S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat

God Damnit, I must have that collector's edition.

Interstingly, many of the team who developed the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game (insert joke about having a LOT of time to get to know each other) are releasing a new post-apocalyptic shooter based on the novel 2033 by Dmitri Glukhovsky.

Looks mighty intriguing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wT4qf...

Oops, I have to *cough* myself. Damn.

Yes, yes, we will buy 2033 as well, IN CE FORM!
I DEMAND EASTERN EUROPEAN SWAG!

That is the most tempting collectors edition since... well, ever actually. I don't even smoke.

Is the collector's edition confirmed for the U.S.? I ask because I would be very surprised to find a lighter packed into a video game(in the U.S at least)...won't you think of the children

Cool. Can't wait to play this game.

Agent 86 wrote:

Is the collector's edition confirmed for the U.S.? I ask because I would be very surprised to find a lighter packed into a video game(in the U.S at least)...won't you think of the children ;)

If your children play stalker, smoking is the least of your concerns.

TheGameguru wrote:

Is this a real sequel or more like a full fledged expansion pack.

Definitely a real sequel. You are actually in a completely new sets of areas. And much of the complaints of the previous games have been addressed.

AI is a lot better, environment is creepier (I hate the mutants...), more quests, weapon/gear upgrade system still intact, you still will get murdered (fast) if you wondered too far into the wrong region.

Oh btw, for those of you who are getting (has gotten) the German CE version of the game, there are pretty good English Fan patches and other mods, here.

Awesome. If the game actually works as advertised, this is a must-buy for me.

Anyone have a wish-list?

I wouldn't mind more RPG aspects. Maybe field repair guns and suit? Increased inventory? Weapon specializations? Partial radiation or anomaly immunity? Better artifact detection? A good plot?

I don't want another Fallout, but the STALKER games have always been so lonely. It's the only game where I'd avoid combat wherever possible, and while that doesn't have to change, I wouldn't mind having some sort of motivation to hunt someone down besides mediocre loot.

Plus I think it would be cool if they would add more special sequences and challenges.

Spoiler:

I'm thinking something akin to Clear Sky, when you have to run past the military building with the turret (I thought there was another way, and was stuck for the better part of an hour trying to properly sneak past) or the part where you're jumped in the basement of a building, losing most of your equipment.

It appears that Amazon is the only retailer listing this game currently, but this games is supposedly coming out this Tuesday (February 2nd). I was hoping it would be on Steam but it currently is not on the coming soon list. I can't find this game listed anywhere else. Hopefully I can pick it up on Tuesday from Target or Best Buy. I have been avoiding reading much about the game to avoid spoilers. Anyone else eagerly awaiting this game? Has anyone heard anything about the release this week?

Actually I double checked before posting and I see Gamespot now lists the game as well. Unfortunately the three Gamespots near me do not sell PC games, but there is one that isn't too difficult to drive to.

Reviews of English version starting to appear, it's looking good!
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2010...
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/st...

Also re: steam release, from the RPS comment thread:

Jim Rossignol says:
February 2, 2010 at 8:20 am

As I understand it, the game will hit Steam on Friday, along with retail.

pignoli wrote:

Reviews of English version starting to appear, it's looking good!
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2010...
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/st...

It is funny comparing the two articles however.

"The game is smaller."(EUG) - "The game is bigger."(RPS)
"It's basically bug free (except a few CTD's)."(EUG) - "Still a number of bugs."(RPS)
"...the storyline is fairly insubstantial, the main premise never really blossoming..."(EUG) - "I’d argue that this all amounts to is the best story we’ve seen in a Stalker game."(RPS)

but what's important:
"Recommended!"(EUG) - "Recommended!"(RPS)

The most irritating thing about SoC to me was simply that it wasn't a continuous open-world experience like Oblivion, loading on the fly. The loading screens really took me out of the game. Only managed to get a few hours in, but have been promising myself nearly 3 years now that I'd return to it.

