- I can totally dig it. Makes me almost happy I haven't installed GTA4 yet, but it's just waiting in the drawer. Waiting for winter. Would be nice, if iCEnhancer was complete by then, so I can enjoy my first look at GTA4 with this sweet mod :)
Showing posts with label Games. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Games. Show all posts
7.14.2011
7.11.2011
[Review] Duke Nukem 4(n)ever
Last month finally saw the release of the long awaited follow-up to the cult classic, Duke Nukem 3D - a first-person-shooter that turned the eyes of the world towards a small game developing company by the name 3D Realms - and possibly the one game I've played the most. Ever.
Another classic hit (released under the company's previous name, Apogee - who also released the older Duke Nukem side scrollers) was Rise of the Triad - another FPS (and one I enjoyed quit a bit - and still do on occasion). Apogee turned 3D Realms for the creation of titles such as Terminal Velocity, Duke Nukem 3D and more. In other words Apogee/3D Realms has a long tradition for good gaming.
So what happened in the 14 (yes fourteen) years it has been in (and out of) development? Was it worth the wait? All in good time - first a bit about the game itself.
Being the big Duke fan I was when the old classic was released (and many years later), I've been awaiting this title with an almost childlike suspense. And it can come as no surprise to you, that I shelled out the bucks for the grand package, containing a card deck, stickers, poster, buste, poker chips, hardcover concept art book, postcards and more... and of course the game itself.
- not a bad package for about 600,- dkkr. But of course the most important part was the game.
Not surprisingly, you have to register the copy with STEAM, which not only allows you to play the game anywhere you can access your steam account, but I also found out, that save games and configuration (key bindings etc.) are somehow stored with your STEAM account, which gives you the option to play from your last save from any computer, as long as you log into STEAM - and no re-binding the keys either. This was a first for me - and it is absolutely great.
- but that's technical babble which does not have anything to do with the actual game...
The graphics in DN4Ever are not overwhelming, but not bad either. Much of the mood reminded me of F.E.A.R. and I think the quality of the graphics are similar - but F.E.A.R. is 6 years old by now. So not exactly up-to-date graphics, compared to other more recent games. I have however never been the one to get hung up on graphical quality - gameplay is much more vital to me (and yes, I still play old DOS-games once in a while)... In any way it's a fine update to the old Duke. And after 4 engine switches, there was hardly time for another, should the game ever be released.
The sound is good - and Duke has the expected, varied arsenal of cool one-liners to go with his macho character. Explosions, ambience and effects are all quite good. But then again - more than a decade since the last release, it had better not have the same thin, noisy sound quality as it's predecessor.
The gameplay however, was a bit of a let down. Too linear, too scripted, too confined - and some really poor design choices, does not make it the game it could've been.
Old duke could carry every single weapon in the game at the same time. New duke can only carry two, and an assortment of explosives (like the pipe bombs) - come on. Where's the fun in that? And if you were aiming for a hint of realism, you should probably not include the option to flip over a monster truck with your bare hands. In addition, it takes too damned long, to swap an empty weapon for a dropped one, in the middle of combat.
You can't save whenever you wan't to, which makes you having to play the same sequences over and over again - that's not exactly good game design, and it has made me walk away from the game in frustration several times.
Much like HalfLife 2, there's a path layed out for you, and you can't really stray. And parts of the levels "close down" behind you, once you enter the next part. Old Duke had much more freedom of movement - and going back to parts previously visited. I would've liked to see a bit more sandbox. Not GTA-like sandbox, but just a little less confined. And where are the damned secret levels? Old Duke had several.
To sum it up, I think they would've been better of with a remake of the old Duke - storyline and levels.
And what happened to the Jetpack? One pathetic ride on the corpse of an alien? You have to play multiplayer to get to try it for real. Bad. It was an important element of old Duke singleplayer (and multiplayer). The "improved" freeze ray? Nah - not really an improvement, but at least you get to switch to old style freeze ray when you unlock som extra features upon completing the game. Unlocks also include game speed, and I found that 125% was much better. Less sluggish movement, and more up-tempo action in general.
