>>530325223
SoC takes place in 2012 as well. Considering it was in development since 2002, GSC was actually making assumptions about what things would be used in the future, that's why exoskeletons and other fancy suits are a common thing. Stalker is a game that was supposed to take place in the near future, yet some of its in-game features were barely contemporary or even outdated on the day of its release, like the PDAs. But due to that, they have become an established part of its unique aesthetic. So even if smartphones would make more sense from a real-life perspective, they cannot replace PDAs because they have become one of the recognizable features of the in-game world. Come to think of it, Stalker 2 should be far more sci-fi, since 10 years have passed between the events of the trilogy. There should be completely new suits and devices. Instead we have modernized versions of the old ones. That's why I think it was a mistake to set Stalker 2 in contemporary times, it should either take place in the past, like 3-5 years after the trilogy, or in 2030s, and stalkers should look like in the picrel.