Stalker 2 version 1.5 actually sorts out the A-Life AI system, and modding support is here

Finally, only about 7 months after the release, Stalker 2 actually now has the A-Life AI system hooked up properly.

There were a lot of complaints about the AI system in Stalker 2 at release, and I noted plenty of weirdness in the original GamingOnLinux article on it. For good reason - a lot of what was expected just didn't seem to be in the game. Well, now it seems it actually is.

Amongst another big lot of general fixes, the changelog notes the A-Life system actually has been hooked up to simulate all characters, not just those in your current view and so everyone will continue progressing towards their goals in the background. With all the changes, it sounds like a good time to just entirely start over. This might very well be the game as it should have released.

Pictured - Stalker 2 on Kubuntu Linux

Some of the main changes in Stalker 2 version 1.5:

• A-Life changes
  • Life in the Zone is now simulated for all characters, not just those in the player's view.
  • Characters continue to live their lives and pursue their goals in the Zone until they meet their end.
  • The player can meet the same stalkers after some time.
  • Players may encounter more A-Life characters resting or interacting in various locations, adding to the world’s immersion.
  • Characters will no longer respawn directly in front of the player. When the player clears the mutants' lair, for example, those mutants won't simply reappear moments later.
  • A-Life Director will no longer respawn characters at the edge of visualisation. Instead, respawn moved further away from the player, while maintaining the Zone's population.
  • Visualisation range is slightly increased. Characters now appear in visualisation range with relevant animations and equipped weapons. This reduces the "pop-in" effect and contributes to a more seamless character visualisation.
• Added new anomaly: Water Electric Tornado.
• Added Three-Line Rifle weapon.
• Added new handgun Kora.
• Added the new feature: looting of mutant parts.
• Added displaying of available artifact slots for armours in the Upgrade tab.
• Added unlockable "Fix all" button in the technician's upgrade menu, to repair all equipped gear.
• Added reload renewal feature for all of the weapons.
• The player stash window is increased in size.
• Fixed an issue when the "Take all" button becomes inactive after putting any item to the loot window.

YouTube videos require cookies, you must accept their cookies to view. View cookie preferences.
Accept Cookies & Show   Direct Link

Another big addition is the introduction of official modding support with the Zone Kit, along with support for Steam Workshop and mod.io integration.

Testing the update today, I seem to have come across a similar issue as I found in Splitgate 2, where mouse movement just didn't seem to work at all but keyboard input was fine. I had to do some odd combination of alt+tab, shift+tab to bring up the Steam Overlay and then it just eventually grabbed the mouse. Quite annoying.