Boss fights are good, and I also liked the parts where you have to drive a monster truck between locations. I would've liked to see even more vehicular action, as I found it quite fresh for Duke, added variation to the gameplay and honestly - a hero like Duke, who can't drive a car or operate a plane or helicopter?
Dukes health is no more administered from health packs, but by an "ego-bar", which you can enhance by reading porn, admiring yourself and interacting with level objects in general. Your ego will drop when taking fire, untill a critical point where the next shot will kill you. Duck and cover for a while, and it recharges. I actually thought this worked quite well.
The game had about 12 hours of entertainment for me in the first run through (I did 3 so far) - which is more than Doom 3. It has a lot of the funny features you'd expect from the Duke series, but it fails in level design, gameplay and replay value.
So in conclusion - was it worth the wait? Not really - unless you're really hardcore Duke fan - and then only for visit down memory lane. This can however also be achieved by installing DOS-box, and running the good, old Duke 3D. And I really mean it, when I say they should make a remake of Duke3D with the updated engine, graphics and sound. I can live without the monster truck, but I really can't cope with bad level design and gameplay.
- and for nostalgic reasons:
- for what it's worth, I do appreciate the fact that it even got finished, despite the downfall of 3D Realms. And I can certainly appreciate the effort by those who decided to finish it anyways. But even so, the game does not deserve more than a (generous) 3 out of 6.
Another classic hit (released under the company's previous name, Apogee - who also released the older Duke Nukem side scrollers) was Rise of the Triad - another FPS (and one I enjoyed quit a bit - and still do on occasion). Apogee turned 3D Realms for the creation of titles such as Terminal Velocity, Duke Nukem 3D and more. In other words Apogee/3D Realms has a long tradition for good gaming.
So what happened in the 14 (yes fourteen) years it has been in (and out of) development? Was it worth the wait? All in good time - first a bit about the game itself.
Being the big Duke fan I was when the old classic was released (and many years later), I've been awaiting this title with an almost childlike suspense. And it can come as no surprise to you, that I shelled out the bucks for the grand package, containing a card deck, stickers, poster, buste, poker chips, hardcover concept art book, postcards and more... and of course the game itself.
- not a bad package for about 600,- dkkr. But of course the most important part was the game.
Not surprisingly, you have to register the copy with STEAM, which not only allows you to play the game anywhere you can access your steam account, but I also found out, that save games and configuration (key bindings etc.) are somehow stored with your STEAM account, which gives you the option to play from your last save from any computer, as long as you log into STEAM - and no re-binding the keys either. This was a first for me - and it is absolutely great.
- but that's technical babble which does not have anything to do with the actual game...
The graphics in DN4Ever are not overwhelming, but not bad either. Much of the mood reminded me of F.E.A.R. and I think the quality of the graphics are similar - but F.E.A.R. is 6 years old by now. So not exactly up-to-date graphics, compared to other more recent games. I have however never been the one to get hung up on graphical quality - gameplay is much more vital to me (and yes, I still play old DOS-games once in a while)... In any way it's a fine update to the old Duke. And after 4 engine switches, there was hardly time for another, should the game ever be released.
The sound is good - and Duke has the expected, varied arsenal of cool one-liners to go with his macho character. Explosions, ambience and effects are all quite good. But then again - more than a decade since the last release, it had better not have the same thin, noisy sound quality as it's predecessor.
The gameplay however, was a bit of a let down. Too linear, too scripted, too confined - and some really poor design choices, does not make it the game it could've been.
Old duke could carry every single weapon in the game at the same time. New duke can only carry two, and an assortment of explosives (like the pipe bombs) - come on. Where's the fun in that? And if you were aiming for a hint of realism, you should probably not include the option to flip over a monster truck with your bare hands. In addition, it takes too damned long, to swap an empty weapon for a dropped one, in the middle of combat.
