Several years have passed since the last Stalker, but The Zone – a combination deadly nuclear wasteland and treasure trove of supernatural relics – isn't something we've been able to forget. Naturally, GamesRadar+ jumped at the chance to enter it once again, jetting off to Prague in the Czech Republic to get an exclusive look at Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl, which has quickly become one of Xbox's biggest exclusives of the year.
There, we got to spend several hours going hands-on and talking with the developers at GSC Game World about the long-awaited revival, bringing Stalker to a modern audience, and how they've tackled Stalker 2's massively expanded open world. Playing the game is a great place to start as we dive into everything you need to know about it, but it's also provided an excellent jumping off point for considering the nature of its brutal-yet-rewarding mechanical loop, especially with how it has evolved alongside its similarly post-apocalyptic contemporaries. We've also taken a look back at classic Stalker as well – refamiliarizing ourselves with the roots of this iconic series has allowed us to better appreciate how much it has grown.
Keep reading to discover our Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl Big Preview, your guide to getting started with one of the biggest upcoming Xbox Series X games and one of the most anticipated new games of 2024.
The Big Preview
The video
The interview
Post-launch
Everything we know
