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Ahead of our upcoming STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl test, we present an experience report on the first few hours spent with the game.
About two minutes had passed since I climbed over the damaged concrete fence, followed the map updated in real time on the PDA, and began to fall into almost complete darkness. ‘ nearing my destination, a mobile laboratory nearby, when I heard a grunt, and then a terrifying figure entered the light circle of my flickering lamp. He may once have been an animal, but the radioactive radiation has turned him beyond recognition, killing the last spark of reason from his eyes, but leaving his most basic instincts. He didn’t hesitate and immediately jumped on me, and I opened fire from my PTM with a trembling hand. The first magazine was emptied, then the second and third, but it did not expand, it hit me again and again, I could hardly stand on my feet from loss of blood, when the I finally have the honor to go out in. severe lead poisoning. After a quick bandage and injection, I continued on my way, but my previous confidence evaporated faster than cigarette smoke in a stormy wind. I got home – I realized that this is actually the Zone I remember from 2007.
It’s all so surreal that you can’t believe it, but despite the real conditions that made development difficult (first the coronavirus epidemic, then the invasion of Russia by Russia, which hindered the work), GSC Game World finish STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl, and expect us to earn a few weeks of our lives to the disaster zone of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant to find. According to the team, an average playthrough takes 40 hours net, but if we were to hunt down all the hiding places, reveal all the secrets and complete all the missions to (that is, those from which we are not excluded because of our previous decisions) in the 60 square kilometer Zone, then the counter greater than 100 would be able to exceed an hour.
In other words, STALKER 2 is a giant wall, and because it’s designed in such a way that it won’t give in easily, it can’t be run literally or figuratively , we also need more time for complete and comprehensive testing. Since we’ve gotten our hands on the game beyond its prime, we’ve decided not to pass judgment yet, but to give you a taste of what we’ve experienced so far here so you know what to expect when you enter the adventure.
Besides one
The first and most important thing to keep in mind is that a GSC shooter follows a different design philosophy than 99 percent of today’s FPS. Call of Duty’s reflexes are now more of a disadvantage than an advantage, but whoever enters the enemy camp as a one-man army will learn a painful lesson in humility. In STALKER 2, everything and almost everyone wants to kill you, but worst of all, they can kill you, and easily. Skif, who we celebrate, is a completely average guy, with completely average skills, with only enough starting equipment to survive the first half hour. Therefore, before we rush into battle, it is worth evaluating our options and only attack if we have a chance to win. Sometimes it is better to slip away without noticing, to look for other, easier challenges, so that we can return later to settle the account with better equipment. In other words, if things start to get rough in the main story, tick off a few side quests. These are not exhausting either, they include hostile rescue and money collection.
Anyway, the first moment I felt like I might have something to earn in STALKER 2 came when I was crouching on top of a water tower with a telescopic AKM-74S in hand, picking up the looters after me one by one. It was late at night, stormy, pouring rain, and when lightning flashed across the sky it gave me enough light for a minute to shoot. I was proud of myself, marching across the field like a victorious general, gathering the spoils, only to be mauled afterwards by a pack of wild dogs. Since then, I have trembled every time the wind blew in my direction. Plus death on the counter… Oh, didn’t I say that? The developers have included an account that reminds us how stupid and / or lame we are every time we die.
So let’s face it, the animal world is hostile, mutants even more so, and you can run into humanoid horrors that can be invisible relatively quickly. Most people also don’t want to be our friends, most shoot first and don’t ask questions afterwards, and at that time we didn’t even talk about radiation or anomalies. Although it is possible to recognize from visual signs that we have strayed into dangerous territory, there is no doubt that our sensor is getting faster and faster making it worth building a bolt instead a gun Fortunately, the stock does not run out, we can throw them boldly, activating and thus neutralizing for a few seconds the anomalies that destroy with fire, electricity, air and many other ways. Along the way, where they appear in high concentrations, we can usually find valuable relics that provide some kind of benefit, for example increasing our resistance to fire, but we must we do something with their radical nature. Vodka and medicine are only a temporary solution, but over time Skife can be dressed in clothes that protect against radiation, which can be developed even further, like weapons.