You can't save whenever you wan't to, which makes you having to play the same sequences over and over again - that's not exactly good game design, and it has made me walk away from the game in frustration several times.
Much like HalfLife 2, there's a path layed out for you, and you can't really stray. And parts of the levels "close down" behind you, once you enter the next part. Old Duke had much more freedom of movement - and going back to parts previously visited. I would've liked to see a bit more sandbox. Not GTA-like sandbox, but just a little less confined. And where are the damned secret levels? Old Duke had several.
To sum it up, I think they would've been better of with a remake of the old Duke - storyline and levels.
And what happened to the Jetpack? One pathetic ride on the corpse of an alien? You have to play multiplayer to get to try it for real. Bad. It was an important element of old Duke singleplayer (and multiplayer). The "improved" freeze ray? Nah - not really an improvement, but at least you get to switch to old style freeze ray when you unlock som extra features upon completing the game. Unlocks also include game speed, and I found that 125% was much better. Less sluggish movement, and more up-tempo action in general.
Boss fights are good, and I also liked the parts where you have to drive a monster truck between locations. I would've liked to see even more vehicular action, as I found it quite fresh for Duke, added variation to the gameplay and honestly - a hero like Duke, who can't drive a car or operate a plane or helicopter?
Dukes health is no more administered from health packs, but by an "ego-bar", which you can enhance by reading porn, admiring yourself and interacting with level objects in general. Your ego will drop when taking fire, untill a critical point where the next shot will kill you. Duck and cover for a while, and it recharges. I actually thought this worked quite well.
The game had about 12 hours of entertainment for me in the first run through (I did 3 so far) - which is more than Doom 3. It has a lot of the funny features you'd expect from the Duke series, but it fails in level design, gameplay and replay value.
So in conclusion - was it worth the wait? Not really - unless you're really hardcore Duke fan - and then only for visit down memory lane. This can however also be achieved by installing DOS-box, and running the good, old Duke 3D. And I really mean it, when I say they should make a remake of Duke3D with the updated engine, graphics and sound. I can live without the monster truck, but I really can't cope with bad level design and gameplay.
- and for nostalgic reasons:
- for what it's worth, I do appreciate the fact that it even got finished, despite the downfall of 3D Realms. And I can certainly appreciate the effort by those who decided to finish it anyways. But even so, the game does not deserve more than a (generous) 3 out of 6.
4.24.2008
Jack Thompson is a friggin idiot... again...
U.S. Attorney, and computer game-hater, Jack Thompson is on a quest. A quest to ban computer games completely. And having not succeeded previously, he is now taking new methods in use. Prior to the release of Grand Theft Auto IV, he sent the following letter to Take-Two exec. Strauss Zelnick's mother:
Dear Mrs. Zelnick:
Your son, as you may know (or maybe you don’t know), is Chairman of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., whose most popular video games are the Grand Theft Auto murder simulator games banned in some countries but sold to children here.
Your son last week was reported to have said the following about Grand Theft Auto IV, due to be released Tuesday, April 29: “We’ve already received numerous [GTA IV] reviews, and to a one, they are perfect scores. My mom couldn’t write better reviews…” Taking your son’s thought, I would encourage you either to play this game or have an adroit video gamer play it for you. Some of the latter gamers are on death row, so try to find one out in the civilian population who hasn’t killed someone yet.
What you will see in your son’s game, if this iteration of GTA is anything like its predecessors, is incredible interactive violence aimed at police officers (whom you can shoot in the head and see the blood spray), innocent bystanders (whom you can run over with your car just for the heck of it), and of course the plentiful female prostitutes you can have sex with and then filet with a knife or stomp with your feet in order to get your money back. Experts note that the recent plethora of cop killings is caused in part by your darling son’s entrepreneurial energy. There are three policemen dead in Alabama because of Grand Theft Auto. I was on 60 Minutes about it. I hope Strauss has provided you with a flat screen tv to see the grief of the bereaved families that fills the screen.
