Glad to see it's the not the broken mess it was at launch. Pretty shoddy of the devs to release it in that state but at least they fixed it (unlike I imagine GTA4 will be). I thoroughly enjoyed the original, it was a real hark back to the days of illogical and totally unforgiving games that I kind of appreciated. If I find myself with enough time after I've hit the Zombie Genocide achievement in L4D, and I've upgraded, so probably by the time Windows 7 comes out, I might well pick this up.
just one comment really
performance isnt really unpredictable, just variable
you get higher framerates at night, for example, because obviously theres fewer lighting effects going on
It seems a bit unfair for me though that you managed to give gta4 a 7 at launch, and stalker: clear sky a 3.
I never had much problems in the game (crashes, blue-screens, etc..) so I would definitely give this one an 8.
It was more enjoyable for me than more recent games.
My point being that anyone who wanted to buy the game at launch but didn't for the crashes and stuff, should definitely give it a go now!
We didn't encounter problems of anywhere near the same magnitude as Clear Sky with GTA IV. Clear Sky was almost completely broken. GTA IV crashed once or twice, but on rare occasions. We were lucky if we got an hour of gameplay out of Clear Sky before we got a BSOD at launch.
It appears something got crossed. I am reading what should be the comments for the Woolworth story but seeing these comments for the STALKER re-review.
Originally Posted by Anti-Hero It seems a bit unfair for me though that you managed to give gta4 a 7 at launch, and stalker: clear sky a 3.
I never had much problems in the game (crashes, blue-screens, etc..) so I would definitely give this one an 8.
It was more enjoyable for me than more recent games.
My point being that anyone who wanted to buy the game at launch but didn't for the crashes and stuff, should definitely give it a go now!
It's the difference between being intolerable and being unplayable, essentially. GTA IV was a pain to run and the Social Club, Live, DRM stuff was a major PITA...but if you worked through it then the game was there and it was good.
Clear Sky on the other hand wasn't intolerable, it was unplayable. It crashed every couple of minutes, it corrupted save games. It's all very well to say that you didn't experience it, but the reality is that we tested the game properly over a long period of time using three different machines and we did experience it. So did a number of others. It's fine to say that you didn't have these problems, but you have to recognise you're in the minority.
That said, anyone who is in to this kind of game should definitely look at Clear Sky now that it's more stable.
Originally Posted by CardJoe It's the difference between being intolerable and being unplayable, essentially. GTA IV was a pain to run and the Social Club, Live, DRM stuff was a major PITA...but if you worked through it then the game was there and it was good.
Clear Sky on the other hand wasn't intolerable, it was unplayable. It crashed every couple of minutes, it corrupted save games. It's all very well to say that you didn't experience it, but the reality is that we tested the game properly over a long period of time using three different machines and we did experience it. So did a number of others. It's fine to say that you didn't have these problems, but you have to recognise you're in the minority.
That said, anyone who is in to this kind of game should definitely look at Clear Sky now that it's more stable.
vOv
at launch clear sky was more playable than GTA4 at launch on my system
mostly because at launch GTA4 could not be played on vista64
because gays for windows live needed an update to run GTA4 and there was no 64bit version of the update :p
Originally Posted by Hamish vOv
at launch clear sky was more playable than GTA4 at launch on my system
mostly because at launch GTA4 could not be played on vista64
because gays for windows live needed an update to run GTA4 and there was no 64bit version of the update :p
Again though, 64 bit is a minority and this was just your experience. You got an update fairly quickly - we delayed the original Stalker review by a week to get the next patch and it still didn't help.
I managed to play this after the crashing problems, so there weren't so many bugs. Unfortunately performance was poor comapared to other games - so I might try playing through again once I upgrade.
The world is certainly the most appealing aspect of the game, and you want so much for the story and characters to be good too, but it's pretty inaccessible for all apart from the most dedicated.
I definitely enjoyed Shadow of Chernobyl more than Clear Sky, but I still enjoy roaming around and watching the days go by - which is I guess what they essentially wanted to achieve. Really they just need a greater density of varied stuff going on to fill the story, and more sensible control and feedback system.
I hope GSC can stay afloat financially so we can see more of what they are capable of.
I join the Stalker faction. We get control of the Neutral Base, the Outpost, and now I have to make my move on the garbage. The Bandit main base is a large train yard filled with bandits. Probably over 30 total. I go though, and after using about 300 quicksaves, all of my ammo, degrading my weapons and armor, consuming all of my food, using all of my medkits and bandages, I finally clear the bandit base. Huzzah! I wiped out the bandits! Awesome! The guy comes over the radio "holy crap dude you really kicked their asses. You're the most awesomemest person ever! Swing by our base to collect your reward!"
So I leave the train yard.
Not 3 seconds after I exit the vicinity I get a radio call "uh we don't know where they came from, but the bandits are swarming the garbage again!" I walk back over there and 20-someodd guys show up on my radar.
You have GOT to be shitting me!
So I go back to the Neutral Base to get my reward for "wiping out" the bandits....
