The mutants in Stalker 2 will finally drop loot, making them less of a bullet sink

The developers of post-apocalyptic shooter Stalker 2: Heart Of Chornobyl have shared a roadmap for future updates, promising new guns, smarter foes, and a helpful development kit for modders. Among the changes is good news for anyone frustrated after pumping their entire backpack of bullets into 30 to 50 feral hogs. Murderised mutants will now drop loot of some kind, instead of offering no reward at all.

We're not told what kind of loot they'll drop, but in the developer's roadmap post on Steam there's a little picture of a tooth scribbled next to the note "mutant loot". So probably lots of handy gizzards and guts. Currently, when you kill a mutant, their corpses are simply empty. This is unlike defeated human foes who can be ransacked for bullets, food, and boots. This means that a series of mutant encounters can quickly drain your ammunition stocks. Especially when it comes to the spongier beasts. And getting nothing back after firing all that precious ammo into hides can feel frustrating to some.

Like I say, it's not the only upcoming change. The developers listed their other priorities for the next three months in the post. Smarter enemy and ally AI are high on the list, with "better cover/flanking use" and "limited grenades". Mutants will soon eat fallen victims if all goes to plan, and will "react to threats". There will also be two new weapons, we're told, alongside widescreen support and "further stabilization".

Another item on the list is a beta for a planned "ModKit". While there are already plenty of handy mods for Stalker 2 (including one that already adds mutant loot), this SDK will come packaged with a guide and might make modders' lives a little easier. The devs are also planning to set up Steam Workshop support, so players can add mods easily from there.

These plans might change, say GSC Game World in a flavoury disclaimer scribbled at the bottom of the stained note: "Mission targets may be moved from Q2 to later dates in case of Zone instability."

Stalker 2 launched in a very buggy state but was well-received despite the jank. In our Stalker 2 review James called it "a captivating survival shooter, even with bits falling off". Soon after the radioactive FPS came out, the developers admitted that some important features, such as the "A-life" simulation of patrolling squads, were simply broken. But they've been routinely and reliably patching things since then, with the latest significant batch of fixes landing last month.

James also once became a beastmaster with lots of mutant minions in the game. I wonder how he feels now his "friends" will soon become skinnable loot rats.