Speaking of weapons… You should know that using them means depreciating, sooner or later we have to take them to mechanics, especially if we have already spent money on them. Too shabby stucco cannot be repaired unless we repair it first. In such cases, it is worth saving so that the party does not have to pay. The coupon that acts as local currency is not given for free, we have to work hard for it, so it would be stupid to throw it around carelessly. It is recommended to treat the burner in the same way as the garage, just hitting it well against your teeth. The game has a very narrow mind, so you have to estimate each cartridge (don’t forget to take out the weapons you don’t take with you!), In addition, the members- Very inaccurate weapons, especially those that we have access to in the early stages. And this brings us back to the fact that we have a chance to survive if we choose our battles, prepare for conflict, and don’t bang our heads against the wall. In fact, even the carefully constructed plan can collapse in the blink of an eye when we find ourselves facing such a beast that even piercing weapons are not enough to stop it.
Video tests, explanations, interesting facts, discussions, live streams, tours, previews with Hungarian subtitles.
I wish one of the best organized and equipped factions could get away with armored vehicles, but STALKER 2 is not an Eastern European Far Cry clone. Because of movable vehicles , we might feel that the Zone was less dangerous, not to mention the ability to travel fast. Both options were left out of the game for a reason. Of course, let’s hurry – new players may think at this point, except that Skif’s stamina pool is also unlimited. After one fast, we have to slow down or drink an energy drink. And sometimes we even have to eat.
A long time ago
For those who at the time were immersed in STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl, as well as Clear Sky and Call of Pripyat, which came after it, the sequel will bring back many memories. But not only good ones. I’m playing the Zone on Xbox Series X, and I have to admit that I’m not entirely satisfied with the look. The post-apocalyptic effect of the destroyed environment is very clear and rich in details, but the character models, on the other hand, could be done with a little more care, as well as the animations. I didn’t encounter any game-breaking bugs, but I encountered a few annoying quirks, including a camera that gets stuck in bushes, characters that walk in place or imitating each other exactly to the millionth kind, or even sitting down and then standing up during a conversation, and repeat this sequence of movements. All of this is made worse by the often terrible dubbing, and it has nothing to do with the accents. The performance of the actor who lent his voice to Skif is one of the low points of STALKER 2, he will hardly be nominated for an award for his performance. The gigapatch promised by the team for the release day, ie today, can barely fix the technical errors. It’s important to emphasize that I have every complaint about the previous state of the game.
Of course, this is nothing new for STALKER fans, that year Shadow of Chernobyl was released as a real pile of bugs, but the unique atmosphere was still able to attract players who were not deterred by it initial failures and technical deficiencies. The sequel now follows the same path. It takes time for us to reset our brains, throw away the arrangements of the past years, and feel the flavor of the game, but the threads of the story unfold before us only slowly, and it doesn’t hurt to prepare that. we walk many kilometers before we finally get answers, and not only do our questions multiply.
2024-11-20 14:00:00
#long #time #played #FPS #STALKER
What are some alternative methods the developers of STALKER 2 could use to increase the game’s danger beyond the absence of armored vehicles?
Do you believe that the lack of armored vehicles in STALKER 2 enhances the game’s immersion and difficulty? What are some other ways the game could have made the Zone feel more dangerous without including vehicles?
How does the performance of the actors in STALKER 2 compare to the original games in the series? What are your thoughts on the character models and animations in the latest installment?
What role do you think the gigapatch update will play in improving the technical aspects of STALKER 2? With previous games having similar launch issues, do you think it’s fair to expect this update to completely fix all technical problems?
What do you think about the pacing of the story in STALKER 2? Do you feel like the game slowly builds tension and intrigue, or do you wish there were more answers and action earlier on in the game?
As someone who has played the previous games in the series, what are your expectations for STALKER 2? Have they been met so far, or do you have any specific concerns or hopes for the future?
