The announcement of a new Stalker game, Call Of Pripyat, offers an intriguing prospect. It’s a trilogy-completing work – with Clear Sky acting as prequel – and it proports to show what took place in the zone after the events of Shadow Of Chernobyl. The initial announcement seemed to promise a great deal: enhanced A-Life, more freedom, and more survival conditions to consider. But what else is in there? And what did the Ukrainian company learn from Clear Sky? GSC’s Oleg Yavorsky took some time out to answer our questions, and to reveal a bit more about Call Of Pripyat. Foolishly, I forgot to ask about the mystery of the bread. (The images in this article can be clicked on for their full-size.)
RPS: Do you think you learned any important lessons from the release of Clear Sky? Has that shaped how you’ve approached work on Call Of Pripyat?
Yavorsky: Clear Sky has been a good lesson for us indeed, primarily in the aspect of game stability and playability. There were a lot of changes both in technology and gameplay that we did for Clear Sky, but we had no time to polish and fix everything as proper before the release. With Call of Pripyat now we are taking a safer route by, firstly, building the game on the technology we’ve been polishing since Clear Sky, secondly, getting rid of some features which did not work out well – such as global war of factions, for example; and thirdly, by taking more serious approach to testing the game.
RPS: Can you tell us about the new areas of the zone that Call of Pripyat will include? How much of this new material is taken from the real Chernobyl zone?
Yavorsky: We will present a complete set of new locations in Call of Pripyat. This includes the Pripyat river basin and its rusty fleet standing still for over 20 years now, the Kopachi village completely buried after the accident, Jupiter factory located on the outskirts of Pripyat, the railway station Yanov, and, to crown it all – an entire district of Pripyat, modeled in its real scope. Many players have repeatedly asked us to implement Pripyat in the game, so we decided to satisfy their wish.
I think Call of Pripyat will be the most photo-realistic, and hence, atmospheric S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game of all three.
RPS: Can you explain how you’ve changed the A-Life system for this new game?
Yavorsky: Firstly, we picked the best-liked features from SoC and CS games to preserve them in Call of Pripyat. Secondly, we added a number of touches to make the world and its atmosphere more believable. Hence, day and night cycles will affect the behaviour of both monsters and NPCs: monsters will be more active and go hunting prey at night, while NPCs will try to find shelter and return to bases after seeking artifact and day-patrolling as night descends. To liven up the game world, each character/monster has been attributed their deadly enemies. Mutants hunt humans, bandits are after neutral s.t.a.l.k.e.r.s, Duty faction is after mutants.
Thirdly, hunger and sleep will have their effect too in the game: if the player is hungry, it will take him longer to restore his stamina. Sleep function will help you to refresh yourself, so as to speed up the time a bit (which may be useful in case you have a night mission designated to start at a particular time at night, for example).
This said, we gave all monsters an updated look, changed their behaviour in combat (so as to make them tougher and more interesting to fight with), added a couple new monsters – Burer and Chimera.
RPS: How much inspiration do you take from the work done by the modding community on the previous Stalker games?
Yavorsky: We are very pleased to see how active the modding community is with S.T.A.L.K.E.R. – we’ve seen a number of interesting modifications done by the fans (AMK-mod, for example). When it comes to development of the next official games, however, I’d say we rather build them the way we see as proper and our own style, rather than copy mod-makers’ ideas. Our ambition is to present players our own S.T.A.L.K.E.R. as we see it (and we still have a number of ideas to get implemented). Nevertheless, we do listen to a lot of feedback received from players and their wish-lists. It helps us make decisions on which directions to take for the series.
RPS: From the patch notes: “Sleep function added into the game.” That’s a function that was unlocked by several mods…
Yavorsky: As opposed to pure story presentation element, the sleep function this time will have its gameplay role. As mentioned, you can take a nap to save time and not walk about in wait for your mission to start at a certain time. After sleeping your character will also restore his powers. You will only sleep in safe dedicated spots, such as s.t.a.l.k.e.r. bases, for example.
RPS: Can you explain how the game will be playable “after completion in a freeplay mode”? Is this tied to the extended side-quests?
