring new places and discovering all the places even when i got perfomance issues, i expend like 6 hours to optimize just to make the game run good or decent i fell the same as you when you mentioned that this game got you thinking about the decisions the loot what to carry what to do next even when im out working or exercising or hanging out im thinking. Now I'm already watching how to play the original trilogy with or without mods, this game brings back the good old memories of games made with love, its shocking how i never heard of this saga before. (Lastly when i heard you pronounce O G T big nutz i remember that in spanish OGT is pronounced "ojete" that in some countries means azzhole and with the big nutz on top of the name lol)

[@grimfate2657]

I largely ignored STALKER 2 because I find open world games boring and, while I loved the original STALKER games, I was expecting this one to fall in line with other open world games. I'm so glad that I was wrong! I enjoyed it so much that I am entirely willing to think of this as supporting a game through Early Access. I am actually surprised at how great this game is, considering how closely it sticks to the formula of it's 15+ year old predecessors, with some modern niceties added on top. But I suppose it isn't that surprising, considering I still play SoC every few years.

[@mikemhz]

I came here expecting motivation to buy stalker 2, but I left wanting to move back to Bogotá

[@mungojerrie86]

Cool and insightful video as always!

[@stoggs01]

Stalker 2 is easily my favorite game of 2024 and of onee my all time favorite games and its the best fps ive played since Doom Eternal.

[@EldritchMage3922]

This is my first stalker experience and I am playing it steadily but I’m waiting for a life to be better before I jump headfirst into everything it has to offer

[@EldritchMage3922]

And stalker has shown me that I need to take more risks cause I never do anything without a plan and an absurd amount of resources in game. My personal storage has hundreds of each round multiple extra weapons and a few sets of repaired armor and at least 30 artifacts

[@Neroque]

​@@EldritchMage3922I'm only 3 hours in and I realized some well placed grenades and a shotgun can finish a fight before the A.Is even shot; although it took me a while to not blow myself up....

[@FinUgShiet]

6:16 With the 1.1 patch A-Life came online!!! :D WE GOT A-LIFE NOW!!! E: Also, subscribed!

[@romamakes]

Can't thank you enough for these deep philosophical comparisons. In the world of commercial metrics and attempts to expand markets, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 feels like a beast of its own. I am glad devs made effort to enhance gameplay and overall user experience while staying loyal to their roots. The world became richer and grittier, monsters less janky and people in the game show their true nature. I lived my whole Life in Ukraine and ended up in Armed Forces of Ukraine this year, and the game resonates with me and other Ukrainians very much. Yes, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is often difficult and unforgivable, but we it aligns perfectly with struggles and experience of most Ukrainians and devs tried to encapsulate this. Even the starting scene of Skif's destroyed apartment is an attempt to visualize the experience of seeing your habitat, your whole and belongings destroyed in a moment, no matter by an artifact or a missile. And the people of Zone... Damn, they are the real monsters. In a place of anarchy and lawlessness the true human nature is awaken, and that what we see in the news about Russo-Ukraine war. The game is not playing with you with black and white labels. There is no good and no evil. There's just you trying to survive and find answers to your questions. Sorry, I know people in the West are "tired" of our war. But I'm sure GSC devs' wartime experience is what makes this game true to itself. There is no growth without pain and they proved it yet again.

[@Vraiment-breton]

Im actually stuck on a main mission where the cutscene dont trigger and nothing happens the mission is "Back to Slag Heap" if anyone can help please do it (btw im on xbox)

[@Mr-th9vh]

12.5 gb update on series x, where's the 100gb update im hearing about?

[@cantgameright]

PC got 100+ GB for 1.1 because there are probably a lot of graphical fixes for certain GPUs, I read something about RTX 3000 series fixes. Usually when patches are that big it's because there's new or reworked assets and textures in them. I've found series x performance and visuals to already be good, since I've played plenty on there as well, so I suspect that the xbox patch was smaller it didn't need heavy new assets. I already played on series x and noticed the A-life changes immediately, so we should be good to go!

[@jerbear1492]

The people covering this game be brain dead pc version makes you reinstall entire game the Xbox version doesn’t FYI the games still broken after update today this dude is glazing this game when it’s broken asf I still can’t progress my main quest

[@lenzi5119]

True about the spawns. First playthrough in Pripyat, I came across a squad fighting 2 psudodeers with everything they spawn of course. Killed the deers and after being in the area for a while after looting. It spawned the deers again.

