The Zone feels Empty?

[Billy]

I am walking around the Zone, visiting many Locales that were in previous games, Cordon/Garbage/Dark Valley and I feel like the Zone is empty. Some campfires are placed all over the places yet no Stalkers, Bandits, Freedomers or Duty are out and about. what gives?

[Cheyenesku]

Originally posted by Askesis:

Originally posted by Myta:

there is broken AI, there's a modder on Nexus whose said they're looking over the code, because as of right now sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't it's the reason occasionally while crouching enemies can see you through walls , because the detection cones don't have collision for some reason, and in other cases the "communication" feature where enemies will relay the alert information to their allies also is too aggressive making it so enemies can relay your exact location to other enemies outside of line of sight, which is the reason you often have grenades landing at your feet, and enemies shooting at you through walls.
EDIT: also the reason while during a firefight you can crouch and enemies will stop looking for you if you break line of sight despite the fact you just shot a guy in the face right infront of them, because the stealth detection system works the same way for enemies in combat as it does for enemies outside of combat, there was no check or alternative AI coding for this

developers are seriously incompetent.

No, the creator of A-Life and a person who was writing the code and A-Life 2.0 is fighting in the war. Anomaly devs have already proven that A-Life is in the game but its not finished and UE5's AI system has taken control of Dynamic Spawn System known from og Stalker games.

[Vlanson]

Originally posted by Raoul Duke:

The originals games had the A-life system which basicaly made the zone alive. This game was supposed to have it but it clearly don't instead we have a garbage bethesda/ubisoft type a npc spawn.

First off, I doubt you beat the entire game already at the time of typing this, so maybe there's more to it than we know so far. Second off, give them a break. You're lucky Stalker 2 even came out after a pandemic and a WHOLE WAR. Call me crazy, but those things typically make developing a high end game difficult.

[Kleerex]

Originally posted by Askesis:

Originally posted by Myta:

there is broken AI, there's a modder on Nexus whose said they're looking over the code, because as of right now sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't it's the reason occasionally while crouching enemies can see you through walls , because the detection cones don't have collision for some reason, and in other cases the "communication" feature where enemies will relay the alert information to their allies also is too aggressive making it so enemies can relay your exact location to other enemies outside of line of sight, which is the reason you often have grenades landing at your feet, and enemies shooting at you through walls.
EDIT: also the reason while during a firefight you can crouch and enemies will stop looking for you if you break line of sight despite the fact you just shot a guy in the face right infront of them, because the stealth detection system works the same way for enemies in combat as it does for enemies outside of combat, there was no check or alternative AI coding for this

developers are seriously incompetent.

Dude, we get it, you hate this game. Why don't you play Anomaly instead, or, I dunno, go out and touch grass if there's any? Bumping up all the NoLife threads isn't going to help.

[DopeDawg]

In OG Stalker NPCS NEVER spawned in front of you or 1 meter behind you.
NPCs spawned outside your view range and you could never see them teleport in your face like they do in Stalker 2.
That's why OG Stalker had binoculars, you could observe NPCs walking somewhere from afar.
Here they don't walk they just teleport.

[Pruikki]

My finding so far

-not enough random m stuff
Like dogs and mutants going at each other at a distance.

-no groups of stalkers walking around, to ask if join them goin at X location...

-Feels indeed a bit emtyish, Could use bandits/what ever group of people walking around, so you could avoid them, or attack and loot.


-Too much bread and sausages xD I got 160 bandaids already in about 12-16 hours game play.

-Enemies have aimbot on feels like.
-Weapons don't Do enough damage feels like, only headshots feel normal.

-Enemies when hit, could react u know, not just keep going at you, maybe stumble a bit or something.


All this will be fixed with mods at some point I guess.

[Wozherd$🐧]

Better armor is a must, It helps so much after lesser zone.
That's my top finding.

[TwinChops]

Its almost empty yes. I infact just tested that, turned on the good ol god mode and did run to ... err yanov? station from cordon and back. Almost nothing spawned and i did just run in a straight as possible line.
Dunno it feels really empty but then its the Zone but in walls this time, so there is just not an easy way for new mutation fodder to get into the Zone.

[Joikax]

Originally posted by TwinChops:

Its almost empty yes. I infact just tested that, turned on the good ol god mode and did run to ... err yanov? station from cordon and back. Almost nothing spawned and i did just run in a straight as possible line.
Dunno it feels really empty but then its the Zone but in walls this time, so there is just not an easy way for new mutation fodder to get into the Zone.

