You need to escape the STALKER 2 anomalous after completing the There and back again prologue. Once out you’ll be free to venture into the wider world, specifically the Lesser Zone. It’s not especially clear how the anomalies work at first in STALKER 2 as they can be difficult to see with all their visual distortion and warping effects. So let me explain exactly how to escape the STALKER 2 anomalous field with nothing but some some bolts and some very good timing.
How to use a bolt to escape the anomalous field in Stalker 2
To get out the anomalous field in STALKER 2, look at one section of the field’s edge and throw a bolt at it – you can quickly equip bolts by selecting them at the bottom of your equipment radial menu. It doesn’t matter if you do an overarm or underarm throw but once the bolt hits a field, it creates a temporary gap that you can sprint through to get out.
If you keep getting killed by the anomaly it’s probably because you’re running through the gap you make too early or too late. The gap you create only stays open for three seconds or so, which means you have to really run like hell, as Richter says. The field also has a sort of area-of-effect damage zone that can be lethal even if you don’t touch it. So keep running for a while even after you’ve made it through, just to be safe.
The anomalous field also features an anomaly tornado that will strip off about half your health if you happen to wander into it. Watch out for swirling leaves on the ground to avoid that.
Hazards like this appear a lot as you explore the Zone in STALKER 2 - you’ll randomly happen across warped anomalous field barriers and tornadoes like the above, as well as patches of electricity and acid pools and so on. So remember what you learn here, listen out for your detector, and keep a vigilant eye out for danger! There's a particularly huge anomaly you'll encounter not too far into the game when you have to find the dog collar near bulba in STALKER 2. And that is a whole thing.
© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.
