Putting the 'role' back in role-playing games since 2002.
Donate to Codex
Good Old Games
  • Welcome to rpgcodex.net, a site dedicated to discussing computer based role-playing games in a free and open fashion. We're less strict than other forums, but please refer to the rules.

    "This message is awaiting moderator approval": All new users must pass through our moderation queue before they will be able to post normally. Until your account has "passed" your posts will only be visible to yourself (and moderators) until they are approved. Give us a week to get around to approving / deleting / ignoring your mundane opinion on crap before hassling us about it. Once you have passed the moderation period (think of it as a test), you will be able to post normally, just like all the other retards.

Tell me about the STALKER games.

normie

️‍
Patron
Zionist Agent
Joined
Mar 9, 2019
Messages
3,727
Insert Title Here
Too much Russian.
Did you play the entire game in a language you don't understand?
Why?
I played it in English effectively unmodded. So there wasn't much for subtitles, and there were areas which were almost entirely in Russian. An example is the last location. There was an echoing voice over that repeated. It added a lot of atmosphere but it was in Russian and I had no idea what the guy was saying. There were more than a few times where I knew the thrust of where i was going, but not why. I saw the original (bad) ending and for the life of me, was pretty confused.
 

Daemongar

Arcane
Joined
Nov 21, 2010
Messages
4,706
Location
Wisconsin
Codex Year of the Donut
I played it in English effectively unmodded. So there wasn't much for subtitles, and there were areas which were almost entirely in Russian. An example is the last location. There was an echoing voice over that repeated. It added a lot of atmosphere but it was in Russian and I had no idea what the guy was saying. There were more than a few times where I knew the thrust of where i was going, but not why. I saw the original (bad) ending and for the life of me, was pretty confused.

The voice is the wish granter telling you to come to it and that it'll grant your wishes etc.
Yah - and I found that out after finishing the game. It was a unique experience getting to the end, fighting through everything, staying up late to finish the last area then
being crushed to death
- up until that part, I had no idea there were other endings. I thought "well, this certainly isn't the way I would have ended this game!" Then I came on here and was straightened out. After that I not only found more info but more mods that helped clarify what the hell was going on.

I'll give the game high marks for the last areas - the underground area, the area around it, and the final section. Other than the ending I messed up, the pace was pretty intense.
 

Narushima

Cipher
Joined
Jun 14, 2019
Messages
2,035
I'll give the game high marks for the last areas - the underground area, the area around it, and the final section.
I actually thought that was the worst part of the game, by quite a margin. It's a lot harder than the rest, repetitive and on-rails, as opposed to the rest of the game.
 

Daemongar

Arcane
Joined
Nov 21, 2010
Messages
4,706
Location
Wisconsin
Codex Year of the Donut
I'll give the game high marks for the last areas - the underground area, the area around it, and the final section.
I actually thought that was the worst part of the game, by quite a margin. It's a lot harder than the rest, repetitive and on-rails, as opposed to the rest of the game.
Well, it grew on me. After I screwed up the first ending, I had to go back to find Saravok or whatever his name is. Then I went to his lair and such. Then I had to repeat most of the endgame. I actually enjoyed it as it was challenging but not impossible. It was kinda bullshitty in parts - but overall Red Forest, Pripyat, Chernobyl, then the Sarcophagus - they were well put together and overall interesting locations.

Sucks that you have to go through one after another without a break, but I think each location was pretty great.
 

Narushima

Cipher
Joined
Jun 14, 2019
Messages
2,035
Red Forest, Pripyat, Chernobyl, then the Sarcophagus
The part in the city was pretty neat, actually, now that I remember it. It's mostly the very last stretch around and inside the sarcophagus that I found pretty poor.
 

PanickedTushkano

Educated
Joined
Sep 14, 2018
Messages
40
Yeah, I haven't visited that last bit in quite a while. Not really worth visiting after the first two or three playthroughs.

I'd recommend viewing the game as an open world game, as main story progression will change maps sometimes. In regards to the A-Life I mean. And some of that happens pretty late. It's easy to just pass through Pripyat and to the NPP without ever having seen some of the game's content.

