STALKER 2: Not siding with the ward punishes the player
Currently I am enjoying the game so much, I have 100 hours of playtime, however, I am starting to feel tired of small issues and one that is making the game feel wrong, after making a major choice in the main quest line. Side with Noontide or side with the WARD.
I will split this issue in 2 parts:
Reputation system connection between factions, the lack of input for the player on what is going on, how this affects the gameplay.
Gameplay choices are imbalanced, choosing one side punishes the player while the other option doesn't. This is not a game where the player chooses right or wrong, so why the output feels like it?
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- Reputation and factions
The lack of a reputation screen explaining and giving stats about how the reputation is affected, how it is connected and who is in cahoots with who, leads to forcing the player to take decisions blindly. Also, when fighting a group of enemies, sometimes is difficult to know who you killed, and what rep is going to be affected. BIO information of enemies when being looted should be back too.
For example: the ward, SIRCAA, STC Malachite are the same in terms of faction/reputation (apparently). This creates confusion and some inconsistencies. There is a quest given by STC Malachite where you have to retrieve a USB stick with data, the WARD intercepts us, and we are given the choice to give the data to the ward or give it to the scientists. This choice makes no sense, since when you choose to give the data to the scientists you lose reputation with them (BUG or lack of communication of what to expect - design).
- Gameplay choice imbalance
When the player is given a choice like the one in the game: choose a faction, you will be friends with one and enemies with the other. It is a better output when these 2 choices are balanced, the rewards and penalties are in equilibrium and the choice is more a matter of tastes. For example, if I choose A I lose a base in X location, but I gain a base in H location, also I gain access to a unique armor and/or improvements. On the other hand, if I choose B I lose a base in Y location, but I gain a base in F location, also I gain access to a unique weapon/or improvements. The map locations, rest points should be balanced between these choices. This is not what happens in the game.
When you choose to side with Noontide inside the game, at the SIRCAA quest, the output is that besides you don't have access to the 2 WARD bases (Chemical plant and Icarus), you also lose access to Malachite. The map gets completely imbalanced for navigation, in a game where the weight of loot makes you walk slower, and if you want to go explore that zone, you are too far away from any base point, that the map feels absolutely broken from that point forward.
So, currently, because I choose to side with Noontide, I feel like I made the wrong choice because the game is taking away stuff from me and given away others if I have chosen otherwise. I lost STC Malachite access, and I miss the opportunity to have access to the Chemical Plant and Icarus. I gain nothing.
So, what is your take on this matter? When looking for it I found few posts about it with little track and sometimes I observed that many people don't realize the outcome after choosing to side with Noontide.