The Coolest References and Easter Eggs in Stalker 2: Heart of Chernobyl

After a 15-year wait, GSC has finally released Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl, the fourth title in the series that serves as a sequel to the original trilogy. And it's safe to say that the high anticipation for a first-person shooter video game was worth it, aside from the compelling main story, you'll find plenty of Easter eggs and hidden secrets sprinkled throughout the area during your exploration sessions.

From references to popular franchises to callbacks that you'll appreciate if you've stuck with the Stalker series since the beginning, Heart of Chernobyl's world is full of details that are easy to miss if you're not specifically looking for them.

10

Alien

Chestburster

In the southwestern area of ​​Zaton, you'll find a wreck with two boats and some corpses, both human and mutant, surrounding it. Next to one of these boats, you'll see a dead body with a mutation from its chest.

That's a direct reference to the infamous chestburster scene in the original 1979 Alien film, in which a small creature bursts out of Kane's chest while the rest of the crew watch in horror, resulting in the alien going deeper into the ship.

9

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

One shot, one kill

In Prypiat's version of Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl, there is a vantage point on the top floor of Hotel Polissya with an M701 Super Sniper Rifle placed on a table. This is a callback to one of the most memorable flashback missions in the fourteenth campaign mission of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare One Shot, One Kill, 2007.

At the start of the original mission, Lieutenant Price and Captain McMillan must sneak out their target, Imran Zakhaev, from the exact same vantage point of Call of Duty's rendition of Hotel Policia, making it a neat reference for a seasoned first-person shooter. fans.

8

bridge of death

A real life tragic place

If you watched the HBO miniseries based on the unfortunate nuclear incident at Chornobyl, you probably remember nearby residents gathering on top of the bridge and witnessing the entire tragedy go down as a community. The bridge became known as the bridge of death, because many people who stood on it and watched the nuclear disaster were exposed to excessive amounts of radiation, which is believed to be the cause of their death.

You can find the same bridge in Yaniv's version of Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl, but considering the radiation level above it is extremely high, you will come into contact with them and die on the spot.

7

DayZ

Map of Chernarus

If you've played Bohemia Interactive's 2018 survival title DayZ, you'll know that Stalker 2: Heart of Chernobyl features several Easter eggs that pay homage to it. However, the best STC can be found in the Malachite base, where you can climb the stairs next to the fence and find a map that looks a little too familiar.

On the wall next to the table with the computers on them, a map of the Soviet Republic of Chernarus, which is the main region where the multiplayer games in DayZ take place, can be found exactly how it looks in the 2018 title.

6

Distant drums

Wilhelm Schreim

You may not know about the 1951 film Distant Drums, but it's almost a guarantee that you've heard the iconic Wilhelm scream at least once if you're at all familiar with pop culture in any shape or form. From Star Wars to Indiana Jones, many famous IPs have used stock sound effects over the years, and Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl is no different.

Go to the Tornado Anomalous Zone in the northwestern part of Yaniv, and you'll hear NPC Wilhelm scream as he's swallowed by the tornado, then he'll be thrown at your feet to freely explore and loot your dead body.

5

Non Stop Limited Edition Energy Drink

A series staple

Although energy drinks have been a series staple since the first game launched in 2007, its non-stop variant debuted in the Lost Alpha mode for Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl. Stalker 2 embraces this and introduces the Non Stop Limited Edition Energy Drink, which you can find on top of a metal structure in a quarry in the northwestern part of the Red Forest.

It has Stalker 2's logo and cover art printed on it, and what's even more interesting is that GSC Game World actually sold these drinks as part of a promotional campaign for the highly anticipated title.

4

Back to the Future

A fiery DeLorean special

There are many aspects that make Back to the Future memorable, but one of the most iconic shots is when the DeLorean leaves behind a trail of fire as it travels between different time periods. You can also find homages to the classic films in Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl, where you'll come across a train track with a similar fire burning above it.

Locate the SKD Assembly Unit in the Cooling Towers area, head northeast, and you'll see a train track engulfed in flames as if Marty McFly had just been there.

3

Hunter: Shadow of Chernobyl

A callback to what started

There are many ways in which the heart of Stalker 2: Chornobyl remembers its roots and pays homage to the original trilogy, and one standout example of this comes in Laser Zone. Southwest of the town of Zalissya, you'll see a familiar wooden structure if you've been following the Stalker series since its inception.

The structure was painted in Shadows of Chernobyl concept art, topped with a picture frame and a bird's nest, though this time, you might stumble upon an actual bird perched on it.

2

Firefighter clothes

Respecting the first responders

Chernobyl was one of the focal points of the miniseries in which firefighters played an important role as first responders when the nuclear tragedy initially went down, as the true intensity of the situation was not realized until it was too late. Many of these firefighters were wearing only standard firefighting equipment, which was not enough to prevent the radiation from reaching them, resulting in their deaths.

Stalker 2: In the heart of Chornobyl, some of these firefighter clothes can be found in the basement of Industrial Hospital No. 126 in Prypiat, showing their damaged state after the nuclear disaster.

1

GeForce RTX graphics card

Collaboration between MSI and Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl

To celebrate the launch of Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl, GSC Game World teamed up with MSI to create a themed GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super 16G gaming slim graphics card, and just as the game included a limited-edition energy drink, the developer also Eastered the GPU in its title. Keep it as an egg. Go to the computer room in the SIRCAA building, and you'll come across the in-game version of it at the desk.

The graphics card features the signature colors of the Stalker series with a radioactive symbol in the middle and the game's logo on the sides, making it the perfect easter egg if you're enjoying Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl on PC.