Baldur’s Gate 3 Developer Highlights Stalker 2’s Success as a Sign of Major Change in Gaming Experiences

Michael Douse, the publishing director at Larian Studios, the team behind Baldur’s Gate 3, has shared his views on the commercially successful launch of Stalker 2: Heart of Chernobyl.

The publisher of Stalker 2, GSC Game World, recently announced that “a million copies have been sold” since its release, not to mention that “many more stalkers” are enjoying the game on Game Pass. Overall, it’s a significant triumph for a game facing the unprecedented challenges surrounding the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

In the aftermath of Stalker 2’s launch, Douse expressed his perspective on its success via Twitter, stating that there has been a “profound” and quiet transformation in what gamers seek from video games.

“Players are increasingly craving hyper-engaging, concentrated experiences instead of flashy prepared retail products, and this represents an underlying seismic shift that is largely overlooked,” Douse remarked. “The growing dominance of digital distribution over traditional retail, coupled with direct audience engagement, poses a challenge that conventional publishers cannot adapt to.”

Douse has been notably vocal about various releases and the state of the industry in general, grabbing headlines back in April for declaring “marketing’s dead” because players do not want to be “tricked,” and again in August when he supported Fallout: New Vegas director Josh Sawyer’s vision for a dream RPG, and again in September when he referred to Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii’s quick turnaround as “brilliant stuff,” and again in October when he remarked if Ubisoft prefers “subscriptions over sales,” that “developers should adapt to the idea of job insecurity,” and again… well, you get the point. The guy speaks a lot.

Following an extended and tumultuous development cycle, Stalker 2 finally debuted this week to largely positive feedback. The most prominent critique of the game is its underwhelming performance, with our review stating “the best yet most flawed game I’ve tried all year.” It appears that the core of the game is a survival horror FPS paradise; it’s just quite glitchy, which is not exactly the worst fate a game has ever faced.

Stalker 2 is quietly a spiritual heir to Fallout: New Vegas, and after 45 hours in The Zone, I’m ready to defend this irradiated hill.

After earning a degree in English from ASU, I worked as a copy editor while freelancing for outlets like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. Currently, as GamesRadar’s west coast Staff Writer, I’m responsible for overseeing the region’s western executive division, AKA my home, while writing about whatever horror game I’m too scared to play.