Yavorsky: The freeplay mode is designed for those players, who prefer to stay in the game and explore as much as they want without the need to re-play it to see all of it. So, you’ll be able to travel freely, enjoy the A-life around and accomplish quests you missed during the playthrough.
RPS: Do you expect to return to the underground “horror” sequences of the original Shadow Of Chernobyl?
Yavorsky: We will provide a couple underground locations for players to explore in Call of Pripyat, so beware of spooky monsters!
RPS: Replacing English dialogue with the original Russian dialogue seems like a popular modification – have you considered an all-Russian dialogue option with English subtitles, as CD Projekt did with Polish in The Witcher?
Yavorsky: Thanks for the idea! At least part of our S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games has been in Russian already (such as campfire stories, combat shouts (predominantly rude ones!)). We’ll consider adding even more of the language flavoured with vodka, bears and balalaikas.
RPS: Is there much you still have to do with the original Stalker setting? Can we expect another “new” Stalker title from GSC one day?
Yavorsky: I assure you there’s a lot of ideas still untouched about S.T.A.L.K.E.R. universe and setting. We are building plans for the full-fledged sequel game, but it’s too early to talk about it at this point.
RPS: Thanks, Oleg.
Call Of Pripyat is due for release in Autumn 2009.
System requirements:
Minimum System Requirements
* Intel Pentium 4 2.0 Ghz / AMD XP 2200+
* 512 MB RAM
* 128 MB DirectX 8.0 compatible card / nVIDIA GeForce 5700 / ATI Radeon 9600Recommended System Requirements
* Intel Core 2 Duo E7400 / AMD 64 X2 5600+
* 2 GB RAM
* 512 MB DirectX 9.0c compatible card / nVIDIA GeForce 9800 GTX / ATI Radeon HD 4850
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get bar into the game again please I’m begging you.
If you makers of the STALKER series are reading this: Keep bar in the game, what were you guys thinking when you left bar out in CLEAR SKY.
glenn : There will be whole new areas , so no bar.They dont use old maps from any older games.
And my ideas are off course more open buildings and less closed doors.It was sad that i coulnt get to explore Pripyat enough , no higher levels were accessible and most buildings were just closed boxes.Cant wait for a day when i get to play in a fully open Limanst-like city map with all the places 100% open + sewers and other areas + rooftops.But thats another story and cant come yet.Maybe in Stalker 2 ?
I would also like to see some sidequests “regenerate” , which means you can do them again and again.
And more function for the money , i collected well over 2 million in clear sky and there was nothing to do with it besides repair my weapons/armor or occasionaly travel around.
More secret areas and i dont mean any “hidden stashes” , but places to explore.Some stayrways and appartments could be open in city maps , but entrances well hidden.So you dont get in in an easy way.
it would be great to pda be the same as it is in SoC and thah they bring back enciklopedia back what do you say about that.
No bar? Well then i hope that these new levels will kick ass!
S.o.c. was a complete masterpiece. I’ve never looked forward to a game such as this when it was released. It was pure heaven to play aswell.
Now, when C.S. was released I was scarred by the constant crashes and the overall feel of being robbed basically but after a few patches here and there and switching OS (seems to run alot smoother on XP) the game ran as smooth as a babies bottom! Still playing it now and I have to say all the old feelings are rushing back.
im not too sure on some of the features that are being implemented like the eating one. That really drags the game flow down.
Please. Please. Please. Test C.O.P. before releasing.
Fix any and all major bugs, let the patches do the work on the minor bugs or seriously GSC will loose alot of fans.
Yip-ka-yee!Finaly i can again play S.T.A.L.K.E.R.!I finished Shadow of Chernobyl and Clear Sky several days after buying them,so i relly get bored here!S.T.A.L.K.E.R. the best game and GSC,THQ and Deep Silver thanks for making the history of Surivivor\FPS games!