The pornography and violence that your son trafficks in is the kind of stuff that most mothers would be ashamed to see their son putting into the hands of other mothers’ children, but, hey, your son Strauss has recently assured the world that he is “a Boy Scout, everybody knows that.” I’d love to see the merit badges that Scout Troop handed out. Is there a Ted Bundy merit badge? If so, your loving son deserves one now. It should be red and green, for obvious reasons.
With Passover having just come and gone, it is appropriate to note the following from the Old Testament, Proverbs 22:6:
“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
Mrs. Zelnick, did you train up your son, Strauss, to make millions of dollars by pushing Mature-rated video games to children? Any kid can go right to little Strauss’ corporate web site and buy GTA IV with no age verification. Strauss is even marketing the new Grand Theft Auto IV on World Wrestling Entertainment tv shows seen by millions of kids. If you trained up Strauss to do this, then shame on you.
But maybe the explanation for your son’s corporate sociopathy is to be found in Old Testament Proverb 29:15:
“The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.”
Maybe you, Mrs. Zelnick, were so taken by your handsome son that you spared the rod and spoiled the child. That would explain why he has brought you, by the way he presently acts, “to shame.”
There’s another mother you would do well to talk to. Mrs. Crump in Alabama had a son who was a police officer. He’s now dead because a teenaged boy unwittingly trained himself to kill him on Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. She has a grief she carries every day that only a mother can know.There are other such mothers in the heartland of America whose inhabitants your son simply sees as commercial targets.
Your son, this very moment, is doing everything he possibly can to sell as many copies of GTA IV to teen boys in the United States, a country in which your son claims you raised him to be “a Boy Scout.” More like the Hitler Youth, I would say. Happy Mother’s day, Mrs. Zelnick, which this year is May 11, two weeks after your son unleashes porn and violence upon other mothers’ boys. I’m sure you’re very proud.
Sincerely, Jack Thompson
I noticed that he apparently has no problem with youngsters watching wrestling - no not traditional wrestling, but the WWF one, where people team op 2-3 against one, smash guitars and chairs and whatnot in eachothers faces - but that's just a show... it's entertainment. It's only pretend, right?
- just as computer games, you moron!
Besides - the games come with a rating that basically means "do NOT let your underage teenage kids play this, or we're not responsible if they grow up to be schoolyard killers". A rating that most parents choose to ignore.
I think Jack Thompson should go on a quest to put warnings on ignorant parents instead, so the rest of us will know who's kids are likely to blow a gasket at some point.
Why don't you quest against those idiot clerks who sell the games to kids not old enough to play those games?
And those old testament quotes are just fantastic. The old testament is just full of nice little sayings about how you should dicipline your offspring by violent means. Right. What do you honestly think, Jackie dearest, will spawn troubled kids, hmm? Kids who have been beaten, or kids who have been playing computer games?
Sociopaths usually comes from troubled homes.
So once again bravo, Jack Thompson. You've managed to make a complete ass of yourself - but hey, at least we can always count on you to deliver.
You're so keen on eliminating the computer games industry, but you never will. You will eventually pass away, knowing that you spent half a lifetime on a futile quest. Time you could've spent with your loved ones.
- isn't it time to give up, Jack? You can't win. Just face the obvious and get over it.
Dear Mrs. Zelnick:
Your son, as you may know (or maybe you don’t know), is Chairman of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., whose most popular video games are the Grand Theft Auto murder simulator games banned in some countries but sold to children here.
Your son last week was reported to have said the following about Grand Theft Auto IV, due to be released Tuesday, April 29: “We’ve already received numerous [GTA IV] reviews, and to a one, they are perfect scores. My mom couldn’t write better reviews…” Taking your son’s thought, I would encourage you either to play this game or have an adroit video gamer play it for you. Some of the latter gamers are on death row, so try to find one out in the civilian population who hasn’t killed someone yet.
