I just started playing STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl, and as a huge fan of more modern extraction games, it was one of my most anticipated titles of the year, as the franchise is largely attributed as one of the games to inspire the genre. So far, even though it's filled with jankiness, it's been a pretty fun experience. That said, it reminded me of an actual extraction game, one that I don't think gets enough shine and was one of my favorite betas to play in 2023.

As I played through STALKER 2, I realized how much this indie gem has in common with the title and how much it's been inspired by it. From the aesthetic to the basic gameplay loop to small features hidden around the different levels, it was actually my first introduction to STALKER and wasn't even a STALKER game.

ZERO Sievert Is The 2D STALKER

A Fun Indie Worth Investigating

ZERO Sievert is a top-down pixel-art 2D indie game developed by CABO Studio. Recently officially released in its full version in October of 2024, I enjoyed the beta for a time before the game came out. Right now, the game is sitting with a "Very Positive" overall review rating on Steam, and a small niche community has come to really enjoy the game.

Playing through STALKER 2 provided the revelation of how much the franchise inspired ZERO Sievert's creation. From throwing bolts into anomalies in the fabric of reality to hunting down ghoulish fiends and humans alike, the similarities between the two titles are clear. One apt (but maybe not totally similar) comparison would be that ZERO Sievert is what Terraria is to Minecraft — as they are both very similar yet distinct and uniquely fun experiences.

ZERO Sievert also shares elements with other extraction games like Escape from Tarkov.

In ZERO Sievert, players must overcome different maps and extract via random spawn points after completing objectives. Like STALKER 2, there are various factions and interesting NPCs you meet along the way, and you can take on different quests. The game in itself, although 2D, is very challenging, and there's certainly a learning curve. Those used to frenetic, high-paced, top-down shooters will fall in love with the game, although the gameplay is much more methodical and punishing than the majority of those titles.

A New Extraction Experience

A Pixel-Art Extraction Game

I've played Escape from Tarkov, Marauders, and even the now-shuttered Cycle Frontier — but ZERO Sievert was my first try with a single-player extraction experience. To say I was hooked right from the start would be an understatement, as I equipped my Mosin–Nagant loadout and started taking out pixelated enemies across the game's five or so maps. In some ways, I think that making the game 2D enabled the developers to focus more on intelligent AI, as battles with the in-game NPCs can be a fun, albeit at times, harrowing experience.

Another thing to note, and a huge problem currently with STALKER 2, is performance. I'm running a 3070 Ti, and STALKER 2 is certainly not the most optimized game for PC. While I did have some issues in early betas, ZERO Sievert is much less taxing on computer systems if you are a PC player and could scratch that STALKER extraction itch for those running on weaker systems.

The Development Is Driven By One Person

A One Man Army Started It All

What's the most amazing thing about indie games, at least for me — is that they are able to create amazing experiences with a barebones team. ZERO Sievert is such a game, developed by the aforementioned CABO Studios, which is, in fact, one person with a dream named Luca Carbonera. Development started in 2020 during the pandemic, with progress detailed on the CABO Studios YouTube channel.

Just like ZERO Sievert, GSC was started by just two people with a dream and eventually grew into what it is today.

Although it's unclear if Cabonera added more team after initial development, in 2022, CABO teamed up with Modern Wolf and launched the game into Early Access. Since then, the company has kept the community updated through more traditional development updates.

The Early Access launch of ZERO Sievert was wildly successful, gaining over a million dollars just a week out from its debut.

In a landscape filled with massive development teams numbering in the hundreds and budgets that could rival full cinematic Hollywood productions, gaming is a unique medium where highly successful and, more importantly, fun games can be driven by just a few people. The STALKER franchise itself is a small studio, GSC Game World, located in Ukraine. It just goes to show that in gaming, money doesn't always equate to quality.

STALKER 2 Has Potential, But Bugs Are Annoying

There's Room For Improvement & They Are Working On It

Back to STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl. I've not made it too far into the story yet, but so far, it's been pretty fun and engaging. Unlike another game that I criticize pretty often (cough, Starfield), so far in STALKER 2, I actually want to investigate the side content and take my time through the narrative. There's just something about that grim, gritty aesthetic and life-or-death side missions that make me want to explore what it has to offer, even if it's crashed a few times for me thus far.

So far, I've experienced choppiness even though I have quite the beefy rig, a few game crashes, and an area I haplessly fell into and couldn't get unstuck from. Other than that, however, the narrative has felt compelling, and I enjoy the game loop and world so far. After I'm done digging more into the story of Heart of Chornobyl, I think I'll go back to ZERO Sievert and see what the new content has to offer.

The Russia-Ukraine War disrupted development for STALKER 2, with the team stating, “The full-fledged war in [Ukraine] was what tore everything apart, and after that it’s a case of overcoming, overcoming, overcoming, and moving towards actually finishing the game,” according to an interview with TheGamer before the game released.

Even though STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl isn't a true extraction game, it does replicate the difficulty of one, and mechanics that were created in the STALKER franchise have been carried over to games in the genre, so in a lot of ways — it feels like home. I can deal with the bugs, especially considering what GSC Game World has been through over the last few decades. Just like ZERO Sievert, GSC was started by just two people with a dream and eventually grew into what it is today. It just goes to show that ion and vision have a better likelihood of producing a good game than massively inflated budgets.

Source: Steam, CABO Studios/YouTube, TheGamer