1000ru.
That really grinding my gears.
By far the best part about this game is the modding community. There are a ton of fun mods out there that improve the game significantly.
Got it today and started playing about 10. So far, really enjoying it but I have just had two insta-deaths, one understandable as a barrel blew up next to me, the other was more weird, and then the engine crashed :(
I thought the original review of Clear Sky was the most accurate and honest on the net - I don't see that you needed to re-review it.
I played both Shadow of Chernobyl and Clear Sky from release and managed to complete SoC in unpatched form which was impossible with CS. They had used the engine for 5 years or more and were re-using a fair chunk of the original games levels and yet managed to make the sequel even buggier - unforgiveable.
I've replayed SoC many times and recently again with the excellent Oblivion Lost mod - now that Ive finished CS I feel *no* desire to touch it ever again. In addition to the bugs there are glaringly stupid game design decisions. Putting a machine gun outside the exit from the first level which is gauranteed to rip many gamers to shreds is utterly baffling. Paying high costs for fast travel is prohibative and lugging loot from level to level just to find someone to sell it to is a pain in the ass. Yantar (with no repair available)and Red Forest were horrible levels in that respect.
The patches IMHO didn't so much *fix* things as remove stuff that caused problems. Cordon was a busy level in its original form with constant mutant attacks and those chests filling up all the time - I was never short of ammo to use and to sell. The same level feels deserted by comparison in 1.5.07. But if you want to find all the data sticks for the Neutral Base mechanic then you have a use a user created mod - the official patches haven't fixed that. I could include a LOT more examples but why bother.
3 out of 10 was accurate - you could stretch to a 5 maybe but 7 is just being plain charitable.
Originally Posted by choupolo I managed to play this after the crashing problems, so there weren't so many bugs. Unfortunately performance was poor comapared to other games - so I might try playing through again once I upgrade.
The world is certainly the most appealing aspect of the game, and you want so much for the story and characters to be good too, but it's pretty inaccessible for all apart from the most dedicated.
I definitely enjoyed Shadow of Chernobyl more than Clear Sky, but I still enjoy roaming around and watching the days go by - which is I guess what they essentially wanted to achieve. Really they just need a greater density of varied stuff going on to fill the story, and more sensible control and feedback system.
I hope GSC can stay afloat financially so we can see more of what they are capable of.
After you patched it to the 1.507 version game is a gem.difficulty is brutal.the best
shooter arround.simply this is an ultra realistic game.great fun
I'm sorry, but this review reads like it comes from some whiney console fanboi.
"The reality of the bleeding system though is that you end up carrying around a stupid amount of bandages, which completely overrides this sense of realism."
And being able to carry around a stupid amount of ammunition doesn't, "override your sense of realism" either? Why wasn't that pointed out? This isn't a valid criticism as you would have to criticize 99.9% of all other games for the same issue.
"You have to wrap a new bandage on after every scrape, no matter how little damage you took. Theres nothing on this earth capable of simultaneously wearing away our will to live and keyboards like having to tap C every five seconds in a gunfight."
It's called, "eye/hand coordination" buddy. If you can't manage that, I'd suggest you find a new hobby because video games aren't your forte.
"Why do medkits instantly restore your health but not stop you bleeding at all?"
Because it's a video game. It's not supposed to be 100% realistic. Why not have one bullet stop you cold, then have to wait X number of minutes before medics can take you away to a hospital for however many months or years it takes you to recover fully from a bullet wound, only to return to the action after the battle you were in ended ages ago, if the injuries you sustained even allowed you to?
"but laughable when you get rushed by twenty-five bandits in identical leather jackets."
I can't think of one single video game ever created that doesn't have multiple bad guys that look exactly alike.
Granted I have some criticisms of this game, for instance that it seemed that someone made an effort to "Americanize" Clear Sky by adding in some "hip hop" slang which didn't fit the atmosphere at all. IIRC, SoC did not have these and gave it a little more "Russian" feel to it, as it should. But the claims of bandages and look-a-like enemies is fluff criticism at best.
Comments 1 to 25 of 25
ReplyI think I'll try this game after all...
Maybe a fan patch..
just one comment really
performance isnt really unpredictable, just variable
you get higher framerates at night, for example, because obviously theres fewer lighting effects going on
I never had much problems in the game (crashes, blue-screens, etc..) so I would definitely give this one an 8.
It was more enjoyable for me than more recent games.
My point being that anyone who wanted to buy the game at launch but didn't for the crashes and stuff, should definitely give it a go now!
It's the difference between being intolerable and being unplayable, essentially. GTA IV was a pain to run and the Social Club, Live, DRM stuff was a major PITA...but if you worked through it then the game was there and it was good.
Clear Sky on the other hand wasn't intolerable, it was unplayable. It crashed every couple of minutes, it corrupted save games. It's all very well to say that you didn't experience it, but the reality is that we tested the game properly over a long period of time using three different machines and we did experience it. So did a number of others. It's fine to say that you didn't have these problems, but you have to recognise you're in the minority.
