A game like this is a rare gem, (or artifact!) that should be explored, researched and enjoyed to the last bit!

User Rating: 9.1 | S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl PC
By Arcadius | Review Date:
After a few years waiting, I finally got to play STALKER. Though the premise of being at a nuclear disaster area didn't appeal to me at first, it was when I got out of the initial trader's outpost and looked at the surrounding that made me appreciate what this game was all about. I thought at first, due to lack of research on the subject, that Chernobyl was the site of a nuclear explosion, so I naturally expected to see a wasteland, not a beautiful place stained by strange occurrences. Of course there was a nuclear accident at the Chernobyl plant, but not in the manner some of us expected. Radioactive materials were spread all around this area, now called "the Zone", which caused a massive evacuation, people would never to return to it again...until this game of course. Despite using an "old" engine, this game manages to look great, the surroundings, the buildings, lighting, sound makes an eerie atmosphere, where everything looks as if nothing had happened, but you know the moment you begin exploring that something is terribly wrong, and a feeling of hopelessness drags you in. During a quick Google research I learned that many of the people evacuated were told that it would only last a couple of days, so they didn't take most of their belongings, little did they know that it was the last time they were to see their homes. And that is how the world of STALKER feels...a hasty evacuation where everything looks just abandoned.

You are a STALKER, or a scavenger, going into the forbidden quarantine area known as the Zone, looking to get rich. You get to see mutated creatures, radioactive areas, mercenaries and of course you get to shoot your gun. Enemy AI is quite good, enemy soldiers flank you, surround you, and do headshots (that is, you can have most of your health and then die all of the sudden), the mutated creatures mob you, stalk you, and scare the bejesus out of you too. The areas are quite vast, though not as big as Oblivion or Morrowind for that matter, but considering the story takes place in a relatively small area, it’s well done.

The sound is another element that makes this game great, I just love when idle fellow stalkers just sit by the fire, pull out a guitar and start playing, as if they were knowing their dire situation and are just saddling up for whatever comes. The guns: well here's the thing, they don't shoot that well, in fact they shoot very realist rounds! Anyone that has ever shot a gun at the range, knows that a doing a headshot is very hard, and in this game to get a headshot is VERY hard, you can either get a really accurate gun (like the dragunov) or get lucky in order to score them.

Story: Well imagine your mission is to get into the site of a nuclear accident in order to get rich with whatever you can find, and in the way uncover the secret at the Chernobyl Power plant, with a well detailed and accurate world and you get Game of the Year material.

Bugs: Of course there are. Not game killing mind you, but they are there.

So in the end if you feel compelled to get the game after you've read this attempt at reviewing, go for it, you won't be disappointed. And if you are into history too, check out wikipedia or other online sources about the Chernobyl disaster.

Other Helpful Reviews for S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl

Load Comments (0)