S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl

The fact that this series appeared on GOG just blew my mind! And here I was with the resolution to save up some money. The game has one of the best atmospheres in gaming. Personally I couldn't play it for a long time because of the overwhelming grittiness of the portrayed here post-chernobyl world. After a few hours of playing SoC I felt so "crushed" and "darkened" (if that makes sense :P). It's hard to describe that specific factor of immersion in the game that makes you take a break because it's just "too much". That's what makes the STALKER series stand out among games. If you look through sometimes clunky controls, seldom random glitches and occasional stability issues you are in for a ride you'll never forget... and now DRM-FREE! Now let's go drink some vodka to drop our radiation levels...

When I think back to this game it's like journey memories. At first very intimidated by the Zone, I ended up feeling at home there. It's dangerous. Odd. Realistic and surreal. Living. Creepy. Everything in the environment was whispering to me, like, "This time the humans with their ideologies and technology have really, really screwed up. To the point where reality itself has some bugs. Some anomalies. And now it's too late." But the autumn night wind was still blowing through the poplars, a few lost Stalkers still warmed their bodies and hearts around a flaming barrel, sharing guitar tunes, vodka and anecdotes to make dawn rise faster, perhaps also to stop hearing the distant grunts... The devs managed to communicate to me a part of their emotional connection for the region of Ukraine where they grew up.

This is not even close to a perfect game. It's rather obtuse with the story; there's a few "fake" endings and a couple "real" ones, and getting the real one feels like side missions until it all comes together. Some sequences are hard hard, as in, I tend to play games on the second easiest difficulty, as I left the part of my life where challenge itself was a driving factor of fun, and now I'm really just here for story and gameplay; even on the easier difficulties, as you sit in god-tier armor, guns that fit your exact playstyle, enough medkits to open a hospital yourself, there are parts of the end where you need to fight during the daytime with your back to a wall and something bulletproof in front of you to have a good chance of winning that gunfight. The story is delivered mostly through fetch quests, and you're running the whole time, because you usually don't need to go back, invalidating the merit of fast travel between hubs. All that complaining to say, I'd give it a 4.5 out of 5 if I could, but I can't so I'm rounding up instead of down, because it's worth it. This and both of its sequels are games that you play through and think at times, "Ugh, what a slog." When you finish them however, you feel like something is missing from your life, like finishing a good book. Its pieces are a mess, but when assembled, form a wonderful art piece, and you understand the obsession so many people have with this series.

+ The first of the series that sets a good base for the rest of the series plot-wise. + Game has iconic voice acting and "script writing" (whether intentional or not) that continues to ensure that it's always going to be a well-loved game. + Relatively realistic gun play. + Nice and atmospheric. + Modding community is very active and continues to support the game long after the developers have moved onto develop newer games. - Glitchy.

This game offers horror, jump scares (unscripted), fps and alot of story and places that I experienced breathtaking and really caught the desolate and gloomy feeling. I like the stalker series because it offers something different than the regular type of mainstream games out there. However to get the best out of shadow of chernobyl you need to update it with the shadow of chernobyl starter pack, that improves the game in terms of game technical aspects and makes it simply work better. The starter pack can be found here: https://www.moddb.com/mods/starter-pack/downloads If you wan to experience something different, you should give the stalker series a shot.