I hope that there will be no such a things like to group of bandits take all of your equipment with money,jus like in clear sky.And that there will be no such long waiting to join any faction,just like in clear sky.*FREEDOM RULES*
cant wait until new stalker comes out but when does it come out so we can buy it
No release date on Pripyat yet. GSC said “Q4 2009″, which means any time between the start of October and Christmas.
im currently playing soc for the first time and currently at the bar . i am enjoying this game but im also finding out about the mods for it available .my question is ; if i got a mod would i have to start again over from the beginning ? or should i play vanilla first ? thanks in advance. i cant wait to play clear sky and im so pleased theres another in the futaure after thaat ones finished.
Everyone goes on at the bugs in the original, unpatched version of stalker CS but, honestly I ound 0. People say that you get lots of corrupted saves, I have completed the game on one save 4 times. It’s simply amazing that I have never even run into a bug with a computer that runs it on medium at best. I cant run it in full screen because the sky glitches up so I run it on a smaller screen. I have never had a bug other than the graphical glitches that come with runing a higher spec game on a PC that barely scarpes minimum. I now have the latest patch and guess what? no difference in my books. I’m really looking forward to this new game and only wish that I could preorder it now from game, but I can’t.
The game has very few creepy places but I can honestly say that when I first met the bloodsuckers I almost crapped myself. The game is simpy amazing. Nobody in there right mind can deny that.
Patrick, you have never completed the game without patch i see. I have completed it in 1.5.00, honsetly, almost no one did it. Got about 5 crashes, and i was only doing main quests. Completed the game with leather jacket in Veteran difficulty. Its some kind of not bad thing, because, with so many bugs and crashes, like u can’t end storyline and others… Patches fixed some things up. But for me, for explorer, im getting crashes quite frequently. Good thing there is no corrupt save game thing, and good thing there is mods for fixing bugs like SRP. Cheers! Proudly, exostalker (RooGhJ).
new interview:
Q: Which locations can we expect in CoP? Are there any dungeons, faction bases or some old locations?
A: As one can already guess form the name of the project, the main location in the game is Pripyat; and we are proud of this location, as the eastern part of the town (which is featured in this location) is created with every minor detail. We made a trip to the Zone once again, took a lot of pictures, and used satellite photography to make it as authentic as possible. We tweaked it for the gameplay a bit, so it is about 90-95% accurate. Apart from Pripyat, we have a huge Zaton and some smaller locations as well as few dungeons. There won’t be any old locations – all of them are new.
Q: And what about the characters in the game? Are we going to see some factions, military, or the foreign troops?
A: If comparing to Clear Sky, then factions won’t play as big of a role in CoP – they won’t wage a full-scale war. We’re going back to the concept of the original game, where the Zone isn’t populated with people so much and the stalker’s main opponents are mutants and anomalies, as it would be if the Zone was real. Sure you’ll spot the factions and the military in the game, but each have their own goal, and you can achieve better relations with some, as the hero is neutral at the beginning.
Q: And what about the relations between the factions? Will they fight for the territory and defend their positions?
A: In the prequel (Clear Sky), we’ve been telling a story about factions establishing their power, fighting for territory and resources. The Faction War was back then – now it is about a month after the events of the original SoC. Each faction has its own goal, according to their ideology – the conflicts are inevitable, but it won’t take the scale of the war again.
Q: What about our earnings? Can we find an expensive gun or artifact? How easy will it be to get ammo or medicine in the game?
A: It sure won’t be easy to find a rare or expensive gun, but you shouldn’t forget, that now stalkers will search corpses, collect artifacts and guns, so it is possible to find a lot of stuff in the backpack of a dead stalker. Ammo or medicine can be found or bought from stalkers or traders – as it would be in the real life.
Q: What can you say about artifacts and anomalies? Their quantity and difficulty of finding an artifact?
A: The search for artifacts is the main business of the stalkers – their bread. That’s why we are trying to make this part of the game as interesting as possible. You can’t find a valuable artifact just lying on the ground – you have to equip yourself with a detector and crawl in the anomalous field. Only by making your way through anomalies, constantly being under the harmful effect of the anomalous field, you’ll have a chance for a big buck. Moreover, after every Blowout the order of the anomalies in the field will change, so it won’t be possible to just memorize the safest way and use it over and over again.
Q: What guns and armor will we find in CoP? Will there be something new?
