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Stalker 2 gets its first big patch with over 650 bug fixes

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Key art for Stalker 2. A character in a lit-up gas mask and a gun on their back.
GSC Game World

GSC Game World has released Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl‘s first big patch for PC and Xbox. It has over 650 fixes across the spectrum, including ones that would prevent the player from progressing and fixing an issue where corpses had terrifyingly long limbs.

The studio posted the Patch 1.0.1 patch notes Friday, and there are almost too many fixes to highlight. The lot features fixes to memory leaks and crashes, NPC behavior, movement issues, objectives that couldn’t be completed, and physics where objects would just float. There were also problems with character faces where eyes and teeth just looked … off. Fixes have been released for those, too.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl — Gameplay Trailer

Stalker 2 had horrible performance issues at launch, especially on PC, although a lot of this was understandable because of its troubled development. It had delays brought on by the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. That’s before factoring in the size and demands of the game and the generally low bar for Stalker, where a level of jank is a part of the charm. Still, it made it tough to get through for our reviewer. Thankfully, GSC Game World released a patch during the review period that radically improved its playability.

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A message from the GSC Game World Team.

Before you step into the Zone, we’d like to take a moment to share something from the heart. pic.twitter.com/wuLRAkq7Ba

— S.T.A.L.K.E.R. OFFICIAL (@stalker_thegame) November 20, 2024

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GSC has also been working on hotfixes since launch. The plan is to continue working on these immediate fixes before switching to “larger updates that include constant improvements.” The studio will then transition into free in-game content. A precise roadmap is scheduled to release next month.

Despite all the problems, Stalker 2 still had a successful launch week, selling over 1 million copies in the first two days, according to GSC. That’s not including players who may have checked out the game with Xbox Game Pass.

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Carli Velocci
Carli Velocci
Contributor, Games
Carli is a technology, culture, and games editor and journalist. They were the Gaming Lead and Copy Chief at Windows Central…
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