Update 1.6 — Night of the Hunter Is Live!

Welcome to the newest update for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl. We’re glad you’ve returned — the Zone has changed, and there’s plenty new to discover.

Below is a summary of the most significant changes and fixes included in this release.

• Night Vision Goggles introduced for players.

  

• NPC night-vision behavior rebalanced.

• Offset aiming and laser-pointer support added.

• Combat systems and long-range engagements refined.

• NPCs can now scavenge loot from defeated mutants.

• New anomaly introduced: Fireball.

• A familiar face returns to the Zone.

• Controller input handling has been improved.

• Expanded face and hairstyle options for female characters.

• Local Save Backup Restoration option added.

• Loot in stashes across the Zone has been rebalanced.

• New control option: Auto-Lean Disable.

• Player stash inventories can now be sorted.

• Added a new unique weapon: Honta’s “Drahunka.”

  

⚠️ WARNING

The Zone is fluid — updates can alter its systems and interactions. If you use mods, be aware they may not be compatible with this release. If you experience performance or stability problems after Update 1.6, we recommend disabling mods. For further troubleshooting, visit support.stalker2.com.

For instructions on properly uninstalling mods, see the dedicated guide: Steam Community — Mod Uninstall Guide.

• Fixed NPCs taking inappropriate low cover behind trees.

• Resolved an issue that caused nearby squad leaders to shout the same line simultaneously after combat.

• Prevented zombie NPCs from freezing midair after headshots.

• Improved Chimera combat logic and responsiveness.

• Fixed scenarios where Chimera could become stuck after jump attacks.

• Prevented Chimera and Snork from jumping through objects when the player stood above them.

• Corrected Bloodsucker arm animations during melee.

• Fixed an issue causing Bloodsuckers to remain invisible when idle.

• Addressed Pseudodog clone pathing when spawned during Retreat actions.

• Restored throwing ability for Burers and Poltergeists.

• Fixed Pseudogiant stomp hit detection affecting airborne players.

  

• Corrected an issue that could make the Mercenary’s Light Suit weigh 0.0 kg after upgrades.

• Adjusted the weight of the Veteran rifle.

• Increased Predator shotgun damage to match its description.

• Fixed Flytrap artifact so it properly grants weight reduction.

• Raised HP for boar-type mutants.

• Reduced HP for pseudogiant mutants.

• Tweaked Kora’s upgrade tree and restored a missing extended magazine to the loot pool.

  

• Fixed incorrect player rotation after teleporting via Spatial Bubble anomalies.

• Polished headgear appearance across multiple NPC presets.

• Resolved an issue preventing zombies from standing during Scar’s boss fight.

• Stopped Burers from oscillating their facing during combat.

• Added missing combat voice lines for Bandits, Free Stalkers, and Military NPCs.

• Fixed hostile NPC non-reaction to nearby PM weapon fire.

• Corrected a Mercenary Sniper pathing bug that could follow the player across the map after the Underpass Exit encounter (Rostok).

• Stabilized A-Life NPC actions after save/load cycles.

• Applied CPU and projectile performance optimizations.

• Fixed freezes occurring when exiting the 100 Rads Bar and during the “Wishful Thinking” mission at SIRCAA.

• Prevented faction-changed NPCs from reverting after saving/loading.

• Fixed an unresponsive state caused by a missing update wrapper message.

• Eliminated duplicate ammo icons when quickly switching weapons and ammo types.

• Corrected detector tooltip positioning during item comparisons.

• Fixed quest marker visibility issues at certain zoom levels when near other markers.

• Resolved quick-slot medkit count not updating after reviving an NPC.

• Fixed a visual issue where the Zubr weapon laser could be hidden beneath the magazine in the upgrades menu.

• Addressed multiple crash scenarios and reduced freezes during Light Rain and Thunder weather.

• Improved player shadow rendering during reload animations.

• Fixed Yaryk Mangoose despawn during the For Science! mission after device activation.

• Stopped mutants and NPCs from following the player across the entire map after certain encounters.

• Resolved an issue where the Roadhog failed to attack during its encounter.

• Fixed an objective block in Escape From the Cage — looting player items now correctly allows progressing the Taking Back What’s Mine objective.

• Removed persistent Sleepiness post-process effect after loading during In Search of Past Glory.

