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STALKER - Extensive Impressions Preview
Derek dela Fuente
10/12/2003
We talk to the lead designer on S.T.A.L.K.E.R and realize Half Life 2 and Doom III aren’t the only fps worth worrying about…
A very interesting story, some inventive technology and clever employment of ideas mark this FPS, with a fusion of role-playing, as one to keep tabs on.
Chernobyl has been covered many times but the Russian developer GSC, which itself is a team of vast experience and success, put their own ingenious mark on this subject matter.
Previous projects from CGS include the highly acclaimed Cossacks, and Codename: Outbreak, along with Hover Ace, and American Conquest. Coming soon will be the futuristic arcade shooter Fire Starter, which should be warmly received by the gaming community. Working on various gaming genres, the team is tireless in their search for something that would raise interest and attract a wider audience â“ and their goal, as commented by Alexei Sityanov, Game Designer on S.T.A.L.K.E.R., is âto have everybody find something theyâve been dreaming of in the concepts. In our team we have quite a few young and highly talented people with non-standard ideas and views on game making, which allow us to make our project different from the rest. This is, I believe, our key âspecialist qualityâ.â
S.T.A.L.K.E.R., is based on a number of authorised visits to a much documented, now wasteland, area. GSC photographed the 30 square kilometres of the infamous Chernobyl disaster, creating a game environment like no other. Players will see the Dead Forest, the cities of Pripyat and Chernobyl, sneak inside the remains of the atomic facility and travel through the areas that actually existed in the epicentre of the tragedy that occurred more than 16 years ago in a place few have ever been.
The story to the game begins like many others with an ominous tone. It is on the afternoon of April 12 in 2006, a massive explosion shattered the Chernobyl area. The Zone, as the area got to be known, was characterised by anomalous energy disturbances, rendering even the most advanced form of protective suits worthless to would be rescue teams. Months passed and nothing could be done. The military quarantined the area to prevent unauthorised entry and perhaps even reassure the local populace that the area was under control and confinement. Almost 4 years after the initial event, expeditions can now safely traverse several kilometers deep into the Zone. Among these are the Stalkers, poachers that enter the zone searching for artifacts and anomalous formations that are highly sought after by certain organizations and groups. The player controls a Stalker, venturing into the Zone in order to acquire information, technology and artifacts to sell and possibly put a mysterious puzzle together. Avoiding the dangers within and the military, because as a Stalker you are effectively a thief, and the army that has quarantined the area don't take kindly to trespassers. Within the Zone you will have to detect and avoid the bizarre phenomenon's (anomalies) that plague the area, avoid or eliminate various kinds of mutants and you can even expect competition from other Stalkers.
Alexei, âThe idea of building a game with the Chernobyl accident setting came to us a long time ago, taking into account that our Kiev office is located no further than 100 kilometres away from the place of the catastrophe. Binding together reality and fiction we have created a unique, mysterious world, full of horror and hazards, making the stalkers nerves tense. Anomalies, mutated animals and humans, monsters with abnormal abilities and the background lit with constant radiation are what the world of the Zone is all about! We have been very thorough in recreating a strange and human-hostile world: unique systems of artificial intelligence and life simulation, a storyline with a non-linear plot, and realism is what will set S.T.A.L.K.E.R. apart from other games of the genre. We do our best not only to render the atmosphere of the Chernobyl exclusion zone, but also create a world resembling reality as much as possible â“ both from outside and inside.â
The objectives of the game will change as the game develops. That is, at the beginning you are to survive in a world hostile to humans. Acquiring knowledge and accumulating experience, you can not only earn your living by collecting and selling artefacts (objects which absorbed anomalous energy of the Zone), but also accomplish various storyline-imposed or random tasks, obtained from NPCs, research new areas, fight with monsters and hostile stalkers. What exactly you will be preoccupied with depends on your personal choice. You can refuse participating in solving Zone mysteries, letting computer-controlled players unveil the storyline themselves, while you will be preoccupied with simple cleansing of monsters and earning money. And here the selection of the enemies will turn out pretty extensive â“ for it includes not only mutated animals, monsters and anomalies of the Zone, but factors which at first sight seem less dangerous as well: hunger, radiation, fatigue. And, naturally, most treacherous and dangerous enemies â“ humans.
