S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl

I thought I'd blog about Politics but today is just too damn depressing. If you've read my previous post, I'm not too fond of Valentine's day. I curse this February and all things that are colored red.

I thought I'd blog bout something that makes me happy but since I've been on a shitty movie binge and nothing particularly interesting is going on, looks like its gonna be video games again. Video games on Valentine's...sheesh. I've got a perfect game in mind just for the occasion. It's called: S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Shadow of Chernobyl. It's a game for cool loners like me.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is a first person shooter by GSC Game World, a Ukrainian developer and was published in 2007. It takes place in an alternate reality wherein the Chernobyl disaster wasn't all frowns and boo boos. No really, in this universe, a second Chernobyl disaster happens and this time, strange things are all around the area in Chernobyl. Mysterious artifacts, spatial anomalies and horrible mutants plague the area around the plant called "The Zone" but there's scientific discoveries to be had as well as tidy profits for adventurous types. These people are called S.T.A.L.K.E.R.S. and they inhabit the zone for varying reasons. Some seek profit in the lucrative artifact trade or for science.

The story begins with you, The Marked One. You were mistaken for dead and woke up an amnesiac. All you have is a tattoo on your arm marked S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and your PDA with the single entry of "Kill Strelok". What does this all mean? What it means is you should get your ass over to The Zone to find out your past while making lots of money and killing every asshole and mutant that gets in your way. Hey, that's how I saw it.

The graphics in this game look pretty dated. However, there's this mod called "Complete 2009" that increases the quality of the game substantially. It even fixes many of the bugs in the original version. Normally, I don't like mods with my games but this one is absolutely necessary in my opinion. The graphics are so much better and the environments are even scarier.

There's not much I can say about sound. Who remarks about sound in video games anyway? What I will say is that it does its job. The atmosphere is creepy enough. The soundtracks in game are pretty cool. I need to mention that sometimes fellow Stalkers play guitar near campfires sometimes. Its pretty fun to hear. The English dubbing is a little weak. People sound so emotionless sometimes.

Now the gameplay is where S.T.A.L.K.E.R. really draws you in. This game is merciless. I wouldn't call it super realistic but let's just say it demands a little more effort from the normal player. There is no "hammerspace" where you store infinite weapons and ammo. No. You have a backpack and you sort your shit out. If it gets too heavy then screw you. Let's see how fast you can run from the monsters. There is no infinite ammo. Everything is scarce or at a price. You don't run over health kits to heal yourself. You carry them around damnit along with your food. Food? Oh, that's right. You have to eat or you'll starve.

So your lugging around all that shit while exploring the radioactive wastelands of The Zone and navigating through anomalies. What are anomalies? Well, think of them as warped areas unbound by space and time and the laws of physics. Imagine walking down the road only to be suddenly lifted up a hundred feet up the air and then slammed on the pavement with your heavy gear. That's an anomaly. Sometimes anomalies just mercifully shoot lightning and kill you quickly. You can't even see anomalies clearly. You have to move carefully and listen to your Geiger counter and not run around like an idiot.

Aside from the bandits and mean people in general that can kill you in three shots, there are mutants to deal with. Packs of ravenous mutant pseudo dogs roam The Zone. There are "Controllers" than rape your mind from a distance with telepathic powers. There are "Snorks" which are mutated people who leap across the room to maul your face. The worst of them all are "Bloodsuckers". Bloodsuckers are mutant freaks that can claw your face off in one second. They run faster than you and they're invisible. INVISIBLE.

This game will try to kill you at every opportunity. This game will chew you and spit you out. It's a game you spend a lot of hours on slowly but surely completing your missions while staying alive. It's cerebral, a slow-paced shooter that compels you to take it easy and take each step carefully. You never know whats lurking around the corner.

Such is life in The Zone...

Edit: I've been told the mod AMK 1.4 is superior to the Complete mod. Check that out.