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Many long-time fans may be able to ignore the bugs and other issues and mark them as simply anomalies you find in the zone. However, there is no denying that the gameplay experience in STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl could be smoother. Although the developer promises to fix these problems, it will take a while before an official patch comes. In the meantime, you can check out these STALKER 2 mods that can enhance the experience of the base version.
Stalker Optimizer
The first mod that you definitely want to install for STALKER 2 is the Stalker Optimizer. This program will improve the game and reduce stuttering by optimizing shader compilation and assets streaming. It may even your FPS by 5 to 10 without impacting the visual quality during your playthrough. There are other similar mods with the same function in Nexus Mods but I found that this one works best for me.
Reasonable Weapon Degradation by Vaxis
Although STALKER 2 is meant to be a hard game, there are some aspects of it that may annoy some players. One of them is the unreasonably fast rate of weapon degradation. Many fans complain about having to fix their weapons after only finishing one encounter with enemies. As if that’s not troubling enough, the cost of repair is also pretty high.
If you still want to enjoy some degree of realism by having your weapons degrade but not having to visit a Tech too often, you can download the Reasonable Weapon Degradation by Vaxis mod. This will simply half the degradation rate of your gear, but note that this only affects your weapon and not your armor.
Axxii’s Stealth Mod
Stealth in STALKER 2 is pretty useless since the enemies seem to have powerful eyesight and hearing that can easily locate you. This forces many players to just go guns blazing in many encounters including me. If you prefer a more subtle approach, you can download the Axxii’s Stealth Mod.
This STALKER 2 gameplay mod will prevent enemies from instantly detecting you when you’re just standing 20 meters away. It will also improve the NPCs’ spotting abilities so they’ll have a harder time detecting you when the weather is bad. You will also have an easier time hiding in bushes and reduce the noise you make while crouching.
Longer Sprinting
STALKER 2 has a big map, and you are encouraged to explore the world and discover various hidden locations. At some point, some players may get tired of being forced to walk after consuming their stamina. If you want to be able to sprint in the Zone without much worry, you can download the Longer Sprinting mod. There are three options that you can pick, with 75 percent reduced stamina consumption being the highest.
Lower Mutant Health
Are you tired of being killed by mutants because you ran out of ammo after shooting all of them to these spongy creatures? Well then, you no longer have to deal with this annoying problem. The Lower Mutant Health gameplay mod will allow you to edit the health bar of each mutant enemy in STALKER 2.
Nine options are available, and you can decide which want you want to nerf. For instance, if you wish to weaken the Bloodsuckers, you can edit their HP and leave the rest untouched. You can also weaken all the mutants and make them reasonable opponents and not bullet sponges.
Even Longer Days
Do you feel that nights are a lot longer than days in STALKER 2? That’s not just your own gut feeling because the developer intends to have the night period longer than days. The problem is that it’s hard to see things when the sun is gone, and you may want to enjoy the sights with good lightning more often.
In that case, you can download the Even Longer Days mod, which will give you several preset options. You can just increase the daytime to be twice longer than the base game, but you can even go further by picking the 24 times option.
Maklane’s Better Weights Balance
If you’re a loot goblin, then you may often be overburdened after grabbing so much ammo, consumables, and other stuff. After all, you may need them later, so it’s better to take everything. If you still want to keep this hoarding habit but also maintain some realism, you can use Maklane’s Better Weights Balance mod. It will generally reduce the weight of various consumables, but there may be rare items whose weights have increased.
Super A-Life Maybe
If you are dissatisfied with the current A-Life system in STALKER 2, you can try using the Super A-Life Maybe gameplay mod. This will change various A-Life values and force random events to spawn further away. It will hopefully make the world in the Zone feel more alive without encountering a sudden spawn of monsters that ambush you without warning.
Spawn Anything and Everything
Spawn Anything and Everything is less of a mod and more of a cheat. However, sometimes you just want to go unga bunga and assert your dominance over the whole Zone. In that case, you will need to have some mighty weaponry as you murder everything on your path. This isn’t limited to weapons or ammo; you can spawn any item in STALKER 2, so go wild.
Dynamic Weather (New Experimental Weathers)
The last gameplay mod that you want to try in STALKER 2 is Dynamic Weather. If you feel like the weather is too sunny in the Zone, you can spice up your journey by making it less predictable. The mod developer also wants to restore the Foggy, Light Rain, and Thundery, which are disabled in the base game.