The artificial intelligence within the game is thought to be some of the best seen and Alexei was at ease in extending this point. âThe AI will be seen through virtually everything - from actions in combat, to the behaviour of computer-controlled characters in daily life and their ability to accomplish storyline-imposed tasks. For instance, before attacking, a monster will evaluate his chances. Having made conclusions, heâll be able to attack the stalker, lay ambush, skirt from behind or simply run away to hide from a superior enemy.â
âAs the game develops your rival stalkers will be similar to you as you both go into the Zone, fight, communicate, procure artefacts, accomplish tasks, eat and sleep. The level of AI will allow them to improve, gain experience, outperforming the lagging behind player in terms of storyline development. A situation when a too slow-paced player finds out that the main objective of the game has been accomplished without him involved.â
A gigantic game world of 30 square kilometres is on offer with open, non-linear exploration, with vast outdoor and indoor areas and this constantly changing world encapsulates a unique life simulation system. There are many distinguishing features on offer that are not merely cosmetic embellishments but well fleshed out ideas.
âAn interesting peculiarity will be the fact that every new play-through of the game will be different from the previous one. The storyline will develop differently, reacting to the actions of the player or other characters. In one case you can join one of the stalker clans, in another one, become their bitter enemy, in the third one, be a lone hero who is investigating Zone secrets on his own, in the fourth one you can be a monster hunter indifferent to the storyline. The attitude of other game characters towards you will form in response to your actions. For example, munchkin killer will become a persona non-grater and an object of hunting for other stalkers, while a righteous stalker will be a welcome guest at any group, and possibly, may even be entrusted important tasks. This will impact the development of the storyline and, as a result, the possible game ending.â
Vehicles in the game will serve for transporting both stalker and the loot youâll find in the Zone. Players will be able to find and use old models of Soviet cars, like 'Moskvich', 'Niva' or 'Kamaz' trucks. Vehicles will wear out in time, become harder to start and will eventually break or simply run out of fuel! The player therefore will have to take care not only of himself, but also make sure his car is in proper condition and functioning. The control of vehicles is intuitive and you will not need any special game wheels or joysticks. Using your imagination is the key to using the vehicles for you can transport heavy cargo, escape from pursuers or, vice versa, knock down your opponent, have the car fall down a steep incline jumping out of it on the way, and so on.
âWhen it comes to the vast array of weapons we have implemented I must confess Iâve got lots of favourites. This includes a good old shotgun, indispensable at close distance, as well as Vintorez PAB-9, and, surely, Kalashnikov sub-machine gun. And when firing a shot from a Makarov pistol I instantly fell in love with how it sounds. You can buy-sell weapons, as well as other items at the dealers or when encountering other stalkers asking them to demonstrate items they have for sale. Itâs interesting to note that during these events the game time does not stop, so you have to be careful. Otherwise you can be attacked by somebody.â
Technology does play a starring role in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. The X-Ray engine powers excellent graphics and weather effects. The detailed environments are very high on the recommendation list, as was expanded on.
âWe consider that detailed environments should help the player immerse deeper into the gaming world and increase belief in the reality of what is happening on the screen of his monitor. But itâs not only high-detailed graphics, which will make the game stand out. Even the most beautiful game ever can get boring after a couple of hours in case itâs uninteresting and unvaried. Therefore the main focus of our efforts is gameplay. Having completed the first stage â“ the outer look of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. we are now fully preoccupied with filling it with contents and balance. As soon as early next year it will be possible to evaluate our work on gameplay.â
âMost fully the game spirit is rendered by a simple sally into the Zone. Constant tension, expectation of dangers on every step: from behind the next turn on the road, from thicket, from dark corridors of semi-ruined buildings, from âdelusivelyâ clean air all sodden with radiation and deadly anomalies. And strange, mysterious enemies with abnormal abilities, whose secrets are safely hidden by yellowed document leaves, forgotten somewhere in the Zone expanses. Time is an anomaly of our world, which has not yet been studied. The only thing we know about it is that itâs always in shortage. But in our case we still have enough to implement new interesting ideas in the game.â
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