Today, November 17 2025, the developers of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl released the major 1.7 patch . The main features of this update include a new difficulty level “Master”, an “Expedition” mode (which disables manual saves), new anomalies, and light rain weather conditions.

The team also overhauled building equipment stats, reworked the stamina and sprint system, made it harder for NPCs to spot the player in tall grass or reeds. Mutants and NPCs have also learned to retreat from the fight if they realize that chances for survival are low. They will also try to flank more actively, and choose a distance to fight from that best suits their weapon.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Major Patch 1.7 Now Live

Patch 1.7 also comes with a trailer that highlights improvements to the A-Life system.

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