The plot and game mechanics of the game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl
Finally it's happened - the game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. The release of this version, called Heart of Chornobyl, became a long-awaited event for both Ukrainian gamers and fans of computer games from other countries of the world. The upcoming release of the game was announced back in 2010. Appearing only in 2024, this game made a real sensation. It became one of Steam's best-selling games, surpassing both advanced AAA games and popular free-to-play titles, even Steam Deck.
Game world and story events
The plot of the game is based on the fact that Skif suddenly finds a mysterious artifact in his apartment, which gets into his house, blowing a huge hole in it. Having found an incomprehensible object under his bed, Skif decides to find out its origin. Realizing that it will be possible to get answers to his questions only in the Zone, Skif takes a special scanner with him and sets off on a dangerous journey.
To perform the first task, the brave guy must get to the closed territory to activate the found artifact with the help of the scanner. First, the young man must find the right place, endure the abnormal discharge and try not to get shot. The young man almost manages to do this, but an attack by several unknown criminals disrupts his plans. Having lost the creature, Skif also loses his artifact and scanner. He is left with nothing else but to become a stalker and try to solve the problem that has arisen.
Traveling through the zone, the player meets interesting characters, solves complex puzzles and gradually puts together the puzzle of this abnormal world from separate pieces. The plot is revealed with the help of audio messages, notes, dialogs of the main characters. Soon it becomes known that in the Zone began another military operation, so the truce will soon end. The leaders of the opposing groups are tired of listening to the military, they are ready to fight, finding out who is stronger.
The game is filled with the atmosphere of fierce competition. Its characters are tough men who fight for survival and dream to find and take as many artifacts as possible. In this world everyone knows - if a stalker is kind, he will not live long. Even if you save someone's life by protecting them from mutants, you're not likely to run into gratitude. Most likely, you will be considered crazy, because in this cruel world it is not accepted to help others.
Each NPC makes the game world more realistic. The characters in the game are very authentic. They consist of a mixture of insanity and black humor, and their actions are desperate. Some players may find the characters to be one-dimensional, but this is not the case at all. The creators of the game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 managed to create an original game world, in which each character has its own character and special purpose.
The game was created for 14 years, and it can be felt by some outdated moments, which nowadays look a bit clumsy. However, it doesn't spoil the overall impression at all. Thanks to the careful work of the creators of the game on its plot and characters, the game world turned out to be very juicy and original. Valleys with picturesque views, original locations, inscriptions on the remains of walls, ominous corpses - all this creates a special atmosphere and makes gamers want to play more and more.
Anomalies, bribes, dangerous mutants - this is what awaits players in “Heart of Chernobyl”
Gameplay consists of three main components: exploration of the zone, resource management and battles. Exploration is the simplest part of the game. The open game world consists of 30 km2, on which there are abandoned factories, villages, boiler houses, etc. The player can find any place in the zone. In any place the player can find a bribe: energy, a bottle of vodka, ammunition or a piece of sausage. You can also find clothes or weapons.
Some bribes are difficult to find because of numerous anomalies: soap bubbles, flying blades, geysers with fire, electric zones, and places of distorted gravity. The biggest danger comes from radiation.
Radiation differentiates between newcomers and experienced players with the necessary protection. It makes visible contaminated areas that cannot be entered. Players see not only numbers in front of them, they hear the crackle of the Geiger counter and notice whitish spots on the monitor. Going farther and farther into the infected zone, the player risks getting sick and losing his life.
An equally interesting mechanic of this game is stamina. As the player gets tired, he starts to move slower and jumps with difficulty. To partially restore strength, you can drink energy drink. It is also important to properly manage resources. Having reloaded yourself, you will have to partially stop to rest.
Battles in this game can take place with people or with mutants. Combat tactics must be carefully thought out, correctly select weapons, food and medicine, intelligently select places for retreat or ambush. To destroy enemies, you can suddenly attack them or hide in a shelter and shoot one by one with a sniper rifle. By choosing the right tactics, the player increases his chances of winning the battle.
