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STALKER: Clear Sky - review thread

L

Labombadog

Member
The game looks gorgeous. Since the game is out (Europe), do you think this game will run on my pc?

Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4ghz at 3.2ghz
2gb Ram DDR2 800
8800GTS 320mb
Monitor resolution at 1280 x 1024

I dont want to play with DX10, but with enhanced full dynamic lightning. Think it will run ok? I know what's holding me back is my GPU, but I cant really afford another graphic card now. Hopefully I will get a HD4870 later down the road when prices drop.
 
Chiggs

Chiggs

Gold Member
Labombadog said:
The game looks gorgeous. Since the game is out (Europe), do you think this game will run on my pc?

Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4ghz at 3.2ghz
2gb Ram DDR2 800
8800GTS 320mb
Monitor resolution at 1280 x 1024

I dont want to play with DX10, but with enhanced full dynamic lightning. Think it will run ok? I know what's holding me back is my GPU, but I cant really afford another graphic card now. Hopefully I will get a HD4870 later down the road when prices drop.
Click to expand...

You should be okay. Probably around 30-40fps.
 
Chiggs

Chiggs

Gold Member
Just beat this game, clocking in around 17 hours with light faction/side mission stuff. I also failed to explore a good portion of the world because of how damn dark the night is. I created a midpoint save, so I'll be going back and playing again.

Overall, a solid B, and a worthy installment. Ending was a bit short, but fairly intriguing if you've closely followed the storyline.
 
Chiggs

Chiggs

Gold Member
Agent Ironside said:
Well one thing is for sure, do not go into the visual options and expect to max everything out :lol

GTX 280's in SLI will struggle to avg 40fps.
Click to expand...


This quote is still baffling to me. I played this game quite well with a GTX 260 at 1680 X 1050.
 
D

dLMN8R

Member
Chiggs said:
This quote is still baffling to me. I played this game quite well with a GTX 260 at 1680 X 1050.
Click to expand...
It's probably because of the micro-stuttering previously referenced, and that the game might not handle SLI all that well in other ways too.
 
V

Vaporak

Member
dLMN8R said:
Damn Valve/GSC and their teasing. Still not up yet. Hopefully it's a matter of hours, not days.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I just checked and also saw that it still isn't released. :( hopefully whatever the problem is will be worked out quickly.
 
eXistor

eXistor

Member
I haven't played the game that much yet. I like it, but I can't be the only one that thinks this game is rock-hard? I keep dying at almost every battle I come across I didn't have this problem in the first game. The combat feels worse than the first game too, your shots don't seem to connect at all and enemies seem to drop dead randomly. Also feels too much like the orginal so far, nothing new (nothing noteworthy anyway) so far. I'm gonna keep playing to see if it gets better but so far it's pretty disappointing to me and STALKER is one of my favorite games of the last few years. Als I could swear there was a warning in the first game when you're getting radiated, here you don't get any type of warning except for a small icon on the right that lights up. But when you noticed that, you're fucked already.

As a plus though, the game only crashed one time so far and it runs very smoothly and it's been streamlined a bit to make it more hassle-free.
 
Druz

Druz

Member
It's great how the game was released everywhere, INCLUDING DIRECT2DRIVE, and we're now experiencing problems that could have been straightened out before launch. It's pathetic.
 
T

Trillian

Member
eXistor said:
I haven't played the game that much yet. I like it, but I can't be the only one that thinks this game is rock-hard? I keep dying at almost every battle I come across I didn't have this problem in the first game. The combat feels worse than the first game too, your shots don't seem to connect at all and enemies seem to drop dead randomly. Also feels too much like the orginal so far, nothing new (nothing noteworthy anyway) so far. I'm gonna keep playing to see if it gets better but so far it's pretty disappointing to me and STALKER is one of my favorite games of the last few years. Als I could swear there was a warning in the first game when you're getting radiated, here you don't get any type of warning except for a small icon on the right that lights up. But when you noticed that, you're fucked already.

As a plus though, the game only crashed one time so far and it runs very smoothly and it's been streamlined a bit to make it more hassle-free.
Click to expand...


