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[luka]

Outdoors looks so HORRIBLE in this game...

No. It really doesn't. Certain weather conditions look poor in screenshots because they're so dreary and overcast, but it's very effective in-game and the atmosphere really works. The game CAN look pretty amazing in screenshots, most of the time it just chooses not to. >_>

Here are my shots from the other thread:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=19639884&postcount=723
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=19640582&postcount=726
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=19666066&postcount=787
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=19668842&postcount=801
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=19668894&postcount=802
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=19686565&postcount=852
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=19687174&postcount=857

 

[°°ToMmY°°]

so guys, i know it's OT and all of that, but since this thread is ongoing i think i could post it here.

i just bought stalker: shadow of chernobyl. i heard the game is pretty buggy and patches are needed to make it a good playable experience.

i've found all the six patches released, do i need to install all of them or installing just the latest one will be fine?

are there any other patches (maybe user-made) that i need to DL?

i have a vista 32 bit OS.

thanks.

 

[luka]

so guys, i know it's OT and all of that, but since this thread is ongoing i think i could post it here.

i just bought stalker: shadow of chernobyl. i heard the game is pretty buggy and patches are needed to make it a good playable experience.

i've found all the six patches released, do i need to install all of them or installing just the latest one will be fine?

are there any other patches (maybe user-made) that i need to DL?

i have a vista 32 bit OS.

thanks.

You only need to install the 1.0005 patch. 1.0006 is mp fixes and that doesn't matter anymore. It's perfectly playable in that state with few bugs, at least I haven't encountered any in 1.0005.

People will encourage you to play with the stalker complete mod, and I'm sure it makes the game a lot better. I've only played vanilla patched though and it's great.

 

[TheExodu5]

No. It really doesn't. Certain weather conditions look poor in screenshots because they're so dreary and overcast, but it's very effective in-game and the atmosphere really works. The game CAN look pretty amazing in screenshots, most of the time it just chooses not to. >_>

Pretty much.

Honestly, no game even comes close to the sense of realism that STALKER gives, at least to me. The atmosphere is incredible. The weather and lighting are perfect. Buildings are beautifully and realistically modeled. The only problem is that the foliage isn't dense enough and you can't see it when you're too far away...future mods will make great work of that though.

As for my shots...I try not to be misleading. I show what the game looks like, and what performance I'm getting. Many screenshots would make you believe Crysis looks a lot better than it actually does in playable form.

DenisK4 took an amazing screenshot of Clear Sky (if you wanted to see what mods and bullshot IQ levels can do to the game):

 

[luka]

As for my shots...I try not to be misleading. I show what the game looks like, and what performance I'm getting. Many screenshots would make you believe Crysis looks a lot better than it actually does in playable form.

Crysis is worse than Stalker in that regard because at least you can use a decent level of AA and AF in the latter. For all of the fancy effects Crysis' semi-deferred lighting engine offers it's got the worst image quality of any recent pc game out there. AA implementation is garbage for a game with such heavy foliage and any attempt at forcing AF breaks the parallax mapping that gives textures their depth.

 

[Liquid Helium]

so guys, i know it's OT and all of that, but since this thread is ongoing i think i could post it here.

i just bought stalker: shadow of chernobyl. i heard the game is pretty buggy and patches are needed to make it a good playable experience.

i've found all the six patches released, do i need to install all of them or installing just the latest one will be fine?

are there any other patches (maybe user-made) that i need to DL?

i have a vista 32 bit OS.

thanks.

I highly recommend you use this mod:

http://artistpavel.blogspot.com/2009/04/stalker-complete-2009.html

 

[K.Jack]

It is FRAPS, yes.

Do NOT load FRAPS before strating the game. Rather, start the game, Alt-Tab out and load FRAPS, then Alt-Tab back into the game. Works every time.

Ah ha, so that's what it is.

 

[Cat in the Hat]

Just beat the game with all side quests finished. Really really enjoyed the game and the ending set up the sequel pretty well, Bring it on STALKER 2!

 

[goldsoundz]

I'm not too far into the game right now, but I was wondering if there were many other safe places to hide from the emissions besides the ship. I've survived deep underground in one of the scar anomalies, but met my end while getting desperate trying to run back to the ship and ended up hiding in some dilapidated old house. I need some more emergency options.

 

[eXistor]

I'm not too far into the game right now, but I was wondering if there were many other safe places to hide from the emissions besides the ship. I've survived deep underground in one of the scar anomalies, but met my end while getting desperate trying to run back to the ship and ended up hiding in some dilapidated old house. I need some more emergency options.

Right before an emission you should be able to see the safe spots on your map. Alternatively, you might want to find some pills that you can take to skip an emission altogether (you black out and wake up after it's over).