A: One of the biggest innovations in CoP concerning armor is that it is now divided into body armor and head protection – for example bulletproof vest and the helmet. It is also possible to repair and upgrade them. As for weapons – the upgrade system from CS was improved, so it is now possible to upgrade it in a few directions at the same time.
Q: Is it possible to hire some stalkers for your squad? Can we be stealthy by hiding in the bushes with a sniper rifle and shooting enemies from a distance? Will the enemy spot us at once, or will he run around searching for the sniper?
A: Stalkers are loners, so it’s not possible to find a partner, though you can join stalkers during some missions, or some stalkers can join you during others, but normally everyone is on his own – it’s the Zone. NPCs have the ability to hear in the defined radius and see in the defined sector – being outside of these, you can easily sneak undetected. As for shooting – each shot has a sound and direction, and it is quite possible being detected after the first one.
Q: In Clear Sky, it is clear that the AI had been greatly improved – NPCs don’t leave themselves open, but hide behind the rocks, walls, etc. Will you use the same system and will the AI be improved even more?
A: Well, I’d rather say ”polishing” than ”improvement” – the most radical improvements were made in the monster’s AI and the global A-Life system. With every new step, we’re getting closer to that functionality of the system which suits us most – it is so complicated, that we were improving it all the time since the original game, always making corrections and tweaks here and there.
Q: In both STALKER games, we got outstanding visuals as well as the atmosphere. Can we expect further improvements in the graphics department as well as more spoken dialogs and new interface features?
A: The atmosphere will be close to the original SoC game that was critically acclaimed as the most atmospheric game of the 2007. The visuals will be somewhat better then in Clear Sky, but system requirements will be the same due to the optimization. The dialogues will be mostly written, it is better than the voiceover at times because the player uses his own imagination instead of artist’s expressions to perceive the character’s personality. The interface was totally redone to make it more intuitive. The use of hot keys was added, a convenient round mini-map and lots of other stuff. Also, we made a possibility to continue the game after completing the main storyline.
Q: Will there be Blowouts in the game? If yes, will the occur only as storyline-driven events, or will they be completely random?
A: Both, and the player will have to seek shelter to survive one.
Q: Will there be any improvements to multiplayer?
A: We’re working on the code optimization, reduction of traffic and new anti-cheat tools. There will be a system of ratings and rewards as well. No radical changes in the gameplay modes.
i dont think i will hav etime for any mods when i complete soc what with clear sky and this game comming this year as well im gonna be very busy/ happy. i dont want to rush any of them so mods i will leave till all 3 are finished, excellent game.
omg… OMG!!! I love this game!!! The best FPS game in the whole world!!!!
And… More news for all you stalkers.
The Plot.
The events of Call of Pripyat – the second stand-alone project in the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. universe (Clear Sky being the first) is taking place two weeks after the events of the original game: S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. As Gunslinger shut the psy-antennas down, lots of stalkers rushed to the center of the Zone trying to lay their hands on the treasures it conceals. But only few made their way into it safely, as a new faction war broke out. The survivals are mostly neutrals, ”Duty” and ”Freedom” members as well as some bandits.
As the psy-barrier broke down, the military started to develop an operation called ”Fairway” in order to establish full control over the new territories. As a first step of the operation, 5 reconnaissance helicopters were sent to investigate the new areas and find a safer way through the anomalous fields for their full-scale ground operation. Despite all the precautions made, the operation fails with all HINDs being vanished from the radars leaving only approximate coordinates of the crash sites.
The player takes a role of major Degtyarev, an ex-stalker who signed the contract with the military in the past, and now is an undercover agent sent to the center of the Zone to investigate the reasons behind the operation failure.
The Zone.
First of all, there will be no faction wars in Call of Pripyat, the number of NPCs will be greatly reduced, as opposed to Clear Sky, and the developers promise us to create a bigger ”back to the roots, explore-the-surroundings” feeling of the game, more common to the original: Shadow of Chernobyl. Among other game improvements, the game’s locations are one of the most important ones with three new huge locations that include a photorealistic Exclusion Zone – Pripyat (the eastern part of the town), Yanov railway station, Jupiter factory, Kopachi village and others, recreated by their true-to-life prototypes with the use of satellite photographs. There are also two underground locations which are kept secret for now.