Hmmm, thanks for the heads-up. Now I'm definitely not buying it.
 
eXistor

eXistor

Member
Trillian said:
Hmmm, thanks for the heads-up. Now I'm definitely not buying it.
Click to expand...
Well the things that made the first game so good for me personally are still there: the environments and atmosphere, it's just that it feels like I've been there before (I have in the cases of some re-used ares of course). So I still feel like it's a journey worth taking, just don't expect this to be better than STALKER in some ways.
 
T

Trillian

Member
Yeah, I'm a very big fan of the original Fallout and eagerly anticipated the first STALKER because of the setting and feel, which it did deliver on... But the terrible gunplay just ruined it for me.
 
B

Blizzard

Banned
Trillian said:
Yeah, I'm a very big fan of the original Fallout and eagerly anticipated the first STALKER because of the setting and feel, which it did deliver on... But the terrible gunplay just ruined it for me.
Click to expand...

Isn't that problem because it's supposed to be realistic, i.e. using ironsights and having accuracy problems? >_>
 
R

Razorwind

Member
Just wondering whether the encampment bug is still around, where u clear out a camp for a quest, you walk down 5KM, and they just respawn.
 
J

Joseph Merrick

Member
eXistor said:
The combat feels worse than the first game too, your shots don't seem to connect at all and enemies seem to drop dead randomly.
Click to expand...
Are you trying to shoot doods outside your weapon range or something? Maybe try upgrading your weapons at the upgrade guy. I'm not having any problems with the combat at all, one-shot'ing morons in the head all the time. It's really just awesome. Ah damn, the shotguns are awesome upgraded all the way.
 
M

Mr.City

Member
Damn, I should of know better than to expect to be unlocked overnight. I'm guessing that Clear Sky will be come out this afternoon.
 
eXistor

eXistor

Member
Joseph Merrick said:
Are you trying to shoot doods outside your weapon range or something? Maybe try upgrading your weapons at the upgrade guy. I'm not having any problems with the combat at all, one-shot'ing morons in the head all the time. It's really just awesome. Ah damn, the shotguns are awesome upgraded all the way.
Click to expand...

No, honestly I don't know why I'm having such a hard time with it, I had to put it on Novice and I still get my ass handed to me every time. I didn't have this problem with SoC at all and yes I've upgraded weapons and everything.

I must say after playing the game some more today I'm starting to get into the groove again and I'm starting to really like it again (except for the gunplay that is).
 
Chiggs

Chiggs

Gold Member
eXistor said:
I haven't played the game that much yet. I like it, but I can't be the only one that thinks this game is rock-hard? I keep dying at almost every battle I come across I didn't have this problem in the first game. The combat feels worse than the first game too, your shots don't seem to connect at all and enemies seem to drop dead randomly. Also feels too much like the orginal so far, nothing new (nothing noteworthy anyway) so far. I'm gonna keep playing to see if it gets better but so far it's pretty disappointing to me and STALKER is one of my favorite games of the last few years. Als I could swear there was a warning in the first game when you're getting radiated, here you don't get any type of warning except for a small icon on the right that lights up. But when you noticed that, you're fucked already.

As a plus though, the game only crashed one time so far and it runs very smoothly and it's been streamlined a bit to make it more hassle-free.
Click to expand...


Ballistics are the same, and the warning for radiation is the same, and you will get a radiation warning in the middle of the screen when an area is exceptionally hazardous. If you're in the swamps, test the water before jumping into it.

You're right about it being rock-hard, though. I was playing on veteran and got owned hard.
 
F

Fallout-NL

Member
Blizzard said:
Isn't that problem because it's supposed to be realistic, i.e. using ironsights and having accuracy problems? >_>
Click to expand...


I used the sights. But even with the first handgun you acquire, a full clip should drop an enemy. Often times, it does not. After multiple hours of play I got tired of looking for something that could stand up to all the stuff that was handing my ass to me.
 
Chiggs

Chiggs

Gold Member
Fallout-NL said:
After multiple hours of play I got tired of looking for something that could stand up to all the stuff that was handing my ass to me.
Click to expand...

In both games, the minute you get a decent AK with a scope, combat changes considerably.
 
Woo-Fu

Woo-Fu

Banned
In the first game you started out with terrible weaponry and the first real humans you fought usually had body armor. Made you feel pretty pathetic in terms of stopping power. Would not be shocked to find the same thing in this one.

