Steam Autumn Sale is here and I've been wondering about this game. Seems like something up my alley. I'm wondering mainly two things.
1) Is it challenging?
2) Is it atmospheric and creepy? This is the thing I'm really curious about. Screenshots don't really do it justice. I don't want to check youtube videos for fear of spoiling anything. I'm wondering just what the atmosphere is like.
Yeah, I really didn't like them much either. I bought the original game like five years ago and thought it was pretty average at best. The rest of the series I picked up during a Steam sale last year and couldn't stand any of them. I went back to play the first one again, and found that it really didn't get any better with age.
The real killer for me is how ridiculously buggy they all are. Sure, there are fan patches out there that fix a lot of it - but they're still a mess. I'd agree with Mcoffey and just buy Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas, or Metro 2033. They're all much better games.
And seriously... if I'm going to complain about bugs, and then recommend a Fallout game in the next sentence, that should give some perspective of the severity with Stalker.
How much is it? I think they go for rather cheap these days, and they are definatly worth every penny. Remember, though, it's a very... Eastern European game. It's got soul. Plenty of soul. But it's not as pretty and streamlined as most games have us accustomed to. Animations and voice acting is rather lacking.
The atmosphere is great, it's desolate and abandoned, but you still get a sense that there is a world outside the Zone. It can be rather frightening, too, depending on the individual. The underground complexes are especially creepy. The lighting engine is really neat, it gets convincingly dark when the sun is down, and you will need that flashlight. If nothing else to flee from the glowing, approaching eyes of the Bloodsuckers in the distance. It really does get creepy at night.
It's not quite like the recent Fallouts (basically, it's best to stop comparing them, they're not very similar beyond the basic premise) in either gameplay and atmosphere. There's less RPG elements, beyond aquiring new weapons and armour, there is no stat building.
It's more challenging than most games. You've got a healthbar to look after, weapon ballistics and enemies that can and will fend for themselves. However, on lower settings, it becomes rather easy once you've got the hang of it.
There is also plenty of mods available to all three games, with various improvements. Like improving the graphics, changing the gameplay or upping the challenge. Have a look around.
2) Is it atmospheric and creepy? This is the thing I'm really curious about. Screenshots don't really do it justice. I don't want to check youtube videos for fear of spoiling anything. I'm wondering just what the atmosphere is like.
Yes. It has a somber, depressing tone where hearing someone play a guitar makes you sigh with relief, since you have likely found a spot to rest and trade unwanted goods in. Then you go back into the black rainy night, and wonder whether you should risk getting seen because of your flashlight, or walk forward blindly in the darkness, praying you're not ambushed by anything. Soldiers fill you with lead, bandits pillage your corpse and the mutants finally eat what's left.
STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl is my favorite FPS ever
Mcoffey said:
The 3D fallout games, or the Metro series have it beat in atmosphere, hands down.
Its basicly the ultimate "hardcore" experience (up there with E.Y.E.), not really because its hard (it can be at some times) but because its a game that you really need to dive into and be prepared for some clumsiness and how the game doesnt give a fuck about the player.
It is really good if you are into it and there are some really good mods out there that do a good job updating the visuals.
And the AI is rather unique, they are just doing their own stuff with their own agendas so you wont be surpised if you see stuff like this:
The STALKER series is one of my all time favourites and one of the most unique fps experience available in gaming. There's really just nothing else quite like it, and it's fantastic.
That said I can understand why some people might not like the series. If you go into STALKER looking for just a fun shooter you're going to be disappointed, the shooting mechanics themselves while alright are far from the highlight of the series nor are the weapons much to write home about. No, it's the brilliant setting, the survival and scavenging, the living world, the amazing ambiance, and that lingering sense of dread which make STALKER so unique a series.
Seriously, no other game can really compare in that regard. Hell, just watch this video fullscreen with the sound turned up, don't worry, there's no spoilers:
Since other people keep bringing them up, I might as well mention how the entire time I was trying to play Fallout 3 and New Vegas all I could think was "Why am I playing these when I could be playing STALKER?". This series just leaves an impression on you, it's great.
I really can't understate enough how much I love those games. Shadow of Chernobyl and Call of Pripyat anyway, Clear Sky is pretty mediocre.
Well the only one I sunk a good amount of time into is STALKER SOC with the complete mod 2009. I never did much of the story just went out to scavenge and survive. I mostly tried to protect friendly areas from bandits and I would fight the military if I thought I could win. I know I failed to protect a few of my core places and lost a few merchants.
I would say yes there is challenge and you can kind of choose your own level by how you want to play.
I think there is good ground for the creepy factor. At first I was going to some item in a house. I figured that I would be fine with my new assault rifle. I still have no idea what was in the house. Well other than all of my bullets that I sprayed at anything that moved or looked like a scary shadow. Something attacked me and I freaked out as I couldn't see anything. Never went back to that house. I think the only thing I "killed" was my own shadow.
As for the steam sale SOC is cheap but will probably get a daily deal. Stalker tends to get 75% off on sales.
Steam Autumn Sale is here and I've been wondering about this game. Seems like something up my alley. I'm wondering mainly two things.
1) Is it challenging?
2) Is it atmospheric and creepy? This is the thing I'm really curious about. Screenshots don't really do it justice. I don't want to check youtube videos for fear of spoiling anything. I'm wondering just what the atmosphere is like.
From my experience, the games generally start off incredibly difficult. However, as you get deeper into them, you'll find that it starts getting easier as you understand the AI better and acquire better weapons and armor. You can change the difficulty at any time throughout the game, and if you want to keep it challenging throughout, then I would advise doing this when it starts getting too easy.