[@EvanMan]

I was impressed by your speech bro, thanks for the video! ❤

[@Krayton86]

Why This “Broken” Release is Better Than Most Modern Games... You should deserve to play only the 1.0 version of all games!

[@aavasyagromov]

same in mind, great thought's! thanks

[@SurikatMeerkat]

A-Life in it's current form is interesting, it's only online 200m around the character and once npcs despawn it seems like not much happens in offline a-life. In the older titles you can check the PDA and see how bandits take over a spot on Garbage, and if you travel there... you can see the corpses from the fight. In Stalker 2 this is not currently possible, not to mention the lack of the stats system. But I believe the devs will keep chipping away at the engine and game and give us something truly amazing. It's a great game, but it has the potential to be even better, and I am excited for that. And happy to wait for that.

[@BeckySecretYoutube]

my over-encumbered state and slow walk speed is a sign of victory and confidence over the zone. i don't know how the hell people equip artifacts without getting radiation but i'll figure it out eventually

[@EugegeSledgehammer]

That's the spirit

[@jacobleblanc7137]

I actually agree, no new game I've played this year gave me the deep experience that this game has to offer this indie studio deserves to be recognized for making a better game than Activision has in damn near a decade

[@tricksterrino]

happy to see this kind of reviews. i hope you enjoyed the soul that devs put in the game. Also 1.3 patch bringed A-Life system back and it feels so good even in that state that it in right now. Now you can see stalkers fighting mutants or other stalkers pretty often and game doesn't feel empty anymore when you doing your carryweight stuff to the town to gain profit, you can actually die if you overencumbered, or you can get a help outta nowhere when you have hard times against double pseudogiant . I'm pretty sure it's not final, patches will upgrade game significatly. I almost finished my 2nd playthrough and i'm pretty sure i'll come back when they put final patch for one more to get this full stalker experience. As final touch my PC is complete garbage and comparable to release patch and between 1.3 patch my game almost never lagging, so they do care about increasign perfomance. Anyways. Much love from Ukraine. Thanks you dude

[@KarmaNDuality]

The most enjoyment I've had playing a game since RDR2... This feels fresh, and plays like the developers loved making this game... Which is exactly what's lacking in AAA gaming today.

[@Ifyoucanreadthisgooglebroke]

It isn't just that the broken release was still functional enough to show a game with all the traits of a great game by a dev team that cares, it is that in just a month and before they went on a holiday break they had already fixed it up enough to move up a proverbial letter grade towards fixing things. I ended up playing Veilguard and Stalker 2 back to back and the slop vs creative vision juxtaposition was downright jarring. One was technically sound but utterly vacuous. One was a broken mess of beauty. And by the time I put it down for now just a month later, it was already dramatically less broken. There is an old piece of videogame wisdom about delayed games being great once they arrive while suck lasts forever. It has not aged so well. It was getting at a good point, but it tells too incomplete a story. No Mans Sky and Cyberpunk 2077 in particular demonstrate how it doesn't tell the whole story. And Stalker 2 seems set to join that club. The more important comparison seems to me to be if the developers are artists motivated and given the resources to build something great, or exploited workers just showing up to meet corporate specifications. Because a soulless piece of slop can be feature complete and run excellently but be hopelessly outshone by a piece of art that is still being worked on. (and there is sure a conversation to be had about why it was being sold when incomplete, but that is a separate topic)

[@dparvulus]

It's not a bug, it's an anomaly

[@PerfectDeath4]

Games that push the dev's abilities and the standards always get some leeway with me. Stalker 1 was famous for this reason, janky yes, but we could see the developers were pushing things beyond their ability (also hardware ability). Heck, its why Dwarf Fortress has been one of my other beloved titles, the dorf-jank in that game can get so wild. Meanwhile DF has inspired games like Minecraft and Rimworld (also the entire colony sim genre). Rimworld interestingly enough is like a combination of Dwarf Fortress and Prison Architect (Which had a VERY well designed UI). Rimworld then became the basis for a LOT of new colony sim style games. The same has happened with Stalker 1, yet most of the games inspired by it havn't fully replicated some of the risky and difficult mechanics choosing to adopt parts.

