Massive Stalker 2 update repairs hundreds of crashes

The latest massive Stalker 2 update (marking version 1.3) fixes hundreds of crashes and adds dozens of new features, including mutant AI changes and a multitude of new animations. Since launch, the game has garnered praise for its complex survival systems, its apocalyptic tone, and its blood-pumping gunplay. But any game this ambitious has bugs abound (prior Stalker games also faced technical issues). Fortunately, the team at GSC Game World has been hard at work fixing and improving the already impressive game. If you’ve been waiting for the right time to jump back into Stalker 2’s massive open world, this is it.

The update adjusts balance across the many systems in Stalker 2. For example, the patch increases overall durability for unique weapons found during missions. It also moves several attachments and upgrades previously in last-game ”point of no return” areas to Prypiat stashes. It adds to the improvements made to A-Life (the game’s NPC AI system) in update 1.2, making encounters with NPCs and enemies a little rarer on average. Mutants now have “polished behaviors” when you ambush them from behind or on top of a prop. The update makes aesthetic changes as well. Mutants will move more smoothly during combat. NPCs will have more polished movement and shooting animations, as well as new idle animations when their weapons are drawn. There are also now a variety of player death animations, which depend on the exact circumstances of death.

The patch repairs a multitude of issues, including hundreds of crashes. The update improves UI stability generally, resolves widget visual bugs, and corrects text corruption. Countless quest breaking bugs have also been addressed. Stalker 2 was already one of the best FPS games you can play right now and these changes make experiencing it a smoother experience.

The free Stalker 2 1.3 update is out now. You can read the full patch notes here.

If you are eager to get back into the Zone, read our guides on the best Stalker 2 weapons and the best Stalker 2 mods.

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