Stalker SoC

B

Batcha

First time out of the vault
So ive finally completed Stalker SoC with the Complete 2009 patch that supposedly improves graphics and fixes bugs etc.

Im really not sure what to think of the game..
Some things i really liked, and a lot of things i didnt like at all lol.

Lately im quite picky when it comes to playing games, so after seeing some mediocre quests and bland writing i almost uninstalled the game but instead i decided to play some more.

The setting was really immersive, and the atmosphere is the only reason why i kept playing. Although some locations were great and playing stealthy on a stormy night was absolutely fantastic, eventually the game became a bit annoying (save for the really memorable arrival at Pripyat at 6 AM ) and i ended up rushing just to complete it.


Now the reason i made the thread is because im looking at Stalker Clear Sky, Call of Pripyat and possibly Metro 2033.
Im unsure whether to get any of those games, so i would like to hear oppinions of fellow Fallout fans :>

Is there anything remarkable with the next Stalker games, like one of a kind storyline, truly memorable locations or any improvement on the atmosphere part?
Same question goes for Metro i guess, since i dont really feel like spending 10-15 just shooting at enemies.
 
Play CoP. It's great, it takes the best out of SoC and CS. CS is fun, but it's a bit broken. Recommended only if you have nothing better to play. The stories of the three games aren't really connected.

Metro is a fun linear shooter that's a bit short. It's got great graphics and atmosphere but somewhat mediocre gameplay. I never managed to get into it.
 
Metro while pretty short is worth the money that is if you dont mind that its a typical straight forward corridor shooter, but actualy that doesnt hurt the gameplay in any way. Its very well done "standart shooter" gameplay similar to Half Life if you want (HL1), just that Metro33 has a different story and approach. The situations where you need a gas mask are one of the best parts! It really gives that post apoc feeling.

Though its not scary, not really. No clue why. Maybe cause some of the creatures look so silly. THough that doesnt mean it has not the "wow" factor. Certain scripted events are amaizing. The few times you have NPCs as company for example are pretty well done they dont take away the fighting but they also dont feel like dead weight. And they add a bit to the athmosphere.

I really hope for a sequel to it.
 
Shadow of Chernobyl has the best atmosphere, storyline and balance imho. That is both balance between exploration, combat and storytelling as well as gameplay balance.

Clear Sky is a prequel and it is far more focused on combat and several parts of the game are more linear than anything in the first game. It's main selling point to the fanbase was it's faction wars, which didn't work properly and didn't create the same atmosphere that made the first game so good. Plus the slow pace of the wars are at odds with the frantic pace the plot tries to establish. Most of the game takes place in the same areas as the first other than some structural changes and expanded maps there's only really three new areas to see. That said Clear Sky's opening level is probably the most atmospheric and immersive areas in all of the Stalker games.

Call of Pripyat goes to the other end of the scale and focuses on exploration, it's plot light which is well suited to just wandering around doing your own thing. Only problem is, while it has the largest maps of all three games (and doesn't revisit any previous areas so it's all new), it still has the smallest gameworld. So there isn't really much to explore and not much to do.
 
Grab CoP, install it, download and apply FOV Switcher (default FOV is way too small, smaller than previous STALKER games), play, thank me later.

requiem_for_a_starfury said:
So there isn't really much to explore and not much to do.
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Didn't seem that way to me. I'd rather have smaller number of quests with more interesting design and even some C&C than repeat the same fucking fed-ex quest countless times though.
 
Multidirectional said:
Didn't seem that way to me. I'd rather have smaller number of quests with more interesting design and even some C&C than repeat the same fucking fed-ex quest countless times though.
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Normally I'd agree with you but CoP is the closest of the three to an open world game. It's story is the least urgent making it ideal for dicking around without that feeling you ought to be getting on saving the world and it's the only one that has (without modding) the ability to play on once you've finished the main story. Except it has the smallest playing area the least to explore and other than artifact hunting no regenerating quests. Plus it's economy is even more mucked up than the previous two. Clear Sky and CoP would be both one hundred percent better games if they swapped main plots, side quests and maps. Clear Sky's linear save the world story would benefit from CoP's small playing area and focused side quests. Where as CoP's open ended gameplay would benefit from more areas to explore and (working) faction wars.
 
CoP is really brilliant, it is my second favourite game this year after New Vegas. Thanks to how open it is + random emmisions + lot of emergent AI behaviour, CoP is also the most immersive one from the series.
And the quests here are really great too, much better than in previous games.

Plus I encountered only one or two insignificant bugs - the game is really well polished (or was for me).
The only thing dragging it down is poor first impressions, because after wirdly desynchronized intro it just throws you into the world without pointers, not to mention that the graphics is pretty bad at the starting locations (cloudy weather does not help).

But if you can get through first two hours of CoP, you will get one of the best experiences game industry can give.
 
Tagaziel said:
Ausdoerrt said:
The stories of the three games aren't really connected.
Click to expand...

Uh, no. As a STALKER Wiki admin I can say they are pretty well connected.
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Connected how? AFAIK, there's the same setting, recurring themes, locations, but other than that I remember the stories to be completely separate since the main character is different every time.

