I am sure there is no need for a detailed preface. There is hardly a person who has not heard of the domestic shooter, which became a cult long before its release – S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. Six years in development, numerous postponements of the release date, several changes in concept – it seemed that the project was no longer destined to hit the shelves, when suddenly the premiere thundered. More than enough opinions were expressed, initially there were enough controversial issues, however, the game sold remarkably well both here and in the West, and therefore the announcement of the sequel was not long in coming. Clear Sky is still in development G.S.C, but under the wing of a new publisher. They promise not to postpone the release date, but to radically improve the game itself, in some cases even turning it into “the one” S.T.A.L.K.E.R., as loyal fans who have been following the development since the timid first announcements like to say. Well, it’s time to sum up the expectations, because the release is in just over a month, and once again retell everything that is known about “Clear Sky” at the moment.
It would be useful to recall the position of the developers. Clear Sky, they say, is not an addon at all, although it is not a full-fledged second part. The truth, as always, is somewhere in the middle. The plot of the game begins a year before the events of the original, when the Zone was, according to the creators, much more dangerous, more crowded and richer. Intersections with “Shadow of Chernobyl” are present, but the emphasis is not placed on them – after all, this is not an expansion in the manner of Half-Life, when the same events are shown from the point of view of different characters. Clear Sky is an independent story telling about a group of stalker-researchers, after whom the project is named. The main character of the original, nicknamed Strelok, is going on his second trip to the center of the Zone, and the Zone itself is actively preventing such a possibility, every now and then organizing emissions and generally tirelessly misbehaving. The new hero becomes one of the victims of just such a vengeful release, but remains alive and comes to his senses in one of the shelters of Clear Sky. There are no details about what will happen next, and, most likely, there won’t be any before the release, however, it is known that we will happen to meet ourselves – Strelka, that is – from the original, and, moreover, being in the status of his rival.
After Strelok first reached the center, the https://casinowombat.co.uk/withdrawal/ Zone literally rebelled; moving around it became extremely dangerous due to anomalous fields, numerous groups of mutants and, of course, paramilitary groups, between which a real war for territory and resources unfolded in parallel. The already familiar “Duty” and “Freedom” are far from the only associations. In "Clear Sky" we will also meet the religious group "Monolith", mercenaries, scientists, and so on. You can join any of the local factions, after which, by protecting its interests and completing various tasks, you earn respect and money, and upon reaching a certain level of honor, you get access to the most important resources, unique weapons, equipment, and the right people (merchants, repairmen). As a result, it is possible to lead your own group to unconditional victory, but it is worth emphasizing that it will not be possible to lead the association even in this situation.
However, faction wars are not the main thing; the population of the Zone will fight among themselves and actively fight without your participation. Group artificial intelligence and the updated A-Life life simulation system will do the trick. In general, one of the priority goals G.S.C – revive the world S.T.A.L.K.E.R., make it richer, more varied. Literally everything has undergone some modifications. The same stalkers in peaceful areas have significantly expanded their vocabulary and collection of thematic jokes with stories. Nowadays you can trade with almost any character, but the conditions will, of course, not be ideal, and the prices will not be the most reasonable. The system for issuing side quests has also changed somewhat, as well as the number and quality of possible assignments has increased significantly. Members of one association pursue common goals, and therefore some tasks can be received from literally any ally – you just need to find out the current status and ask what is planned to be done next. They will say, let’s say that an attack on an opponent’s shelter nearby will soon begin – why not go and help? Just to get there alive, because now you have to move much more carefully, and keep previously useless bolts always at hand, because invisible anomalies have appeared, and at once in such quantities that no one will think for sure. However, this does not mean at all that now we will simply have to die more often and move more slowly, artificially stretching the game time – no. You just need to be properly equipped, buy detectors and everything related. It is theoretically possible to get by with bolts, but it is categorically not recommended to go into anomalous fields for rare artifacts in this situation, and without this, after all, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and not at all S.T.A.L.K.E.R. In addition, many new varieties of artifacts are also included in the list of innovations.
Technologically S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky has also made great strides forward, acquiring support for many of the most modern bells and whistles, and in three generations at once: DirectX 8.1, 9.0 and 10. This means that both owners of not the most modern configurations and avid gamers on top-end machines will be able to play “Clear Sky” quite comfortably, and the level of graphics will be quite good everywhere, because all three renderings have undergone significant improvements, effects such as parallax, volumetric light and soft shadows, volumetric smoke, shaded surface effects, weather effects, humidity, depth of field, motion blur and others have been added. Plus, the animation has also changed noticeably – the developers added more than a thousand new movements and polished the animation algorithm together with the refinement of the combat artificial intelligence of opponents, who were trained to overcome dynamic obstacles on the battlefield and throw grenades.
And, of course, there will be new locations where all of the above will be clearly demonstrated. According to the developers, approximately half of “Clear Sky” consists of old, but very noticeably redesigned locations, and the other half is completely new territories, the most interesting of which have been demonstrated more than once in videos and presentations: Limansk, swamps, the Red Forest, the dungeons of Pripyat… The developers are proud of Limansk for good reason – the location was a great success, as well as the wild swamps with many dangerous creatures and unusual anomalies. Add to all of the above a new system for upgrading and repairing weapons, the ability to quickly move between familiar locations and, of course, the chance that Clear Sky will be released on time, then draw the obvious conclusions.