S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl

We prep our trigger fingers for S.T.A.L.K.E.R., the only PC shooter with more hype than Duke Nukem Forever.

We make the dangerous journey into the abandoned city of Chernobyl, the site of one of the most cataclysmic nuclear disasters in history, to bring you classified information about the upcoming first-person shooter S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. We played the game in both single player and multiplayer, grown an extra finger or two in the process, and learned everything about the game which has until now been shrouded in secrecy.

If Half-Life and Killzone had a Baby...

Only one other PC game has become as notorious as S.T.A.L.K.E.R for its numerous delays and lack of pertinent information, and it's Duke Nukem Forever. But the ambitious development team at GSC Game World in the Ukraine promises that any delays will be forgiven once the game finally makes it into the hands of first-person shooting fanatics next year. "We are not afraid of being compared to Duke Nukem Forever," says lead designer Anton Bolshakov. "They should be afraid of us."

Whether S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is compared to Duke Nukem Forever for its postponements, or to Half-Life 2 for its post-nuclear meltdown settings inhabited by frightening mutants, the game strives to do something no first-person shooter has done before. It combines standard FPS game mechanics with traditional role-playing elements such as the trading valuable items, interacting with characters to find out key information, and having the option to play through side missions.

Another thing that makes S.T.A.L.K.E.R. unlike other shooters is the massive world in which the game takes place, and although there are some indoor claustrophobic areas, virtually all of the game is opened up for you to explore. This is very much a non-linear game that is anything but your typical corridor shooter.

Based on True Events

80 % of the game is based on the real life tragedy of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant explosion of 1986, where hundreds of scientists and plant workers perished in a devastating blast of flesh-melting nuclear radiation and fire, which also claimed the lives of thousands more later on, plaguing them with cancer and other illnesses.

Much of what is in the game is true to life, from the environments to the "Stalker" occupation of the character you play as. Almost every single crumbling structure from the game is something that exists (we even walked through many of them during one hell of a sketchy tour).

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