Nouvelle preview en ENGLISH 
http://www.cgno.com/games/409.html
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl
Key Points:
? Man-made calamity, corrupt nature, psychological and physical threats, anomalies, odd deadly phenomena, mutated creatures, stalkers, military cordons, scientific camps.
? Dynamic day-night switching system, along with dynamic weather effects (rain, wind, fog, etc.)
? A non-linear storyline, with several endings to the game
? Over 30 types of weapons, along with extra devices and protective suits
? Extremely realistic graphics, with dynamic shadows and lighting.
? Ragdoll physics
? Ultra-realistic AI
? Set in Chernobyl in 2010
Preview:
Written by: Mark Williams
04.25.04
In a time where there's a swarm of all new first person shooters all fighting to be the best, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl steps in. Among the vast number of games coming out in the near future includes Doom 3 and Half-Life 2, as well as the recently-released Far Cry. These are all big name titles that almost everyone in the video game world has heard of, but then all of a sudden...it's Stalker. Who (or what) the heck is Stalker? Well, let me tell you, get ready, because S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl is about to become a huge name in the world of PC gaming.
First off, S:SoC is still in the development process with GSC Game World, the same developer who came out with FireStarter, a recent shooter. One other quick thing to note is that the game was formerly called Stalker: Oblivion Lost, as you'll see in our recent interview with the developers of the game by clicking here.
Shadow of Chernobyl takes place, as you can guess, in Chernobyl, in and around the infamous nuclear facility. A deadly radioactive explosion rocked the entire area around the year 2006. When the radiation finally clears enough to allow expeditions within The Zone, many eerie phenomena were discovered. The player will become what's known as a stalker -- someone who shovels radioactive embers out of "The Zone" in order to make money. These "anomalous formations" are sold to underground scientists and dealers on the border of this area. When you begin to earn more money, you'll find that you can buy newer equipment that allows further access to areas previously inaccessible.
The developers of SoC stress the realism of the game. Everything, from the trade with underground dealers, to the physics system of the game, has been thoroughly planned out. There are incredibly dynamic weather effects as well as an all new day-night switching system. The storyline is very non-linear, so naturally, there are multiple endings to the game. Open-endedness seems to be one of Stalker's biggest claims to fame. They call the game both a First Person Shooter and a Role Playing Game. The only minor difference between many RPGs and Stalker is that there are no accumulating traits and characteristics, as GSC thought this would take away from the realistic experience they are trying to create.
As far as AI goes, Stalker seems to have it all. Nothing will ever be exactly the same twice. No character's location is predetermined, and the most natural reactions of characters to nearly every possible situation have been mapped. One wonderful example of this GSC mentioned was when a player attacks and kills a guard. Every other guard will immediately "seek hiding, radio their headquarters, and won't stand still, or what's worse, run out towards the player."
NPCs, or special radios used for communication, are essential to the development of the story and your success. You can find out important information, acquire new tasks, trade, or even make deals via the NPCs in the game. The possibilities are endless, which is exactly what the developers want.
One of the most exciting and most anticipated features of this game is the stunning visuals you'll see just from examining one screenshot. The new, proprietary X-Ray Engine shows unbelievable potential in its ability to dynamically shadow and texturize objects. And with 300,000 to 3,000,000 polygons per frame, this Engine will certainly bring out the finest of any PC.
GSC says there will be up to 30 weapons in the game, many of which are used for stealth. Most weapons will be modifiable, meaning you'll be able to buy a silencer for your new pistol or a scope to your new rifle. These developers weren't kidding when they mentioned realism.
It's hard to include everything Stalker has to offer, but I think I touched on the main points. GSC Game World has said their release for the game will stay as the second quarter of 2004. Until then, we'll all be anxiously awaiting the arrival of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. Patience is a virtue, my friend.
Be sure to check out our additional exclusive interview with GSC Game World, the game's developers. You can find it here.
Genre:Action
Developer:GSC Game World
Publisher:THQ
# of Players: 1
Release Date: Q2 2004
ESRB Rating: Rating Pending
SUITE ci-dessous 
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Oblivion Lost
01.28.04
Written by: Mark Williams
CGN recently spoke to Oleg Yavorsky and the development team at GSC Game World. Our exclusive interview gives an in-depth look at the highly anticipated PC title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Oblivion Lost.
CGN: It looks like S.T.A.L.K.E.R. may turn out to be one of the games of the year in the genre of first person shooters. Talk a little bit about the gameplay of Oblivion Lost. Along those lines, what have you done to separate the game from the other big competition?
