S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl
As this hasn't been remastered, and the original is still being sold on Steam for €16, I guess I'm just going to review it like a normal game. I picked this up wondering whether it was worth playing through the old games in preparation for the new one coming out next year but unfortunately I really can't recommend it. I never really played it when it first came out, so I don't have any nostalgia attached to it. I've tried to play it three times over the last few months, but it just really doesn't feel worth the effort given it's age. Movement is clunky, the controls are bad, the UI is horrible. There isn't really anything drawing me in to discover what's happening.
Cons
- Really low quality graphics (presumably on-par with the release date)
- Voice lines from the same NPC interrupt each other and cut out
- When you start a new game, there's basically zero context to what's going on
- Bad movement controls
- Combat is really REALLY dated
- Buildings are empty with nothing interesting to discover