[@Madimonster64]

Stalker 2's release and the updates after it are my goty

[@pistonzulecki2137]

i was extatic when it came out but with every hour i played more flaws became apparent and the enjoyment of the game came crashing down hade good fun for 50h than it was mid need to w8 for the game to be fixed

[@beadoggie720]

I have to thank Skif's pistol for carrying me the whole game

[@pistonzulecki2137]

cant agree the game launched in a inacceptable state one in 4 quests were bugged af or even blocked and a huge portion of people werent able to finish the game / progress the main quest. playing this game in the first days took me back to the times when i was a game tester i hade to get a mod that unlocks dev console to do quests/play the game dont get me wrong i love the game but without talking about the flaws and only praising the game it gives game makers a wrong idea that this is acceptable.

[@flunterklufin485]

One thing I absolutely appreciate is the gentle stream of updates fixing the game it turned my palythrough from oh great 2 more fucking bloodsuckers to oh shit is that group of hogs or snorks I haven’t seen that in a while

[@Proidysweet]

Wow this video is really freaking good! Not some generic type of gaming vids you usually see on YT. Keep up the good work! Stalker 2 is a realisation, that it's not me who stopped loving games, but the games stopped being good. I feel like a kid launching a video game for the first time, man. What an incredible feeling.

[@SteelxWolf]

Jordan Peterson: Lobsters This guy: ITS ALL CRAB

[@Nikkhochen]

holy list gang

[@cantgameright]

[@archetype4566]

​@@cantgamerightъуй ъудеш?

[@MastakUa.]

I can say this. For us, stalker 2 is an attempt to make the Ukrainian identity entrenched in the minds of players. So that they know that this is a UKRAINIAN game, made by developers from Ukraine. Some are fighting to return alive and play stalker. That's how important it is for us. One of the actors was a soldier, he was returning from the assault, he went to Kyiv to act (this actor was the face of Scar). For Ukrainians, this game means a lot. We are grateful to GCS for everything they have done for Ukraine. They are probably the only amazing company in the world that has a real family-like attitude towards employees. They left salaries for those who went to war, they secretly hired buses a month before the war, which were located near the studio office. This is a real family

[@Elendalar]

I played about 100 hrs and the only real bugs I had was: Gray screen when cought in gravity anamolies. Guide dissapear in Yarniv after monolith attack and UI missing (fixed with pressing esc) after some cutsceanes. Really its not as bad as you make it out to be. On the other hand I recognise areas and even buildings from the previous STALKER games, all the DLC and main areas now come beutifully togeather in the best STALKER game to date. The Gunplay is also great, with the best weapon animations since Escape from Tarkov. Id take this rough gem over any of the supposed triple A games made in the last 5 years.

[@NaqrSeranvis]

I like how you compare it to Starfield. Though I've played that game a lot and found it somewhat engaging, though it does say a lot when I say I spent most time either in shipbuilder or making my outposts produce every single component I needed to build reactors - in right proportions, while the story part was... yep, you got it, barely interesting. And I approached the game with assumption that it wasn't going to be complete on launch - I fully expected it to be just a framework for modders to fix and develop further. But after months of both playing, modding and sharing my experiences with other modders... I just came to conclusion that Starfield cannot be fixed with mods, because it's problems don't lie in lack of or broken content. Its' problems lie at the very core of its' gameplay, and to fix that the whole game would have to be made again from scratch. Fortunately, that is not Stalker 2's case. The game is unfinished, lacks important features that I really miss (like completely absent night vision), but it has the climate, the atmosphere. And it was fun to play, even though I have a feeling I've skipped a lot of content, so there is definitely a space for reruns.

[@toasttoni]

absolutely love the commentary, amazing vid. thank you youtube for making me see it.

[@hoblon]

It's funny how S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2 patches make reviews obsolete before they even uploaded to KZbin =)

[@maxstepaniuk4355]

Does anyone know the name of the tune on the background around 16:24?

[@cantgameright]

yes. It's from the OST, the track is called "The Subtle World"

[@javierbayon741]

I bought the ultimate edition and I also thought to myself that I should lie to myself since I payed so much for such a disappointment, but I acknowledged it and decided to be an adult about it. It's not just A-Life, it's performance, Ai having laser aim at 1km, not being able to upgrade guns, the game feeling more like a movie more than an actual videogame with cool functionalities, stamina, not being able to jump knee height obstacles... And yeah yeah Ukraine, and the war, and blah blah blah, it's as if I ripped you off and said but hey my grandma died while I was planing on how to rob you, so it's technically your fault and you cant get mad. You wouldn't care would you?

