At this year’s Gamescom, we had the opportunity to take a look at STALKER 2 Heart of Chornobyl and ask producer Yevhenii Kulyk a few questions. In these questions, we not only cover technical details, but also the playing time, the Xbox Game Pass, possible multiplayer and more.
How difficult was it to develop STALKER 2 Heart of Chornobyl for the Xbox Series X/S?
Let’s look at it from a different perspective. We are currently using the latest technology on the market and the Unreal Engine 5.
It was a big challenge to make the game big enough to fit on the console, because the resources are quite, let’s say, limited.
But I think we still managed to do it in the best way possible while maintaining these fantastic graphics.
Editor’s note: During our appointment, there were two play stations: one on an Xbox Series X DevKit and one on the PC.
You can compare the graphics on Xbox and PC to your right and see that the Xbox version is just as beautiful as the PC version, so it was a great job, even if it was a little difficult for us at times.
What about the frame rate and resolution on the Xbox Series X? Can you comment on that?
We use dynamic resolution technology. Basically, our goal is to render the game in 4K at 60 FPS on Xbox Series X.
What does it all look like on the Xbox Series S?
On the Series S, our game runs at 30 FPS, but with good looking visuals similar to the Xbox Series X.
Will there be different graphics modes in STALKER 2 Heart of Chornobyl?
There will be a performance and a quality mode on the Xbox Series X. While the performance mode runs at 60 FPS, the quality mode will run at 30 FPS and feature beautiful reflections and high-resolution textures.
Can you tell us something about possible multiplayer?
Right now we’re putting all our resources into delivering the best single player experience possible and everyone here is focused on that. We have some plans for multiplayer, but right now we’re solely focused on the single player campaign.
How much gameplay time is needed to complete STALKER 2?
Oh, that’s my favorite question, thank you. I’ll start by saying that we have a really big map in our game, which is 64 square meters. We’ve placed tons of content on the map to make the locations interesting.
A playthrough of STALKER 2 in which you only follow the main quest without looking too far to the right or left takes about 25 hours. But that’s just one playthrough, concentrating on the main story.
We have a non-linear story and if you want to experience all the narrative content and side quests to see the world from different perspectives, such as from the point of view of different factions or different characters, it will take about 100 hours of gameplay.
Is there a roadmap for the next few years?
We don’t have an exact roadmap with possible release dates yet, but we plan to release two major story expansions.
You decided to release STALKER 2 Heart of Chornobyl directly on Xbox Game Pass, which Xbox fans are very happy about, but what was the reason for this decision?
I think Xbox Game Pass is a fantastic way to bring a game to a really big audience. We’ve put a lot of effort, a lot of ourselves, maybe even a part of our heart into this game because we’re making this a really unique experience and we can be proud of that.
Of course, we cover a much larger audience and we want to get our game out there and reach a lot of people. Yes, I think the main reason is that we want to get the game out to as many people as possible. Because we are proud of it, we are proud of our product.
Also, it’s a Ukrainian product and we want people to know that Ukrainians made this, and that’s why we emphasize that in every video. And of course, as a Ukrainian company, we want to remind the whole world that Ukraine is capable of making some remarkable games and creating memorable experiences.
We want to reach as many players as possible, so we do it for our new fans and also for our old fans. Because we design our game so that newcomers who are completely unfamiliar with the STALKER universe and start with STALKER 2 can familiarize themselves with the game world and its rules.
So you don’t have to have played the first STALKER games?
Our main character, as I told you before your game session, is also new to the Zone. So he knows nothing about the rules of this world, about the factions, mutants or anomalies. He is seeing everything for the first time, just like you as new players.
Of course, he may have heard of a zone in the big country where something strange is happening, but he hasn’t learned any details about it.
As a new player, you enter the zone just like the main character.
But if you have a connection to the original trilogy, you will still meet some of the game’s old characters.
What tips do you give to new players on their journey?
Most importantly, take your time, don’t rush anything and be very careful because there are a lot of hidden things along the way, so if you miss something, like the resources, that’s fine, but if you miss the anomaly, you can die.
Take the time you need and don’t put any pressure on yourself. I think new players will die a lot in this game because we’re designing it to be a real experience, a real hardcore game.
And it’s designed in a way that can be really scary and difficult for players. But even so, you progress in the game, you learn how to deal with new things, you learn how to deal with the anomalies and the resources.
Each time you leave a safe room, like a center where a few neutral characters or perhaps characters who are friends of the main characters live. In this center you prepare for a kind of expedition and pursue certain goals.
So you have to constantly think about your resources and make sure you have the right resources for what you are doing. If you have something planned, it is best to proceed cautiously and carefully because it is an amazing place, but it is still very dangerous.
At this point we would like to thank you for the extremely friendly conversation and wish you a successful STALKER 2 release on November 20, 2024.
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