Oleg: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. will feature lots of unique ideas that will make the game stand out from others in the genre. The most important ones, we believe, are the life simulation system, the non-linear gameplay, an eerie atmosphere not attempted in FPS before, an incredibly «human-like» AI system and of course an incredibly realistic model of the Chernobyl area. The combination of these elements is supposed to make the project different from most of the games in the market.
Speaking of the gameplay in particular, it will be based on absolute freedom of actions and movement within the Zone. Because of the implemented life simulation system, the creatures and characters in the environment constantly change. The player can never anticipate events, creature behaviour and enemy positions even if they've played the game through several times. This basically is the primary element of the gameplay.
However the air of desperation, the very real fear of the anomalies and monsters, the enigmatic nature of the surroundings and the intriguing storyline will also bring an incredible experience and get the players adrenaline pumping. We want to create an original and gripping gameplay experience different from that of other games. And the players will decide how successful we were in this respect.
CGN: Does the game reward stealth/non-kill solutions over kill solutions? If so, how?
Oleg: Here everything will depend on the player, his imagination and temper. It is absolutely up to the player how to live and act in the Zone as initially very little confines your actions. Decisions you will make in numerous game situations will form your status and reputation amongst other intelligent creatures. You may become an ordinary researcher, help desperate inhabitants, solve universal mysteries, or may turn into a stealthy killer or fearless warrior eliminating everything on his way. There are different areas in the zone that will content both stealth players and gunslingers. As for rewards, we can say only one thing ? it will be as in real life. Other stalkers will never greet you or share secret information if you killed a member of their clan. Dealers won't even talk to you if they know you are a butcher who is detested throughout the Zone. On the other hand, respectable stalkers will be admitted into any company. They may even get important quests. Pretty logical, isn't it? We provide maximum freedom of choice, the rest is in the hands of the player.
CGN: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. has been getting a lot of buzz due to its excellent graphics. What should users with lower-end computers expect from the play of this game? What are the system requirements?
Oleg: Here are the specs for comfortable gaming: P IV-1.4 Ghz / Athlon, 256 Mb RAM, GeForce 4 (or any other card of the same level). The PC hardware market dictates its rules and sets new limits for the games ? the slower your computer and the older you video card is, the less details and effects you get. The better processor and video card, the better graphics you experience.. GeForce 2, GeForce 3, GeForce 4, GeForce FX cards and their counterparts have differences both in architecture and abilities so if your video card is more up-to-date you get more effects. For example, pixel and vertex shader effects (nice water surface, etc.) can be seen on GeForce 3 and higher cards. On the other hand, GeForce 2 will show an animated texture. GeForce FX will provide dynamic light sources and soft dynamic shadows cast from anything onto anything and bump-mapping on all surfaces which at least exceeds the Doom 3 technology.
Players with older video cards will see a simplified model of dynamic lighting and shadows. The option menu of the game will give access to graphical settings. Adjusting these settings you can get a desired ratio of details, effects and performance. You can make the game do it for you automatically. We plan to implement vast possibilities in terms of game settings taking into consideration those who haven't purchased latest hardware resources yet.
CGN: Who actually came up with the premise for the game, and how long did it take to get it into production?
Oleg: It's difficult to name a certain person. Lots of professional people were involved in the concept development. Each of them has many ideas and suggestions on how to improve the game and make it unique. Perhaps, there are two guys who influenced the development of the game world and general concept development most. These are our Game Designer Alexey Sytianov and Project Manager/Lead Artist Andrey Prokhorov.
CGN: Why was Chernobyl chosen as the setting of the game?
Oleg: This idea came our minds long ago. It was quite hard to skip the Chernobyl idea as we live some hundred kilometers from the site and so we saw first hand the consequences of the catastrophe. We saw and felt its consequences together with our people and we know very well what the fear of radiation is like.
Naturally, it had a certain effect on our lives and minds. The trip we took to Chernobyl, with all its vistas of abandoned towns, rusty vehicles and plundered shops eventually determined our intentions and the game subject matter. Of course the work of the Strugatsky brothers also influenced the project development to some extent. Dreadful anomalies, monsters, hostile characters, the depressing atmosphere of towns and settlements, the devastation ? all these elements that are within the world we created are meant to be a warning against similar calamities in the future.
CGN: How long has GSC been working on S.T.A.L.K.E.R.?
Oleg: About three years in total.
CGN: How many people have been involved in the development of the game?
Oleg: Currently, there are 25 people involved in the development process. Graphical and gameplay parts are developed by different teams which excludes any detriment to both elements.