• Fixed Ward NPCs idling after killing Mutants or Monolithians during Law and Order.

• Added crow reactions when players throw bolts at them.

• Fixed a player fall-through issue near Friendship Kindergarten (District No. 2).

• Various level-art and level-design improvements across locations.

• Corrected dialogue inconsistencies in encounter missions.

• Restored missing quest dialogue for Shcherba in In the Name of Science.

• Repopulated Duty Soldiers and Bayun at the boathouse in A Minor Incident.

• Fixed the spawn of the Partner unique weapon in On the Edge.

• Ensured Poltergeists spawn correctly for Subtle Matter.

• Restored Sgt. Metlov in Back to the Slag Heap.

• Fixed reward flow for Akopyan in A Big Score when players kill Zakhar after escorting him.

• Fixed relation and dialogue issues with Senkevych in The Assault on the Duga.

• Resolved lever interaction bug in A Sign of Hope.

• Restored Powerplug presence in Dawn of a New Day.

• Marked the Granite Security Squad Key Card as a quest item in The Last Step.

• Fixed unreachable enemy spawns at Yaniv Station in The Boundary.

• Prevented Richter from becoming hostile after nearby neutral NPC deaths in Down Below.

• Fixed completion tracking for the Kill all bandits stage in Answers Come at a Price.

• Restored the Find the Inductor quest marker behavior when prerequisites are met in Hot on the Trail.

• Removed duplicate Max Saturday corpse appearing in The Lost Boys.

• Corrected quest marker placement in Just Like the Good Old Days.

• Fixed save-inside-elevator issues in Visions of Truth.

• Restored the ability to talk to Strelok in Let No One Leave Unsatisfied.

• Prevented getting stuck at TCS without a key card in Dangerous Liaisons.

• Reinstated Dalin and Korshunov at Chemical Plant in Just Like the Good Old Days.

• Fixed completion for Fight off the Monolithians in Happiness for Everyone.

• Stopped On the Edge from triggering if all neutral Stalkers defending Zalissya are dead.

• Added ModSDK support for autoloaded blueprints.

• Improved Mod Browser user experience.

• Fixed non-clickable arrow icons and placeholder text issues in the mod detail window.

• Added a visible queue indicator for currently downloading mods.

• Fixed issues with retrying mod downloads and removed the ability to report mods before accepting the EULA.

• Resolved startup blockers when resolving mod errors before launching the game.

• Eliminated image flicker when starting mod installation from its page.

• Fixed an overwrite bug affecting save slots when starting a new game without mods while having modded saves present.

• Corrected mod version display in update pop-ups.

• Handled corrupted mod versions when loading modded saves to prevent gameplay failure.

• Reduced asset discovery time when launching the Mod Editor.

• Fixed mod mismatch popup handling after pressing “Resolve” when required mods are missing.

• Ensured mods with skipped external updates are still mounted if appropriate.

  

Shape the Zone with the Zone Kit — create or modify animations, weapons, mechanics, and more. Browse community-made content on Steam Workshop and mod.io. If you want to build your own content, download the Zone Kit: Epic Games Store — STALKER 2 Zone Kit.

• Removed an empty gap in the Player equipment block on the inventory screen.

• Fixed music stopping prematurely during the credits.

• Updated armor and helmet icons in upgrades and inventory menus.

• Improved weight display UX for single items in a stack.

• Refined the upgrades purchase UI.

• Updated tutorials for flashlight use and weapon mod installation via the Technician.

• Added a quick-slot icon for Dvupalov’s Vodka.

• Minor Journal PDA UI improvements.

• Pressing J over a quest marker in the Map now opens that mission entry in the Journal.

• Adjusted placement of side-quest HUD notifications.

• Polished the Player Stats panel widget in the HUD.

• Added more HUD visibility settings.

• Fixed Windows Scale option affecting fullscreen borderless and windowed modes incorrectly on PC.

• Improved vaulting and climbing over objects.

• Enhanced VFX for laser sights.

• Added new NPC death animations triggered by anomalies.

  

Thanks for your continued support and feedback — the Zone grows because of you. Test the combat updates, share your impressions on our channels, and help us make the experience better.

For the complete patch notes, see: Official Update 1.6 Patch Notes

If you encounter an unexpected “anomaly” or other technical issues, please report it to our Technical Support Center so our team can investigate: support.stalker2.com

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