Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the most atmospheric shooters in a while., 30 Sep 2007
Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars
Well after reading the review for this game by the likes of "Ganfy" and "Scott" I thought I would have to step in to provide a more balanced look at the game.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is a first person shooter much like many other games you may have played, but it has quite a few things going for it that not many other games have. You play as a mysterious character known only as "The Marked One" who, along with many other people, is a "Stalker" out in Chernobyl (where things happened slightly differently in the game, the meltdown spreading radiation across the lands far and wide) looking for Artifacts which have been produced by the radioactive wash caused by the nuclear meltdown. These Stalkers are just regular joes trying to make some good money by hunting these artifacts down.
The game is very quest-oriented. Almost in RPG style, you will find many characters in the game who will offer you missions that could either be a huge part of the main story which you will have to play through to finish the game, or side quests which will earn you money and loot to do with as you please. You will travel around huge open areas as you please, either following quest markers or just mooching around to see what you can find. Exploring the virtual world of the chernobyl area is a fantastic experience and the mood created by the cumulative sound, looks and play all contribute to a great atmosphere.
You will be running around the lands of Chernobyl taking on many evils that cross your path, from dogs and boars that have been mutated by the radiation to creatures created purely out of the nuclear devastation, some of which can be quite creepy and disturbing to see. There will also be bandits running around the world, hoping to rob the Stalkers of their plunder, and they won't hesitate to attempt to kill you. You have a PDA which tracks all your quest logs, useful info and has a handy map which shows you the entire gameworld and marks all the useful locations on your map.
You also have an inventory which you must pay a little bit of attention to as if you just pick up every gun and all the ammo from every bandit and animal you defeat you will soon not be able to move. People have complained about this but it is merely a balancing act of the game, it keeps things interesting by not making the game super easy when you have 6 assault rifles to choose from and 2000 rounds or something stupid. You have to consider your weapons loadout, ammunition, health kits, artifacts and other useful items and make sure you have enough space to pick up some new stuff but you're not so light that you're going into the fray unprepared.
The shooting action in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is actually some of the most realistic and engaging shooting you will find in games. Fans of counter-strike can eat their cake as I would say that the shooting in this game is flat out far more realistic. The ballistics are fantastic, firing a low end assault rifle from any reasonable distance and you will see your bullets spread right out, your gun can jam mid-fire (which can be pretty harrowing) and there are different types of ammo to consider, and as you might expect, stopping and crouching to take a shot is key.
The visuals aren't mindblowing, the X-Ray engine provides some solid detail and some of the environments look stunning, but the character models feel a little bit behind the times. The game engine is also quite a system hog, which is a little strange as games that look a bit better will sometimes run smoother than this game, but it's really a minor detraction from what is otherwise a well worthwhile experience. The sound is really excellent, the ambient music and sound effects are fantastic, and some of the howling noises and strange sounds you will hear out in chernobyl sent shivers down my spine. Guns sound as they should, and all the Stalkers, bandits and other human folk in the game all speak russian which adds a great air of authenticity to the game.
There are a few bugs in the game, but at the time of this review they are releasing patches fairly regularly and a good amount of the bugs have been fixed. The game will require you to have a pretty recent computer if you intend to get the most out of the visuals, but it is perfectly possible to play the game on hardware a few years old.
The story is pretty good, as mentioned in some other reviews it can be a bit confusing but if you do as many quests as you can and piece them together you will get some rewarding plot lines coming out of the game. Overall the plot is a bit inconsistent but it's still good enough to keep you wondering and pushing for the goal.
Overall S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is a fantastic shooter. It's creepy, entrhalling atmosphere is something that most games strive to achieve but seldom succeed. Exploring the game world is just a fantastic experience in itself, being intrigued by the things you see and find is fun in itself. Add on to that great gunplay, some RPG like elements with the questing and loot gathering, a reasonably gripping plot and you've got yourself a good game. Sure, it does have a few bugs, but these are minor detractions from the overall experience, which if you know what you're in for, is a fantastic one.
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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Clear goals, depth, incredible graphics and atmosphere, 14 Aug 2007
Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
I puchased this game thinking it would be another scare tactics fps like F.E.A.R, i was suprrised generally by the amunt of thought and development that has obviously gone into making this game, so first of all i think the game is most definatley worth the money. as for enjoyment, i played the game without much research and struggled to progress along the true story path, this due to a bit of impatience and a few game bugs that can resulst in failed missions, never-the-less i started a fresh with a game plan and i have since been scared to death, mentally challenged, pumped with adrenaline and thouroghly amazed by it contents and im only half way through. i just cannot wait to see the dam power station in all its depressing glory.
A must by for high spec Pc gamers and fans of games that have allot of substance.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good game but rather more linear than it could have been, 22 Jun 2007
Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars
If you like atmospheric games with a fair bit of shooting, some plot and have a high end machine this game does most things pretty well.
What it isn't is the hugely innovative, free-ranging game that the hype during its development claimed that it would be.
Like many games of its type it is really quite constrained in terms of where you can go and what you can do - instead of walls it uses unclimbable fences and radiation but you really do end up following tramlines between 'adventuring' areas.
Having said that it does a number of things well. It is really very atmospheric and(perhaps because of its Russian origins) feels remarkably different from many other games of the type. The graphics are good, as is the sound, and the gameplay works very well in the main plot, which is by turns exciting and a little creepy, with lots of detail and interaction with the environment. However the side quests are both repetitive and a bit buggy in that scripted elements often don't make sense and responses of NPCs often don't reflect changing circumstances within the game. In some cases these side plots jam due to these bugs. Moreover, most involve 'go here, get this, return for your reward', and are essentially variations on the same theme. But on the up side none are critical to the main game and can be ignored once you've got enough kit to survive the main story.
So overall it tries hard to be different and do new things and succeeds in part. Nonetheless, its well worth buying and will provide hours of entertainment. The only thing to watch out for is that it needs a fairly heavy duty machine to run well.
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