The first location, where the game starts, is Zaton (The Backwater) – a huge 1.5×1.5 km area, featuring a dried out river with some shipwrecks, a factory of some sort and lots of anomalies. As the player arrives to Zaton, other stalkers have already accustomed to the area, so we can find the Bar in one of the ship’s carcasses, the bases of the ”Duty” and ”Freedom” factions who share one ship by having a cease-fire agreement (but only within the walls of their base), and the mercenary base somewhere in the industrial area.
The Blowouts (aka Emissions) will now be random and deeply incorporated in the local ecosystem: with every Blowout, new artifacts are born in the anomalies, and some anomalies will change their positions (only random anomalies and not the unique looking, static anomalous fields). Stalkers will seek cover during Blowouts and will fight for it, if members of others factions will attempt to use the same hideout; this works for the player as well: staying on the open field during the Blowout is lethal, but finding a safe spot (they will be marked on your map) can cost you your life as well, if it is already occupied by your rivals. The new types of anomalies will also be introduced in the game.
It is also worth mentioning, that now both stalkers and mutants will have their own day/night cycle, with mutants being more active at night, while stalkers will be going to bed. As for the mutant additions, we will see the good old, finally made functional Chimera and Burer. Chimera will be your most fearsome night encounter, as it moves rapidly, hiding in the dark, always trying to attack you from the rear; however it won’t be such a menace during day time, as it can be easily spotted under the sun light. The Burer uses telekinesis to grab and throw objects at you, which can be a heavy barrel or even your own weapon pulled out of your hands and thrown at you. It was also mentioned in some previews that Burer is able to cast a bulletproof shield with his telekinetic abilities. But the good thing about Bruer is that he is not really an aggressive creature and, for the most part, will only attack if the player bothers him.
The behavior of the older and more familiar mutants been reworked as well. For example, dogs and snorks are now attacking on the move, instead of just stopping in front of you and biting like before; so fighting them is now much harder, especially when they attack in packs. The packs, however, can now be formed with the mutants of each type, and since all the mutants are now divided into carnivores and herbivores, we can expect one hunting the other. The Bloodsucker has been redone as well, so it can now literally grab the player and start sucking the blood out of him. If you think they now have an unfair advantage over you, the developers made it fair by removing the invincibility of the bloodsucker while he is invisible.
The stalkers, as mentioned before, have a ”timetable” of what to do during the day: they leave the base in the morning, alone or as a small group, roaming across the landscape in search of artifacts and finally return to the base in the evening for some rest. The developers are promising to make a fair system of an artifact trade, so if you happen to run across some stalker, you can see the stuff he has already collected and trade with him by offering something more worthy than just vodka or a lump of bread.
Searching for an artifact with the detector is also in the game, and both positive and negative effects of the artifacts are rebalanced.
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Quests.
The game features over 70 ”hand-made” quests (no more randomly generated missions), which can be received from not only faction leaders and a barman, but from ordinary stalkers as well. As already mentioned there will be three factions to cooperate with (but not join, as the main character is already an undercover military soldier). ”Duty’s and Freedom’s leaders and members are controlled by the criminal authority nicknamed Sultan, who is ready for cooperation with everyone if it is beneficial to him. However, even without joining a faction, it will be possible to become a dominant force by cooperating with others, for example when the scientists will lose the protection from the military, it will be possible to give them a hint about some guys from Freedom who are eager to grant scientists their services for a small price. For the Freedom faction it will mean a stable financial income and for the player – good relations with the faction and an access to their up-to-date equipment. ”Duty” will support you with machineguns, assault rifles and heavy armor, while ”Freedom” will equip you with sniper weaponry and their armor which is more suitable for exploration and protection from the environmental hazards. The bandits will possibly equip you with shotguns, but it is not clear yet.
