STALKER Shadow of Chernobyl Mod Thread

[Silva]

1. After ignoring the Stalker series for a long time, I decided to give it a chance.

2. So I go ahead and try Call of Pripyat with Misery mod. I finish after 40 hours over 2 weeks. Its one of the most immersive and atmospheric experiences Ive had in a videogame, up there with System Shock, Thief and Deus Ex for me. Its that good.

3. Then, amazed and bewildered by that experience, I feel compelled to play the other games from the series, specially the original one, which gets even more praise than Pripyat in some circles. I hunt for the best mods (AMK, Complete and LURK, it seems) try some of them in different installs, pick the one I found more comfortable with and...

..man, what a letdown.

The game feels cruder and simply worst than Miserable Pripyat in all aspects - immersion/atmosphere, art/aesthetics, exploration mechanics, combat mechanics, artifact hunting mechanics, sandbox/"open-endendness", AI, NPCs, art/aesthetics, plots/quests, etc. Theres isnt one sole aspect that its better than Prypiat. Not a single one. Yet, I keep hearing Chernobyl is so good or even better than Pripyat from a lot of people.

So, please Stalker fans, illuminate me. Open my eyes. Im past the 100 Rads Bar and on the way to the X18 lab on the "Dark Valley" for finding more "documents" (another generic and un-logical fecth quest) and Im already making a strenght to keep going only to trying to see what is this game has thats truly unique and better than Miserable Pripyat.

 

[Whisky]

I love SoC, but it really is not for everyone. It's kind of hard to argue a game is more immersive without throwing a lot of buzzwords around, but that is the main plus for me. You obviously don't feel the same way about it that way though, so I can't really persuade you otherwise in that matter.

I think you need to elaborate on one thing though, which mod exactly did you pick to play with? You named three, but didn't say which one is the one you were most comfortable with.

If you picked Complete, a lot of people think that it kills the game by making it much easier. It's not something you notice until you play it for awhile, as otherwise it looks like a damn good mod.

 

[Multidirectional]

Call Of Pripyat makes both other games in series obsolete, simple as that. The most fun I had with SoC was with Oblivion Lost mod, because of crazy randomness it creates. But really, CoP is the only good one in series. Don't even think of trying Clear Sky, it's absolutely terrible.

 

[dnf]

Clear Sky is awesome! Stop with this double standards bullshit. COP its just a better sequel, you know, just like sequels are designed for? Bigger, Prettier, more complex, etc... If you play a recent game and go back to play a prequel just lower your standarts FFS(i know this is not really the case with AAA games but STALKER its just like that).

 

[Silva]

I think you need to elaborate on one thing though, which mod exactly did you pick to play with? You named three, but didn't say which one is the one you were most comfortable with.

I just read about AMK, played a bit of Oblivion Lost (until the Garbage), and then re-installed again and tested Lurk 1.05, which I kept. (to be honest, I think Oblivion Lost felt more complete, but I got tired ot re-insalling and decided to go on with Lurk). Im passed the 100 radas bar and am going to the X18 laboratory right now.

Call Of Pripyat makes both other games in series obsolete, simple as that. The most fun I had with SoC was with Oblivion Lost mod, because of crazy randomness it creates. But really, CoP is the only good one in series. Don't even think of trying Clear Sky, it's absolutely terrible.

Yup, Im so disappointed that Im having a hard time calling it a "good" game right now. Its an average one at most. I wonder if the people who praised it by the time of its release knew other Thinking-Shooters like Deus Ex, System Shocks, Operation Flashpoint, etc. I have the impression these people were in fact Call of Duty-like corridor shooter fans that got surprised with the possibility of going a little bit to the side instead of always forward.

No, really.

 

[Cowboy Moment]

SoC is the more atmospheric game, but it only really works if you play it first. CoP's main problem is that it's themeparky and directionless, and with the plot being very banalshitboring, there's very little sense of mystery and wonder to it. Or at least that's how people perceive it when they play SoC first. SoC has a cool narrative, where you're thrown into this weird, dangerous place, and as the game progresses, you feel like you're moving closer and closer to the heart of the mystery. But it doesn't work at all if you're already familiar with the Zone from a different Stalker game, and have had a whole bunch of shit spoiled by CoP's ending.

So, essentially, the way the games are perceived depends on the order they're played in. I, for instance, readily admit that CoP is superior in terms of mechanics and overall design, but SoC is still a much more memorable game to me, one of those few "special" gaming experiences that you can only have a few of - firmly alongside SS2, PST, Thief and Homeworld, to name some.

 

[RK47]

I already own it, it does seem pretty good for what it is.
My only gripe is that guns shouldn't break THAT fast.

 

[potatojohn]

I don't understand how people like one STALKER game but not another. To me they're all basically the same game, just with some different maps and characters.

 

[RK47]

Whatever it is, it's better than Metro.