What you will see in your son’s game, if this iteration of GTA is anything like its predecessors, is incredible interactive violence aimed at police officers (whom you can shoot in the head and see the blood spray), innocent bystanders (whom you can run over with your car just for the heck of it), and of course the plentiful female prostitutes you can have sex with and then filet with a knife or stomp with your feet in order to get your money back. Experts note that the recent plethora of cop killings is caused in part by your darling son’s entrepreneurial energy. There are three policemen dead in Alabama because of Grand Theft Auto. I was on 60 Minutes about it. I hope Strauss has provided you with a flat screen tv to see the grief of the bereaved families that fills the screen.
The pornography and violence that your son trafficks in is the kind of stuff that most mothers would be ashamed to see their son putting into the hands of other mothers’ children, but, hey, your son Strauss has recently assured the world that he is “a Boy Scout, everybody knows that.” I’d love to see the merit badges that Scout Troop handed out. Is there a Ted Bundy merit badge? If so, your loving son deserves one now. It should be red and green, for obvious reasons.
With Passover having just come and gone, it is appropriate to note the following from the Old Testament, Proverbs 22:6:
“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
Mrs. Zelnick, did you train up your son, Strauss, to make millions of dollars by pushing Mature-rated video games to children? Any kid can go right to little Strauss’ corporate web site and buy GTA IV with no age verification. Strauss is even marketing the new Grand Theft Auto IV on World Wrestling Entertainment tv shows seen by millions of kids. If you trained up Strauss to do this, then shame on you.
But maybe the explanation for your son’s corporate sociopathy is to be found in Old Testament Proverb 29:15:
“The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.”
Maybe you, Mrs. Zelnick, were so taken by your handsome son that you spared the rod and spoiled the child. That would explain why he has brought you, by the way he presently acts, “to shame.”
There’s another mother you would do well to talk to. Mrs. Crump in Alabama had a son who was a police officer. He’s now dead because a teenaged boy unwittingly trained himself to kill him on Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. She has a grief she carries every day that only a mother can know.There are other such mothers in the heartland of America whose inhabitants your son simply sees as commercial targets.
Your son, this very moment, is doing everything he possibly can to sell as many copies of GTA IV to teen boys in the United States, a country in which your son claims you raised him to be “a Boy Scout.” More like the Hitler Youth, I would say. Happy Mother’s day, Mrs. Zelnick, which this year is May 11, two weeks after your son unleashes porn and violence upon other mothers’ boys. I’m sure you’re very proud.
Sincerely, Jack Thompson
I noticed that he apparently has no problem with youngsters watching wrestling - no not traditional wrestling, but the WWF one, where people team op 2-3 against one, smash guitars and chairs and whatnot in eachothers faces - but that's just a show... it's entertainment. It's only pretend, right?
- just as computer games, you moron!
Besides - the games come with a rating that basically means "do NOT let your underage teenage kids play this, or we're not responsible if they grow up to be schoolyard killers". A rating that most parents choose to ignore.
I think Jack Thompson should go on a quest to put warnings on ignorant parents instead, so the rest of us will know who's kids are likely to blow a gasket at some point.
Why don't you quest against those idiot clerks who sell the games to kids not old enough to play those games?
And those old testament quotes are just fantastic. The old testament is just full of nice little sayings about how you should dicipline your offspring by violent means. Right. What do you honestly think, Jackie dearest, will spawn troubled kids, hmm? Kids who have been beaten, or kids who have been playing computer games?
Sociopaths usually comes from troubled homes.
So once again bravo, Jack Thompson. You've managed to make a complete ass of yourself - but hey, at least we can always count on you to deliver.
You're so keen on eliminating the computer games industry, but you never will. You will eventually pass away, knowing that you spent half a lifetime on a futile quest. Time you could've spent with your loved ones.
- isn't it time to give up, Jack? You can't win. Just face the obvious and get over it.
