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Steam currently lists S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl as requiring 16 GB of dual-channel RAM and an SSD with 160 GB of available space at minimum. Its recommended tier calls for 32 GB of dual-channel RAM and the same 160 GB of available SSD space. The listing establishes the current figures, but not when or whether they changed.
What the current PC requirements say
Steam’s current PC requirements listing gives separate minimum and recommended configurations:
| Tier | Memory | Storage | CPU examples | Graphics examples | Published target |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum | 16 GB dual-channel RAM | 160 GB available; SSD required | Intel Core i7-7700K / AMD Ryzen 5 1600X | Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 6GB / AMD Radeon RX 580 8GB / Intel Arc A750 | Low preset, 1080p, target 30 FPS |
| Recommended | 32 GB dual-channel RAM | 160 GB available; SSD required | Intel Core i7-11700 / AMD Ryzen 7 5800X | Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti / Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 / AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT | High preset, 1440p, target 60 FPS |
Both tiers specify Windows 10 x64 or Windows 11 x64. The Steam page says minimum specifications were evaluated using TSR and comparable technologies; the recommended specifications were tested with TSR, DLSS, FSR and XeSS. The listed resolutions and frame rates are targets, not guarantees for every PC.
Is 16 GB of RAM enough?
It meets the published minimum only if it is dual-channel and the rest of the PC also meets the minimum tier. Steam lists 32 GB of dual-channel memory for its recommended configuration. That makes 16 GB a minimum-level configuration, not the amount Steam identifies for the recommended 1440p, High-preset target.
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Check the installed memory layout as well as the total. If you are considering an upgrade, confirm your motherboard’s supported memory type and capacity and whether your current modules can be paired appropriately. The requirements page does not specify a RAM generation or identify a retail kit that will fit a particular computer.
How much SSD space should you have?
Steam lists an SSD and 160 GB of available space for both tiers. “Available” means free capacity for the game, not the total advertised size of a drive; the listing does not say that a 160 GB SSD is enough for Windows and other files as well. It also does not specify an SSD interface such as SATA or NVMe.
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Before installing, check the drive’s current free space. If you are buying storage, verify that the drive is compatible with your PC and leave room for the operating system and anything else you plan to keep on it. The requirements establish the game’s storage requirement, not a specific product recommendation.
Why the RAM and SSD figures are not the whole test
A PC does not meet either tier just because it has enough memory and free SSD capacity. Steam also lists an operating system, CPU and graphics examples for each configuration. Compare the full set of components with the tier you are aiming for; the published target attached to each tier describes the expected preset, resolution and frame-rate goal, rather than a result guaranteed on every combination of hardware.
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Were the requirements recently raised?
The current Steam listing confirms the figures above, but it does not provide a dated change history. The available official S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 FAQ is also a requirements source, not evidence of when a revision happened. So the current listing can answer what Steam asks of a PC now, but it does not establish that RAM or SSD requirements were recently increased.
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