[ENG] Launching Radiophobia 3 mod instead of vanilla SoC through Steam

A simple guide to running the Radiophobia 3 overhaul mod instead of vanilla Shadow of Chornobyl, but still having access to the Steam features: game overlay, screenshots sharing or tracking of your playtime.

Introduction

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is one of the most iconic and atmospheric franchises in the world of PC gaming. Ever since the release of Shadow of Chernobyl in 2007 — the first title in the original trilogy — players have been drawn into its haunting post-apocalyptic world, deeply immersive gameplay, and a narrative that was both mysterious and memorable. The game's combination of open-world exploration, survival mechanics, and storyline depth made it an instant classic among fans of atmospheric shooters.

The Enhanced Edition brought welcome visual improvements and introduced Steam Workshop support, allowing for the sharing of custom mods. However, many large-scale, high-quality modifications — the kind that redefine the experience entirely — still cannot be published via the Workshop due to various limitations.

Since 2007, the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. community has produced an impressive number of mods. Some are complete overhauls of the base game, offering fresh takes on the original story or entirely new gameplay experiences. From visually stunning enhancements and gameplay mechanics overhauls to new quests, weapons, and freeplay modes — the modding community continues to breathe new life into the Zone.

What Radiophobia 3 mod about?

Radiophobia 3 is one of the most polished and immersive overhaul mods available for Shadow of Chernobyl, offering a refined experience while staying true to the original game’s story. Unlike total conversion mods that rewrite the narrative or introduce entirely new settings, Radiophobia 3 keeps the main plotline intact, preserving the iconic journey through the Zone that made the original game so compelling.


The real strength of this mod lies in its enhanced visuals, improved weapon handling and ballistics, and a number of atmospheric additions that deepen player immersion. Lighting, textures, and environmental effects have been significantly upgraded, breathing new life into familiar locations without compromising the gritty tone of the Zone.


Combat has also been reworked to feel more responsive and satisfying, with better weapon feedback, more realistic recoil, and balanced enemy AI. On top of that, players will find additional side quests.


Radiophobia 3 is an ideal choice for players who want a modernized experience of Shadow of Chernobyl while retaining the core of what made it great.

Why do I even need to have Radiophobia 3 launched through Steam instead of vanilla Shadow Of Chornobyl?

For some players, it may be beneficial to launch the game instead of the vanilla game since the modification cannot be installed over the base game. Some of the benefits are:

- Steam overlay availability
- Accurate playtime tracking for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chornobyl in the Steam Library
- Easy screenshot capture and sharing
- Access to the Steam community features
- Steam social interaction due to the game launch inside the Steam client

So how do I install the mod and launch it instead of vanilla SoC?

1. Have Vanilla Shadow of Chornobyl installed from Steam
2. Delete all content from your Shadow of Chornobyl game directory \Steam\steamapps\common\STALKER Shadow of Chornobyl - EE
3. Download the mod from the Moddb website along with the latest patch:

Radiophobia 3 ver. 1.18: https://www.moddb.com/mods/radiophobia/downloads/radiophobia-3-ver-118
Radiophobia 3 - Patch 1.19: https://www.moddb.com/mods/radiophobia/downloads/radiophobia-3-patch-119

4. Extract the archive with the Radiophobia installation and the latest patch (v1.19) on your disk drive
5. Install Radiophobia 3 anywhere on your disk drive, and wait for the installation to be finished
6. Install the Patch 1.19 (simply drag and drop the files into your folder where the Radiophobia 3 mod was installed, confirm file replacement)
4. Once done, copy all content from your \Radiophobia 3\ folder to \Steam\steamapps\common\STALKER Shadow of Chornobyl - EE directory
5. Rename Radiophobia 3.exe to xrEngine.exe in the \Steam\steamapps\common\STALKER Shadow of Chornobyl - EE game directory

That's it! Now you can launch the modification through Steam and enjoy improved graphics, gameplay without significant changes to the original story, but with various Steam features.

You can also delete the files that are not necessary to keep - the Radiophobia 3 installation outside the Steam Shadow Of Chornobyl folder.

Afterwords

My goal is to share useful and high-quality content with the gaming community, showcasing the possibility of launching global modifications for the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R. trilogy through Steam, even though I am not a mod creator and have no direct connection to the developers.

I hope this guide was useful to you - so, now get out of here, stalker.

[Skald]

@Yanser hey, thank you - it's definitely worth a try. Haven't touched old Stalker games in a month, but your method seems less complicated

[Yanser]

you can add radiophobia as a non-steam game, add a txt file called "steam_appid.txt" in the same folder as the exe that was added, and write the steam id of the game you want (SoC in this case). That works without having to download the whole original game and stuff. So you can still have your normal SoC install, or if you have slow internet and don't want useless downloads.. I have a guide on my steam page doing this but for Gamma and Call of pripyat.

[Skald]

@Affliction Hey)
To be honest, I'm not sure: since all the files are replaced in the SoC EE folder, I guess the achievements will be disabled (I already have all of them earned, so I've not conducted testing from my side)

[Affliction]

Hey mate ! Are achievements disabled while playing this mod ?