This week ushered in some excitement for Xbox and PC players with the release of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, complete with a list of achievements to tackle on Xbox Series X|S and PC. Despite wrestling with a fair share of bugs, GSC Game World’s open-world survival shooter shines brightly and might just earn a spot on our best Game Pass games list. If you’re stepping into The Zone for the first time, here are a few survival tips to help keep you in one piece.
Tom’s Corner: Here are three surefire ways to enhance your Stalker 2 experience in your initial hours.
Stalker 2 poses quite the challenge and is best played on its normal or tougher settings (Stalker or Veteran). Once you wrap up the prologue, you’ll find yourself exploring The Zone at your leisure, a place eager to cut your journey short right from the start. Early on, you’ll find inventory management to be a tightrope walk between essentials and sellable odds and ends. Add to that the perpetual threat of danger and surviving the dreaded Emissions, and you’ve got your hands full. But fear not, I’ve got some insights to share from my own stumbles and triumphs while reviewing Stalker 2. Here are three tips for Xbox Game Pass explorers braving the irradiated lands!
Sell to Your Fellow Stalkers
One of the biggest hurdles in Stalker 2 is managing your inventory efficiently. Repairs in The Zone will cost you, and since you can’t stumble upon Credits while exploring, you’ll need to gather items to sell. Guns and armor can fetch a good price but can weigh you down. My strategy? Only pick up fully repaired weapons and armor, trading big potential profits for more time spent exploring. Instead, load up on essentials like food, med kits, and ammo. These can be stacked in large quantities without encumbrance, and dropping a few to pick up something valuable mid-journey isn’t a huge hassle.
When moving about, be sure to engage with friendly NPCs and offload your junk. Most stalkers will trade with you, with groups featuring a ‘boss’ figure to transact with. These folks generally carry 700 Credits to buy your supplies, which helps in the early game as you search for greater treasures.
Turn Off Your Flashlight
Here’s a lesson I learned the hard way: using your flashlight can bring unwanted attention from lurking foes. While venturing through dim, shadowy environments, your instinct might be to flick on the flashlight to navigate. However, this eliminates your element of surprise, as creatures waiting in the dark will spot you from afar. Avoid shining your light unless absolutely necessary, especially outdoors at night. The last thing you want when sneaking past enemies is having your flashlight beam invite trouble. Remember to keep that RB button handy!
Route Planning: Your Lifesaver
In Stalker 2, there’s nothing more dangerous than being caught outdoors during an Emission. As soon as you hear the ominous warning before the sky turns threatening, you’ve only got a few moments to find shelter. Being stuck in the vast openness when this happens is a death sentence.
To stay safe, it’s wise to move strategically between points of interest en route to your destination. This ensures you’re never far from potential cover. And let’s face it, trudging through The Zone with an overloaded backpack is a bad idea—no one escapes an Emission at a snail’s pace.
As you carve your own path through the breathtaking world GSC Game World has crafted, I’m confident you’ll discover your own secrets for avoiding danger. If you’ve got any pointers for fellow Stalker 2 adventurers, drop a comment below so we can all benefit. See you in The Zone, fellow Stalkers!