CGN: The graphics appear to be one of the most impressive things about S.T.A.L.K.E.R.. What have you done in particular to make this a unique game in terms of visuals?
Oleg: In terms of visualization, the key game factor is realistic-looking surroundings. The graphical part was built basing on our proprietary photo and video materials we brought from the Chernobyl trip. Thanks to these materials you will see real architecture of Prypiat', ?live? weapon and vehicle prototypes, many things characteristic of the Soviet era, ruins of the buildings and many more. We worked out every single thing to the smallest detail to make the players believe in what they see on their monitors and to really feel the atmosphere of the deserted world. However, realistic graphics is not the only distinguishing feature of the game and we don't want it to be considered so. Gameplay, balanced filling of the world, absolute freedom and non-linear storyline ? these are foremost grippers. Given modern hardware and engines, the graphical quality is an obligatory tool for maximum involvement into the gameplay ? graphics of this quality help blur the line between computer games and reality.
CGN: Will players be able to play as more than one player? Also, are there any customization options for the character(s)?
Oleg: There will be no team control. The main character is an independent combat unit, so you'll control him only. You'll have to solve numerous problems yourself under conditions of severe competition on the part of other stalkers. You may join a clan of like-minded people, accomplish group quests or act as a loner. However, you'll have to act only on your own. Your character is not some cartoon-like model from the world of RPG. This is a living person created from a real model. Based on that, we decided to skip the character customization feature.
CGN: What does it mean when you call S.T.A.L.K.E.R. an FPS/RPG?
Oleg: If we try to roughly define the genre of S.T.A.L.K.E.R., it will then be an original mix of FPS with such elements as stealth, survival and RPG. We did not use a system of abstractly changing characteristics, levels and model skills on the screen, as we believe that would be out of place in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Our understanding is that upgradeable player characteristics do not make the game a role-playing one. Where it may veer into RPG territory is in the interaction amongst characters, and circumstances that will change depending on the player?s own decisions - players continuously traverse the Zone territory, collect artefacts, weapons, reveal anomalous zones, communicate and trade with each other and help to support an ?economy?.
Besides, we strive to create an utterly realistic world where all is entirely dependent on mastery of a certain player. Entering the Zone, your character?s destiny is purely in hands of your personal skills and experience, as the character in-game is the player himself. To succeed you will have to possess excellent reactions, have mastered peculiarities of the weapons, know enemy weak spots, be able to use anomaly detecting equipment and so on. Only when you master these skills will you stand a chance of success within this manmade disaster zone.
CGN: How long do you think the game will take to beat? Along those lines, how many levels/missions are there and are there different difficulty settings? Also, how many endings will there be?
Oleg: Fans of ?asap? play-through will be able to complete it within about 30-40 hours, but the belief is that they would not opt for such a choice. As the world of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is so diverse we estimate that there is 70-100 hours worth of intriguing travel with gradual development, searching for secrets and participation in the storyline. The S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Zone will consist of 18 locations, joined into one global map, adjoining levels loaded at cross-points. With that you?ll be able to freely roam the area, selecting routes without limitations whatsoever. We plan over 8 different endings to the game.
CGN: What about AI? What has GSC done to challenge the player?
Oleg: Our pride and joy is the introduction of an original life simulation system. It allows for making the game world maximally dynamic, where every single (!) character lives his own life, directly impacting on the existence of others. Virtually in every other game you have characters and monsters preliminarily placed by developers in strictly defined areas, waiting for a trigger to get activated ? when you show up in the location. It is only then when they start jumping out, stir, attack you or tell you ready-made stories from the storyline. In S.T.A.L.K.E.R. we have it in a different way. All residents of the Zone, be it humans or mutants, continuously roam the map, sleep, eat, fight with the player and each other, obtain information, gain combat experience, and their skills.
When you attack the enemy they are smart enough to evaluate their chances of winning, based on their numbers and the environmental advantages. Enemies can outskirt the enemy from behind, lay ambushes, circle him around or run away from the battlefield when they are wounded or feel death is imminent. All this happens not only when the player can witness it, but also without him participating too. At any moment you can witness combats with NPCs, freely join a brawl, taking one of the sides or simply pursue your interests.
CGN: How do NPCs contribute to the gameplay?
Oleg: The role of NPCs in the game is accomplished by a large number of peculiar characters. These include all sorts of groupings, guilds and clans of stalkers. Some are protecting the world from mutant invasion, some are studying the consequences and reasons of the catastrophe, as well as guys who came to the Zone simply in search of artefacts they think they can sell.
