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S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl

Low-end PC guide: FPS boost, lag and stutter fix

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl FPS boost guide

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl config file

Free. The download link appears after a short wait.

Put it in
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Stalker2\Saved\Config\Windows
Engine
Unreal Engine 5
Replace the existing file, then start the game.

STALKER 2 runs on Unreal Engine 5, and its minimum spec starts at a GTX 1060 or an RX 580. This guide gives you a free Engine.ini, the in-game settings to change first, and fixes for stutter on a weak PC.

Can you run STALKER 2 on a low end PC?

  • CPU: Intel Core i7-7700K or AMD Ryzen 5 1600X
  • GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 or AMD Radeon RX 580
  • RAM: 16 GB
  • VRAM: 6 GB on Nvidia, 8 GB on AMD
  • Storage: 160 GB
  • OS: Windows 10

If your PC is below these specs, the game may run poorly even with this config. The config lowers the work your GPU has to do, but it can’t make up for missing hardware.

Best STALKER 2 settings for low end PCs

  • Use the Low preset first, then change the items below.
  • Upscaling: Pick TSR or XeSS, since both work on any GPU. DLSS needs an Nvidia RTX card, and FSR 4 needs a recent AMD card.
  • Ray tracing: There is no hardware ray tracing to turn off. The lighting uses software Lumen, and the config below turns off Lumen reflections.
  • Frame rate cap: Set it to 60. If your PC can’t hold 60, set it to 30.
  • V-Sync: Turn it off. It locks your frame rate to your monitor’s refresh rate.
  • Anti-aliasing: The Off option was removed in update 1.6, so pick one of the options the game lists.
  • Window mode: Pick borderless windowed.

STALKER 2 Engine.ini location and install

  1. Download the zip with the button above. Unzip it and find the Engine.ini file.
  2. Close STALKER 2 completely, including any launcher that is still running.
  3. Press Windows + R, paste %LOCALAPPDATA%\Stalker2\Saved\Config\Windows and press Enter. If the folder doesn’t exist, start STALKER 2 once, close it and try again.
  4. If the folder already has an Engine.ini, rename it to Engine.ini.bak. This is your backup.
  5. Copy the new Engine.ini into the folder.
  6. Start the game.

What the config changes

The file changes only the settings listed here.

Post-processing

  • Motion blur is off.
  • Depth of field is off.
  • Color fringing at the edges of the screen is off.
  • Lens flares are off.
  • Film grain is off.
  • Sharpening is set to 0.6.

Lighting and reflections

  • Ambient occlusion, screen space reflections, subsurface scattering, contact shadows and capsule shadows are off.
  • Light shafts are off.
  • Volumetric fog uses a coarser grid.

Shadows

  • Shadow quality is set to 2.
  • Shadow resolution is capped at 1024.
  • Shadows reach a shorter distance.
  • Small objects drop their shadows sooner.

Draw distance and foliage

  • View distance is set to 80 percent of the default.
  • Detail mode is set to 1.
  • Anisotropic filtering is set to 4.
  • Grass and foliage density is set to 60 percent.

Lumen, Nanite and virtual shadow maps

  • Lumen reflections are off.
  • Lumen mesh distance field tracing is off.
  • Nanite detail is set lower.
  • Virtual shadow maps use a lower resolution for directional and local lights.

The streaming settings turn on async loading and turn off forced garbage collection, for smoother loading and fewer hitches when you move between areas.

How to fix STALKER 2 stuttering and FPS drops

STALKER 2 is an Unreal Engine 5 game, so the first launch compiles shaders. Let that finish, and expect hitches for the first few minutes.

If you can, install the game on an SSD. It needs 160 GB of storage.

Then work through the basics on Windows:

  • Close background apps, such as browsers and overlays from launchers.
  • Update your GPU driver from the official site: Nvidia, AMD or Intel.
  • On a laptop, plug in the power cable and set the power mode to best performance.

The game can also go over its VRAM budget after a long play session, and then your frame rate drops hard. This happens most often on GPUs with less than 16 GB of VRAM, and it doesn’t happen on every PC. If it does, save and restart the game to bring the frame rate back.

Undo the changes

Delete Engine.ini from the folder. If you made a backup, rename Engine.ini.bak back to Engine.ini instead. The game rebuilds its defaults.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl FAQ

Where is the STALKER 2 Engine.ini file?

STALKER 2 keeps it in %LOCALAPPDATA%\Stalker2\Saved\Config\Windows. Press Windows + R, paste the path and press Enter. If the folder isn't there yet, start the game once, close it and check again.

Can STALKER 2 run on a low end PC?

STALKER 2 needs at least an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 or AMD Radeon RX 580, with 16 GB of RAM. A PC below that may run it poorly even with the Engine.ini file, because the file lowers the load on your GPU but can't replace missing hardware.

Which upscaler should I use on an older GPU in STALKER 2?

Pick TSR or XeSS, since both work on any GPU. STALKER 2 also offers DLSS 4 and FSR 4, but DLSS needs an Nvidia RTX card and FSR 4 needs a recent AMD card, so older GPUs should skip them.

How do I fix STALKER 2 stuttering and FPS drops?

Let the first launch finish, because Unreal Engine 5 compiles shaders and causes hitches for the first few minutes. Install the game on an SSD if you can. Close background apps, update your GPU driver and use the best performance power mode on a laptop.

Is it safe to undo the STALKER 2 Engine.ini changes?

Yes. Delete the Engine.ini file from the config folder, or rename your Engine.ini.bak backup to Engine.ini. The file itself says that deleting it returns the game to its defaults.