[@subpar5360]

Hey man really loved your framing device for this review. Loved the video. Keep it up!

[@MylesOfStylez]

stalker 2 is genuinely one of the best games i have played in so long and it pains me to see how little positive recognition its getting,

[@LoRdLoSs-yr8nd]

Thanks for reminding me about the steam game awards, Stalker 2 just got another 2 votes and I haven't even played it yet. In fact, I haven't played any of the games that could be voted for. I just knew Stalker 2 deserves it and I will enjoy the game at my leisure once I upgrade my pc. I just hope that I can disable TAA and play the game without antialiasing once I do. Прип'ять мене знову кличе.

[@Ahmeesijb]

Misha, thanks for video. Can you give song names from stalker 2 in this video?

[@KingofPNL]

If you are like me and you don't like stalker 2 in its current state, pick up all stalker games and go through them. you will have a blast and the devs will have more time to make stalker 2 great again!

[@MrGomjabber]

Even in it's current state it's a masterpiece. I loved the original games and I didn't think this one could deliver what the previous games did and I am wrong. Its far better, even with it's faults at this point.

[@halo3soap114]

I wish you could talk to more of the NPCs. I want lore dumps!

[@danielvazquez3885]

When i am at work i am mostly thinking -man i really gotta find a technician that can upgrade my saiga 12 But when i play i just end up exploring more and more in the areas i already explored because i STILL have stuff to do there Last time i got so engaged with a game i think it was warframe Man i really need to play warframe too

[@PallavBhardwaj-dry_ice_cool]

sure gsc is indie should have been priced as such, and how broken the game is they should have released it as early access as you said unfinished and that is NOT acceptable

[@alexrenner5117]

Great review bro)

[@Xplorer304]

What is the soundtrack at ~4:30? I think I heard it somewhere

[@cantgameright]

Probably. It's from the STALKER 2 OST

[@Xplorer304]

@@cantgameright but which track exactly?

[@cantgameright]

@@Xplorer304 i think "Embrace" was the name

[@Xplorer304]

@@cantgameright ah, Skif ending. Indeed👍

[@cantgameright]

@@Xplorer304 yeah, there's nothing I could have kept secret that wouldn't come out into the open.

[@tim8938]

Actually good video. STALKER is a great game, that will only get even better with time and more mods.

[@yorhaunit8s]

Yes. In short - a lot of modern games don't respect the player's ability to face problems and consequences of their own actions. At the same time the gaming population has grown. Not just older on average, not just bigger - but also more experienced. And these more experienced gamers yearn for a more nuanced and complex games. Elden Ring and Balldurs Gate 3 pull off insane numbers of sales, comparable to mass oriented games like Call of Duty. While being complex games that don't go easy on their player, in genres that long were niche.

[@Rockport1911]

This game is more of a Cyberpunk than a Starfield in the sense of being " broken on release". Like many I bandaged Cyberpunk at release with fixes and mods to experience its stories and worldbuilding because the game underneath the jank was worth playing it. With Starfield I learned pretty quickly that a 1000 empty planets, poor exploration/ travel/ story/ characteres and a worldbuilding thats just all over the place just wasnt worth my time. Stalker 2 has some jank which was expected,, but I wish they would have done just a few more rounds of playtesting and would have been honest about A-Life. I use about 20 mods to iron out the kinks and its thanks to the modders I enjoy this game so much. Hopefully by the time first DLC comes around this game truly shines out ofthe box...

[@ArtemisShanks]

I 100% agree. I’ll take a buggy authentic game like Stalker 2, over a market tested, inoffensive, shallow game like Dragon Age: Veilguard every time I buy a new game.

[@jlagaviota]

7:41 yo whats that map???

[@cantgameright]

It's a great resource! www.ign.com/maps/stalker-2/the-zone

[@jlagaviota]

@@cantgameright I'll use it for the second playthrough, thanks a lot!

