S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 will be created using Unreal Engine 4

The original S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games were created using GSC Game World’s proprietary X-Ray engine. This engine enabled the series to offer graphics which were uncommonly good for the time. This has helped cement the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series as a PC gaming staple, but ultimately prevented the series from being easily ported to console platforms. 

With Unreal Engine 4, GSC Game World hopes to make modding easy for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, though the choice will also help the developer to release the game on console platforms. Another factor to consider is that many of the X-Ray engine’s creators have left GSC Game World, which makes the creation of an all-new game engine problematic. 

After S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 was initially announced Epic Games’ Sergey Galyonkin tweeted “guess the engine”, making it clear that Unreal Engine 4 was under consideration. Now, GSC Game World claims that Epic Games accidentally confirmed the game’s engine choice as a “new years surprise”, before GSC wanted to make an official announcement. That said,  S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2’s use of Unreal Engine 4 has been reported as far back as 2018, making this announcement unsurprising. 

At this time  S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 has no clear release date, though the game’s reveal did mention 2.0.2.1., hinting at a 2021 release target. 

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is powered by Unreal Engine: pic.twitter.com/RdDWr4yYj3

— S.T.A.L.K.E.R. OFFICIAL (@stalker_thegame) January 2, 2020