S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl | PS5 Review

December 30, 2025 Zack Parkerson

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is a miracle of a game, made in an active warzone by a studio too stubborn to give up. I respect that tenacity, and I’ve been looking forward to this release for years. Doubly so because the original game and its expansions have long fascinated me, looking like the kind of game that isn’t afraid to be mean to the player. A true survival experience set in an anomalous hellscape.

Welcome to Hell

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 takes place in a fictionalized Chorbobyl known as the Zone after another incident has transformed it into a post-apocalyptic wasteland. The world knows better than to go inside, due to the strange anomalous events that can pop up out of nowhere and the mutants ready to tear off the face of any fool they see. There are some souls, however, that just can’t help themselves. They need to get inside for the precious resources and strange relics. There’s enough enterprise inside that there are makeshift towns, full of people and organizations. Though there are a handful of brave men willing to explore even deeper into the most dangerous areas – Stalkers.

You play as one of these Stalkers, named Skif, who needs to find answers that are only located inside the Zone. The main story is serviceable, but I never felt drawn into the characters. It certainly gets better as it goes along, but I would be surprised if it’s the main draw for anyone playing. No, that draw is certainly Chornobyl itself.

The Past is Prologue

Everywhere you look, you’re reminded of the world that was. Buildings crumble under the weight of the nightmarish history in the region. You hear the monsters in the dark before you have a chance to see them. The environment can put you on edge: is it the wind blowing, or is a tornado of fire beginning to rage?

Unfortunately, the horrible world the populace tells you about and your eyes see sprawled out before you is undermined by the overwhelming ease of the game. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 claims to be an experience about survival and desperation, but even on the harder difficulties I was overflowing with resources. So much ammo around every corner that my storage chest had hundreds and hundreds of rounds for any given weapon type. Instead of desperation around the next corner, I would find medkits. Money was never once an issue when it came to upgrading my gear. Food and drink flowed so readily it made me question what every NPC was so worried about.

Let the Bodies Hit the Floor

The enemies don’t provide near enough challenge to warrant this overabundance of loot, either. Mutants do hit hard and fast, I’ll admit, particularly ones that turn invisible. Those would kill you in two or three hits, no doubt, if you weren’t swimming in healing items. The human enemies, which are in much higher abundance, can too often be goaded into waltzing down hallways into a barrage of gunfire, however. You simply never feel like you’re being hunted. No matter how often the world and its inhabitants try to tell you otherwise, it’s clear you’re the apex predator of the Zone.

I can say the guns are super cool, at the very least. They’re detailed and upgradeable, and I liked carrying around my customized favorites. The reload animations are slick as hell, and it was fun getting a new firearm to play around and get a feel for it.

The Road

It was hard for me to feel engaged in the world of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. Lacking interesting characters or a reason to feel engaged with the mechanics, there was ultimately little interesting to me in the game. I know the fanbase is large and dedicated, and I wish I could be amongst their numbers. It should have been a slam dunk for me. The horrors of the Zone never seem to leave the Stalkers we meet, but I’ll unfortunately forget the Zone in short order.

To hear me talk more about S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, be sure to listen to the December 17th, 2025 episode of The Gaming Outsider Podcast around the 41:17 time stamp.

This review is based on a PS5 copy of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl provided by Renaissance PR for coverage purposes. It is also available on Xbox and PC.