Stuff Verdict

This visually modern sequel stays astonishingly faithful to the original trilogy, often to a fault. Stalker fans will feel right at home in the Zone, but it’ll be appropriately alien for newcomers.

Pros

Gloriously atmospheric map that’s begging to be explored

Tense, lethal combat that can kick off at any time

Cons

A lot of the gameplay mechanics feel outdated

Many bugs need addressing

A nuclear disaster zone teeming with mutated wildlife and unexplained anomalies ain’t your typical roadside picnic, but S.T.A.L.K.E.R.‘s distorted version of the Pripiat exclusion zone hit a nerve with PC gamers back in 2007. A full-on sequel to GSC Game World’s open-world sleeper hit has been a long time coming.

A full seventeen years later, Heart of Chornobyl rebuilds the Zone on a modern graphics engine – yet keeps the original’s blend of hardcore shooting, immersive sim role playing and survival horror almost fully intact. And I do mean fully: the past decade and a half of gameplay evolution is paid mere lip service. That will surely please long-time fans, but could leave newcomers frustrated.