 

[Odious Tea]

Okay GAF, I give in. I'll try a STALKER. Call of Pripyat or Shadow of Chernobyl? I'm coming in knowing nothing.

 

[Cat in the Hat]

Okay GAF, I give in. I'll try a STALKER. Call of Pripyat or Shadow of Chernobyl? I'm coming in knowing nothing.

I say go with STALKER Shadow of Chernobyl with this mod(essential) :http://stalker.filefront.com/file/STALKER_Complete_2009;99897

 

[Odious Tea]

Looks like it's gonna have to wait. I get crazy stutters when I first step out into the world. My 2gb of RAM and 8800GTS are really starting to show their age.

 

[NIN90]

Okay, so I just downloaded the game off Steam and now every time I try to launch nothing happens. Any known fixes for this issue?

Edit: Found it. Had to disable Fraps like suggested in this thread.

 

[rollingstart]

what are the must have mods for Pripyat? I mean, anything that doesn't tank the frame rate

 

[Cat in the Hat]

Okay, so I just downloaded the game off Steam and now every time I try to launch nothing happens. Any known fixes for this issue?

What's your OS?

 

[JoeMartin]

I say go with STALKER Shadow of Chernobyl with this mod(essential) :http://stalker.filefront.com/file/STALKER_Complete_2009;99897

That's an old release of Complete 2009.

Get the official releases at ModDB.

And yes, of the three games I'd easily recommend Shadow of Chernobyl first.

 

[ClovingWestbrook]

I am so impressed with how CoP runs. It simply is a stunning game IMHO. The skies, THE FREAKING SKIES!!! The night time with lightning, oh my goodness! BTW, I am running it on
6400, 2g ram, 8800GTS. Definitely not a great PC and yet its running beautifully.

 

[Scipius]

Looks like it's gonna have to wait. I get crazy stutters when I first step out into the world. My 2gb of RAM and 8800GTS are really starting to show their age.

Just play vanilla STALKER. It won't look as good, and you'll miss some features, but there's nothing fundamentally wrong with the patched-up core game these days. You'll still get the essential STALKER experience; most of us started out this way. With that system you shouldn't have any problems running it.

 

[Visualante]

Sweet system crashes. I love system crashes

 

[epmode]

Just play vanilla STALKER. It won't look as good, and you'll miss some features, but there's nothing fundamentally wrong with the patched-up core game these days. You'll still get the essential STALKER experience; most of us started out this way. With that system you shouldn't have any problems running it.

Something to know about Stalker Complete 2009: It automatically enables framerate killing effects like motion blur and SSAO. You can disable them by making a few changes to config files (check the PDF that opens after installing the mod).

 

[Ikuu]

what are the must have mods for Pripyat? I mean, anything that doesn't tank the frame rate

For the first playthough I'd only install minor cosmetic mods. I had sound overhaul(you need to delete w_knife.ltx for it to work), Stalker variation, Clear Sky skin for Nimble, real weapon names and atmosfear.

 

[Oreoleo]

Something to know about Stalker Complete 2009: It automatically enables framerate killing effects like motion blur and SSAO. You can disable them by making a few changes to config files (check the PDF that opens after installing the mod).

Ahahaha, that explains a ton >_<

 

[HK-47]

Is Clear SKy worth playing? Or should I go from SoC to CoP?

 

[Cat in the Hat]

Is Clear SKy worth playing? Or should I go from SoC to CoP?

I really think clear sky was just a boring ass game. As far as combat it's the most bland of all of them. I think you should only play clear sky if your a huge fan of the series, if not CoP is the way to go. You won't miss a beat story wise

 

[HK-47]

I really think clear sky was just a boring ass game. As far as combat it's the most bland of all of them. I think you should only play clear sky if your a huge fan of the series, if not CoP is the way to go. You won't miss a beat story wise

What made it boring?

 

[tmaynard]

I really think clear sky was just a boring ass game. As far as combat it's the most bland of all of them. I think you should only play clear sky if your a huge fan of the series, if not CoP is the way to go. You won't miss a beat story wise

Wasn't the combat identical to the first game? Just a different way to find anomalies added?

If anything, I'd say the story/progression of the game was lame. Everything else felt pretty much the same.

 

[Cat in the Hat]

Wasn't the combat identical to the first game? Just a different way to find anomalies added?

If anything, I'd say the story/progression of the game was lame. Everything else felt pretty much the same.

No not the gunplay or the AI but the power of the enemies. I felt like My STALKER got to god mode while the enemies stayed the same. In SoC amd CoP, the eniemes seem perfectly balanced with how your character gains better equipment.

The combat never gets old in SoC and CoP cause you never feel quite safe. In Clear Sky I never thought I'd die once I got to a certain point in the equipment progression.

 

[Visualante]

Can anyone suggest graphical settings?