The AI in SoC couldn't fight while it was "offline", so the AI could travel to their destinations unimpeded while the player wasn't around. Clear Sky on the other hand has offline combat, so faction wars (when they don't break) keep moving on when the player is not around. No clue about how CoP handles it. I'm not sure if the AI did travel between the maps in that one, but in SoC and CS the AI will have to pass through the level changers as they often spawn far from their destinations. SoC has a lot of unique NPCs which will move to other places during game progression. And I mean "move". In my last attempt Wolf died in front of the Bar while trying to get to the Army Warehouses.
 
Last edited:

Hag

Arbiter
Patron
Joined
Nov 25, 2020
Messages
1,657
Location
Breizh
Codex Year of the Donut Codex+ Now Streaming!
The part in the city was pretty neat, actually, now that I remember it. It's mostly the very last stretch around and inside the sarcophagus that I found pretty poor.
I found the outside worse than the inside, maybe because of the time pressure. The inside was ok, if only for the atmosphere. I actually had bad memories of these places, but when I replayed the game to get the real ending, I somehow liked them better.
 

ferratilis

Magister
Joined
Oct 23, 2019
Messages
2,224
Those of you new to Stalker already got the best advice: just play with ZRP on your first playthrough. A lot of so-called 'vanilla' modpacks either ruin the original experience, completely change gun ballistics, or add bugs of their own, such as OGSR. I'd also recommend using fixed widescreen scopes because the original was made for 4:3 aspect ratios and they look stretched (if you care about that sort of thing):
https://www.lonebullet.com/mods/dow...talker-shadow-of-chernobyl-mod-free-51992.htm
ZRP also has a config in the 'gamedata' folder that you can use to disable some annoying stuff like screen shaking during final level, blinding radiation whiteout, head bobbing and such. Although you should be just fine with default settings. It's bug fixes, mostly.

I envy anyone trying this amazing game for the first time. First time I played it, there was no such thing as ZRP, so the experience was much rougher. Still unforgettable, though.
 

Hag

Arbiter
Patron
Joined
Nov 25, 2020
Messages
1,657
Location
Breizh
Codex Year of the Donut Codex+ Now Streaming!
I envy anyone trying this amazing game for the first time. First time I played it, there was no such thing as ZRP, so the experience was much rougher. Still unforgettable, though.
Stalker CoP is much more refined, balanced and overall well-thought than SoC but I liked the latter better. Rough indeed, buggy at times, lower replay value, but by far best atmosphere and story.
 

PanickedTushkano

Educated
Joined
Sep 14, 2018
Messages
40
CoP is pretty tight in terms of map size and hand-made content - especially the anomalies - and relatively limited playtime, but it also has a bunch of cutscenes and scripted quests which only suceed in showing off how developers should take account of what their strengths are and stick to them.

I'd say that SoC is more refined when it comes to the A-Life simulation and how it is fairly hands-off most of the time. They also somehow managed to partially mess up the atmosphere with CS and CoP. Too much English and NPCs - at least in CS - are more easily excitable. SoC's overall atmosphere seemed a bit calmer and more somber. Though I guess CoP has more empty space where the player is not constantly beset by all the faction war squads.
 

ItsChon

Resident Zoomer
Patron
Joined
Jul 1, 2018
Messages
5,381
Location
Երևան
Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
Everyone on this thread is suggesting different shit. To confirm, the best way to play for your first time is SoC with ZRP right? Also, is it possible to have the game play in Russian/Ukrainian but with full English subtitles?
 
Joined
Feb 19, 2005
Messages
4,567
Strap Yourselves In Codex+ Now Streaming!
To confirm, the best way to play for your first time is SoC with ZRP right?
yes
Also, is it possible to have the game play in Russian/Ukrainian but with full English subtitles?
yes. Install english version and then apply this.
There is (mostly) no subtitles in the game though, so unless you understand Russian this is not viable.
There is a mod that adds english / russian subtitles:

https://www.gamefront.com/games/stalker/file/in-game-cc-and-subtitles

I am wondering if it is compatible with the ZRP mod?

EDIT: Apparently not :(

From the Readme:
For those who want to use InGameCC and The Zone Reclamation Project at the same time a compatibility pack for ZRP v1.05 will be released soon.
It seems they never released that :negative:
 

As an Amazon Associate, rpgcodex.net earns from qualifying purchases.
Back
Top Bottom