Not everything works, of course. The faction fights seem too easy, which is balanced out by the ridiculously accurate grenade throws. The story doesn't offer much of a foundation for the action, either. The real shame of it all is that the game was let out the door with so many bugs, some that merely slowed IGN's progress and dampened their enjoyment, and one that actually stopped them cold. Many of these issues are bound to be addressed in upcoming patches but IGN would wait until the game has at least a few under its belt before trying to tackle it again.
Presentation - 6.5
Graphics - 8.5
Sound - 8.0
Gameplay - 7.0
Lasting Appeal - 6.5
Overall -
Review - S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky should be seen as an expansion rather than a full prequel, but it is one that fans will enjoy nonetheless.
The S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games have greatly influenced the Eastern European games that came later. In this, the second of a two-part miniseries exploring these influences, we investigate the gameplay mechanics that make "Stalkerlikes" what they are.
DSOGaming writes: "RemasterStudio has released the first beta version of a graphics overhaul mod for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Clear Sky. STALKER Clear Sky Remaster ports the game to the latest version of the X-Ray Engine, and introduces a lot of modern-day graphical features."
It's just a shame that these guys have been hard at work on the first game for about 5 years, hoping to turn it in to a killer IP, but critically, did horrid. I guess that's what you get when you try something new, and that's the hard lesson that Infrogames, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. devs, Timeshift devs and many others had to learn the hard way.
When the first Stalker came out, it quickly became my personal best game of the year, despite its flaws and bugs. There is just no other game like it: the atmosphere portrayed and the gameplay were out of this world and it's to this date one of the rare games that I actually enjoyed replaying years after it came out -after many patch updates. Reading all these reviews, I find myself wondering if they're playing the same game as I am: I don't find it as difficult as they say it can be and the new gameplay elements are just great (best of: the new weapon customisations and the ability to repair them as well as armors). Granted, bugs are still there and there are minor drawbacks but so far (that's about 4 hours into the game, not much) I am enjoying it just as much as the first one: it's the world that takes the crown and, to be honest, whether the acting or the story are as good or not, it just doesn't take away the pleasure of playing the game: if you don't like the dialogues or cutscenes, just skip them! Oh, yes, those pesky grenades...I can only say one thing: if you know they've got grenades, and you're a "STALKER", well, don't get so damn close in the first place and keep on the move! This game is also about exploration: finding the right weapons and right customisations will let you sail through. I don't particularly like review scores -what you read about a game should be enough for you to get the right idea- but I am glad IGN is letting the door open for a possible re-review once a few patches have been added: I'll most likely re-play it myself once the bugs and slight balance issues are ironed out.