What I meant was, there isn't much story continuity that'd be broken if you skip one of the games in the series.
 
I love the STALKER games for the setting and stories, the gameplay is meh and the I don't like the sandbox aspect for some reason so I just do the main story and in COP I've done a few side quests but they were alot better than the standard "Find me ammo/grenade/health kits" in SoC and CS.

I like Metro better, better story and gameplay.
 
they are both shooters so not that far away. And Metro33 in my eyes is doing a better job at telling the story and the NPCs are in general better as well. Just because the one is a linear coridoor shooter and the other is doing literaly the same just on the surface with a huge land doesnt mean they are like apples and oranges. In the end Stalker is just a "shooter" as well.
 
^

And to be honest i don't know why i like Metro better, maybe i feel that STALKER didn't "do" open world "right". The majority of side quests were just fetching grenades and ammo, and the walking around was annoying especially since your character moves soooo slow (at least to me anyways).
 
thegaresexperience said:
^

And to be honest i don't know why i like Metro better, maybe i feel that STALKER didn't "do" open world "right". The majority of side quests were just fetching grenades and ammo, and the walking around was annoying especially since your character moves soooo slow (at least to me anyways).
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I dunno man, I think you were doing the wrong quests *shrug*. There's a plenty of non-fetch quests with actual side-stories, the fetch quests are just there if you suddenly find yourself short on cash.

Moving around isn't so bad once you get the artifacts to boost your endurance so you can sprint for long periods of time.

One of my favourite parts of the game has been finding the stashes, especially the ones in really dangerous locations. Mixing artifacts in the OL mod was also great.
 
Thanks for the replies folks!

Generally, i dont have a problem if a classic shooter is linear, if its original and immersive.. tho they arent often like that lol.
Ill give the Metro a try for sure.

Having read all the posts, ill probably try the Stalker games aswell lol
Tho i have a feeling ill uninstall Clear Sky after getting fed up with combat :>
 
sea said:
STALKER is about a thousand times more fun if you don't just blindly follow the quest arrow. There's a lot of stuff to see and do, and exploration is the most rewarding I've seen in almost any game... nothing like your perseverance being rewarded with some high-level equipment early in the game.
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I am not so sure if the world in Stalker really had to offer that much except for a different ending if you explored a bit more. Shadow of Chernobyle is trying to be a Sand Box exprience in my eyes.

The main problem though is that the devs had to talk big and overextended themself. Remember they at some point wanted player controled helicopters which was later changed to only cars before it was removed completely (the code for it is even still in the game I think). What we got was quite a few bugs as well. And a very very limited world (much love or fences ...) when the idea was to create a coherent zone of several square miles. Well. Its not a bad game. But mediocre in my eyes.
 
Crni Vuk said:
sea said:
STALKER is about a thousand times more fun if you don't just blindly follow the quest arrow. There's a lot of stuff to see and do, and exploration is the most rewarding I've seen in almost any game... nothing like your perseverance being rewarded with some high-level equipment early in the game.
Click to expand...
I am not so sure if the world in Stalker really had to offer that much except for a different ending if you explored a bit more. Shadow of Chernobyle is trying to be a Sand Box exprience in my eyes.

The main problem though is that the devs had to talk big and overextended themself. Remember they at some point wanted player controled helicopters which was later changed to only cars before it was removed completely (the code for it is even still in the game I think). What we got was quite a few bugs as well. And a very very limited world (much love or fences ...) when the idea was to create a coherent zone of several square miles. Well. Its not a bad game. But mediocre in my eyes.
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I'm still waiting for that first game they tried to make. Sounds like they are working toward that future. I hope they make it.

I really would like a sandbox/explore game where you dont find a new monster or firefight over every bend, just a huge detailed world to get lost in. Imagine not seeing a thing for a few miles treck through some abandoned town and then you hear movement in the bushes! SKEEERY!
 
Ausdoerrt said:
Connected how? AFAIK, there's the same setting, recurring themes, locations, but other than that I remember the stories to be completely separate since the main character is different every time.

What I meant was, there isn't much story continuity that'd be broken if you skip one of the games in the series.
Click to expand...

The only game that can be reasonably skipped is Clear Sky, as it's a prequel that provides some context for Shadow of Chernobyl and was made after the game. However, skipping SHOC and playing Call of Pripyat straight away will break continuity, as its storyline is a direct result of Strelok's actions in SHOC. They will not fully understand the conflict between Freedom and Duty. They will have no context for what they encounter in COP, most importantly in X8.

Besides it's generally silly to play sequels without playing previous games.
 
I've always found the most enjoyable experience in the 'Oblivion Lost' mod, which tries to capture what was originally promised with SoC.

http://stalker.filefront.com/file/STALKER_Oblivion_Lost_2009;100598

When played on the most difficult setting, it is unforgiving and really gives you a sense of post apocalyptic survival (that is, until, you acquire some decent guns, which can happen VERY early on, especially if you are familiar with the game).

Just shows what a great apocalyptic survival game COULD be, albeit if tweaked a bit better. I've always been a huge fan of SoC despite its very obvious flaws. Especially on an atmospheric level (something I found in the original Fallout games, and even in Metro)
 
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