Stalker

GSC Game World is perhaps the most well-known of the many Ukrainian game development studios impacted by the 2022 Russian invasion. The company was forced to move its operations from Kyiv to Prague, and tragically lost a developer, Volodymyr Yezhov, in combat in December 2022. They’ve also faced ongoing propaganda and attacks from those opposed to Ukraine and former Russian fans.

Before I explain the update, I recommend checking out the video showing what the developers have been working on.

The new ‘Expedition’ update includes hundreds of bug fixes and a lot of improvements and new features. It affects many aspects of the game, including how the AI works, controller responsiveness, the user interface, and how your character moves and acts.

With the PS5 release of STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl just days away, GSC Game World has detailed Update 1.7. While the update includes a new Master Difficulty and Expedition mode, the biggest change is likely to be dynamic faction warfare. Different groups of humans and mutants will now battle for control of territory within The Zone, and players can expect to get caught in the middle while pursuing their own goals. This means a more reactive and unpredictable world as factions fight for dominance.

Okay, so the devs did a big update to how stuff works in the game. They totally changed the stats on all the building tools, and revamped how stamina and sprinting work – it feels much smoother now. They also made it way harder for enemies to see me when I’m hiding in tall grass or reeds, which is awesome! Now, enemies aren’t dumb anymore – if they’re getting beat, they’ll actually try to run away! Plus, they’re smarter about fighting; they’ll try to get around you and pick their battles, choosing a good distance based on what weapons they’re using. It’s a lot more challenging and realistic now.

Update 1.7 for Stalker 2 is now available on Xbox and PC, bringing hundreds of improvements to the game. The biggest changes focus on difficulty and enemy AI. A new ‘Master’ difficulty setting has been added, offering the most challenging experience Stalker 2 has to offer. The update also revamps how enemy groups claim territory and behave in battles.

The full details of Expedition, Update 1.7 for Stalker 2, are available on Steam. While Stalker 2 is already quite challenging, I probably won’t try the new Master difficulty. However, the Expedition modifier – which you can use when starting a new game on easier settings – sounds appealing. It restricts how often you can save and requires you to visit camps with other characters to record your progress, reminding me of the challenging Hardcore mode in Fallout 4. It’s a bit disappointing, though, that you can’t create a network of makeshift save points by laying down bedrolls across the map.

The newly added Master difficulty is extremely challenging. GSC Game World designed it for highly experienced players, and it features tougher gameplay and fewer opportunities to save your progress.

This update includes several improvements, but the most notable are further refinements to the game’s A-Life system and the addition of a new difficulty level. I consider the A-Life fixes to be the more important of these two changes.

Xbox Game Pass usually removes games from its library around the middle and end of each month. Recently, on October 31st, popular titles like Return to Monkey Island, Jusant, and Metal Slug Tactics were removed, and five more games are scheduled to leave soon.