Best laptop for Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl – plus more top picks

Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl is the latest installment in the Stalker franchise and has fans hyped up as it features the biggest Zone, 20 regions to explore, and expanded areas from previous games. On top of that, it was updated to Unreal Engine 5, meaning you’ll get to experience a realistic environment, physics, and gameplay. 

However, the system requirements for playing this game are hefty: It requires an RTX 4070, 3070 Ti, or an RX 6800 XT paired with an Intel Core i7-11700 or Ryzen 7 5800X. These are the recommended system requirements, and an additional note says this hardware is good for 1440p with a high preset and 60 FPS with the help of upscaling technologies like DLSS, XeSS, FSR, and TSR. 

Judging by that, this title seems very graphically demanding. The early reviews paint it as a “technical disaster” due to poor optimization causing performance issues, and many claim that it wasn’t ready for launch. In addition, even an RTX 4090 wasn’t able to cross 60 FPS at native 4K and only managed 52.4 FPS. It had to leverage DLSS 3 to cross that threshold, which speaks toward how unoptimized this title is on launch.

So, if you want to play it on the go, you’ll need a powerful laptop with a high-end GPU that keeps up with it and handles the graphical processing. That said, after testing it in-house, we selected the MSI Titan 18 HX A14. We think it is the best laptop for running Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl and other titles with ease. Its components are much more powerful than the requirements, and it has a good screen size and panel, making it one of the best gaming laptops. 

MSI Titan 18 HX A14VIG

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MSI Titan 18 HX A14VIG

4.5 /5

Editor’s Rating

How We Review

Specifications

• CPU: Intel Core i9-14900HX
• GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Laptop
• RAM: 128GB DDR5 (4x 32)
• Storage: (Up to) 3x 2TB NVMe SSD
• Max Refresh Rate: 120Hz
• Resolution: 3840×2400
• Screen Size: 18″
• Panel Type: MiniLED

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As we’ve mentioned before, the system requirements for running Stalker 2 aren’t very modest, but plenty of laptops match those requirements or exceed them. So, to ensure you don’t run into performance issues, we recommend the MSI Titan 18 HX A14VIG. 

This gaming behemoth features an Intel Core i9-14900HX paired with an RTX 4090, Nvidia’s most powerful GPU to date. We’ve reviewed the desktop RTX 4090 in-house, and there was nothing it couldn’t handle regarding gaming or work. 

However, since mobile components are smaller and need to accommodate the laptop’s battery, power consumption and performance are dialed down a bit. That said, we still saw exceptional performance from this laptop, putting it in a league of its own. 

This laptop features a 99.9 Whr battery, which should give it an exceptional battery life during and outside of gaming. However, while gaming, the charger is connected to supply the GPU and CPU with all the power they need to perform their best. So, if you’re traveling and doing office work with this laptop, you shouldn’t have to worry about it running out quickly. 

In addition, it features three SSD slots, each of which can hold a 2TB NVMe SSD, meaning you get a massive 6TB storage space. So, even though Stalker 2 requires 160GB, you can easily download it along with other games without running out of space. 

That said, there is no point in having all this performance if you can’t enjoy it, and this is where its 18-inch, 3840 x 2400 resolution, 120 Hz refresh rate, and mini LED screen come in. The 3840 x 2400 resolution means it has a 16:10 aspect ratio, which should make the desktop look and feel more spacious and not like you’re using a laptop screen. 

The mini LED panel consumes more power but has a faster response time than other panels, making it a great fit for an FPS game like Stalker 2, where quick reflexes are needed to win gunfights and navigate the terrain. 

However, if that wasn’t enough, it features 128GB of DDR5 RAM. It is overkill for gaming but nice to have as you won’t have to worry about system memory issues and can easily load up multiple applications. 

As for its performance, it managed 105 and 103 FPS in Cyberpunk 2077 in Discrete and Hybrid modes with Ultra settings + DLSS auto + Frame generation enabled. This is excellent performance, seeing how the CPU and GPU were limited to 180 and 181W of power, which isn’t surprising because they are mobile components. 

That said, this is a gaming beast that leaves nothing on the table. The only downsides are its 3.6kg weight, gamer aesthetics, and extreme price tag. However, it should last you a good while, making it a good investment if you choose to go for it. 

Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl requirements 

We’ll look at the full minimum and recommended system requirements for this title to see which alternatives you could work with.

Alternatives to the MSI Titan 18 HX A14VIG

There are plenty of alternatives to the MSI Titan 18 HX A14VIG laptop, such as the best Razer laptops, which are renowned for their gaming performance, or even the best budget laptops, for those who don’t want to spend a fortune on a laptop to play this title.

A good alternative for the MSI Titan 18 HX A14VIG is the MSI Raider GE78 HX 14VHG, which costs twice as less but also has some aspects toned down, like the RAM, storage, and GPU. It has a 240 Hz display with a 2560 x 1600 resolution, which is basically a taller 1440p panel. Both laptops share the same CPU, so while there will be a performance difference, as is expected, between the RTX 4080 and 4090, it should still be able to handle Stalker 2 without a hitch easily.

The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio A1V is powered by the Core Ultra 9 185H and the RTX 4080, so it should be more energy efficient, but that didn’t take away from its gaming performance. With a 3840 x 2400 panel, the same as the MSI Titan 18 HX A14VIG, it managed to score 84 and 67 FPS in Cyberpunk 2077 in Discrete and Hybrid mode, respectively, with ultra settings, DLSS turned to auto and frame generation enabled.

Final word

The MSI Titan 18 HX A14VIG laptop is in a league of its own and can even be used as a desktop replacement, given the hardware it’s packing. It also has Type-C and 3x Type A USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, which can be used to connect it to an external 4K monitor or TV and get a better viewing experience—that is, if you feel like the 18”, 16:10 aspect ratio screen is limiting. 

Besides that, it has a sleek design and some RGB, which you should be able to turn off, making it a good option for professional settings.