Once you get more accurate rifles with higher damage the gunplay feels much better, or at least more rewarding. :)
 
S

Sinatar

Official GAF Bottom Feeder
STALKER.jpg


Steam version just turned on.
 
J

Joseph Merrick

Member
Woo-Fu said:
In the first game you started out with terrible weaponry and the first real humans you fought usually had body armor. Made you feel pretty pathetic in terms of stopping power. Would not be shocked to find the same thing in this one.

Once you get more accurate rifles with higher damage the gunplay feels much better, or at least more rewarding. :)
Click to expand...
You'll not find the same in this one, not anywhere to the same extent. Shocked? Also, I think the swamp area is a really awesome beginner level-- compared to Cordon.
 
X

xKilltheMx

Member
Semi OT: Is there a demo for The first game or this expansion available on the net? I really wanna see if this is my kind of game.
 
D

dLMN8R

Member
Razorwind said:
Just wondering whether the encampment bug is still around, where u clear out a camp for a quest, you walk down 5KM, and they just respawn.
Click to expand...
That bug was fixed a year ago in the original game.
 
eXistor

eXistor

Member
Chiggs said:
In what regards?
Click to expand...
With the exception of Faction Wars (which I'm not a fan of) the game is basically the same, it just looks better. There are some alterations, but by and large it's a bit too similar to SoC. I've only seen one new area (the swamps) and the rest is straight out of SoC with almost no differences. it just feels like I'm playing the same game again.

But what puts me off the most is the emphasis on combat this time around. Some people here might disagree, but I'm a not a fan of the gunplay in STALKER, it feels very clunky to me. I didn't mind so much in SoC, because that game put more empahsis on exploration, but CS goes the combat way and that's why I'm only just liking the game, not loving it. And seeing as I explored almost all the environments already it just feel like a rehash.

I'm still right in the middle of the game (at Agropom right now) and I'll definitely finish the game and I do recommend it to fans of SoC so far. But at this point I really think GSC Game World should've done what CD Projekt Red are doing with the Witcher: fix what didn't work and add some new content and release it as a free add-on for people that already bought the game. It just feels like this is where they dumped all the stuff they couldn't use the first time around and decided to build a new game around that.
 
eXistor

eXistor

Member
Chiggs said:
Ballistics are the same, and the warning for radiation is the same, and you will get a radiation warning in the middle of the screen when an area is exceptionally hazardous. If you're in the swamps, test the water before jumping into it.
Click to expand...

Right, but in SoC you got the sound effect to warn you, very often in CS I'll just drop dead because apparantly my radiation meter was full. I'm constantly looking at my meter now whenever I go into the wilderness and still sometimes without any warning my radiation meter goes red in two seconds and I swear I don't hear any sound to indicate this.

I'm thinking this is a bug in my game or something.
 
Chiggs

Chiggs

Gold Member
eXistor said:
With the exception of Faction Wars (which I'm not a fan of) the game is basically the same, it just looks better. There are some alterations, but by and large it's a bit too similar to SoC. I've only seen one new area (the swamps) and the rest is straight out of SoC with almost no differences. it just feels like I'm playing the same game again.
Click to expand...

But most of the old areas are completely remixed. A lot has changed. I have to disagree with this.

But what puts me off the most is the emphasis on combat this time around. Some people here might disagree, but I'm a not a fan of the gunplay in STALKER, it feels very clunky to me. I didn't mind so much in SoC, because that game put more emphasis on exploration, but CS goes the combat way and that's why I'm only just liking the game, not loving it. And seeing as I explored almost all the environments already it just feel like a rehash.
Click to expand...

It is more combat heavy (but the first wasn't exactly light on this), but I think the core of STALKER is there. Artifact hunting is pretty cool. Still, it is just sort of an expansion...certainly not a full-fledged prequel/sequel.

I'm still right in the middle of the game (at Agropom right now) and I'll definitely finish the game and I do recommend it to fans of SoC so far. But at this point I really think GSC Game World should've done what CD Projekt Red are doing with the Witcher: fix what didn't work and add some new content and release it as a free add-on for people that already bought the game. It just feels like this is where they dumped all the stuff they couldn't use the first time around and decided to build a new game around that.
Click to expand...

