In 2007, the world saw one of the most famous games from the developers of the post-Soviet space. This, of course, is about the project of the Ukrainian company GSC GW - "STALKER: Shadows of Chernobyl." The game was greeted quite warmly by game critics, and was regarded by domestic players as one of the best in the history of the gaming industry. To date, more than 2 million copies of Stalker have been sold, of which about 1.2 million were in the CIS countries.
The story tells us about the stalker Mechen, who was miraculously fortunate enough to be saved during a throw in the Exclusion Zone. Waking up in the shack of a local merchant Sidorovich, our hero does not remember anything, he has amnesia. However, on his hand he sees a carved Stalker tattoo, and on the PDA screen a grim task is highlighted - the murder of a man named Strelok. Passing "Stalker" immediately captures you with full force and plunges into the adventures of an extraordinary world that has not appeared previously in any projects from Western gamebuilders.
It is worth noting that the game belongs to the FPS genre, however, the actions take place in an open for exploration world, divided into various locations. We are not forced to follow only the storyline. On the contrary, the player always has the opportunity to complete additional quests, which, at times, are very interesting. We can also go in search of artifacts, engage in the extermination of monsters, or bargain with numerous NPCs.
Briefly tell about the story, then we begin the passage of "Stalker" for the sole purpose - to find and kill the mysterious Shooter. In order to find him, we will have to carry out tasks from various people who can help us in the search: Sidorovich, Barman, Dr. Sakharov and others. The player will be thrown into all corners of the Zone, including dungeons and secret laboratories. Over time, we learn that a stalker nicknamed Strelok got to the very center of the Zone, passing through the Brain Burner (a station emitting energy that turns a person into a zombie).
After turning it off, we still get to the heart of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and ... And here is the most interesting. In the game we will be provided with 7 different endings: 5 false and 2 true. The first 5 can be obtained from the Wishlist. What kind of desire Mark will make will depend on what style your Stalker walkthrough was. 2 true can be obtained in the laboratory of the mystical "O-Consciousness", where they explain to our hero that he is the same Shooter. After he is offered to join them and become one of the Masters of the Zone. To agree or not is your choice.
In general, the linear and direct passage of "Stalker: Shadows of Chernobyl" will take you about 15-20 hours. However, if a gamer is interested in fully exploring the vast world of the Zone, which is spread over an area of approximately 36 square kilometers, to plunge into the exciting atmosphere of the game and interact with the maximum number of characters, the passage can stretch for 70 or more hours. It all depends on you!
The only thing worth knowing is that the plot is not the strongest point of this project. Only the last 1-2 hours are dynamic in the game, when tons of information and answers to questions that have accumulated over the entire passage are falling on us. The rest of the hour-long decade is accompanied by hackneyed shooter stamps, the completion of any tasks and the like. But the atmosphere of the post-apocalypse Zone captures in earnest. The world is interesting and diverse, I want to explore it, which explains the popularity of the product among the gaming community, especially in the CIS countries.
In 2008, the developers released a prequel to the original - "STALKER: Clear Sky". In it, we will be given the opportunity to play for the Scar mercenary, who will help us get answers to the multiple questions of the original. The second part is noticeably shorter than its predecessor, the "Stalker: Clear Sky" passage will take 8-10 hours, and the exploration of the game world itself is not so exciting. First of all, due to the fact that this is a banal self-copying of the last game. The game is also characterized by an increased emphasis on linearity, making it impossible to explore many locations: Limansk, Red Forest, X16 and others. Significant innovations only added the ability to upgrade weapons and suits, as well as several modified locations of the Dark Valley and Agroprom.
And finally, the last thing I would like to remember is the add-ons. Countless numbers have been released for Stalker, however, only a few deserve your attention. Among them are the “Surf Story”, “Bloody Sunset” and two parts of “Secret Trails”. The second part of the last product is one of the most elaborated and interesting for acquaintance. In "Stalker: Secret Trails-2," the passage will again "stick" into the skin of the Swordsman / Arrow, however, the story will come from a different angle, with its own storyline, new characters and weapons.