79 replies to this topic

[Doubler]

Already in the works
Although it's a prequel, not a sequel

As for a real sequel (as in: one that takes place after Stalker:SoT), it's the question whether that's even possible. And that's a nice and interesting question, that I can imagine one could prefer unspoiled.

[Blood-Pigggy]

Looks like a piece of crap cashing in on this game's success overseas.

It looks dumb, there's practically nothing really new (gameplay-wise), it better be cheaper than $30.

[Potatoe]

David86, on Aug 2 2007, 03:58 PM, said:

I think I'll restart it in hardest difficulty  
What do you think, will they do a sequel?
I really hope it.

It's already in the works.

[gregor]

Well a prequel is announced - S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear skies. some links can be found here: http://www.stalker-g.../en/?page=video

roumor is it will have more team on team combat.

but at least we can hope that they will do something about night time since night right now looks more like dusk. and you need a mod for a realistic night. plus it's hard to sneak arround in shaddows like that...

[Doubler]

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night right now looks more like dusk

You're using static lighting, right? With full dynamic the nights are supposed to be pretty dark in vanilla.

[gregor]

i don't know... default setting.

maybe gamma correction is high? or maybe my monitor setting switch to brighter?!?! These LG monitors had some kind of thing like that. special settings for different programmes.

still the game get's very dark in labs but not outside. also i have a feeling the stil l notice you even if it's dark and you dont' make much noise.

[Doubler]

Yeah, stealth play is rather bugged

[Blood-Pigggy]

No FP game has ever really gotten stealth right except Thief and Deus Ex, so I wasn't surprised when STALKER didn't have a decent system as well.

[Dave]

A prequel??  
Happy to hear that, I hope they will pay more attention to game bugs...

[gregor]

yeah they plan to correct them more. and also the A-life engine should be fully enabled (whatever that means)...

btw i checked and it really is static lighting. for some reason i can not enable dynamic lighting. probably my graphics card is not good enough. although it is 256 MB... maybe you need 512 MB for that. which is kind of stupid to get a new card only to have a darker game. i can always reduce light on my monitor controls... :-P

[Doubler]

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(whatever that means)

In SoB the artificial intelligence system developed by GSC, called Alife, is deactivated. It was a bit too extreme for the game.

A change in a simple line of code allows you to activate it completely in SoB, but the chaos that ensues is unbelievable. Everyone important dies, or heads off to the NPP... Mutants overrun everything... No quest is left unbroken...

Gregor, I have the same problem. It's an optimization issue from all I know. Some people with similar cards have no problem with dynamic I've heard. There might be solutions to that, but I haven't bothered to check. Redux changes the values so that even on static the nights are reasonably dark, and I'm pretty happy with that.

[Potatoe]

Should I get this game? I'm wondering what to buy next(either supcom or this or oblivion). Probs SupCom, but is this worth a look?

[Blood-Pigggy]

gregor, on Aug 21 2007, 02:15 AM, said:

yeah they plan to correct them more. and also the A-life engine should be fully enabled (whatever that means)...

btw i checked and it really is static lighting. for some reason i can not enable dynamic lighting. probably my graphics card is not good enough. although it is 256 MB... maybe you need 512 MB for that. which is kind of stupid to get a new card only to have a darker game. i can always reduce light on my monitor controls... :-P

The amount of MB means jack squat most of the time when it comes to things like Dynamic Lighting. Your card needs to be enabled for this sort of thing, look at the box for the card, or look at the manufacturer's website for your certain model.

There are older cards with the same amount of MB that can't handle stronger effects like HDR or higher settings of anti-aliasing. Dynamic Lighting also taxes your processor heavily, along with stuff like rag doll physics, so you might get a better card but chances are that you might still encounter problems, especially with a game so poorly optimized as S.T.A.L.K.E.R.

@Potato: I'd stay away from SupCom, it's a glorified Total Annihilation with horrid optimization and absolutely no creativity, also the world map thing is a toy that's not much fun (it isn't that easy to use either) I'd skip S.T.A.L.K.E.R. too, maybe Oblivion, if you plan on using mods, but look for the Gothic games instead, try Gothic 3, it's far better than any of those games.

And if you want to get a strategy game look to C&C3 or Company of Heroes.

[Doubler]

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Gothic 3

Now there's a poorly optimized trash heap of bugs. It easily rivals Stalker. Add to that very long loading times and a horrible, horrible combat system to boot (Why? Why? *cries*).
...
But amazingly, still a lot of fun. I never regretted buying it. I think the parts where the game does well tend to be ignored, and the (admittedly many) poor parts accentuated too much. Your choice, though. I recommend trying the demo first.

Oblivion, although a poor Elder Scrolls, is still a very good game. One I can recommend without having to worry about people being angry with me later.

That doesn't go for Stalker. You might hate it or love it to death (oh, it's so much more hateable or loveable then Oblivion ). The problem is, there's no way for me to tell. Will you like the atmosphere, and the concept of the Zone (try reading Roadside Picnic, although then you might end up disappointed in the game)? Can you appreciate the story? How will you like the AI, how lifelike it can feel and how stupidly it can act? Do you mind a lack of hard RPG elements? Can you use the freedom the game offers? Do you like the not entirely up-to-date but still incredibly realistic, grim and gritty graphics? The music that feels more like it's part of the environment? The careful and thoughtful gameplay that's encouraged (but to be honest doesn't come out well without mods)?
There's an incredible deal of personal preference with Stalker, more then with usual games, imo.
And then there's technical stuff. How well will your system handle? Will you encounter any of the bugs, most of which occur only for some people (I have never experienced it as a buggy game. Crashed only once for example. Others report that it's unplayable due to crashes)?
Just like another reviewer I feel like I should warn people away from the game, but I simply can't stop talking about how awesome it is

Never tried Supreme Commander.

[Dave]

Doubler, on Aug 21 2007, 05:59 PM, said:

I simply can't stop talking about how awesome it is

Holy words Doubler, holy words