So I played S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl today… I haven’t been following it since it was first announced in 2001 like some people have, so I didn’t really have any expectations or prior knowledge to speak of.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl is not “another DOOM” as was the impression I got from screenshots. It’s a first person shooter with RPG elements to it, such a trading for weapons and other items. It doesn’t have skills like most RPG’s have (you can’t earn increased accuracy) which makes sense for a FPS because you’ll get better at playing the game anyway. What you can do is upgrade certain abilities temporarily through “artifacts” that you find and equip on your belt. The biggest feature of SOC is probably the non-linear story. Grand Theft Auto is non-linear, but not like this. Continue reading →