That said, anyone who is in to this kind of game should definitely look at Clear Sky now that it's more stable.
peace
fatman
vOv
at launch clear sky was more playable than GTA4 at launch on my system
mostly because at launch GTA4 could not be played on vista64
because gays for windows live needed an update to run GTA4 and there was no 64bit version of the update :p
Again though, 64 bit is a minority and this was just your experience. You got an update fairly quickly - we delayed the original Stalker review by a week to get the next patch and it still didn't help.
The world is certainly the most appealing aspect of the game, and you want so much for the story and characters to be good too, but it's pretty inaccessible for all apart from the most dedicated.
I definitely enjoyed Shadow of Chernobyl more than Clear Sky, but I still enjoy roaming around and watching the days go by - which is I guess what they essentially wanted to achieve. Really they just need a greater density of varied stuff going on to fill the story, and more sensible control and feedback system.
I hope GSC can stay afloat financially so we can see more of what they are capable of.
I join the Stalker faction. We get control of the Neutral Base, the Outpost, and now I have to make my move on the garbage. The Bandit main base is a large train yard filled with bandits. Probably over 30 total. I go though, and after using about 300 quicksaves, all of my ammo, degrading my weapons and armor, consuming all of my food, using all of my medkits and bandages, I finally clear the bandit base. Huzzah! I wiped out the bandits! Awesome! The guy comes over the radio "holy crap dude you really kicked their asses. You're the most awesomemest person ever! Swing by our base to collect your reward!"
So I leave the train yard.
Not 3 seconds after I exit the vicinity I get a radio call "uh we don't know where they came from, but the bandits are swarming the garbage again!" I walk back over there and 20-someodd guys show up on my radar.
You have GOT to be shitting me!
So I go back to the Neutral Base to get my reward for "wiping out" the bandits....
1000ru.
That really grinding my gears.
By far the best part about this game is the modding community. There are a ton of fun mods out there that improve the game significantly.
Off topic, but that is the first I have heard of The Escapist or of Zero Punctuation. Fantastic stuff.
I played both Shadow of Chernobyl and Clear Sky from release and managed to complete SoC in unpatched form which was impossible with CS. They had used the engine for 5 years or more and were re-using a fair chunk of the original games levels and yet managed to make the sequel even buggier - unforgiveable.
I've replayed SoC many times and recently again with the excellent Oblivion Lost mod - now that Ive finished CS I feel *no* desire to touch it ever again. In addition to the bugs there are glaringly stupid game design decisions. Putting a machine gun outside the exit from the first level which is gauranteed to rip many gamers to shreds is utterly baffling. Paying high costs for fast travel is prohibative and lugging loot from level to level just to find someone to sell it to is a pain in the ass. Yantar (with no repair available)and Red Forest were horrible levels in that respect.
The patches IMHO didn't so much *fix* things as remove stuff that caused problems. Cordon was a busy level in its original form with constant mutant attacks and those chests filling up all the time - I was never short of ammo to use and to sell. The same level feels deserted by comparison in 1.5.07. But if you want to find all the data sticks for the Neutral Base mechanic then you have a use a user created mod - the official patches haven't fixed that. I could include a LOT more examples but why bother.
3 out of 10 was accurate - you could stretch to a 5 maybe but 7 is just being plain charitable.
After you patched it to the 1.507 version game is a gem.difficulty is brutal.the best
shooter arround.simply this is an ultra realistic game.great fun
"The reality of the bleeding system though is that you end up carrying around a stupid amount of bandages, which completely overrides this sense of realism."
And being able to carry around a stupid amount of ammunition doesn't, "override your sense of realism" either? Why wasn't that pointed out? This isn't a valid criticism as you would have to criticize 99.9% of all other games for the same issue.
"You have to wrap a new bandage on after every scrape, no matter how little damage you took. Theres nothing on this earth capable of simultaneously wearing away our will to live and keyboards like having to tap C every five seconds in a gunfight."
It's called, "eye/hand coordination" buddy. If you can't manage that, I'd suggest you find a new hobby because video games aren't your forte.
"Why do medkits instantly restore your health but not stop you bleeding at all?"
Because it's a video game. It's not supposed to be 100% realistic. Why not have one bullet stop you cold, then have to wait X number of minutes before medics can take you away to a hospital for however many months or years it takes you to recover fully from a bullet wound, only to return to the action after the battle you were in ended ages ago, if the injuries you sustained even allowed you to?
"but laughable when you get rushed by twenty-five bandits in identical leather jackets."
I can't think of one single video game ever created that doesn't have multiple bad guys that look exactly alike.
Granted I have some criticisms of this game, for instance that it seemed that someone made an effort to "Americanize" Clear Sky by adding in some "hip hop" slang which didn't fit the atmosphere at all. IIRC, SoC did not have these and gave it a little more "Russian" feel to it, as it should. But the claims of bandages and look-a-like enemies is fluff criticism at best.
Wait, you're accusing Bit of being a "fanboi"?
If you didn't like this review, check out this one instead!
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