S.T.A.L.K.E.R.

2007/04/11

It is almost superfluous to write anything about the story of STALKER because of the long period before the release. But for all who have missed it, here is a short summary.

After the accident with the reactor in Chernobyl in 1986 another GAU-GAC (Greatest acceptable casualty) occurred in 2006 and again contaminated the area around the sarcophagus, which led to the zone being sealed off by the military. This zone has now been infiltrated by so-called STALKERS, who take away radioactive objects from the zone against payment, so that they can sell them after that. Your alter ego is one of these STALKERS. You lose your memory during an accident, are sold to a dealer in the zone and will have to work for him from now on. You penetrate the ‘Zone’ around the sarcophagus with tasks taken on, till you finally land at the reactor, which hides a dark secret. No more will be disclosed now.

After the introduction we wake up in the bunker of the dealer Sidorowitsch, who makes it unmistakably clear to us that he did not save us for “out of the goodness of heart” but in order to make money. The only thing we know thanks to our PDA is that we as STALKER have received the order to kill a certain Mr. Strelok. Why? We could no longer remember that. As also many other things. We have lost our memory. We are made aware of the most important rules of the “zone” in our discussion with Sidorowitsch! Only the toughest and the best survive here. What is the Zone? The contaminated area around the Chernobyl reactor, where the operations of the STALKER take place. In order to prove that we are worthy of zone, we accept the first order from the rather experienced STALKER Wolf. We are supposed to help his friends clean a farmyard from bandits.

Our PDA (the only indication we still have of our past) which contains a map of the zone, shows us the way there and proves to be a useful tool of our character during the course of the game. Not only does it record all accepted tasks (active/successful/failed) but also all conversations, which we have with NPC during the course of the game. We have to familiarize ourselves with steering the PDA, but this is easy after a short time.

After arriving at Wolf’s friends’ house we can decide after a short discussion, whether we want to go alone or take help from them. We accept their help with thanks and enter our first battle now.

A lot was reported in advance of the vivid world of the STALKER. However in the course of time there were so many reports of abridged or omitted features that we feared, that the much promised atmosphere would suffer from it.

You could not be more wrong! STALKER’s world is livelier than is the case in any other game. Mutants, bandits, neutral or friendly STALKERS prowling around in the zone and solving tasks like us, in order to create the breakthrough. We feel however the loneliness of the zone, which STALKER wishes to convey, in spite of the vivid world. The feeling when walking through an abandoned goods station is indescribable. However the salvos from a Kalashnikov catapult us back to harsh reality.

It is particularly nice to be allowed to observe how a mutated wide boar attacks our adversaries in an exchange of fire with several combatants and thus lessens our workload.

Hardly noticeable, but still worth mentioning are the rare misfires of artificial intelligence. We experienced among other things how the shot adversary did not want to defend himself at all, because apparently he was unaware of the bombardment. Here GSC/THQ has to make an improvement with a Patch. Otherwise the AI behaves incredibly. Adversaries entrench themselves behind trees or trucks during severe bombardment or group with like-minded people in order to encircle or ambush us.

STALKER is controlled basically like a standard commercial Ego-Shooter and then again it is not. We can loot killed rivals according to the known RPG-mania and use their wealth either for one’s self or sell it to dealers for cash. However one has to be careful. Your character can carry only 50 kg in your backpack. If this limit is reached, then you will run out of steam and you have to take a breather before you can continue running!

We find artifacts in STALKER’s big wide world. Contaminated objects which we can destroy either at the dealers or research scientists, or we improve our resistances by fastening the artifacts to our belt (similar to the attaching of objects in role plays).

Nice gag: if we are contaminated we can reduce the radiation with a strong sip from the good old bottle of Vodka. But be careful! Whoever imbibes too much of the noble drink has a virtual hangover for a short time. The protagonist sways and sees everything in a blur.

Our PDA in STALKER serves not only as a map, but also as a log for the tasks. Along with the main story STALKER provides the players also with a number of side orders, which are optional, but contribute significantly however to the ending. The side orders can offer good rewards, either in the form of money, new weapons and objects or STALKER suits. These are necessary, in order to penetrate the zones of the reactor which become more and more contaminated. It is recommended to solve only that number of orders which are necessary to be equipped for the zone around the sarcophagus!

There continue to be smaller bugs in the PDA unfortunately in the sales version. You should never confirm the function symbols with the right mouse button. STALKER denies its services immediately and sends you back to your Windows. We have noticed however that missions that have been successfully concluded are still partly to be seen on the map. This can be irritating and should be rectified also with a Patch.

STALKER looks fantastic on a current computer.

High resolution textures mixed with wonderful play of light makes STALKER an experience for any one who has a fetish for graphics. When lightning flashes across the sky and the objects throw wonderful shadows on the floor, it can happen that you run to the window to check whether there is a storm outside.

The soundtrack of STALKER is as atmospheric as the graphics and provides the finishing touch.

STALKER shows his muscles even in the Multiplayer mode. The dynamic change in the times of the day paired with the realistic weather effects tempts one to play the card several times. The card does not reflect in a same manner during a storm with illumination as during a gorgeous sunset. The anomaly in the single player mode, which evokes wonder, makes the multiplayer part of STALKER a unique experience.

Up to 32 players can fight online against one another or in the network on the side of the STALKER or the mercenaries. Till now there are 3 modes: The first two modes are generally known and do not need any further clarifications. It is the goal of two rival teams in the Hunt for Artefacts to collect artefacts and to bring them back to their base. The team, which has collected the most artefacts at the end, wins!