6.17.2007
[GAME] S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
I've been playing STALKER again. Actually - I've gone through the game once more. This is the third time in the 3 months I've owned the game - which says quite a bit about the game itself (and I guess a little bit about me as well).
STALKER has been on the way for what - 8 years? And for half that period, it has had the the label "Vaporware" stuck to it. But in spring 2007, the Ukranian developer GSC Game World, came through. And they came through with what I personally think is the most amazing renewal of the FPS genre since HalfLife (1).
STALKER combines the traditional FPS elements, with a great storyline, non-linear gameplay (although there are major stories that has to be played), and a vast and varied environment to explore. In between the traditional FPS mayhem, it manages to squeeze in some nice RPG elements. You get to talk to all the NPC's, and you soon find out, that not only the major NPC's have quests. You can side with one faction, and battle another. You can earn goodies, money or befriend someone, by taking on side-missions of various magnitude.
This setup reminds me a lot of the GTA series, although still very different. But it DOES work amazingly well. And it adds to the feel of a non-linear game. It was not untill this, my third run, that I felt I had "been down that road before" so to speak.
STALKER takes place in the area around Chernobyl, Russia. Chernobyl where the nuclear power plant had a meltdown in 1986 (and in the game story again in 1989). You're playing the role of the "marked one", struggling to uncover your own identity after a heavy amnesia. From interaction with NPC's, you slowly start to uncover what seems to be a large government plot.
The environment is absolutely stunning, yet incredibly grim and depressing. Ranging from rural to urban, from sewers to industrial complexes - and then the vast open ranges, where you run into the occasional mutant dog/humanoid/something else, or just another group of STALKERS, singing coombaya at the campfire.
It is said, that GSC took several research trips to the the contaminated zone around Chernobyl and Pripyat, during the development. And you certainly get the feeling that those trips were a good idea. Everything feels like it was put there for a reason - if not else then for the reason of creating the right atmosphere. It matches my idea of a post-apocalyptic scenery perfect.
Unfortunately my computer does not quite run STALKER at the best settings, which means I had to cut back a bit on the eye candy. Even so, the mood of the game is just brilliant. And it spooks me a LOT more than DOOM 3 (which turned predictable after level 1) did. I'll be millimeters from a small seizure, when my girlfriend suddenly sneezes in the other room, while I'm crawling around in the sewers, looking for Strelok.
The industrial areas are my absolute favourites. They're not advanced sci-fi, and even if there are some creative liberties, for the sake of the story, it is believeable for it's time - bit low-tech and very human. Just running around the Chernobyl NPP, and inside the sarcophagus is enough to give me goose bumps. And when I think of my friend in Vilnius, Lithuania, who's living about 50 kilometers from a nuclear power plant of the same type as Chernobyl, I'm glad I'm just playing a game.
The AI of STALKER is quite impressive, and among the best I've yet encountered. Enemies will charge, evaluate, regroup (if in greater numbers), hide if outgunned, and wait for you to forget about them or till you get close enough for them to strike. Furthermore, the game world is never "dead" and just awaiting your interaction. NPC's will interact among themselves, battle eachother and the mutated wild-life of the zone, or team up for a song around the campfire.
You seldom get a one-hit-one-kill, and the weapons seem fairly to hard balanced. But you can protect yourself. Various protective suits (armour, radiation, chemical) will ensure safer passage through the Zone. In addition you can mount various "artifacts", created by the Zone's many anomalies, to your belt. These artifacts look like differently shaped (glowing, or bouncing) stones, and all have various protective capabilities. Most of them however also has sideeffects though. For instance the Droplet artifact will take -10 points of the hazardous radiation, but it will also lower your endurance with -18. So you'll be protected from higher radiation levels, but you'll only be able to run for a shorter period.
The weapons are many. Mostly based on various rifles and guns. But grenades, grenade launchers, and RPG's are also available. Some of the weapons have been modified for better effect, and it's just small details like this, that really add to the mood. You get the feeling, that someone with great technical or mechanical knowledge, has tinkered with a weapon, to increase it's firing range. You'll also be able to fit a selection of scopes to selected weapons.
