S.t.a.l.k.e.r.

[cadaver]

STALKER developers chat 17.December 2004

http://stalker.myexp.de/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1235

lots of cool info

 

[destrukt]

that's interesting .. all screenshots/movies have been dx 8 only, they are yet to release some dx 9 media.

really really good interview.

this is starting to sound more and more like an rpg - sleeping, stats etc

 

[Sparta]

I've seen all the previews and i'm still not sure about the gameplay. The game has all the elements of a great RPG, but how does it play?

Like Half-Life/Far Cry? Or like Deus Ex?

for me, thats what i wanna know

 

[destrukt]

it's sounding more like deus ex, just alot more open [as they said].

 

[Sparta]

it's sounding more like deus ex, just alot more open [as they said].

I'm not talking level-wise but like, combat-wise. Sorry i should've been more clearer.

In Deus Ex, you could barely aim the gun, you were pathetic in the beginning. You had to level up to become good.

I just wanna know if its the same in Stalker.

 

[cadaver]

I'm not talking level-wise but like, combat-wise. Sorry i should've been more clearer.

In Deus Ex, you could barely aim the gun, you were pathetic in the beginning. You had to level up to become good.

I just wanna know if its the same in Stalker.

no its not like that, you don`t level up, but you have to learn how to survive in the zone.

the world is supposed to be very realistic. you get shot in the head you die, you get shot in the leg you will bleed to death(you can see it in your stats) if you don`t fix it.

"The desire to make a game different from the others led to the player not becoming the main hero. Enough of saving countries and worlds! Here everything is like in real life. You are just one of many. Only your own actions (and not the programmist's wishes) will set your character apart from the crowd. If you do not follow the plot (which is possible) and simply explore the Zone, earning money, it can happen that some other stalker finishes the main quest for you. Wouldn't it be embarassing to have some stupid bot pass S.T.A.L.K.E.R. for you? This is no joke. This is actually possible. If we make the player a supermegahero, all our efforts of creating game atmosphere and modelling social interaction would be wasted. After all, it is not scary to to walk in an abandoned factory or laboratory if you are invincible. We are also paying special attention to fear. Its main source will not be bloodthirsty monsters with ten rows of teeth, but the abovementioned atmosphere and the game world with nothing but trouble set in store for the player. Why would anyone want artifacts if they were easy to get? People have always created challanges for themselves, and the more refined the challange, the more pleasant it is to overcome! A kind of masochism, one might say! And this relates to basic wants and needs. Remember what we said before? The cycle is complete. The chain binding the live player and the stalker inside the Zone is complete. They are alike, they have the same goal. This idea is the basis of interaction between the player and his character. The player no longer has to convince himself that he is a robot-like eight-eyed five-barreller. You are a simple person thrown into harsh environment of the Zone. Your character has to survive, following the strongest instinct of any being. The need for food and rest is also tied in, to increase the effect. And then there are competitors, and various ill-wishing wildlife... In other words, don't expect a walk in a park. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. was not meant to be a horror game, and is not one. Cruelty and unpredictability of the real word can at times scare more than any hideous monster. They force into boundaries, lock up in a room, where there is no exit in sight, where the inevitable price of any action forces people to perform misdeeds that no other creatures would ever perform. Man is the scariest and most cruel monster, in game, as in real life. It is what one should really be apprehensive of."

from new developer diary

http://stalker.myexp.de/forum/viewtopic.php?p=17574#17574

.

 

[cadaver]

"Although S.T.A.L.K.E.R. features many RPG-elements, GSC did away with one important element – the skills system. GSC refused to implement attributes, because they “destroy the realism GSC is trying to create”. And indeed, they do. Many players focus on numbers that are supposed to show how skilled their characters are, and forget the main aspect – their own roles. GSC wants the player to gain his very own mastery by trying different equipment, weapons and objects and choosing the most suitable, instead of keeping an eye on characteristics and levels of the game character all the time."

 

[Unfocused]

To those who played the leak: how were the levels limited? I mean it's not HL2 with closed spaces but running through forests etc.

 

[jimbo118]

/\ yeah enlighten us you pirates,just kiddin

 

[PvtRyan]

The leak was nonsense, really. Forget it. It was around 70 MB, to give you an estimate of what to expect. It didn't have shaders, physics, lighting or AI. It didn't show anything but polygons and textures.

About the game: technically it's sound, the best out there, easily. But from a gameplay perspective, I haven't seen much of the massive ambitions of the developers yet. It all sounds nice, but it looks rather.... boring. Looks like no fun to play.

But I'll give it the advantage of doubt, we'll see in May (or... somewhere in 2005).

 

[Unfocused]

Well, if it's not against the rules etc., if someone has a link, torrent etc. to the leak please PM me. I would like to see it

 

[destrukt]

To those who played the leak: how were the levels limited? I mean it's not HL2 with closed spaces but running through forests etc.

they were just big and open, like in the movies.

the leak was 100mb +.

 

[venturon]

I'm looking forward to stalker, but somewhere in the back of my brain I can't help but think it's going to flop. All the features and the scope of the game seems great, but sometimes I wonder about the actual storyline focus.

 

[Doppelgofer]

the leak as far as i remember it, the way they restricted you was by fences....i remember walking for ages and coming to a fence anyhow

 

[OD-Black_Fire]

IIRC, the alpha leak played very well, and got similar FPS that people get with HL2 but it's got detail that rivals (Too me, it's much better) Doom 3. Yay. Still wont run well on a Geforce 3