S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Anomaly: How to Choose Your Faction and Playstyle
What is stalker anomaly?
If you are a fan of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games, you might have heard of stalker anomaly, a stand-alone mod that combines and enhances all three official games in the series into one giant sandbox. But what exactly is stalker anomaly, and why should you play it?
Stalker anomaly is a total conversion mod that aims to be the most stable and customizable experience for fans of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games. It's powered by the Monolith 64-bit engine, a custom fork of the X-Ray engine that improves performance and stability. Players can choose from a variety of ways to play the mod, such as story mode, sandbox mode, or warfare mode. Stalker anomaly also features hundreds of settings that can be tweaked in the options menus and over 1000 addons that were created by other players to change the experience in more advanced ways.
stalker anomaly
Stalker anomaly was first released in 2018 as a repack of Last Day, another popular mod pack for S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat. Since then, it has been updated and improved by a team of dedicated developers and community members who added new content, features, and fixes to the mod. The latest version, 1.5.1, was released in January 2021 and is considered to be the final version of the 1.5.x update series.
Why play stalker anomaly?
There are many reasons to try stalker anomaly if you enjoy the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games or survival sandbox games in general. Here are some of them:
Stability: Stalker anomaly is one of the most stable and bug-free mods for S.T.A.L.K.E.R., thanks to its 64-bit engine and frequent updates. You can expect to play for hours without encountering any crashes or glitches that might ruin your immersion.
Customization: Stalker anomaly lets you customize almost every aspect of the game, from the graphics and sound to the gameplay and difficulty. You can adjust the weather, the time of day, the spawn rate of enemies and mutants, the damage and accuracy of weapons, the economy and loot system, the AI behavior and factions, and much more. You can also enable or disable various features, such as hunger, thirst, radiation, bleeding, anomalies, artifacts, emissions, and so on.
Gameplay modes: Stalker anomaly offers three different gameplay modes that cater to different preferences and playstyles. Story mode lets you follow one of the five storylines that are based on the original games or fan-made scenarios. Sandbox mode lets you explore the Zone without any specific goals or quests, just surviving and looting as you please. Warfare mode lets you join one of the factions and fight for control of the territory against other factions and enemies.
Storylines: Stalker anomaly features five storylines that provide different perspectives and experiences in the Zone. You can play as a loner, a mercenary, a bandit, a duty member, or a freedom member. Each storyline has its own plot, quests, characters, locations, and endings. You can also switch between storylines at any time by talking to a guide, a special NPC that can transport you to different areas.
How to install and play stalker anomaly?
Installing and playing stalker anomaly is very easy and straightforward. You don't need to own any of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games to play it, as it is a stand-alone mod. Here are the steps to follow:
Download: Go to the official website of stalker anomaly and download the latest version of the mod. You can choose between a torrent file or a direct download link. The mod is about 16 GB in size.
Extract: Use a program like WinRAR or 7-Zip to extract the downloaded file to a folder of your choice. You should see a folder named Anomaly inside.
Run: Open the Anomaly folder and run AnomalyLauncher.exe. This will open a launcher window that lets you configure some settings before starting the game. You can change the language, resolution, graphics quality, sound volume, and other options. You can also enable or disable some addons that are included with the mod.
Play: Click on Play Anomaly to launch the game. You will see a main menu with several options. You can start a new game, load a saved game, join an online server, or access the options menu. If you start a new game, you will be asked to choose a gameplay mode, a storyline, a faction, and a difficulty level. You can also customize your character's name, appearance, skills, and equipment.
Here are some tips and tricks for beginners:
Save often: Stalker anomaly is a challenging and unforgiving game that can kill you in many ways. Save your progress frequently by pressing F5 or using the quicksave option in the pause menu. You can also use hard saves by pressing F6 or using the save option in the pause menu.
Use your PDA: Your PDA is your best friend in the Zone. It shows you your current location, objectives, inventory, stats, contacts, messages, map, diary, encyclopedia, and settings. You can access it by pressing TAB or using the PDA option in the pause menu.
Loot everything: The Zone is full of valuable items that you can loot from corpses, containers, stashes, anomalies, and other sources. You can sell them to traders, use them for yourself, or trade them with other stalkers. Looting also helps you find clues, quests, secrets, and achievements in the game.
Manage your inventory: You have a limited amount of weight that you can carry in your inventory. If you exceed it, you will move slower and consume more stamina. You can see your current weight and limit in the bottom right corner of your screen. You can also see the weight and value of each item in your inventory. Try to keep only the items that you need or that are worth carrying. You can drop, sell, or stash the rest.
Repair and upgrade your equipment: Your weapons and armor will degrade over time and use. If they reach a low condition, they will perform worse and may even malfunction or break. You can repair and upgrade your equipment by visiting technicians, who are special NPCs that can be found in various locations. Repairing and upgrading your equipment will cost you money and materials, but it will improve their stats and durability.
Use cover and stealth: Combat in stalker anomaly is realistic and deadly. You can die from a few shots or even a single headshot. Enemies can also flank, ambush, or snipe you from a distance. To survive, you need to use cover and stealth to your advantage. Use the environment to hide behind walls, trees, rocks, or buildings. Use the crouch and prone buttons to lower your profile and reduce your noise. Use the lean buttons to peek around corners without exposing yourself. Use the binoculars or scopes to scout ahead and mark enemies. Use silenced weapons or knives to take out enemies quietly.
What are the best stalker anomaly mods?
Stalker anomaly is already a great mod by itself, but it can be even better with some addons that enhance or change the game in various ways. There are over 1000 addons available for stalker anomaly on Mod DB, so you have plenty of options to choose from. Here are some of the best stalker anomaly mods that you should try:
Modding tools
If you want to create your own mods for stalker anomaly, you will need some tools that will help you edit the game files and assets. Here are some of the most essential modding tools for stalker anomaly:
Name
Description
Link
Anomaly SDK
The official software development kit for stalker anomaly. It contains the source code, scripts, tools, and documentation for modding the game.
Anomaly Mod Manager
A handy tool that lets you manage your addons for stalker anomaly. It allows you to install, uninstall, enable, disable, order, and update your addons with ease.
Anomaly Texture Converter
A tool that lets you convert textures from DDS to TGA format and vice versa. This is useful for editing or creating new textures for the game.
Anomaly Model Editor
A tool that lets you edit models from OGF to OBJ format and vice versa. This is useful for editing or creating new models for the game.
Anomaly Model Editor
A tool that lets you edit models from OGF to OBJ format and vice versa. This is useful for editing or creating new models for the game.
Modpacks
If you want to try a different experience with stalker anomaly, you can use one of the many modpacks that combine multiple addons into one package. Modpacks usually have a specific theme or goal, such as enhancing the graphics, the realism, the difficulty, or the immersion of the game. Here are some of the most popular and well-made modpacks for stalker anomaly:
Name
Description
Link
Stalker Anomaly HD Models Addon
A modpack that replaces almost all models and textures in the game with high-quality versions. It improves the visual quality and realism of the game, while keeping the original style and atmosphere.
Stalker Anomaly Magazines Addon
A modpack that adds magazines and ammo management to the game. It makes the combat more challenging and tactical, as you have to reload your weapons manually, scavenge for ammo, and manage your inventory.
Stalker Anomaly Rebalance Addon
A modpack that rebalances many aspects of the game