Summary
- GSC is working on adding controller stick deadzone settings to STALKER 2.
- The absence of this feature, paired with the game's lack of a default deadzone offset, prevented many controller players from enjoying STALKER 2 at launch due to stick drift.
STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl will receive controller stick deadzone settings, GSC Game World has confirmed. The absence of this feature in the day-one version of STALKER 2 has hindered some players from fully enjoying the immersive sim with a controller.
Stick drift, a phenomenon when a gamepad's analog stick sends a signal to move even when the player isn't touching it, is among modern gaming's biggest annoyances. One of the most common ways the industry has been dealing with this issue involves granular deadzone settings, which let users set the stick radius within which all input is ignored. However, such solutions are typically not system-wide and depend on developers to implement them on a per-game basis.
Shortly after STALKER 2 was released on November 20, some controller users were left unpleasantly surprised by the fact that the immersive sim not only didn't have any deadzone settings, but also featured no default deadzone offset—something that modern games often do. These omissions made it difficult for some fans to enjoy STALKER 2, especially since the absence of a default deadzone offset caused problems even for players whose gamepads exhibit minimal stick drift. GSC Game World confirmed it's working on remedying the situation in a November 21 message posted on the official STALKER 2 Discord server. A company official later reiterated this information on Reddit.
There's Currently No Time Frame for STALKER 2's Controller Deadzone Settings
The Ukrainian developer has yet to commit to a specific time frame for this feature. Controller deadzone settings will presumably be added to both the PC and Xbox versions of STALKER 2. In the meantime, console owners who have access to some PC peripherals should bear in mind that the game can be played on both the Xbox Series X and Series S with a mouse and keyboard.
The absence of a default stick deadzone offset and related settings isn't the only issue that some fans have identified with the game's controls. PC players have also criticized the way STALKER 2 handles quick access consumable slots, which are restricted to just two keys that can both be pressed and held in order to use up to four different items. According to their grievances, enforcing this controller-inspired system on mouse and keyboard users is unnecessary, especially when the F1–F4 function keys could easily serve the same purpose, like they did in the first three STALKER games.
Technical issues aside, STALKER 2 had a promising launch, peaking at over 110,000 concurrent players on Steam alone within hours of going live. Since it was a mid-week release, the immersive sim is likely to further improve on its concurrent player record over the weekend of November 23.
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 75 /100 Critics Rec: 64%
- Released
- November 20, 2024
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco
- Developer(s)
- GSC Game World
- Publisher(s)
- GSC Game World
WHERE TO PLAY
Chornobyl Exclusion Zone has changed dramatically after the second massive explosion in the year 2006. Violent mutants, deadly anomalies, and warring factions have made the Zone a very tough place to survive.
Nevertheless, artifacts of unbelievable value attracted many people called S.T.A.L.K.E.R.s, who entered the Zone for their own risk, striving to make a fortune out of it or even to find the Truth concealed in the Heart of Chornobyl.
EPIC NONLINEAR STORY IN SEAMLESS OPEN WORLD
Take over a role of the lone stalker and explore photorealistic seamless open world in a 64-km² radioactive zone with a variety of environments that reveal post-apocalyptic atmosphere from different angles. Make your way through the Zone to define your destiny as you choose your paths within highly branching epic story.
VARIETY OF ENEMIES AND HUNDREDS OF WEAPON COMBINATIONS
Meet members of different factions deciding who of them worth your friendship and who deserve a bullet. Engage intense gunfights with a variety of enemies that follow different tactics trying to outsmart you. Choose your preferable firearms from 30+ types of weapons with numerous modifications that allow creating hundreds of distinctive lethal combinations.
LEGENDARY MUTANTS WITH DIFFERENT BEHAVIOUR MODELS
Prepare to encounter horrifying mutated creatures that will try to slaughter you following different behaviour model. Each mutant may appear in different subtypes which makes their behaviour less predictible. Truly extreme danger represent regions with lairs with numerous mutants hunting in large groups.
ARTIFACTS OF INCREDIBLE VALUE AND UNFORGIVING ANOMALIES
The most valuable artifacts and secrets of the Zone are hidden in the most dangerous places. Beware of the hazardous anomalies and unique devastating arch-anomalies as you hunt for highly valuable artifacts scattered around the Zone. Will you dare to unveil the mysteries of the Zone that took lives of many others before you?
GOOD HUNTING, STALKER!
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 5
- Franchise
- S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC
- Genre(s)
- First-Person Shooter, Open-World, Post-Apocalyptic, Survival