STALKER uses a detailed inventory system, similar to those of traditional RPG's. You'll have to take into consideration what you need for a certain mission, because you can only carry so much. Carry more, and it will affect your ability to run and jump, and ultimately you'll be too exhausted or too heavily loaded to walk at all.
In your (permanent) stash, is also a PDA which functions as a map, diary and "notepad". It stores info from found PDA's, info about missions, the Zone and it's inhabitants (and oddities), etc.
I've read a bit about bugs and issues with the game, but I've had no issues at all. Not one single crash, freeze, or odd behaviour. Maybe this happens more frequently with higher spec. machines running the "full monty". It seems though, that the recommended RAM specs of 1Gb is a bit too low. Some people report highly improves stability with 2Gb ram.
I think STALKER will definetely appeal to those who liked HalfLife. And it really goes to show, that you can create something worth the money, if your main priority is not technology, but story and gameplay. There's said to be 7 different endings to the game - 3 of these are "right". I've seen 2 wrongs and 1 right. The interresting part is, that depending on who you talk to, and whose lead you choose to follow, you may actually end up making a crucial decission - only halfway through the game. So pay attention, and listen to the word on the street.
With STALKER you don't feel like you've been ripped off, after just 5 hours of playing. It has a high replay value, and is worth every penny.
Additional screenshots at gamershell.
Read the blog of a young man, who was a kid in Pripyat, when the Chernobyl NPP blew up.
- just for reference : A google earth picture of Chernobyl NPP, with reactor number 4 encased in the sarcophagus.
And just to put things in perspective - another google earth image, showing Pripyat and CNPP in relation to eachother.
An area of 20-40 km's surrounding CNPP, will most likely never be inhabitable again, and the after effects of the radiation is still affecting animals, plants and humans.
Indeed a sad and catastrophic event. And although it is 20 years ago, it should never be forgotten. Hopefully the efforts of GSC will help people remember.
- and it is still a great game.
Rating :
(and then some...)
STALKER has been on the way for what - 8 years? And for half that period, it has had the the label "Vaporware" stuck to it. But in spring 2007, the Ukranian developer GSC Game World, came through. And they came through with what I personally think is the most amazing renewal of the FPS genre since HalfLife (1).
STALKER combines the traditional FPS elements, with a great storyline, non-linear gameplay (although there are major stories that has to be played), and a vast and varied environment to explore. In between the traditional FPS mayhem, it manages to squeeze in some nice RPG elements. You get to talk to all the NPC's, and you soon find out, that not only the major NPC's have quests. You can side with one faction, and battle another. You can earn goodies, money or befriend someone, by taking on side-missions of various magnitude.
This setup reminds me a lot of the GTA series, although still very different. But it DOES work amazingly well. And it adds to the feel of a non-linear game. It was not untill this, my third run, that I felt I had "been down that road before" so to speak.
STALKER takes place in the area around Chernobyl, Russia. Chernobyl where the nuclear power plant had a meltdown in 1986 (and in the game story again in 1989). You're playing the role of the "marked one", struggling to uncover your own identity after a heavy amnesia. From interaction with NPC's, you slowly start to uncover what seems to be a large government plot.
The environment is absolutely stunning, yet incredibly grim and depressing. Ranging from rural to urban, from sewers to industrial complexes - and then the vast open ranges, where you run into the occasional mutant dog/humanoid/something else, or just another group of STALKERS, singing coombaya at the campfire.
It is said, that GSC took several research trips to the the contaminated zone around Chernobyl and Pripyat, during the development. And you certainly get the feeling that those trips were a good idea. Everything feels like it was put there for a reason - if not else then for the reason of creating the right atmosphere. It matches my idea of a post-apocalyptic scenery perfect.