C'mon you know that's cope. OG SoC was vastly more populated than this and CS and CoP were both even more populated than it. Now the lore states everyone across the globe has flooded the zone after CoP and yet it's emptier than it has ever been.

[Case]

Originally posted by ColdZero:

Originally posted by *StonedKills* Cheddar Bob:

I had no idea they even had zombies in this game. Are you sure your on the right forum??????????????

In the lore they are called dark stalkers or monolith faction I believe. They are not really zombies more like brain dead murderers that still think tactically instead of mindlessly trying to eat you.

You uh. Could have literally just typed in Stalker Zombies and gotten the Zombie/Zombified Stalkers.
https://stalker.fandom.com/wiki/Zombie
https://stalker.fandom.com/wiki/Zombified_Stalkers

Monolith are a different thing.

[Kristian]

As long as I'm sprinting somewhere, its seems so empty. But as soon as I stop to open the map or check a note, I always get attacked

[Ewista]

no sure if i should post this, but here is what i experienced yesterday:

having just received the journalist stash way points and having read the whole zone should be open now i just opened up the bridge to garbage i set out to collect my loot. now after the previous game play i noticed things that i can only describe as static scripted spawn points, they where so predictable i got a feeling for them, where they generally are and how to either avoid or make them spawn things..

so i set out to all the way points over all the sections of the map, places ive never been before in my life nor have seen on video, except their renditions in previous stalker games ofc.

so i figured id run an experiment alongside my loot run: deliberately avoid any spawning of mobs and guess where the triggers are successfully. i was getting so good at it that stopped bothering having my weapon equipped at all and just ran to all of them with my bolt equipped, i collected all stashes without combat, except of course i had to kill the placed snorks in the freedom base and the burer in the duga stash..

now ive not gone to swamp, i tried but every entrance is blocked by the story since i didnt progress after opening up the bridge t garbage.

the zone was completely empty because i knew where the spawn triggers where and i avoided them first try.

this is not possible in previous stalker games and its an experience unique to stalker 2.
backup your saves and try it yourself...its kinda fun actually.

now personally i honestly loved my peaceful and quiet walks, it made me feel like i was in the stalker movie instead of the game, the atmosphere was as suspenseful as ever and the world is so beautifully crafted. it just needs to be populated.

ive always started my games in stalker and anomaly by going to the city up north where the mercenaries are and red forest to score myself some decent gear so i know what that experience was like.

and you can hardly ague that this experiment was the intended experience.

fortunately the devs themselves said its not, so im giving it time to allow them to make it the way they DID envision and then we will see again.

im not hating on the game, i love the game and i can clearly see what a masterpiece this can be if the devs get the opportunity to realise their vision. its gonna be amazeballz awesome.. its just not there yet and saying that it is would not be kind to previous stalker games.

and i am very impressed that they managed to deliver this amidst all their hardship, and yes i feel bad for pointing these flaws out, because such things hurt when you worked your ass off for years and years and had setback and curses left and right

but we are not getting stalker 2 by ignoring the flaws, we need to have nuanced opinions that highlight both the thngs the game does well and the awesomeness, as well as things that are flawed, we need to expose these flaws not because of a "aha! gotcha!"but because we cant improve what we do not confirm needs improving.

we need to face reality in order to improve it.

[Wozherd$🐧]

I put on the stupid Stalker pfp, am i a bot now?

[Pixelica]

I was in the middle of looting empty house. The moment I stepped into the house the game just spawned a group of stalker from thin air, then spawn a pack of mutant boars outside the house.

Not even Fallout 76 this bad bro...

[Weaponmaster 55]

Originally posted by *StonedKills* Cheddar Bob:

What did you think the 160GB and only 30 hour storyline was gonna be? Lots of content? LOL. Naa just dead spaces and miles to walk through generated terrain. I was calling this out before the game released.

There are tons of quests you flid, not just main story

[TwinChops]

Originally posted by Joikax:

Originally posted by TwinChops:

Its almost empty yes. I infact just tested that, turned on the good ol god mode and did run to ... err yanov? station from cordon and back. Almost nothing spawned and i did just run in a straight as possible line.
Dunno it feels really empty but then its the Zone but in walls this time, so there is just not an easy way for new mutation fodder to get into the Zone.

C'mon you know that's cope. OG SoC was vastly more populated than this and CS and CoP were both even more populated than it. Now the lore states everyone across the globe has flooded the zone after CoP and yet it's emptier than it has ever been.

Meh, i know. Didnt stopped me from finding a reason lol