In comparison to most FPS games, though, the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games are very challenging. I hear Clear Sky is the hardest, but that's the only one I didn't play, but both Shadow of Chernobyl and Call of Pripyat are difficult in their own right.
2) Is it atmospheric and creepy? This is the thing I'm really curious about. Screenshots don't really do it justice. I don't want to check youtube videos for fear of spoiling anything. I'm wondering just what the atmosphere is like.
For the type of atmosphere it attempts to deliver, it is definitely the best. You could make a very good argument that, when you aren't running into glitches, they are the most atmospheric games ever made. They aren't necessarily creepy, at not at all times, but they do have their moments where they deliver a truly creepy atmosphere, and, at least from what I remember, they don't rely too much on jump scares.
Just be warned that if you don't patch them up, they may be impossible to beat (literally). The games had a lot of glitches, crash bugs, AI problems, and other issues. However, the patches fixed most of these, and I'd imagine there might be some user patches to fix the problems that the developers didn't get around to fixing themselves. Still, don't let the technical shortcomings scare you, as the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series is arguably the best series to release during the last five or so years, and you should definitely take the opportunity to play them.
Thanks for the feedback. I'm assuming there would be a good site offering the mods, if not on the steam community forums themselves.
I see Call of Pripyat on there, too. Do I need Shadow of Chernobyl in order to get that one? Or are they both standalones? Which of the two would you recommend and why?
There are three games, all stand-alone. In release order:
Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl
Stalker: Clear Sky (prequel to SoC)
Stalker: Call of Pripyat (sequel to SoC)
All of them are independent games. SoC is (generally) considered the best, but they are all certainly worth you time.
Now, for some trivia, the basis of the series is the classic sci-fi book Roadside Picnic by Boris & Arkadij Strugatskij, and the 1979 Andrei Tarkovskij film Stalker (which was also inspired by Roadside Picnic), if you like what you see in the Zone, it's well worth a read sometime.
Thanks for the feedback. I'm assuming there would be a good site offering the mods, if not on the steam community forums themselves.
I see Call of Pripyat on there, too. Do I need Shadow of Chernobyl in order to get that one? Or are they both standalones? Which of the two would you recommend and why?
For the mods go to moddb.com
Shadow of Chernobyl
http://www.moddb.com/games/stalker/mods?filter=t&kw=Search+...&released=1&style=def&theme=&type=
Call of Pripyat
http://www.moddb.com/games/stalker-call-of-pripyat/mods?filter=t&kw=Search+...&released=1&style=def&theme=&type=
As you can see I didnt mentioned Clear Sky as that game really is only if you really need more STALKER.
Both are very standalone stories, Shadow of Chernobyl is somewhat more linear and focused while Call of Pripyat is more open and lets the player roam around more. I recommend you to wait for it to be at 75% and buy both, or if you want just Shadow of Chernobyl (since its cheaper) to try out and see if you like it, then you decide about Call of Pripyat
I'd recommend Call of Pripyat above the others. It's pretty much good to go vanilla, while SoC needs some tender loving modding care (But there are some great overhauling mods that really make that game shine). Call of Pripyat's the one I've had the most fun with.
The games are creepy, challenging, and often leave you feeling out of your depth, but the reward is certainly worthwhile. The Metro series is a good go too if the atmosphere takes you. Not so deep, and much less open, but it's got atmosphere and story to spare.
For sure the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series has the best atmosphere of any game I have played in years, Metro 2033 / Last light come close, but that should come as no surprise 4A games are former GSC employees that designed the X-18 lab and the underground sections of Shadow of Chernobyl. Games like Fallout and New Vegas pale in comparison to S.T.A.L.K.E.R., it isn't even post apocalyptic, but does post apocalyptic better than Fallout 3.
Right now Clear Sky is on sale around $5, pick that one up now, and wait till the Shadow of Chernobyl / Call of Pripyat bundle go on sale.
Only game I have ever bought multiple times as well:
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl: Retail NA, UK Collector's Edition, Russian Collector's Edition, Steam Edition
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Clear Sky: Retail NA, Russian Collector's Edition, Steam Edition
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Call of Pripyat: NA Retail Edition and Steam Edition
Also bought the recently re-released Roadside Picnic novel and the Russian version of Stalker, so yeah, I am a fan.
If after you finish and it leaves you wanting more, check out Survarium, by former GSC employees that were working on S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2.
http://survarium.com/en/page/introduction
MysticSlayer said:
Just be warned that if you don't patch them up, they may be impossible to beat (literally). The games had a lot of glitches, crash bugs, AI problems, and other issues. However, the patches fixed most of these, and I'd imagine there might be some user patches to fix the problems that the developers didn't get around to fixing themselves. Still, don't let the technical shortcomings scare you, as the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series is arguably the best series to release during the last five or so years, and you should definitely take the opportunity to play them.
This is mostly untrue, I finished all of them before any patches were released, cause you had to start over with each new patch and the series went to 10 patches for both Shadow of Chernobyl and Clear Sky, Call of Pripyat required no patches. I still prefer to play the games vanilla (only patches) and the Steam version are already patched to the latest.
Cool collectors edition, I think I ended up buying Shadow of Chernobyl 3 different times (first it came in a magazine so the cover was all filled with shit, then I bought it retail for less then 5$ and then bought it on Steam).
I bought and played Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl for about two hours before I just gave up on it. The beginning was out of sync with the audio which was a bit annoying. In two hours I played the game randomly stopped responding about three times. My game seemed to lag in spots too. I just got fed up with it after the problems I had in the short amount of time I played and just uninstalled it. I hear it's a good game and pretty fun when it works but sadly it didn't work for me.
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