Massive (omg extreme) STALKER Update

[Killzig]

<strong>[Game -> Update]</strong>

Well I woke today to a whole slew of <a href="http://www.stalker-game.com" target=_blank>Stalker</a> updates. Let's start with the pretty stuff. <a href="http://www.gamekult.com/tout/actus/arti ... 649_3.html" target=_blank>Gamekult</a> has posted some concept art from Stalker...
<br><center>
<br><a href="http://www.gamekult.com/tout/actus/arti ... 649_3.html" target=_blank><img src="http://www.duckandcover.cx/news/04-05-s ... ept-01.jpg" border=0><img src="http://www.duckandcover.cx/news/04-05-s ... ept-02.jpg" border=0></center></a>
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<br>Looks pretty interesting, you can check out the full gallery by clicking the thumbnails above or by clicking <a href="http://www.gamekult.com/tout/actus/arti ... 649_3.html" target=_blank>here</a>.
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<br><a href="http://www.eurogamer.net" target=_blank>Eurogamer.net</A> also has a new <a href="http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=55127" target=_blank>interview...</a>
<br><blockquote><b>Eurogamer: Will there be any humour in the game?
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<br>Oleg Yavorsky:</b> Probably the most humorous element will be the experience of drinking Vodka - for curing radiation, but if you drink too much... Chiefly, though, there are some funny monsters - that's about it, really.</blockquote>
<br>Uhm... yeah. Read the rest of that train wreck over <A href="http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=55127" target=_blank>here</a>. The preview is pretty much the standard fluff piece you'd expect...
<br><blockquote>Weapon wise, as well as the usual modern day firearms that you'll all be familiar with, there are a few novelties in the mix, such as the way you're forced to consider the environment's radioactivity. Throwing metal bolts, for example, reacts violently to areas of high radiation. Ignore this and you end up with fuzzy black and white vision before inevitably slumping to the ground. Strange apparitions also appear to chase you down in certain areas, so it's definitely not all about mutants, zombies and mercenary bandits. But whatever they are, it's shaping up to be one of the scariest, most original takes on the increasingly tired FPS genre that we've seen, and will hopefully prove to be the complete package of exceptional visuals married to convincing AI and incredible replayability.</blockquote>
<br>Check that out over <a href="http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=55126" target=_blank>here</a>.
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<br>And oh yeah, those <a href="http://www.gamespy.com" target=_blank>swell guys at Gamespy</a> have also posted their contribution to the fluffing...
<br><blockquote>One of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.'s most interesting aspects is the living, breathing world in which it's set. You'll encounter a variety of strange (sometimes mutated) creatures roaming the zone -- some of them will immediately attack when they see you, some might ignore you, and others might just run away when you shoot. As you might expect, you'll also run into other stalkers, who may react to you in a variety of ways. Some might be immediately hostile, while others may be neutral and simply react to your actions. You may occasionally find it necessary to shoot other stalkers, but doing so runs the risk of building up a bad reputation, which could make life hard later on -- don't leave witnesses!</blockquote>
<br>Read the rest over <a href="http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/stalker-shadow ... 045p1.html" target=_blank>here.</a> And finally, the tasty bit... a new video, 116 Megs of STALKER creamy goodness.
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<br><b>Mirrors:</b>
<br><li><a href="http://www.3dgamers.com/games/stalker/" target=_blank>3d Gamers</a>
<br><li><a href="http://www.actiontrip.com/files/movies/ ... obyl.phtml" target=_blank>Action Trip</a>
<br><li><a href="http://www.gamecenter.cz/Default.gcs?fileid=4766" target=_blank>GameCenter.cz</a>
<br><li><a href="http://www.gamershell.com/news_BSTALKER ... ovie.shtml" target=_blank>Gamer's Hell</a>
<br><li><a href="http://www.gamestar.hu/downloads.php3?op=visit&lid=2882" target=_blank>GameStar.hu</a>
<br><li><a href="http://www.stalker-game.com/index.php?t ... ews&page=0" target=_blank>Official Site 37.9 Meg .MOV</a>
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<br>Spotted this at <a href="http://www.oblivion-lost.com" target=_blank>Oblivion-Lost</a>.

[Megatron]

omg bigsig

Wee, that was only 2 months late. About the game that's 2 years late.

[CloudNineGT]

I still have my hopes for a gritty FPS. As long as the gameplay is as nice as they say it is, and the graphics are on par with far cry (it looks like they are) then it stands a chance. I doubt the modding will be as easy though.

[Grimnar]

Please tell me that was a clean fraps recording or something... i mean, if they cant get their computers to run the game at more than 10 fps during combat, whats in store for us? I really hope that was just the recording, but i noticed the fps goes down from shoddy to crap as soon as bullets start flying.

dammit, what about all the good things they said about the engine then??

ok calm down, it was just the recording ... yeh .. just the .. yep

[atoga]

Haha, the feature of getting drunk sounds pretty amusing. Piece of art #1 is also pretty sexy. At any rate, I'm glad to see STALKER is still puttering along on the main road.

[PiP]

can someone explain why these mirrors cover at least 2 different videos?
edit: oh, it's just divix or quicktime compression. I recomend downloading quicktime version from the official site - much smaller but quality at least the same.

[CloudNineGT]

Anyone seen the video yet? I just watched it and the graphics are a step below Far Cry. The gameplay looks awesome though, especially if NPC's react to noises and such the way it depicts in the movie.

