[Reupload] STALKER Call of Pripyat (Gameplay #2)
0[Originally uploaded on 12.06.10] [For future reference I'm reuploading some videos which were accidently deleted.]
The original S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - Shadow of Chernobyl is without question one of the atmospheric and original action games ever made. Other developers have tried to create detailed, dynamic and genuinely believable game worlds (mostly for use in open world RPGs), but arguably none have even come close to the level of bone-chilling immersion achieved by Ukrainian developer GSC Game World in their long-awaited survival horror/shooter hybrid. The irradiated Zone in Shadow of Chernobyl feels truly alive (despite constantly giving the unnerving impression that the very fabric of space and time itself is slowly unravelling) and is literally teeming with all sorts of unimaginable horrors in ways that, say, the lifeless and generic post-apocalyptic backdrops of Bethesda's lackluster Fallout 3 could never compete with. Also, it doesn't hurt that STALKER at its core is a satisfying, gritty shooter with an unapologetically hardcore approach to ammo conservation and health regeneration.
After the less ambitious stand-alone expansion Clear Sky, GSC returned in 2009 (or 2010 here in the West) with Call of Pripyat, which in many ways is a refined version of the first game in the series with new environments and plenty of gameplay additions. After having spent an hour or two with the new STALKER I'm optimistic about the game's potential to reach or even surpass its classic predecessor on several levels, and I can't wait to see what the rest of the game has to offer. The mission structure seems more open-ended right from the get-go (even after a few minutes the mission log is so large it reminds me of a full-fledged RPG like Baldur's Gate 2!), and it's clear that the developers have built on the strikingly dynamic aspects of the first game. On a slightly more technical level, there seems to be an insane amount of weapon and armor customization available, and it really feels like you're slowly building up a powerful stalker who will, perhaps, stand a chance to survive the unrelentingly hostile environment that is the Zone.