2.6ghz, 2gb ram, 4850. Running 7-64 bit

 

[DodgyGeezerFella]

Something ive noticed that bugs me a bit is that, the scopes have gone back to the original STALKERs ways of being stretched in widescreen. Clear Sky had this sorted, but not in CoP. This the same for everyone else ?

 

[JoeMartin]

Something ive noticed that bugs me a bit is that, the scopes have gone back to the original STALKERs ways of being stretched in widescreen. Clear Sky had this sorted, but not in CoP. This the same for everyone else ?

They're fine for me.

 

[rollingstart]

This game is really good compared to Clear Sky. I'm enjoying this a lot.

For the first playthough I'd only install minor cosmetic mods. I had sound overhaul(you need to delete w_knife.ltx for it to work), Stalker variation, Clear Sky skin for Nimble, real weapon names and atmosfear.

thanks

 

[DodgyGeezerFella]

They're fine for me.

My bad, looks like its just a 16:9 thing, scopes look perfect in 16:10.

16:10



16:9 (Looks slightly squished)

 

[tmaynard]

No not the gunplay or the AI but the power of the enemies. I felt like My STALKER got to god mode while the enemies stayed the same. In SoC amd CoP, the eniemes seem perfectly balanced with how your character gains better equipment.

The combat never gets old in SoC and CoP cause you never feel quite safe. In Clear Sky I never thought I'd die once I got to a certain point in the equipment progression.

Oh yeah, I agree with you on that one. The balance of power shifted too much, too early.

They definitely have trouble polishing their games it seems. But, what they get right is excellent.

 

[Labombadog]

No not the gunplay or the AI but the power of the enemies. I felt like My STALKER got to god mode while the enemies stayed the same. In SoC amd CoP, the eniemes seem perfectly balanced with how your character gains better equipment.

The combat never gets old in SoC and CoP cause you never feel quite safe. In Clear Sky I never thought I'd die once I got to a certain point in the equipment progression.

Funny, I felt the complete opposite. I felt that Clear Skies was a much more harder game than the first and Call of Pripyat. Note that I didn't get too far in the game to get good gear.

 

[Tain]

AY GAF.

I played like 2/3rds of the original STALKER and dug it but not enough to finish it. Having to reformat at one point didn't help.

Rather than restart the original, I figure I'd rather just play what people consider to be the best in the series. Is this it? Is there any kind of consensus?

 

[Ikuu]

CoP is a better game, but I think I prefer SoC just because I remember it so fondly (not to mention all of the mods).

Put like 20 hours into CoP and only realized last night that you can equip any gun in the 'pistol' slot :lol

 

[WanderingWind]

CoP is a better game, but I think I prefer SoC just because I remember it so fondly (not to mention all of the mods).

Put like 20 hours into CoP and only realized last night that you can equip any gun in the 'pistol' slot :lol

Wat. You can....not...use...pistol...bad.....goddamn it!!!!!!

 

[NIN90]

Put like 20 hours into CoP and only realized last night that you can equip any gun in the 'pistol' slot :lol

bannedfuuuuuuuck.gif

Also: The game still doesn't start up when I want it to even when Fraps is disabled. I'm on Vista SP 1 for what it's worth.

Edit: Apparently it's Xfire that's causing this. This game is weird.

 

[rollingstart]

I was just thinking about it, and unless the last third of this game is complete trash, this is the best STALKER game. Way better than Clear Sky and better than SoC. Really, really great game.

 

[Labombadog]

I was just thinking about it, and unless the last third of this game is complete trash, this is the best STALKER game. Way better than Clear Sky and better than SoC. Really, really great game.

Agreed 100%. Although I did enjoy some of the indoor locations in SoC better. I really didn't like Clear Skies.

 

[randomwab]

CoP is a better game, but I think I prefer SoC just because I remember it so fondly (not to mention all of the mods).

Put like 20 hours into CoP and only realized last night that you can equip any gun in the 'pistol' slot :lol

I've been playing for about 6 hours and just found this out last night. It was one of those "Wait....did that just.....ugh" moments, I just sat and looked at my inventory for about 2 minutes shaking me head.

 

[DodgyGeezerFella]

I was just thinking about it, and unless the last third of this game is complete trash, this is the best STALKER game. Way better than Clear Sky and better than SoC. Really, really great game.

Yup, definitely my favourite. In previous games i dont think i ever really had an urge to explore, mainly because i could see if there was anything interesting. With the maps being so much bigger, finding new shit in all the nooks n crannies actually felt good (finding "The Oasis" was a great mission).

Im guessing theyl do the same thing with STALKER 2, which could just be awesome

 

[wormstrangler]

Started playing this yesterday, going great so far.

BUT, I have a problem...Early spoiler, kind of.