 

[DraQ]

Silva I'd keep up at least until exit from Dark Valley, if that doesn't "catch" you, then you're safe to drop it.
Though I doubt X18 will have the same kind of impact after being spoiled by another STALKER game.

SoC is the more atmospheric game, but it only really works if you play it first. CoP's main problem is that it's themeparky and directionless, and with the plot being very banalshitboring, there's very little sense of mystery and wonder to it. Or at least that's how people perceive it when they play SoC first. SoC has a cool narrative, where you're thrown into this weird, dangerous place, and as the game progresses, you feel like you're moving closer and closer to the heart of the mystery. But it doesn't work at all if you're already familiar with the Zone from a different Stalker game, and have had a whole bunch of shit spoiled by CoP's ending.

So, essentially, the way the games are perceived depends on the order they're played in. I, for instance, readily admit that CoP is superior in terms of mechanics and overall design, but SoC is still a much more memorable game to me, one of those few "special" gaming experiences that you can only have a few of - firmly alongside SS2, PST, Thief and Homeworld, to name some.

There is another problem with CoP - it's insufficiently lethal. Zone is perfectly safe to just run through, unclustered anomalies are pretty much absent, clusters of anomalies, while impressive are very forgiving, for example stepping in a burner in shitty beginner suit will generally not kill you, psi fields are a joke, I was never actually harmed by one.

It's also more game-y - some enemies routinely take multiple shots to unprotected heads and keep standing, animals, while able to attack in more efficient and varied manner also seem generally disinterested in their own survival, weapons are overbalanced - for example pistol ammunition became surprisingly good at armour piercing, while in SoC pistols and MP5 were generally pretty niche weapons. Another example of gaminess is artifacts becoming formulaic - in later games they are generally either radiation sinks without side effects or beneficial stuff that also radiates, in SoC they had varied drawbacks, making them more interesting.

Yeah SoC was buggy, unpolished and full of badly written text, but it was by far more atmospheric. CoP is more polished and generally better game but something very important got lost in the process.

 

[dnf]

For buggy mods with more maps you need to aim for Russian scene.

Fixed. maybe its just better to aim for the old builds(has anyone played them here?). Fell free to prove me wrong though.

 

[zeitgeist]

Since I already played SoC with various mods, I decided it might be time to try CoP. How much closer does the MISERY mod bring the atmosphere of the game to SoC? And what bigger mods are generally compatible with each other? How about various visual overhauls?

edit: just realized that the authors of MISERY recommend waiting until 2.0 which should be released in early 2013, so I'll skip it for now, any other suggestions? S.M.R.T.E.R?

 

[Gregz]

Played SoC, wasn't impressed, therefore never bothered with CoP.

This thread has me reconsidering.

 

[potatojohn]

If you think the stalkers are too easy (on master) or you just want a new experience, I recommend the Redux mods (for SOC and COP).

http://www.moddb.com/mods/call-of-pripyat-redux

 

[IDtenT]

I was completely blown away by the atmosphere in the first game. Nostalgia would dictate that I'll always like it more. I fully agree that CoP is far too theme park like, but the game is more solid.

 

[Surf Solar]

Nice coincidence, since I installed SoC yesterday too. I played it a bit months ago, but wasnt really impressed (it stuttered like hell on my old machine too). Now I have a new and better machine and wanted to give the game a chance. I have heard of mods for the game that make it look a bit nicer and give some new sfx and such, would this be the recommended one?

http://www.moddb.com/mods/stalker-complete-2009

 

[Silva]

Since I already played SoC with various mods, I decided it might be time to try CoP. How much closer does the MISERY mod bring the atmosphere of the game to SoC? And what bigger mods are generally compatible with each other? How about various visual overhauls?

edit: just realized that the authors of MISERY recommend waiting until 2.0 which should be released in early 2013, so I'll skip it for now, any other suggestions? S.M.R.T.E.R?

Just use Misery 1.0 (with Patch 2). You wont regret it. It made the game one of the most immersive and atmospheric Ive ever played. Even more than any SoC for me.

 

[Elthosian]

For me Shadow of Chernobyl was a somewhat mediocre experience, it had its share of great things, but most of the game felt unfinished and poorly done, and while I consider atmosphere in games to be something good to have, it's not enough to save a game with so many broken gameplay mechanics. Games like Thief, for example, had an amazing atmosphere, but their gameplay was superb too, almost flawless even by today's standards (MGS4, while having bigger areas than the first one, is still much smaller in scale than TDP/TG and TII:TMA), while SOC came out with lot of bugs and still has lots of handholding, generic quests, poor narrative and lots of Fedex stuff.

COP is not perfect either, but it's much more polished as a game and it's atmosphere, while not as surprising as SOC's, is still amazing.