I like to think of the differences in the reviewers' experience as indicative of the breadth of the game. It does sound like the Eurogamer guy spent less time with it though - hardly surprising given how obsessive Jim Rossignol appeared to be over SOC.

Looks like the boxed copy has some neat extras (map, stickers, etc.), so I'll probably pick that version up at Frys.

Map!? I want a lighter! And all that other junk the germans got.

Gamespot review is up: The most stable S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game yet also happens to be the most atmospheric and compelling.
http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/st...

Is this game getting a Steam release? I see that it's shipping on Amazon.

The minute this is available on Steam I'm pulling the trigger. A cold winter night, a small glass of vodka and a new STALKER game sound pretty darn tasty. Hopefully Steam gets on the ball before the weather warms up.

I'm still working on a way to get the german CE. If anyone could help me import it PM me.

Isn't this what you're looking for?

boogle wrote:

I'm still working on a way to get the german CE. If anyone could help me import it PM me.

cough

word of caution - check the manual if you buy a copy over the counter , mine has a nice clean white blank space where a serial number should probably be. Not entirely sure if there SHOULD be a CD key or not (the single player game works fine without one) but they've screwed up misprinting them in the past with Clear Sky if memory serves and I think it DOES mention somewhere that a key is needed for multiplayer.

Other than that , looking forward to having a crack at this once I get bored of Mass Effect (although, I never finished the first one and the second one is still sitting unopened on the shelf...I may have to pile o' shame my way through them first).

Puce Moose wrote:

Gamespot review is up: The most stable S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game yet also happens to be the most atmospheric and compelling.
http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/st...

Oh damn, and I had been planning to hold off on this a bit.

Is this really February? We've had an amazing amount of stuff coming out since the start of the year. Mass Effect 2, Star Trek Online, this and Bioshock 2 coming out Tuesday, plus a few I'm sure I've forgotten. Are we in some sort of bizzaro world where stuff comes out at the start of the year instead of the end?

And look what's coming up! Heavy Rain, Alan Wake, Fallout: New Vegas... Is 2010 going to be a good year for gaming or what?

Druidpeak wrote:
boogle wrote:

I'm still working on a way to get the german CE. If anyone could help me import it PM me.

cough

PM'd my esteemed woodsy friend.
*EDIT*
And Druid is pulling through. Expect unboxing pics.

This is going on my wish list. Now I just have to play the two STALKER games I already have.

Yes! Now on Steam for $19.99 if you own Clear Sky or SoC on Steam. Glad I bought Clear Sky on Steam. $29.99 without the "loyalty" discount. Downloading now. This also explains the mysterious "STALKER Ownership Check" tool that magically showed up in the Tools section of Steam last week.

I plan on getting this next month if I can afford it. It says that this is the German version though, can anyone confirm if it is censored in any way or if you can/can't change the language?

$19.99 is a great deal. Well, I guess I should play the game first before I pass judgment. But still, that's in instant buy range for me. Downloading now.

liquid wrote:

It says that this is the German version though, can anyone confirm if it is censored in any way or if you can/can't change the language?

It says German but it is definitely in English. I've put in a couple of hours and it has been great. The performance on my 4870 is very good, better than I remember for Clear Sky. I've got it set to high with DX10 mode, and I've bumped a few of the sliders up and it is still very smooth. I haven't had any crashes either, which is pretty good for a STALKER game.

I've done a few missions and have just been exploring. It isn't a drastically different experience than other STALKER games but it does feel a bit more polished.

Holy cow what a great time to be a gamer! Mass Effect 2, Bioshock 2, Stalker: Call of Pripyat. I don't think I've gamed this much since that time back in '02, when I was going nuts on Metroid Prime, Eternal Darkness, No One Lives Forever 2, Syberia, and Final Fantasy X.

This bad boy is downloading at a non-impressive 50k/s, but that's probably my connection. In the meantime I'm slowing inching my way through Rapture. Life is good!