STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl is set to introduce a new Master difficulty level to its gameplay with Version 1.7 where the players will have to showcase their skills under the most difficult circumstances the Zone has to offer. The news from GSC Game World, the game’s developer, has triggered a very heated discussion within the stalker community, some have shown their enthusiasm while others have been doubtful about the actual substance of this utmost difficulty level.
So what does Master difficulty consist of? The official announcement was quite vague, just inviting the bravest stalkers to “prove your skills” while using that very strange kaomoji face ┗|・o・|┛ which is puzzling, what does it even mean?? Is the Zone going to make fun of us while we are perishing?? Gamers quickly overwhelmed the comments section with questions and concerns regarding the changes this update would entail.
In reality, the community seems to be divided into two camps. Some of the hardcore veterens want a more realistic STALKER thrill. A user named JBishie was optimistic and said: “I hope that on master difficulty, food, drink, and sleep become essential to survival, with scarce loot, meager rewards, and constant danger.” That does sound very bad but at the same time incredibly thrilling?? Like that’s the STALKER experience that hooked us all and made us addicted to it in the first years of its life. SeanOnline was responding, “Less health, unrealistically gruesome deaths, and danger every step you take. Yeah count me in.” Such players long for the classic atmosphere, where every decision counts, and death is quick.
On the same note, there are those players who are against this move calling it a case of artificial difficulty. EchelonNonDeus bluntly asked, “Is this going to be the case where the enemies become the ultimate bullet sponges? If so, count me out.” This is a reasonable perspective as no one intends the opponents to be like sponges drinking bullets, that’s simply awful game design. Blackfyre1998 went even further: “The AI needs a miracle.” Ouch! That’s a hurting statement but in a way is he right? The AI has always been a difficult issue in the STALKER games.
The discussion about weapon balancing became really heated. Sick_jose wished that the shot ratio and death would be “closer to the original games, one shot to die and one shot to kill.” But LordSin34 strongly disagreed saying, “That was never like the old games, if that was the case, then the base pistol would be able to one shot a bandit wearing a bandit outfit…” This tell-and-show situation illustrates how the community is extremely divided and still disputing the factors that made the original games great. Some gamers see them as ultra-realistic survival sims while others remember them differently.
On the other hand, KacperDamian1 was asking a good question, “Will master diff have less loot overall??” Because in survival games, scarcity is everything. The user thomas977673521 reminded that in the previous trilogy “you had a lot more cash” on master difficulty and suggested that maybe the economy needs rebalancing too.
And then there’s the whole… other concerns people have. Fromp_Tman mentioned the promised PvP mode that still hasn’t arrived: “It’s been over a year, and the scam goes on.” Yikes. That’s some serious frustration right there. Several users sought clarification about the engine update and if it’s coming with this patch, including daniadam94 who was curious if it would get the PS5 version or be delayed to next year.
The Ukrainian player topas880 wrote in their mother tongue: “Я через 5 хвилин після того як поміняю складність на ‘Майстер'” which means “Me 5 minutes after changing the difficulty to ‘Master'” with a link to what looks like a meme. That pretty much encapsulates the feeling that most of us might have.
What’s really interesting is the fact that so many people are debating if they should buy the game or wait. Rayan_catania said: “Come on, don’t remove the game from game pass” while Troll52829 was pondering: “Is it worth waiting or playing now?”. The community has this uncertainty regarding the right moment to jump in, particularly with all these updates coming.
The VR players are also in the picture, as GenericUse98791 proposed “You guys should add in VR support, stalker in VR would be so good.” Can you believe it?? Getting scared by a bloodsucker in VR would probably give me a heart attack. But also it sounds really cool.
Clearly, STALKER players are not after mere numerical adjustments but rather real enjoyable difficulty. They want the Zone to be a very wild experience, and food mechanics could play a crucial role in that survival challenge.