Unfortunately my computer does not quite run STALKER at the best settings, which means I had to cut back a bit on the eye candy. Even so, the mood of the game is just brilliant. And it spooks me a LOT more than DOOM 3 (which turned predictable after level 1) did. I'll be millimeters from a small seizure, when my girlfriend suddenly sneezes in the other room, while I'm crawling around in the sewers, looking for Strelok.
The industrial areas are my absolute favourites. They're not advanced sci-fi, and even if there are some creative liberties, for the sake of the story, it is believeable for it's time - bit low-tech and very human. Just running around the Chernobyl NPP, and inside the sarcophagus is enough to give me goose bumps. And when I think of my friend in Vilnius, Lithuania, who's living about 50 kilometers from a nuclear power plant of the same type as Chernobyl, I'm glad I'm just playing a game.
The AI of STALKER is quite impressive, and among the best I've yet encountered. Enemies will charge, evaluate, regroup (if in greater numbers), hide if outgunned, and wait for you to forget about them or till you get close enough for them to strike. Furthermore, the game world is never "dead" and just awaiting your interaction. NPC's will interact among themselves, battle eachother and the mutated wild-life of the zone, or team up for a song around the campfire.
You seldom get a one-hit-one-kill, and the weapons seem fairly to hard balanced. But you can protect yourself. Various protective suits (armour, radiation, chemical) will ensure safer passage through the Zone. In addition you can mount various "artifacts", created by the Zone's many anomalies, to your belt. These artifacts look like differently shaped (glowing, or bouncing) stones, and all have various protective capabilities. Most of them however also has sideeffects though. For instance the Droplet artifact will take -10 points of the hazardous radiation, but it will also lower your endurance with -18. So you'll be protected from higher radiation levels, but you'll only be able to run for a shorter period.
The weapons are many. Mostly based on various rifles and guns. But grenades, grenade launchers, and RPG's are also available. Some of the weapons have been modified for better effect, and it's just small details like this, that really add to the mood. You get the feeling, that someone with great technical or mechanical knowledge, has tinkered with a weapon, to increase it's firing range. You'll also be able to fit a selection of scopes to selected weapons.
STALKER uses a detailed inventory system, similar to those of traditional RPG's. You'll have to take into consideration what you need for a certain mission, because you can only carry so much. Carry more, and it will affect your ability to run and jump, and ultimately you'll be too exhausted or too heavily loaded to walk at all.
In your (permanent) stash, is also a PDA which functions as a map, diary and "notepad". It stores info from found PDA's, info about missions, the Zone and it's inhabitants (and oddities), etc.
I've read a bit about bugs and issues with the game, but I've had no issues at all. Not one single crash, freeze, or odd behaviour. Maybe this happens more frequently with higher spec. machines running the "full monty". It seems though, that the recommended RAM specs of 1Gb is a bit too low. Some people report highly improves stability with 2Gb ram.
I think STALKER will definetely appeal to those who liked HalfLife. And it really goes to show, that you can create something worth the money, if your main priority is not technology, but story and gameplay. There's said to be 7 different endings to the game - 3 of these are "right". I've seen 2 wrongs and 1 right. The interresting part is, that depending on who you talk to, and whose lead you choose to follow, you may actually end up making a crucial decission - only halfway through the game. So pay attention, and listen to the word on the street.
With STALKER you don't feel like you've been ripped off, after just 5 hours of playing. It has a high replay value, and is worth every penny.
Additional screenshots at gamershell.
Read the blog of a young man, who was a kid in Pripyat, when the Chernobyl NPP blew up.
- just for reference : A google earth picture of Chernobyl NPP, with reactor number 4 encased in the sarcophagus.
And just to put things in perspective - another google earth image, showing Pripyat and CNPP in relation to eachother.An area of 20-40 km's surrounding CNPP, will most likely never be inhabitable again, and the after effects of the radiation is still affecting animals, plants and humans.
Indeed a sad and catastrophic event. And although it is 20 years ago, it should never be forgotten. Hopefully the efforts of GSC will help people remember.
- and it is still a great game.
Rating :
(and then some...)
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