The main goal of the majority is to stand up against the creatures and anomalies of the Zone and in doing so justifying them and raising their status among the guilds. Also there are regular army units and task forces who engage in rescue operations, as well as guarding entrances to the closed territory. Besides, as you progress in the game, you will encounter many dealers and scientists, each of whom have differing goals. As mentioned above, all the characters will be in constant contact with each other, which means direct impact on player and storyline too. Their impact can be so significant that it is even possible that a relatively passive player discovers that the main game objective was accomplished without him involved.
CGN: Talk a little bit about the multiplayer options of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
Oleg: Multiplayer, allowing for up to 32 players in a game, will support several game modes. This will certainly include analogues of Deathmatch, Capture the Flag and team mode, ala Counter-Strike. Possibly we will add original multiplayer modes, which will make use of the unusual game world.
CGN: Is mod creation still a possibility?
Oleg: We are seriously considering supporting the mod-community with tools, but details on this will be available later.
CGN: Will there be any music in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Oblivion Lost? If so, explain.
Oleg: Sure, the in-game music of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. will be mainly dark, ambient, murky music to fully match the game atmosphere. You can listen to a snippet of the music at the official game site: www.stalker-game.com. For the main theme we prepare a nice surprise =) .
CGN: How will the weather affect the gameplay? Does it make things harder for the player?
Oleg: Rain, fog, earthquakes, energy blowouts, smooth change of day and night ? all this will be included in the game to add to the feeling of realism of the happenings around, to make the player believe the game world is natural. If talking about impact of weather effects on gameplay and player specifically, we think it?s pretty obvious. If it is raining, foggy or even at night, stalkers will find it more difficult to reconnoitre the area and discover anomalies and enemies. Also, under limited visibility an additional hazard will be posed by monsters, as some of these can see better in the dark and always use this factor for sudden attacks.
CGN: What about the new X-Ray engine? How innovative is this engine and what does it do differently, in particular?
Oleg: The X-Ray engine uses the latest achievements of 3D technologies:
- Support of the full range of DX9 features;
- Up to 3.000.000 polygons per frame;
- Dynamic shadows and lighting. Shadows of objects are cast correctly onto characters;
- Powerful physics engine ? control of vehicles, detailing objects, bullet ballistics, skeleton joints and so on;
- Realistic AI ? game characters behave adequately to events and environment;
- Motion capture animation.
You can find out more about X-Ray technology at the official game site in the correspondent section.
CGN: Is the console market still an option?
Oleg: It is just too early to speak about it now as our every effort is now focused on the PC version development.
CGN: What kinds of weapons and equipment will be available?
Oleg: The game will feature around 40 different types of firearms, cold steel and possibly artifact weapons. Most of them will be close to their real life prototypes both by the way they look as well as their technical specs. Since the game is set in Ukraine, the weapon models will be mostly of Soviet origin. At the same time the best Western ?babies? will not be neglected, including those only submitted for approval by the military. In S.T.A.L.K.E.R. you will see some of the common for most games traditional weapons like knives, pistols, shotguns, tommy-guns, assault rifles, sniper rifles, machine guns, grenades, grenade launchers etc. We will try to create models with near life exact parameters of fire as well as the comparative effectiveness of different models. However, we are not trying to develop a virtual SWAT simulator, which means the weapons will be best adjusted for the game. One of the features worth mentioning is the physics modeling of the weapons which will allow for realistic piercing of different surfaces, shockwaves, shrapnel and point blank blasting and other goodies. Most of the weapons will be customizable, allowing silencers, under-barrel items or sniper-sights. The players will get to discover the artifact weaponry as they play the game.
Apart from weapons the player will need radiation counters, scanners, compasses, maps, and lots of other anomaly and life detectors to traverse the Zone. To protect himself from different impacts the player will require special suits and bullet-proof jackets of different types and levels. Some will protect you from radiation, others from acid burns, gravitational anomalies and mechanical impacts. All of the above mentioned as well as weapons will wear off with time and stop functioning. So the player will have to keep an eye on his kit.
CGN: Finally, what should we expect from GSC in the future? What else is planned?
Oleg: You can check out all of the projects currently developed by GSC if you go to our official web-site www.gsc-game.com. I guess, we shall leave the plans discussion until the next interview. =)
CGN: Thanks so much!
Be sure to check out CGN's S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Oblivion Lost Game Profile for more information and screenshots of the game in action.
Message édité par the gentleman le 27-04-2004 à 08:09:17
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