[@palocax]

No, No it wasn't. At least not for me, I encountered 3 game breaking bugs that softlocked progression in the story and made it impossible to beat the game, I had to restart the storyline and my playthrew on the fourth to last mission due to Rickter dieing again randomly without reason, this was after the supposed "fix" to fix that issue and the "A minor incident" quest bug. On top of all of that, the game pumps you with a bunch of useless loot while keeping important ammunition types that should be more common in the zone hard to find, such as 7.62 by 54r being less common than 308. Which is stupid. Also, they removed any sort of mutant-hunting or mutant skinning, you get no real valuable reward for hunting mutants except the loot around the areas they inhabit, and there was no mutant migration, A-life just didn't work at all, in-game sensitivity was shit, you couldn't edit any key binds or change any of the controls, mouse acceleration was always on, and the random lag zones you would have to literally walk threw to get out of (Good fucking luck if one of these things hits in a cutscene, gonna crash your PC or you miss everything to do with the cutscene). I have played the 3 first games to near completion, as well as anomaly. I would consider myself a veteran player, and for a game that was in development for I don't even know how long I would expect a finished and rather polished product, especially for one that I paid 108 USD for. The factions are another big problem, the 3 new factions that came about are lacking a major thing the old stalker games had that the new ones don't have, that being a sense of appealbity. If you just play the story you quickly realize that the Ward is supposed to be the bad guys and that spark is supposed to be the good guys, giving the player no incisentive to even play as that faction. Later in the story after you meet strelok and hear what he has to say and see what he proves to you, you have no incentive to side with spark, as the story wipes out any real reason to side with them besides having good intentions and all of that gets ruined when scar trys to kill you. That is just bad story writing. And in the video at 7:47 you say "so don't think that you're going to run into an empty boring world" But that's exactly what you run into early game if you go looking for some of the ingame rewards for the different preorder packages. You have to go to the army warehouses and on my way there I encountered No one, not a single mutant, just a bunch of anomolys, it felt dead. A game that had this long to be made, this long to be perfected, this long to fix and test all of these problems shouldn't be this broken on release, and shouldn't stay broken after they apparently "Fixed" the issues in later patches, as was my case. These dudes took 14 years to come out with a new game, and guess what? A handful of people who just played the older games came together and made anomaly which has more features than Stalker 2 has now. Which is a shame.

[@therain9389]

SkillUp should really watch this video

[@brtcobra]

BG3 was another good example. quality game.

[@danielcampbell3686]

Overall, the three patches they released have fixed 90% of the bugs. Does it still crash the odd time? Yes, it does, but show me a game that has been released in the past five years that's NOT full of bugs. Almost all of the games released in the past five years release early access to max their profits and have the community do their work for them.

[@KristianKumpula]

Steam awards are meaningless. Case in point, RDR 2 received labour of love award even though there hadn't been major updates in a while and the online mode was abandoned.

[@bensen6299]

Cant enjoy it with the performance problems/latency problems- 80 fps doesn't feel smooth

[@cantgameright]

if you don't have a VRR display, lock it to 60 fps (or if you have a 144hz monitor, a multiple of that, like 72. Although I suggest running a 144hz monitor at 120hz for simplicity.) If 80 fps is too low a framerate for you, then I guess that's just an expectations issue.

[@Rockport1911]

I know journalists do IGN things, but I have to say that the low scores regarding the pre- release versions where justified. Even more technical outlets didnt recommend the game before fixes because the quest breaking bugs and performance hits just werent worth a buy, regardless of the good game underneath. Yes day one patches exists but you can only judge what you have... PC has mods but the XBox players just got left in the dust... GSC should ahve optimized and playtested the game more.

[@Maartwo]

The difference between this broken game and the rest of AAA slop is that GSC were inside a warzone, devs got drafted into the military, etc. First World AAA slop is inexcusable. The only difficulty those First World devs face is someone misgendering them or not having enough paint for their blue hair, while balancing their work-twitter/Reddit life. Edit: saludos desde Argentina.

[@nightdog007]

So damn true!!

[@AllisterCaine]

I think it was the war what made the game. It was just a game but as their nation and identity got attacked by the same old people by whom they were shackled for hundreds of years, they went into rage mode and made this their mission to create a cultural icon. And f my a**, they did. Not game of the year, but the decade.

[@user-fc2wi9no4h]

Thank you for the review