The enemies of survival shooter Stalker 2 have a funny habit of showing up right behind you, like a panto villain with an AK-47. Far from being a premeditated ambush by intelligent AI-controlled soldiers, this is just a result of the game's janky spawns. Those botched encounters are unlike previous games, where roaming bands of factional murderfolk would patrol the radioactive wastes, seemingly according to their own whims. Back in the day, this wandering baddies feature was dubbed "A-life" by developers GSC Game World - basically a jargon word for the simulation of enemies that would lead to "emergent" moments of violence and conflict. It was promised as a feature in Stalker 2 but many players have noticed it seems to be absent. Over the weekend, GSC insisted the simulation is technically present in the sequel. It's just broken.