Edit: Then again, the graphics aren’t so much worse as they are different. That tree in the background is pretty and I like the sky.

<img src="http://img.gamekult.com/photos/00/00/43 ... 5668_2.jpg">

[Mandalorian FaLLouT GoD]

i think the longer it takes the better. the last thing people need is another game with a good base pumped out in a year and patched 60 million times to even function right.

i think it looks sweet.

[Jeff]

do remember that more dev time doesn't necessarily equal a better game (daikatana, OMG NEVERWANKER nights 5 YRS)

[Megatron]

I reckon stalker will be chit actually. Graphics don't mean fuck all a couple of years later. It looks about the same as Far Cry, Doom 3 and HL2 anyway. I think games are coming to a point where it can't look much better, just putting all the features together. Far Cry would have looked better if it had dynamic sky for instance lol?

Anyway, the gameplay doesn't look that good. Looks like a mix between Morrowind and Operation Flashpoint. All the amazing features they say will be in hasn't actually been seen yet. They also like to drop features and letting people know with short posts on the forums? lolol

Also, the fans are shits. You can usually get a good idea of the game based on the fan-base and these are complete wankers. The devs/publishers/whoever are also pretty annoying. The dev who occasionaly visits the boards is a nazi and they never update anything, just pimp there game too the press. They've also pushed the game back at least 4 times since they can't seem to decide what to do.

So yea...they suck. Get Far Cry instead.

[Spazmo]

I've lost interest in STALKER. Games that try to scare you with OMG MONSTAR THRU TEH WINDOW1!!!!!!11!!!!!!omg!!!!!1111!! aren't my thing and these shifty Russian types aren't trustworthy. They've made far too many promises about this game and I just don't think they'll deliver.

Frankly, I'd be just as happy if STALKER became vapourware, because that'd be funny.

[jetbaby]

Too many promises from untrustworthy Russians? Are you shitting me? Anyone ever heard of a lil' old game called "Half-Life 2" and their maker, Valve? Last I checked they said that they would have a game out like two years ago, puting a boost into ATI's cards as they claimed you would HAVE TO HAVE ONE BECAUSE THIS SUCKER IS COMING OUT. I still have hopes for STALKER, myself. HalfLife2... not so much/any. I think that STALKER's graphics are on par, but it is from a different viewpoint, one in a large city, not a jungle. We'll see when it gets released, I suppose.

[Megatron]

hl2 was meant to come out last september, but it's coming out around summer? Not too bigger deal as they only let people know about it around July?

stalker on the other hand was meant to be released in November 2002. The team decided to start again though and set it in chernobyl, so it was pushed back. Around september 2003 it was pushed back too march 2004. It's now been pushed back too september, though the site has been to busy changing it's name too let anybody know about it.

I watched the movie. The stampede thing was nice but it looked a bit..crap? I'd prefer just one species instead of randomly picking a bunch of similair brown shapes.

The only thing I liked about the trailer was that the silenced weapons were actually quiet, not a 'silent' gunshot played at the same volume as say a shotgun firing.

If you live in jolly old England you can pre-order it for £18. I think the site delivers too most of Europe too.

http://www.playserver4.com/play247.asp? ... tle=161094

[T-900]

tapdancing in a metaphorical beartrap factory...

I keep walking posts by spazmo or megatron and just developing a nasty headache.. How can you have such childish opinions?!

Stalker still looks damn good, I'm pleased with the progress, they just need to clean up the animations on the running creatures... other than that it looks like everything I ever hoped for.

[POOPERSCOOPER]

THe game looks like its going to have a lot of scripted scenes, I haven't been too much into the dev cycle but does anyone know how that stuff is gonna work? Like you step into a certain area the first time in any game and you will get the same tard poping out of window? Also with alot of the movies I've seen of it, mutant pigs looks like there going to be the pain in the ass throughout the game and are going to get used alot to fill in the gaps.

Graphics don''t have that wow factor anymore like with Far Cry and others to be.

[T-900]

My assumption is that the apparent scripted scenes in the movie are part of a mission.. and the blowout occurs roughly every seven days, causing the odd mutant behaviour and the weather disturbances...

The movie is very theatrical, dramatised... The game won't be 'quite' like that.

[Grimnar]

If the game runs like a turtle with crippled legs, as seen in the movie, it doesnt really matter if the game itself is good or bad ... thats my only concern right now.

[[caleb]]

i think the longer it takes the better. the last thing people need is another game with a good base pumped out in a year and patched 60 million times to even function right.

i think it looks sweet.

what like duke nukem forever? [swell guy]

[Megatron]

I keep walking posts by spazmo or megatron and just developing a nasty headache.. How can you have such childish opinions?!

Yeah, sorry I'm not as impressed by flashy colours and loud noises.

The trailer runs like shit. It only looks to be getting 15 or so fps, and that is meant to be on optimized systems? The legendary, revolutionary AI also consists of throwing yourself at the player, fantastic.

The game isn't meant to have any scripted sequences at all.

[CloudNineGT]

I thought it did, that’s the purpose of the missions. I was disappointed by the enemies responses, at least the last one should have run for his life. Still, that was most likely a programmed sequence not a random encounter. The game will run fine and look great, I think the biggest problem is what will it do to be better than the rest so I want to buy it. This whole FPS race is dependant on the one that gets the most modders, and farcry being out now gives it a lot of a head start.