Some side-quests have already been shown. For example, we can take a quest from the barman to find a specific artifact on the abandoned fishing vessel – the player finds the ship being surrounded and filled with anomalies, and when he finds his way through all the traps, finds the artifact and leaves the ship, he will be greeted by a stalker, who will ask the player to give him this artifact, as it is the only thing which can save his dying friend. If you’ll refuse to handle him the artifact – two heavy armed stalkers will block the road and ask you the same thing but in the less polite manner. If you will give the artifact, the two heavy armed stalkers will wait until the first one will run away, and then you can find him at the barman’s place selling the artifact. Of course the barman doesn’t care who found it first and the only thing he will say to your complaints is: ”This is the Zone, son.”
Another quest that has been showcased is from Sultan’s bandits. They try to establish control over stalkers, so they are attempting to make a raid at night on one of the stalkers’ bases. You can accept their offer and kill the stalkers or you can warn the stalkers of this threat and they will give you a counter-mission to engage the raid with the bandits but shoot them in the back. What to do is up to the player, but the both decisions will affect his reputation among stalkers and bandits.
The game is expected to have 20 unique characters with unique appearances taken from real life people.
well mates. what this fine fellow missed was that there will be three major zones. no more tiny little zones. *cough* Yantar *cough*. anyways each one will probably be about the size of apogram, the garbage, and cordon all pushed together. so for you modders out there who could never really find ideal space to use a car mod in the cramped spaces of the zone. call of pripyat is for you!
I just wished They would re-consider about getting rid the warring factions part, Okay… It may need bit more polishing but it do show lotsa promises, And their implementation of numerous factions actually worked better than … lets say in FARCRY2. Atleast in STALKER the AI knows whos friend and whos the foes, While in FARCRY2 “factions” tends to be just a hollow promises… And most of the times You will just end up being shot at, blown and maimed by almost everybody else in the continent
Besides factions and gangs would bring more immersion in the STALKER world… Afteral whos gonna wander the wasteland alone? IN harsh enviroments, Logicaly Ppl would have the tendency to band up for survival.
What about Co-op ? Will that be possible now ?
Im Yousif…a pharmacist from Iraq…
I really liked this game…both SoC and CS…they are great immersive and beautifull…
the bugs problem is not that big and I only had 2 or 3 crashs in each version…so please forgive GSC and remember all the brilliant things that they did for us…
also another aspect that you didnt think about
as a small note I say:since Im commetted to my religion(which I infinitely love)and Islam prohibits the use of woman for all commercial purposes ,I find this game extremely unique since it doesnt use women charecters and seduction,tempetation and nudity just for attracting more teen and hoping that the sellings of this game will increase by trying to sell few extra copies of the game to those who are not seeking genuine gameplay and real atmosphere but seeking only some semi-naked cutscenes…
at last…I love you all stalker fans and wish you enjoy the CoP without any disappoinments
sorry if I had any spelling errors
Well, it sound great, but one thing, science I have played SOC for about 12 times, comes to my mind each time I read something new about CS or COP and that is..Will there be a posibylity to make your own crew ?? Crew of lets say 5 Stalkers and with you among them and to act as a team with all of the comands and stuf that we can find in ARMA2 or SWAT .
That is the only thing that is missing, othervise S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is still greatest game for me :)
Can’t wait for this!! STalkers by far the best game thats came out for computer in my opinion, i need to know when it’s out in the UK tho!!!!
I think it’s true that it should be tested
This game is awsome…just awsome…ofcourse it needs REALLY GOOD polishing b4 its Realease,, i downloaded the Russian version with the well known crappy transelation…i’ve fixed some BAD ENGLISH mistakes for my use :D,,and it crashes the momment im loading PRIPYAT ,,actually i got happy that i didnt get to see pripyat ,,,so i’ll see it in the full international game,,i tell u guys,,the game is awsomeeee,,and its scary to get spotted by a pack or eapecially that midget in the black jacket,, RUNNNNNNNN to the base and feel safe again,,hehe just awsome….
Wow rlly.
That sounds great.
I also downloaded this game only to see how the atmosphere was.
Then i dealeted it.
Zaton was huge & great can’t wait for the realese.
I have “not legit” copy of COP. The game crashes while loading Pripyat location.
Anybody knows how to fix it?
In the other forum smb said to change the engine, but it doesnt work.
I have legal COP, but i have the same problem.
The game crashes while loading Pripyat location