Stalker 2 sleuth discovers why the AI feels particularly harsh - it's because it is, but the devs say they're already working to fix the broken monster spawns

gamesradar.com:

Stalker 2 is set in a fictional version of the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone, where strange anomalies defy the laws of physics, but even that doesn't explain why I so often saw enemies spawn right in front of my eyes.

In our three-star review of Stalker 2, Andy says it's "The best but most broken game I've played all year", and I agree. One of the issues I noticed in my review was that enemies appear to spawn out of nowhere and instantly start hunting you down.

I know the Zone is supposed to be a hostile place, but at one point I was trying to escape from a base I'd infiltrated only to see enemies materialize out of thin air a few meters in front of me and immediately start shooting. Once I'd dealt with them, more would spawn behind a nearby building, and once I'd dealt with them, the process would repeat itself. I must have killed 30 enemies in a place that only started with a dozen or so.

Redditor hayboy117 believes they have cracked the case. "After investigating the ALife system in Stalker 2, I found that NPCs and mutants spawn within a fixed radius around the player," they explain. "This spawning mechanic, coupled with the NPCs' vision distance being greater than the spawn distance, often results in instant hostility from NPCs, which compromises immersion."

A-Life 2.0 is the system that manages NPC spawns and is supposed to be an improvement over the version found in the original three Stalker games. The developers have noted via the game's Discord (shared on Reddit), "There are several known issues with A-life 2.0 system that we are aware of and are working on fixes/improvements. We know that this system is very important to the Zone having an immersive atmosphere, and we will do our best to fix the known issues."

Hayboy117 says they found it easy to tweak the Stalker 2 files to adjust things like bullet damage and weapon wear, so they're confident a lot of mods will come about to help people adjust the game to their liking – there are already several Stalker 2