STALCRAFT: X no longer exists, at least by name. In June 2026, EXBO officially renamed its free-to-play PvPvE shooter STALZONE. The game is the same one you already play: same characters, same gear, same persistent world. It also got the biggest overhaul to its early game and visuals in years.
Here is what happened, why, and what it means if you already have hundreds of hours in the Zone or are finally thinking about trying it.
Why EXBO Dropped the STALCRAFT Name
The short version is trademark trouble. EXBO spent nearly four years trying to register "STALCRAFT" as a brand. That meant lawsuits, disputes with Rospatent (Russia's patent office) and even sociological studies meant to prove that STALCRAFT and StarCraft target different audiences.
Adding the "X" suffix in an earlier partial rebrand didn't remove the legal risk. Once a cassation appeal was rejected in March 2026, the studio decided to abandon the name completely.
EXBO was clear on one point: the change was not caused by claims from Blizzard, as many players assumed. The studio framed it as the end of a long fight for the rights to its own brand. A side effect also hurt: during a big 2024 ad push, YouTube had removed the game's category tag because of the name confusion. That is a real problem for a free-to-play game that relies on creators.
What Changed in the Relaunch
The new name arrived alongside a large update aimed squarely at new and returning players:
- A reworked early game. Starting locations and missions were redesigned, tutorials were improved, and PvP balance in the early zones was adjusted. The first hours used to be the game's weakest point, and this targets that directly.
- A more alive Zone. Dynamic weather, better NPC behaviour, chat bubbles above players and a built-in anomaly detector.
- Visual upgrades. New character face models and facial animation, better lip-sync, and a new lighting system built on realistic light sources. Interiors and night-time areas benefit most.
- English voice acting. Partial for now, with full coverage planned.
- Seasonal content. The summer season brought US and South Korean military forces into the story, along with intelligence missions, supply runs and the AAC Honey Badger as the headline seasonal reward.
EXBO also removed leftover references to the project's Minecraft-era roots. The original STALCRAFT started life in 2014 as a Minecraft-based project, and the studio now wants STALZONE to stand on its own.
Photo mode, finally
A July 2026 patch added a photo mode, toggled with F4 by default. It hides the HUD and offers zoom, roll and a grid overlay, plus twelve visual presets ranging from VHS and Bodycam to Noir, CCTV and a "STALRUNNER 2049" filter. The same patch added the K2 and K2C1 rifles to the barter tree and fixed a batch of smaller issues.
What It Means for Players
If you already play: nothing is lost. Your character, stash and progression carry over. STALZONE keeps its core pitch: a persistent world with no wipes, where your long-term gear is safe but whatever you loot is at risk until you get it out alive.
If you're new: this is the best moment so far to jump in. The game is free on Steam and the Epic Games Store and runs on modest hardware. EXBO lists a GTX 950 and 4 GB of RAM as the minimum, with a GTX 1060 and 8 GB recommended. The 50-plus-hour story campaign walks you through the Zone. The revised starting areas also mean you're less likely to get flattened by veterans in your first evening.
Player reception reflects the improvement. Recent Steam reviews sit at "Mostly Positive" at around 70%, ahead of the game's "Mixed" lifetime score. That's a modest gap, but it points in the right direction.
If you enjoy the loot-and-extract tension but want a more session-based experience, our Arena Breakout: Infinite settings guide covers the other big free extraction shooter on PC. The two scratch different itches: STALZONE is an MMO first, while Arena Breakout is a tactical raid shooter.
What's Next
EXBO says it will push STALZONE harder in Western and Asian markets. The roadmap includes an expanded endgame, full English voice acting, proximity voice chat and a new seasonal mode designed as an alternative to clan activities. Whether the new name helps the game reach a wider audience is now up to the content. For once, the name is no longer in the way.
More updates from the studio are on our News page.
