stalker
- Thread starter robina_80
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Dont listen to this hater. This game has been delayed many times, but it will be worth it. I ordered stalker already, and am awaiting its arrival. The game employs real time weather, with full day and night cycles. The environment is endless. Awsome game from what people who have used the beta. I'm gonna drop counter strike source, and play crysis and stalker from now on.
Dexaroni
Daemon Poster
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Don't listen to the hater? You haven't even played it. The game, while it does have potential, is just garbage, mainly because of performance issues. I have a HIGH end machine, and I had all kinds of lag, when I can run Oblivion maxed out. I really liked the ideas, but the targeting was crap as well. And the environment IS endless, that is one of the problems with it. There is not enough direction to the game, so it is incredibly confusing.
Of course, I only played a pirated copy for about 20 minutes before I got too frustrated, so I will likely give it a try when a legal demo is available.
Of course, I only played a pirated copy for about 20 minutes before I got too frustrated, so I will likely give it a try when a legal demo is available.
Phantom118
Daemon Poster
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I played it... beat it... i'm playing it again.... and loving it.
So you base your review on a pirated copy and only after 20 minutes? Not a valid review IMO more like an initial opinion.
Anyways, here is my review. I bought a legitimate version and I played for about 14-15 hours.
Here is my take:
Pros:
OPEN AREAS - very refreshing for a FPS title
WEAPONRY - there are a lot including modifications and "secret" weapons
COMBAT AI - very good and challenging but sometimes can feel like aimbot especially against more experienced NPCs but the AI is on par with Far Cry and F.E.A.R. IMO and much better than HL2
AMBIANCE- One word: TERRIFIC. You got the wind blowing, thunder roaring, rain pouring, barking dogs in the distance probably feasting on a prey stalker, gunfights between factions behind you, and then suddenly a bloodsucker growls and comes out of nowhere...VERY immersive
A-LIFE AI - great and adds to the ambiance of the game...the world feels "alive" around you...it's not GTA "lively" but for a FPS I have never experienced a more "alive" world
SOUND - gun shots sound terrific, VO fit NPCs very well (too bad the dialogue sucks)
OPEN-ENDED GAMEPLAY - Lots of side quests, exploration, also multiple ways to approach enemies (like Far Cry), and because enemy NPC encounters do not depend heavily on scripts (i.e. HL2 where you can basically memorize when and where a Combine will appear) each gun battle encounter is essentially a "new" experience, there are also I think 7 different endings but only 2 are the "real" ones
Cons:
PATIENCE - since the game has RPG elements if you are a hardcore action gamer this game DEMANDS patience: patience to manage inventory; patience to walk through parts with little action; patience to listen to dialogue and etc. Honestly I gamer who is more into say Doom 3 or Quake 4 might find this game frustrating. Deus Ex gamers or gamers who play both FPS and RPG will find more to enjoy from this game
REALISM - although this can be a pro sometimes it can get frustrating, for example you bleed, if you don't have any bandages in your inventory or medic kits you will die from bleeding...fatigue you can get so exhausted from fatigue that you basically can't walk or move which can get frustrating if you are running away from a pack of dogs, add that with the bleeding and the dogs will have a new feast...weight everything in the game that you can put into your inventory has weight so don't think you can just pack a bunch of guns or even a few guns and load up all the place with ammo and junk (this is part of the inventory management part that can frustrate gamers who want action and only action)...this falls under realism: A-Life yes A-Life is a BIG pro but it can also be a con for example you get a mission to kill a stalker but before you can get there the dogs have already shred him to pieces
STORY - the main story arc is not bad and I haven't finished the game yet but it holds very little interest, add that with the horrible dialogue and you will be skipping a lot of the VO parts and the written dialogue parts
SIDEQUESTS - Yes this is a pro since it makes gameplay more open ended but the sidequests are not very rewarding and can become repetitive and like many RPG sidequest end up feeling like playing go fetch for a NPC's amusement. But it does encourage exploration and it is from exploration that you truly gain appreciation for the level of detail gsc has put into the game's world.
CREATURES - fighting the mutants especially the ones that are not dogs is fun actually fighting the dogs can be fun and comical too BUT unfortunately you hardly come across anything but mutant dogs; bloodsuckers are especially fun to gun down IMO but I have maybe only come across 4 or 5 and that includes the bloodsucker village; most of the enemies you will encounter in the wilderness will be bandits and dogs
DIFFICULTY - You will die A LOT. Just warning. I know a lot of gamers don't like to die and reload a lot but this game can sometimes be as hard or even harder than Far Cry's latter parts especially when you consider all the realism elements and aimbot like AI of the more experienced human enemy NPCs in Stalker. Those who didn't feel like throwing their mouse into the monitor after playing Far Cry this warning means nothing
Other notes:
GRAPHICS - I have a 9800 Pro and I get very decent frame rates but then again I am only running on low and static lighting (DX8) so I don't expect anything less but there are people with uber machines and let me just say if you turn on full dynamic lighting prepare for an uber frame rate drop. Also, I know the 9800 Pro isn't fully DX9.0 compliant (SM 3.0) but how come people with the X800 series can turn on object dynamic lighting but I can't? Anyone know how to remedy this? The graphics at static lighting are not ugly but it looks like I have traveled back to 2003. Anyways if you have a great GPU and can access full dynamic lighting or even object dynamic lighting this game looks better than HL2 (2004) and Far Cry and almost looks as good as HL2: Episode One. Don't expect Unreal 3.0 visuals here but kudos to gsc for the level of detail in recreating Chernobyl.
BUGS - minor bugs here and there but no game breaking bugs for me yet the one MAJOR bug at least for me is the inability to load your quicksaves unless you load a save then quit then load quicksave...the save system is quite absurd really and I read this is because the game quicksaves under your Windows account name and if your account name has a space in between (John Doe) then you will fall victim to this bug. If your account name has no spaces (JohnDoe) then you will be fine.
Conclusion:
If you liked Far Cry and play RPGs you will really find this game enjoyable. Since I am one of those gamers I have really enjoyed Stalker so far. If you are asking how does it compare to an "elite" FPS game like HL2 or "elite" RPG game like Oblivion the most obvious difference is that it lacks the polish and production value those other two titles have. If you can get past certain game design decisions, Stalker is a very gritty and gloom experience and it is incredibly INCREDIBLY addictive and the game gets BETTER and better LATER into the game you go (you CAN'T judge this game after 20 minutes or even an hour or two).
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