ASTALKER 2: Heart of Chornobylplayer has discovered an incredible Easter egg referencing the series debut, demonstrating the incredible attention to detail involved in developing the game. Despite the “2” in its title,STALKER 2is technically the fourth gamein the series. And although it’s technically a standalone title, it’s got lots to do with the previous games,featuring recurring characters, locations, and, as it turns out, even items from other entries in theSTALKERseries.
As one self-proclaimed veteran Stalker,New-Arrival9428on Reddit, recently discovered,STALKER 2accurately recreates many of the locations featured in earlier games right down to the last detail,including even a stray stash that appeared in the Rookie Village way back in the first-everSTALKERgame,Shadow of Chernobyl. That stash is located in exactly the same place as it was 17 years ago: sitting just beneath the tiles of a pockmarked roof.
The starting village inSTALKER 1, Rookie Village was full of secrets that curious players could find to give them a major advantage in the early hours of the game.STALKERhas always been a difficult series, andlittle finds like this one could make all the difference. Many players in the comments took the opportunity to remember their early days with theSTALKERseries, sharing their experiences of finding this valuable cache for the very first time.
Players Reminisce About The Rookie Village In STALKER 1
“First Place I Checked”
Traveling through the Rookie Village was a necessary part of the firstSTALKERgame, and finding this early-game cache eventually became a rite of passage. It was fairly easy to reach, simply requiring players to climb their way up the side of a half-ruined building. More importantly, as Reddit userVadishunrecalls,it contained some valuable lootin unpatched versions ofSTALKER.
As far as the early game went, the STALKER Suit was one of thebest pieces of armor inSTALKER, andcould give otherwise struggling players an early-game boost. Later patches replaced this with the inferior Mercenary Suit, but those who owned physical copies of the game were never the wiser. Many players, likeWhittling-and-Tea, eventually made a point of checking for this stash every time they started a new game.
Others shared different points of nostalgia, like coming across the Clear Sky base from the sequel of the same title, only to find it in total ruins by the time ofSTALKER 2. For still others, it was favorite characters, like the money-grubbing Sid, or the slippery Nimble. The point is thatevery veteran Stalker found something familiar in the sequel, which speaks to its faithfulness.
Screen Rant’s Take: STALKER 2 Captures The Essence Of The Original
A Faithful Sequel
This careful attention to detail is almost unheard of in video game sequels, especially those that come out 17 years after the games that spawned them. It’s impressive for the developers ofSTALKER 2to have remembered and faithfully recreated microscopic details like this one, and speaks to a true love for the original property and an appreciation for its fans.
STALKER 2: Heart Of Chornobyl - More Than Another Cult Classic
STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl is an ambitious and engrossing open-world immersive sim, putting you in the Zone, an unnerving and unfathomable place.
But more importantly,STALKER 2captures the atmosphere of the original game with unparalleled accuracy. Its unforgiving environment, brutal difficulty, yes,even its retro jank, are perfectly intact in the sequel. That’s one of the reasons whySTALKER 2: Heart of Chornobylhas received such a warm reception from fans of the original game.
Sources:New-Arrival9428/Reddit,Vadishun/Reddit,Whittling-and-Tea/Reddit
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is a survival horror FPS game that picks up in the world where the first game’s expansion, Call of Pripyat, left off. Players will head deep into the heart of the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone as they meet new allies, foes, and terrifying mutated creatures carving out their tale in a world ravaged by nuclear disaster years prior.
