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S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2: Heart of Chernobyl
- Thread starter Blade-Runner
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Armenius
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Looks like it's going to be released on GOG 😁
https://www.gog.com/en/game/stalker_2_heart_of_chornobyl_standard_edition
https://www.gog.com/en/game/stalker_2_heart_of_chornobyl_standard_edition
Flogger23m
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With a playable date of December 31 2023. Probably just a place holder, but might mean they plan on including DRM for the first year before going DRM free on GOG.
peppergomez
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CrimsonKnight13
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I didn't preorder but it really sucks that we won't be able to play this game any time soon.the war and their livelihoods are definitely more important...I'm doubting it comes out in 2023
Good on them to refund the pre purchase, I would like to see any AAA publisher/game maker do this when they run into trouble. Hell there were games that were supposed to get released 4+ years ago that still are not out because of "pandemic" and are still not out.
Flogger23m
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Kind of expected. Well there are a lot of other upcoming games I want to play, but this was one of the top ones. But I'll probably have stuff to keep me busy while I wait.
StryderxX
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Does pre-ordering help the developer? If so I have no interest in getting a refund at this point. Their lives have been turned upside down so I hope my pre-order fund helps in some way.
peppergomez
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cesarioFL71
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cesarioFL71
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Just watched the new trailer. I have one reservation and that's the gunplay. I am a fan of the old, janky guns of the original. This looks like the gunplay is too Call of Duty for my taste. Not a deal breaker for me but there's something special and unique about the overall feel of the guns in X-ray engine that I think will be lost in the UE.
silentsod
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The voiceovers make me miss "Cheeki breeki" and doubting that it's going to have the same charm and weirdness that made the first game + expandalones as memorable as they were.
cesarioFL71
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Hoping there will be an option for "russian only" or turn off the english dubs; they are immersion breaking!
Domingo
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There are some pretty serious performance bogdowns even in their own trailer, which is never a good sign.
cesarioFL71
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I think I will love the game no matter what....just send me back into THE ZONE! Give me a rusty knife, a serviceable AK-47, and a sawed off shotgun and I will make it to the center once more.......
Almost forgot a bottle of vodka, piece of old boar meat and a med kit.
Almost forgot a bottle of vodka, piece of old boar meat and a med kit.
Armenius
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You sure that isn't just Youtube encoding? It would be sad to see that UE5 is plagued with the same issues as UE4.
silentsod
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I just completed Metro: Exodus running Russian voiceovers and English subtitles. Someone elsewhere recommended playing through the original that way and the habit stuck with that game series.
It can be a way to get better/less noticeably bad (to native English speakers) voiceovers.
Armenius
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I will definitely be wary of looking at "professional" reviews for this game, that's for sure.
Flogger23m
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I am not liking the English voice overs. Original STALKER had Ukrainian/Russian accents for the main characters and idle chatter in Ukrainian/Russia with subtitles. I preferred that over the current trend of English accents. If they're going for accessibility it should be general American accents anyways, more people speak that than any other form of English.
That is just modern animation technology. I for one am grateful it uses modern technology.
That is just modern animation technology. I for one am grateful it uses modern technology.
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the Metro games were a nice replacement for the STALKER games...the STALKER 2 trailer looks good but doesn't give me that same feeling as the earlier games...it now looks like its copying Metro 2033/Last Light/Exodus...hopefully GSC Gameworld can once again deliver
I agree with everyone about the terrible decision to go with English voiceovers
I agree with everyone about the terrible decision to go with English voiceovers
I mean, their largest market is predominantly english speaking, so english voiceovers in a trailer make sense from a marketing perspective. I'm sure there will be ample localization options to satisfy purists.
Agree with you about the overall look. The cinematography looks more "blockbuster movie" than "bleak foreign indie". But the hype train is just pulling out of the station, so I'll assume they cherry-picked photogenic locations and be paitent.
Krenum
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I'm excited for it, but honestly no matter our expectations, it probably won't live up to them. Stalker Nostalgia is over 9000!
Flogger23m
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The game is clearly open world, they've stated that. So I fully expect there to be exploration. I just hope it is more natural or guided and less about clearing dozens of repeating activities or mini games. Original game didn't have an open world, but naturally you would be drawn to something and that would start some type of mission or progress the story.
I think our standards are just higher now, as they should be. Original STALKER was a mess at release. And it really only was good when used with mods, although after patches the un-modded game worked fine. Back then we were more likely to overlook bugs and just bad, unfinished areas like Red Forrest.
So yes it will be very hard to live up to the hype. Should still be fun though.
I dunno, there's definitely a part in the trailer where you can see it get chuggy as hell.
It's not stuttering, you can just see the framerate tank.
The trailer looks good though. Visually it looks pretty great for the most part, and there's so much less jank to everything.
I hope it just maintains that... vibe and atmosphere the first game had. Kinda hard to describe, but there is nothing quite like it. And mods only made that shit even better.
I hope it just maintains that... vibe and atmosphere the first game had. Kinda hard to describe, but there is nothing quite like it. And mods only made that shit even better.
Flogger23m
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A lot of that was art direction and setting. If you replay the games you will notice how dark the lighting is. Even when it is sunny outside the games are still dark visually. Regardless of the weather, it is almost always overcast in terms of lighting. Maybe that area of the world is like that during the winter/fall, but that was largely an artistic decision. The ambient music, sounds, and rusted out areas also added a lot to it.
STALKER 2 seems to be going for a more realistic lighting look, which may look a bit off if you are expecting the abnormally grayed out lighting of the originals.
Flogger23m
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There wasn't a nuclear apocalypse in STALKER. The real place can look very bright on a sunny day.
But clearly it had an artistic design. I preferred it too. Not all games need to have perfectly realistic lighting and styling. STALKER intentionally went for a dark and gloomy look. And that is what a lot of people like about the game.
Yep. Those grey overcast skies with that low angle autumn/winter light are peak STALKER ambience to me.
Don't mind if the weather changes (actually I'm looking forward to dynamic weather) but it won't feel like the Zone without some bleakness.
Hackers threaten to leak tens of gigabytes of material from STALKER 2
It appears that hackers gained access to GSC GameWorld’s servers and obtained tens of gigabytes of game material from S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2...the hackers threaten to leak the game’s full story, artworks, cut-scene description and more on March 15th...that is of course if their demands are not met...in order to prove their claims, the hackers shared some artwork...
https://www.theverge.com/2023/3/13/23638020/stalker-2-developers-gsc-game-world-hack-blackmail
It appears that hackers gained access to GSC GameWorld’s servers and obtained tens of gigabytes of game material from S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2...the hackers threaten to leak the game’s full story, artworks, cut-scene description and more on March 15th...that is of course if their demands are not met...in order to prove their claims, the hackers shared some artwork...
https://www.theverge.com/2023/3/13/23638020/stalker-2-developers-gsc-game-world-hack-blackmail
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peppergomez
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Man I feel sorry for these developers they are going through h*** absolute h***
VF31Tomcatters
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Lol the developers could just change the story, sure it will cost extra time and delays and would mean more $$ spent but still...
pendragon1
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anyone still interested will still buy it even if crappy early stuff is released. but im not buying this whole hack thing until they provide some proof. until then, its just an attention grab, imo.
you don't believe they were hacked???...GSC confirmed it: "“We have been enduring constant cyberattacks for more than a year now,” GSC Game World said. “We have faced blackmail, acts of aggression, hacks, attempts to hurt players and fans, and efforts to damage the development process or the reputation of our company”
The hacker wants GSC Game World to apologize to players in Belarus and Russia, unban an account from the game’s Discord, and localize S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 in Russian