Why Is Stalker Anomaly So Popular?

Wow. This video resonated with a lot more of you than anticipated. I hope you enjoyed the video, and welcome to the channel!

Another critique that Anomaly gets, from the Stalker purists especially, is how drastically different Anomaly is compared to the OG trilogy. Anomaly is far from Stalker but prettier, it's fundamentally a different experience, just set in the same setting. Now look, this is definitely not a problem on it's own, Anomaly is fantastic and a breath of fresh air to veterans who've gotten bored of replaying the OGs; the problem comes from rookies who's introduction to the series is Anomaly, who then assume certain things that Anomaly introduced to the series were always part of the series, like super hardcore survival mechanics, a lack of story, and certain lore elements. It's the opposite; the OG games have surprisingly simple mechanics, where most of the difficulty comes from the combat, and all 3 games have fascinating stories and lore, and even get a bit philosophical if you dive deep enough. And some of the lore Anomaly adds contradicts/ruins OG lore and is obviously not canon, since it's fan lore. This divide of OG fans and Anomaly newbies especially has the chance of becoming a problem when Stalker 2 comes out, since all said Anomaly newbies will see S2 as a """downgrade""" to Anomaly, since it won't have a bajillion tacticool AK variants or a complex health or repair system, even through S2 is a sequel to the OG games and NOT Anomaly. Multiple Stalker YT channels like Anomalous Dugout and Can't Game Right have made videos about this. So yeah, TL;DR, peeps who get into Stalker via Anomaly will have the wrong idea about what the series is all about, and might even dunk on S2 unfairly because it isn't Anomaly 2.0. Solution? Play the OG games first. Not only are they the best way to get into the series since they're absolutely not as hardcore as Anomaly, the bigger story focus will also work much better in getting peeps actually invested in the Zone and it's stories compared to Anomaly. Again, Anomaly is frickin great. Just don't skip three whole games to play it first, and then complain about having a hard time getting into it; Anomaly was made with the assumption that anyone who's playing it has played the OGs first, and it's familiar with the dangers of the Zone. And don't miss out on the great stories and world building of the trilogy, which Stalker 2 will build on as well. Good hunting stalkers.

I dont see how ppl could hate it

Anomaly is great but the problem is it gives people a wrong idea what Stalker is and i think many will be disappointed by Stalker 2 because of it.

I have my gripes with gamma, I think normal anomaly is the best experience, but that's just my opinion, anyway I have noticed something, this game has a VERY HIGH rate of turning people new to the franchise to instant fanatics of it. Every person I've introduced stalker to reported being addicted a week or 2 later. I always recommend people the vanilla games first to learn the world, as to avoid that "this game is too hard and unintuitive" effect which puts many off, but hey, I guess I can't really blame them, more content and "polish" all for free. It's nice to see the popularity of the game leaking into the western world, even if it is heavily modified, but this will definitely get a lot more people on the stalker 2 hype train, because man, GSC deserve a god damn medal for what they've created.

small pet peeve but Anomaly isnt a Shadow of chernobyl mod, its a standalone mod(pack) based around Call of chernobyl, a sandbox freeplay mod itself of Call of pripyat, the last entry in the series. just a small detail for those interested in the evolution of stalker mods, otherwise fantastic video

I started my gamma trek last month... I'm hooked.. I had to restart to brand new games several times until understanding how to maintain your equipment. but after figuring out I have set a goal to go north and see the sarcophagus of chernobly. I'm actually excited to accomplish this.

This moded game make most of AAA games feels pathetic, backward and sad.

I started out with oblivion lost back in 2010 then quickly switched to super mod pack (smp) once I finished the game. The story of SoC got me hooked which made me buy the other 2 games. 13 years later I randomly come across stalker videos and end up discovering Anomaly and GAMMA and man, the experience is hardcore. Been having a blast and I think I'm addicted to stalker again.

anomaly is a solid base for mod packs - like "guns blazin" EFP and more hardcore slow-paced GAMMA. misery 2.1.2 will forever be my favorite stalker mod though.

Okay one thing here is misleading - Anomaly isn't hardcore, or rather it is right out of the box, but just diving into game options you can make it very casual and much easier game.

Stalker anomaly feels like what you remember of the first time you played stalker

I know there are popular modpacks for Anomaly such as G.A.M.M.A. and the lesser-known modpack called "EFP" (Escape from Pripyat).

As a player of the original in 2007, and the subsequent games, I fucking love Anomaly and GAMMA. Firstly the fact it flipped the AK working parts from left to right but also, ITS FUCKING AWESOME.

It puzzles me why STALKER mods like Anomaly, GAMMA & Co. are so popular. My fondest memories of STALKER are of part 3, because it was the most well-rounded part mechanically, because every place I visited was connected to a story, because I was only in new and larger areas, because of the fast travel system, because all the anomalies and quests were "hand-built" and because the decisions I made had an impact on the zone and on the "people" I "met" there. For example, whether I gassed the "nest" of bloodsuckers or not. If I wanted to dive into the zone again, I would therefore look for a game experience that offers something comparable. Why I should play something that's a rehash of part 1, only with more "stuff", some of which just makes the game more complicated and inaccessible instead of better, doesn't make sense to me. Even the story, from what I've heard, is supposed to be an inferior copy of part 1. Also, don't mods like this actually devalue what my alter ego has achieved in the previous games? After all, virtually everything is reset to a state from before STALKER 1.

I was new to STALKER and really thankful that Anomaly exists. The A-life system is incredible and the mod lets you tweak various AI-settings. I was amazed to see that shooting enemies in the legs forces them to stumble. So much effort went into making it timeless

Stalker Anomaly and single player Tarkov (SPT-AKI) are my favorite survival games

Greetings from someone who was introduced to S.T.A.L.K.E.R by S.T.A.L.K.E.R Anomaly. The first time I played it, I was completely dumbfounded. I felt like I have been given little to no information or any guides on how to progress, so I had to rely on friends... During my playthrough, it was quite hard the first time, even to the point where I classified Anomaly as "Dark Souls" difficulty. (AKA very fucking hard.) However, after trial and error, and little advice from left and right from friends, I managed to beat Anomaly's story mode, and now, here I am, attempting to beat Anomaly's story mode yet again in my own settings, and etcetera. Of course, I am also anticipating the release of S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2, where I expect another S.T.A.L.K.E.R game, not Anomaly 2. A good take on the technical issues. I have yet to mod Anomaly for my personal liking, and judging from the setups, tutorials, guides, whatever, it can be a big pain in the ass. Keep the videos up! P.S, I will play the three S.T.A.L.K.E.R games soon enough. Word.

Yoooo my guy. Wild to see you in ny recommended. Good to hear ya again :D And to gove my two cents, in obsessed with Anomaly. 10/10 from me

you must be playing on maximum settings? my Stalker Anomaly doesn’t quite look like this lol