Fair enough. For me, I can't really say that I'm even remotely disappointed with Clear Sky. It was $40.00 and has enough content, in my eyes, to warrant the price. Then again, I'm a huge Stalker fan.

eXistor said:
I'm thinking this is a bug in my game or something.
Click to expand...

Weird, I can hear the sound. Have you tried switching suits to see if that fixes it? I know that might not be the easiest thing to do considering on how hard money is to come by.
 
S

Sinatar

Official GAF Bottom Feeder
I'm loving this so far. Contrary to what some people here are saying, the weapons are actually more acurate then they were in the first game. It's far far easier to nail headshots with the starter pistol then the first game.

Also the upgrade system is fucking awesome. Just swapped my Viper SMG's barrel to use pistol ammo which is like 400x more common then the 9x19 it uses by default.

Game is win guys. If you enjoyed STALKER SOC you have nothing to worry about in buying this.
 
J

jet1911

Member
I feel retarded. How the fuck am I suppose to complete the first mission? (Help the Outpost!)?? When I get to the outpost everybody is dead, except for a guy at the top of the watchtower, but I can't even talk to him. Halp please. :(
 
H

[HP]

Member
I'll buy it when a at least 3 or 4 patches are released.
Call me a moron if you will, but the game as been out for a few days and there's already 2 patchs, and the second one to fix what the first one messed! and once you install the patch, it fucks up with your saves!

honestly, why don't GSC beta test their games a little bit more? and only release their games when their playable?
I respect those guys, I loved SoC and I know I will love STALKER CS, but knowing it's still a bit buggy out of the box and that I will need to wait for a patch for a fix, annoys the crap out of me.

nevertheless, obviously, as a hardcore PC gamer I will buy this and make sweet love with it.
 
I

Ikuu

Had his dog run over by Blizzard's CEO
[HP] said:
I'll buy it when a at least 3 or 4 patches are released.
Call me a moron if you will, but the game as been out for a few days and there's already 2 patchs, and the second one to fix what the first one messed! and once you install the patch, it fucks up with your saves!
Click to expand...
The game has been out for almost a month. The second one didn't fix what the first one had messed up, it just fixed stuff that was broken to begin with.
 
Druz

Druz

Member
I wasnt even a champion of the first game, but playing Clear Sky is like coming back home to the zone... and they've cleaned up a bit.

There is something terribly wrong with the UK reviews.
 
B

Big-E

Member
Sinatar said:
I'm loving this so far. Contrary to what some people here are saying, the weapons are actually more acurate then they were in the first game. It's far far easier to nail headshots with the starter pistol then the first game.

Also the upgrade system is fucking awesome. Just swapped my Viper SMG's barrel to use pistol ammo which is like 400x more common then the 9x19 it uses by default.

Game is win guys. If you enjoyed STALKER SOC you have nothing to worry about in buying this.
Click to expand...

I completely disagree. In the last STALKER I had no problem pulling headshots off with the beginning pistol but I am having a hell of a time now to pull them off. Taking out that farmhouse early in the game was a complete an utter bitch to do because the aiming is out of whack. Taking out 14 guys by myself was not fun. Another problem with the combat is that multiple bullet shots don't seem to register after I hit them the first time. I still like the game and I am sure the combat will improve because I just found a viper.
 
V

Victrix

*beard*
Glee. Been waiting for this for a good long time. Stalker was an extremely pleasant surprise, I hope this turns out to be an improvement on an already excellent (albiet rough) game.

Only downside is that gaming overload season is beginning, too many releases all clumped up next to each other, not sure if I'll be able to cram this in with all the others.

Not a bad problem to have I suppose :p

How's the performance relative to Stalker? Around the same with better graphics, or improved?
 
Chiggs

Chiggs

Gold Member
Big-E said:
I completely disagree. In the last STALKER I had no problem pulling headshots off with the beginning pistol but I am having a hell of a time now to pull them off. Taking out that farmhouse early in the game was a complete an utter bitch to do because the aiming is out of whack. Taking out 14 guys by myself was not fun. Another problem with the combat is that multiple bullet shots don't seem to register after I hit them the first time. I still like the game and I am sure the combat will improve because I just found a viper.
Click to expand...

And I have to disagree with this, I found the aiming in Clear Sky to be a little more forgiving than in the first.
 
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