Spoiler

When I retreived the 'semi-artifact' from the boat and the stalker asks for it to heal his friend, I was feeling benevolent so I gave it too him. I thought he was dodgy though and my suspcisions were confirmed 5 minutes later when he was selling it to Beard, the bastard! So, I reloaded my game and kept it for myself.

I've really got to just let the game unfold as I play it, instead of seeing all outcomes and then choosing the one I like.

 

[Dennis]

Yup, definitely my favourite. In previous games i dont think i ever really had an urge to explore, mainly because i could see if there was anything interesting. With the maps being so much bigger, finding new shit in all the nooks n crannies actually felt good (finding "The Oasis" was a great mission).

Im guessing theyl do the same thing with STALKER 2, which could just be awesome

Yes, lets hope so. And that they will use the new CryEngine....drool!

Or alternatively, give the xEngine a major overhaul. There is something about the graphics in the STALKER series I really, really like. Maybe it is that it looks nothing like the Unreal 3 engine....

 

[tadcalabash]

Definitely enjoying this game very much despite it's apparent mediocrity in most areas. Shooting is just passable, graphics are ok, characters and story aren't doing it for me...

But what keeps me coming back is how well realized the world is. It's little things like seeing some Stalkers walking around and scanning an anomaly. Or a mutant dragging a corpse across a street. Or walking into a firefight going on without you. Or just the fact that looted bodies contain what you'd expect someone traveling the wastes to be carrying.

Everything just builds up to create a pretty unique and consistent world.

 

[Blizzard]

Definitely enjoying this game very much despite it's apparent mediocrity in most areas. Shooting is just passable, graphics are ok, characters and story aren't doing it for me...

But what keeps me coming back is how well realized the world is. It's little things like seeing some Stalkers walking around and scanning an anomaly. Or a mutant dragging a corpse across a street. Or walking into a firefight going on without you. Or just the fact that looted bodies contain what you'd expect someone traveling the wastes to be carrying.

Everything just builds up to create a pretty unique and consistent world.

That was something that kind of struck me about the first STALKER. Unfortunately I haven't played much of it (and I still need to find the setting that gets rid of the camera bob, I guess). But even at the start, I got some mission to clear bandits out of a house and...I wasn't the leader. I wasn't a superpowered guy with guns, and I wasn't directing minions around. I was just a random guy who showed up and needed work, and they're like "fine, these guys are about to attack a bandit camp, go help them." And I had to follow and fit in as best I could.

I thought that was kind of a neat touch.

 

[BeeDog]

Sorry for the bumpage, but got my copy the other day and started playing this. So far, so good, but I have a couple of questions:

1) Is there any way to increase your inventory weight limit? 50 kg is too low, and I really can't be arsed micromanaging my inventory (since I wanna play this game between school and other shit, not invest half my life into it ). Is this done through a console command, an ingame item, or a mod?

2) I reached the southern part of the first map, and it's a huge warehouse where a quest item can be located (looting some merc documents). A dude stands on a balcony and warns me, says I should turn around and fuck off. I decided to engage them, and I slaughtered them all; the thing is, the dudes were named and had some curious loot on them. Did I screw myself out of possible quests by killing them/can I befriend them?

 

[Zenith]

Sorry for the bumpage, but got my copy the other day and started playing this. So far, so good, but I have a couple of questions:

1) Is there any way to increase your inventory weight limit? 50 kg is too low, and I really can't be arsed micromanaging my inventory (since I wanna play this game between school and other shit, not invest half my life into it ). Is this done through a console command, an ingame item, or a mod?

different armour has different max weight. Customising current armour might increase max weight. Steroid drink temporarily increases max weight. Gravi artifact increases max weight. Customising weapons can reduce their weight.

2) I reached the southern part of the first map, and it's a huge warehouse where a quest item can be located (looting some merc documents). A dude stands on a balcony and warns me, says I should turn around and fuck off. I decided to engage them, and I slaughtered them all; the thing is, the dudes were named and had some curious loot on them. Did I screw myself out of possible quests by killing them/can I befriend them?

they're just mercs. you can kill them. don't kill Stalkers (guys in beige like your first set of armour).

 

[Cat in the Hat]

Sorry for the bumpage, but got my copy the other day and started playing this. So far, so good, but I have a couple of questions:

2) I reached the southern part of the first map, and it's a huge warehouse where a quest item can be located (looting some merc documents). A dude stands on a balcony and warns me, says I should turn around and fuck off. I decided to engage them, and I slaughtered them all; the thing is, the dudes were named and had some curious loot on them. Did I screw myself out of possible quests by killing them/can I befriend them?

No your good man, as far as I now popping caps is the only way to go about this encounter. Nothing is lost by killing them for the documents. Also did you take the pipe entrance in the back of the base? It lead straight to the documents