Since I already played SoC with various mods, I decided it might be time to try CoP. How much closer does the MISERY mod bring the atmosphere of the game to SoC? And what bigger mods are generally compatible with each other? How about various visual overhauls?

edit: just realized that the authors of MISERY recommend waiting until 2.0 which should be released in early 2013, so I'll skip it for now, any other suggestions? S.M.R.T.E.R?

For me, even if it's the 1.0 version, MISERY makes COP an almost perfect game, the atmosphere, while still lacking the shocking moments SOC had, becomes the absolute best I have experienced with the series, resources are REALLY scarce, and even a single bandit can kill you if you don't take him seriously, anomalies and radiation are deathly and stuff gets more expensive, without getting to ridiculous "1000 RU for each bandage" levels.

Dunno about SMRTER though, has anyone over here played it?

 

[Silva]

I don't understand how people like one STALKER game but not another

Let me explain the differences.

In Pripyat you have:

Actually meaningful sidequests with tangible consequences for people around you; actual exploration of the map thats rewarded with important findings and unlocking of quests on its own; huge expansive maps that actually realise the game potential of a live and open ended environment; the activity of being a stalker per se through actual mechanics for artifact hunting/anomalies exploring and surviving (sleeping, eating, etc); a really plausible and down-to-earth central plot where you are a normal person doing what a normal person would do instead of a super-hero-like guy saving the world from some super-threat; a setting that actually feels like a plausible (if alien) ecosystem oblivious to your presence and not necessarily out to get you; an atmosphere thats more "alien/unsettling" than "scary"; more developed simulation mechanics including sleeping, masks/helmet screen overlays, weapons and armor upgrading and repairing.

Now, in Chernobyl you have:

Generic fetch quests given by generic NPCs through generic walls of texts; a map that dont rewards exploration since findings only "materialize" after NPCs tell you about it; lots of small maps that break continuity and feel cramped; absence of the activity of being a stalker per se; a more traditional, "gamey", central plot; a setting that feels like "Radioactive Resident Evil" with creatures jumping on your face all the time from everywhere; an ARENA where stalkers fight to the death to the joy of other expectator stalkers (wait, WHAT ?); mechanics that feel unfinished/sketchy.

Are you really sure you dont see these differences ?

(to be frank, I dont know if all those features are in vanilla CoP. I played with MISERY mod. )

For me, even if it's the 1.0 version, MISERY makes COP an almost perfect game, the atmosphere, while still lacking the shocking moments SOC had, becomes the absolute best I have experienced with the series, resources are REALLY scarce, and even a single bandit can kill you if you don't take him seriously, anomalies and radiation are deathly and stuff gets more expensive, without getting to ridiculous "1000 RU for each bandage" levels.

This.

 

[ColCol]

I guess I kinda like Soc, the random nature and danger of the world ruined it for me a little. You would help defend a base from bandits and it was treated like it was important, but then two new bandits groups would come one after another (clearly just passing by, not planning to attack) and wipe out the base. Also, I would find nearly every stalker in the wild dead . Made me wonder why people bothered coming here. The fact the it was dangerous to go from point a to b in the game and the emptiness of the world made me not really inclined to explore much either. Finally, way too many gunfights. Still, I surprisingly have a soft spot for the game. I haven't played cop yet, but I plan to.

 

[Cowboy Moment]

The fact that it was dangerous to travel through the Zone was a definite plus of SoC. A lot of people dislike the respawns in that game, but I think they served an important role - no matter how much of a packrat god you were, you could always die to a group of mercs on the roof of a building or a whirlgig anomaly in the middle of the road if you weren't careful. Like DraQ said, this was all but lost in CoP, where you can walk around in total carebear mode, and as long as you don't enter any of the "special" locations marked on your map, the worst you can meet is a pack of wild dogs.

Also, Silva, I don't know what mod you ended up with, but vanilla SoC definitely does not have creatures jumping at you from everywhere; the game is actually very stingy with them - it takes like 10 hours of gameplay before you meet your first Bloodsucker, while in CoP you can traverse a building full of them within an hour or so. If anything, you fight humans way too often in SoC, to the extent where it gets very tedious in the endgame.

 

[Gerrard]

So you played the newest game first and there were surprised that it was more polished than the first one?

Where's that "retarded" button when you need it.

 

[Turisas]

CoP does everything better except the maps. Maybe it's partly nostalgia at this point, but I just like SoC's better.

 

[zeitgeist]

Silva Elthosian

Right, I guess I'll try MISERY first then after all. Are various graphics/audio overhauls and/or additions compatible with it? Or should I just install nothing but MISERY?

 

[Silva]

Zeitgeist,

1. Make a clean CoP install. (do not apply Misery over an already modded CoP)

2. install Misery full. (get it here )

3. install "Patch 2". (get it here )

4. (Optional) Read the FAQ (here) on how to tweak the game further if you like (I usually nerf the zombies´ accuracy, and decrease the minimum sellable condition of weapons to 75%).