Metro 2033

[Member_of_STARS]

Theres few similarities between Fallout and M2033, only one I know of being merely the initial setting. Expect M2033 to be a much grittier and "realistic" depiction of human suffering, level design and setting. Remember that these people are the same ones who worked on STALKER, which level and character design is 100% through and through nostalgic, depressing, isolating. Level design is not based on artificial impressions but rather as close as possible moments of ones personal experience if he would be in that particular setting (Chernobyl).

Considering STALKER (not the two sequels) is one of the very few examples of Russian videogame-making which has such production value, its too early to tell, but I hope that with the success of Metro 2033, we get to see a rise of Russkye igroproizvodstvo , and see a different emotional and visual outlook on the FPS genre.

This makes me really hopeful because Russians have always differed from the West in terms of entertainment (not worse, not better, but significantly different), and if this transfers to videogames, popular and good ones, its going to give us variety.

If anyone is interested in how and what STALKER feels and plays like, they should get the original STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl, and download a modification pack I can provide. Ask Zombie Fred, hes just one of the many satisfied customers. STALKER also gives you great insight on Soviet architexture and "Russian spirit", not to mention that the game is incredibly fun and challenging, and its horror moments easily rival the best in the industry at the moment. Even though its released only on PC, its hardware requirements are significantly below modern standards.

If theres one positive thing Ive seen in the recent videogame industry trends, its Russians. But if Im going to be wrong, and the game tanks, Ill probably ragequit the internet, haha.

[doomed]

Apart from the not that great facial animation of the characters the game looks like it will be a hit. I'm anxiously waiting for it.

[Member_of_STARS]

First reviews out. The game is apparently poorly optimized on the PC. The good and bad sides from some articles so far-

+ Stunning atmosphere, has been compared to Half Life at least once, and thats not something to be taken lightly
+ Immersive gameplay

- Terrible gunplay (Welcome to vanilla STALKER, on PC, this will be fixed with mods, console players have to swallow it up. I wont judge anyone who thinks its going to be a gamebreaker, personally)
- Terrible optimization on PCs

[WeskerIncarnate]

First reviews out. The game is apparently poorly optimized on the PC. The good and bad sides from some articles so far-

+ Stunning atmosphere, has been compared to Half Life at least once, and thats not something to be taken lightly
+ Immersive gameplay

- Terrible gunplay (Welcome to vanilla STALKER, on PC, this will be fixed with mods, console players have to swallow it up. I wont judge anyone who thinks its going to be a gamebreaker, personally)
- Terrible optimization on PCs

Terrible optimization indeed. The recommended specs for the game are outrageous.

And yeah, that's why I'm getting the PC version (mods).

[doomed]

On the contrary, I believe that the game is very well optimized.

My "ancient" 8800GT (which according to the game is the minimum requirement) runs it most of the time at 50+ fps on High, dx10. In combat-heavy situations I get about 30 or so. Not that bad considering the quality of the graphics.

But yes gunplay is boring.

[randomwab]

Getting my copy later, but from what I've heard, it's well optimized for modest rigs.

The Optimum specs are amazing though. It looks like this is the new Crysis, a game to bring rigs to their knees.

Is the gunplay really that bad? Such a pity.

[Member_of_STARS]

On the contrary, I believe that the game is very well optimized.

This is great news.

Wab, from the collective opinions Ive gathered that while the gunplay is boring, there are considerable stealth elements in the game (or maybe the game is well scripted) and overall it makes little impact to the atmosphere and enjoyment from gameplay. The level design is just brilliant. I saw a video where youre sneaking with a guy into an enemy encampment, and he starts talking about "an alarm system- old, but very effective", as if it was some electronic masterpiece. As you look at the floor, there are tin-cans tied to a string, hanging from the ceiling at almost floor level. Cracked me up.

The poor gun mechanics can be attributed to how ammunition and weaponry are treated in the game. Most of those are second-hand old junk and garbage, the most valuable currency is pre-war ammo which is in mint condition.

I have to play the game myself, but so far, a few bugs aside, it seems like theres a shitload of thought put into it, and the flaws may actually be features.

[randomwab]

Wab, from the collective opinions Ive gathered that while the gunplay is boring, there are considerable stealth elements in the game (or maybe the game is well scripted) and overall it makes little impact to the atmosphere and enjoyment from gameplay.

I think I read that several of the levels can be tackled a variety of ways, for example, shooting out the lights in a tunnel and sneaking by enemies.

Either way, I've suffered through bad mechanics before for the sake of story and atmosphere, so I can't wait to dig in tonight.

Are you going with the 360 or PC version, MoS?

[Member_of_STARS]

Are you going with the 360 or PC version, MoS?

PC, definitely. Its a Russian game which means its going to be modded through and through. You can expect enemy AI improvement, various dialogue and bug fixes, graphics tweaks, weapon rebalancing, et cetera.

I just saw the Gamespot review, and firefight mechanics suck, terribly. Thanks in no small part to ridiculously stupid AI. Russian modding community is extremely talented and very enthusiastic, so theyll take care of it, which is why I think the game is best played on the PC in about 2 months or so.

But still, god damn. This is STALKER all over again.

[doomed]

For mods a repacker needs to be made as the game is not mod-friendly.

The problem with the shooting aspect of the game is that the enemies do not react to your bullets.

[Member_of_STARS]

For mods a repacker needs to be made as the game is not mod-friendly.

The problem with the shooting aspect of the game is that the enemies do not react to your bullets.

Well, lets hope they took more along with them than just some ambient sounds, as STALKER didnt need a repacker either.

[randomwab]

Played about an hour of this, and just wanted to throw some quick impressions up before I went out.

Graphics are fantastic. It's running beautifully smooth on my rig with High DX10 settings, and the lighting is just amazing.

I was actually shocked to see that there wasn't much weapon movement/head bob when moving the character, like Killzone 2 or Bad Company 2. For some reason I just assumed they would have something like that. A small thing, but it took me by surprise for whatever reason.

As for the gameplay, it's incredibly tense. Knowing that bullets are also used for your currency really does give you a whole different approach, and I found myself cursing with each wasted shot. And I've never been so desperate to scavenge the area after a fire fight before.

I also like how they're trying to convey a sense of what life in each station is like, with short walks through them before the tunnels.

Can't wait to play some more later.

[Branden_Lucero]

was gonna purchase this game on PC anyways. but not at the moment, i'll wait for a price drop, if this game still holds interest later.

[WeskerIncarnate]

On the contrary, I believe that the game is very well optimized.

My "ancient" 8800GT (which according to the game is the minimum requirement) runs it most of the time at 50+ fps on High, dx10. In combat-heavy situations I get about 30 or so. Not that bad considering the quality of the graphics.

But yes gunplay is boring.

8800 GT? HIGH SETTINGS WITH DX10?

This is great news. My 4670 will tackle it with ease.

[WeskerIncarnate]

Played about an hour and a half of it. A couple things I noticed, some good, some bad:

I haven't seen worse enemy A.I. in all honestly. The monsters are a bit better then the humans (who are absolutely God awful), but overall, I honestly can't believed the game was released with A.I. this bad. You can literally stand in front of enemy humans for several seconds or more before they even react. I'm glad I picked hardcore difficulty.

The graphics are great, hands down. I can't run them at max settings, but I run the pretty close to.

The environments are great as well, and you'll find yourself looking around, soaking in every bit of it. This is definitely one of the high lights of the game for me.

The gun play is very...meh. As someone earlier said, enemies don't react well to bullets (at least the monsters don't. I've noticed it with humans).

That's it.