S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl
STALKER 2 cover art.jpg
Developer(s)GSC Game World
Publisher(s)GSC Game World
SeriesS.T.A.L.K.E.R.
EngineUnreal Engine 5
Platform(s)
ReleaseDecember 8, 2022[1]
Genre(s)First-person shooter, survival horror
Mode(s)Single-player

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl is an upcoming first-person shooter game developed and published by GSC Game World. Set to release for Microsoft Windows and the Xbox Series X/S in December 2022, it will be the fourth game released in the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. video game series, the first game in the series released on consoles, as well as the first S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game in 13 years since the release of Call of Pripyat in 2009.

Initially announced following the release of Call of Pripyat, it was planned release in 2012, before it was ultimately cancelled on the year of its intended release.[2][3] The game resurfaced years later in 2018, with the development restarted and powered by the Unreal Engine 5, and a new release date on December 8, 2022.[4]

Development[]

Early development[]

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 was initially announced in 2010, with a release date set in 2012, by Sergei Grigorovich, CEO of GSC Game World, stating "After the official sales of the series exceeded 4 million copies worldwide, we had no doubts left to start creating a new big game in the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. universe. This will be the next chapter of the mega-popular game players expect from us." The development of the game was ambitious; it was stated that the game would feature an all-new multiplatform engine, made from scratch to fit S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2.

During development, numerous layoffs and overall attrition through the development of the game had shrunk GSC's employee count by 75%. Two years in, Grigorovich had announced the immediate cessation of all development due to "personal reasons", likely as a result of financial difficulty.[5] GSC Game World was officially dissolved on December 9, 2011.[6] The official Twitter account posted "We will do our best to continue. However, at this moment, nothing is certain."[7] After several months of uncertainty,[8] an update was posted that the development would continue after the holidays, although it would require funding.[9] However, the cancellation of this build of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 had been formally announced in April 2012 on the company's Facebook page,[10] officially stated to have resulted from dispute between investors, staff, and the original IP rights owner.[11]

West Games scandal[]

West Games, a studio founded by former GSC lead developer Eugene Kim,[12] had launched a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign for a spiritual successor to the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. franchise in June 2014, under the title "Areal".[13] However, this drew widespread criticism and was described as a scam, with its trailer entirely composed of footage from the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games as well as purported screenshots from its development being revealed as modified assets from the Unity engine's "asset store", which West Games claimed was "media-fabricated".[14] The project drew $65,000 in Kickstarter funds, $15,000 over its original goal of $50,000, however it was permanently suspended by Kickstarter in July, citing guideline violations.[15] After cancellation though, West Games had at first claimed to have switched to private funding on their website to fund the project, they announced another crowdfunding campaign on the Wfunder platform in December 2014, setting a much larger goal of $600,000 to produce a new game called S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Apocalypse.[16]

Revival[]

After years of dormancy, GSC Game World was officially reformed in December 2014 to develop Cossacks 3. Four years later, on said game's Facebook page, development of a new S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 was announced, linking to www.stalker2.com, the game's website.[17] It was later revealed that the game would be developed using Unreal Engine 4.[18] This build of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 was announced exceptionally early into development, with it still being in the "design doc phase".[19] Grigorovich later stated on a podcast that the intent of the project's announcement in 2018 was largely to generate hype, in order to strike a publishing deal at E3 2018.[20]

Little information was given regarding the project until E3 2021, where a full gameplay trailer was shown at the Microsoft/Bethesda press conference. The release date was rescheduled to April 28, 2022.[1] In August 2021, the developers revealed that the game was updated to Unreal Engine 5.[21]

Release[]

The game is planned to be on Xbox Game Pass at launch.[22] In addition, the game was stated by GSC Game World to be planned as a Microsoft-exclusive release, only releasing on Microsoft Windows and the Xbox Series X/S.[23] This exclusivity, however, is only slated to be for three months following its release as evidenced from leaked documents as a part of Epic Games v. Apple.[24][25][26]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Barbosa, Alessadro (June 13, 2021). "Stalker 2: Heart of Chernobyl Launches In April 2022, On Xbox Games Pass At Launch". GameSpot. Archived from the original on June 23, 2021. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  2. ^ "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 studio facing uncertain future". GameSpot. 12 December 2011. Archived from the original on 8 January 2012. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  3. ^ "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 canceled". GameSpot. 2012-04-25. Archived from the original on 2019-04-10. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
  4. ^ "Stalker 2 Heart of Chernobyl Release Date Delayed to December". . 2022-01-30. Retrieved 2022-02-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ "Киевская компания, создавшая игры S.T.A.L.K.E.R. и "Казаки", решила самоликвидироваться" (in Russian). Ukrainian News Agency. 2011-12-09. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  6. ^ Hall, Charlie (2013-09-08). "Stalker fallout: Polygon traces the exodus from Kiev's legendary GSC Game World". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2019-03-28. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  7. ^ "We will do our best to continue. However, at this moment, nothing is certain". Twitter. Archived from the original on 2021-09-04. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  8. ^ "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 studio facing uncertain future". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  9. ^ "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 presses on, but studio needs cash - Report". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  10. ^ "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 canceled". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2019-04-10. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  11. ^ "The reason we cannot continue..." Facebook. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  12. ^ Senior, Tom (2012-06-01). "Rumour: Ex-STALKER devs form Union Studio, developing Fallout/Rage inspired shooter". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 2019-02-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  13. ^ Tach, Dave (2014-06-24). "STALKER devs working on survival horror spiritual successor Areal". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2019-05-17. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  14. ^ "UPDATE: S.T.A.L.K.E.R successor scandal is media-fabricated, dev claims". VG247. 2014-07-02. Archived from the original on 2018-10-26. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  15. ^ McWhertor, Michael (2014-07-22). "Kickstarter suspends Ex-STALKER devs' Areal campaign, West Games turns to direct funding". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2019-05-17. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  16. ^ Hall, Charlie (2014-12-12). "After having its Kickstarter canceled, STALKER sequel goes back to the well". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  17. ^ "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  18. ^ Hall, Charlie (2018-05-15). "STALKER 2 announced, scheduled for 2021 release". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2018-05-16. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  19. ^ "STALKER 2 was only announced so the devs could find a publisher". PCGamesN. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  20. ^ "Как Делают Игры 222. Отвечаем на вопросы". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  21. ^ Birch, Nathan (August 11, 2021). "STALKER 2 is Running on Unreal Engine 5 Confirms GSC Game World". WCCFTech. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
  22. ^ "Stalker 2: Heart of Chernobyl Launches In April 2022, On Xbox Games Pass At Launch". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2021-06-23. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  23. ^ "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 On PS5 Not Planned, Developer Talks Xbox Exclusivity". ScreenRant. 2021-04-30. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  24. ^ "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Could Come to PS5 Three Months After Release". Push Square. 2021-05-02. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  25. ^ "Is Stalker 2 Coming To PS5?". Cultured Vultures. 2021-05-28. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.
  26. ^ "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Exclusive to Xbox for Just Three Months". PlayStation LifeStyle. 2021-05-03. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-24.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""