DEVS RESPOND! S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Trilogy Patch Addresses Fan Concerns & “Missing Geometry” After Content Removal Backlash
Good news for Stalkers! Following significant player feedback, developer GSC Game World has released a promising update for the S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Legends of the Zone Trilogy – Enhanced Edition, signaling they are actively listening to the community and working to improve the experience.
The Enhanced Edition, which launched on May 20 offering free “fully remastered and optimized” upgrades for owners of the original trilogy (Shadow of Chornobyl, Clear Sky, and Call of Prypiat), initially faced a wave of negative reviews. Players expressed disappointment after discovering that Russian voice acting and certain “Soviet-era” landmarks appeared to have been quietly removed. This led to the games’ Steam ratings plummeting, with many users lamenting changes they felt detracted from the original atmosphere, alongside complaints about blurry visuals.
One player articulated the sentiment, stating, “I have mixed feelings about stripping out the Russian references – honestly I see the original games as products of their history… GSC needed to do much more here and some cosmetic tweaking doesn’t really cut it.”
It’s important to note the challenging context: GSC Game World is a Ukrainian studio based in Kyiv, significantly impacted by Russia’s full-scale invasion, which even temporarily halted S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 development.
In a positive step, GSC Game World has now released an update and a patch. The team announced, “Stalkers, we care about your feedback and are working on fixing the most critical issues. We really want to make your comeback to the Zone special.” They confirmed the patch aims to fix crashes, address save issues, and crucially, repair “missing geometry on several levels.”
This “missing geometry” is widely believed by players to refer to the Soviet-era relics that had been removed. While the update didn’t explicitly mention restoring Russian audio or fixing all visual complaints, the news of the patch and GSC’s commitment has been met with enthusiasm.
“THEY LISTENED! THEY LISTENED! THEY LISTENED!” exclaimed one delighted player on Reddit. Another commented, reflecting on the potential restoration of landmarks, “That’s a million time[s] better solution than just removing it without a trace. That’s both applauding the current decommunization efforts while not censoring anything that existed before it.”
While some issues like blurry textures and items in stashes are still hoped to be addressed, the community sees this as a significant and welcome move. “This is a good first step,” added another player, reflecting a hopeful outlook as GSC Game World pledges to “continue to work on improving the trilogy.” This dedication to player feedback is a heartening sign for the future of the Zone.
