This weekends Steam special is a great bargain. You get two of the three Stalker games (Shadow of Cherobyl and the latest release Call of Pripyat) for 75% off at a cost of only £6.24 (usually £24.99, originally nearly £50 for both of them). Shadow of Chernobyl was released in 2007 and Call of Pripyat this year (2010). You can check the deal out via the following link:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/4500/
Shadow of Chernobyl:
The Game:
In 1986, the world's worst nuclear disaster occurred at the Chernobyl power station. Soviet authorities established a 30km 'Exclusion Zone' around this nuclear wasteland, but in 2006 a second explosion rocked the stricken reactor, obliterating all living things and causing the Zone's boundaries to ripple outwards. From this epicenter came waves of mutated creatures, deadly radiation, and a strange, anomalous energy. The Zone was cordoned off by the military, who would shoot on sight anyone foolish enough to brave the horrors within.
It is now 2012 - man has ventured further and further into the heart of the Zone driven by reports of strange 'artifacts' imbued with anomalous energy. Mercenaries and bounty hunters compete to recover these artifacts, which command extortionate prices on the black market. Others seek to find the truth behind the Zone, while some merely revel in the desolate lawlessness of the place. Whatever their motivation, over time these individuals - Scavengers, Trespassers, Adventurers, Loners, Killer, Explorers and Robbers - have become known as S.T.A.L.K.E.R.s.
Awakening in the Zone, you are one such S.T.A.L.K.E.R., fighting for survival in this man-made Hell, while trying to discover the truth behind Chernobyl's sinister past and ominous future.
• An immersive storyline seamlessly blended with a living, breathing, non-linear open-world environment governed by the revolutionary 'A-Life' system.
• Accurately modeled real-world buildings and locations from deep inside the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.
• Unique 'Survival FPS' game play - combines action, stealth, survival and RPG elements to create an incomparable experience in the Zone.
• Enemy Threat Evaluation AI system - NPC characters react dynamically to environments and situations.
• Brutally realistic combat mechanics - weapons display accurate ballistic properties and can be modified with silencers and telescopic scopes.
• Dynamic day/night and weather system directly impacts game play.
• Advanced physics and dynamic lighting effects powered by the proprietary 'X-Ray Engine'.
• Intense multiplayer action, supporting up to 32 players.
Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWt3tOt3Nmg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mDpclLeahs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDqpXzutLZg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdCplfthCtI
System Requirements:
Minimum: Microsoft® Windows® XP (Service Pack 2)/Microsoft® Windows® 2000 SP4, Intel Pentium 4 2 Ghz/AMD XP 2200+, 512 MB RAM, 10 GB available hard drive space, 128 MB DirectX® 9c compatible card/ nVIDIA® GeForce™ 5700/ATI Radeon® 9600, DirectX® 9 compatible sound card, LAN/ Internet connection with Cable/DSL speeds for multiplayer, Keyboard, Mouse
Recommended: Intel Core 2 Duo E6400/AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+, 1 GB RAM or better, 256 MB DirectX® 9c compatible card/ nVIDIA® GeForce™ 7900/ ATI Radeon® X1850
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Call of Pripyat:
The Game:
With over 2 million copies sold, the new episode of the most internationally successful S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series seamlessly connects to the first part of the Shadow of Chernobyl. S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat takes PC gamers once again into the vicinity of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor that exploded in 1986. This so-called "Zone" is a highly contaminated area cordoned off by the military and now is combed through by the so-called stalkers, modern fortune hunters, in search of unique artifacts. In the role of Agent Alexander Degtyarev, who is dressed up as stalker, the player has to investigate the mysterious disappearance of five military helicopters and thereby stand one’s ground against the various stalker groups.
Features:
• One of the first DirectX11 games
• Story begins where S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl has ended
• Photorealistic exclusion Zone : All locations are recreated by their true-to-life prototypes based on photographs
• New exciting storyline with a number of unique characters
• Extended system of handmade side quests
• New monsters: Chimera and Burer. New behavior and abilities for all monsters
• New A-Life system, created using the players’ best-liked elements of the first two games in series
• Emissions considerably influence the world of the Zone
• Sleep function added into the game
• New player’s interface
• Possibility to continue the game after completion in a free play mode
• Up to 32 players can compete in the multiplayer part.
• Four different play modes and a countless amount of maps are available
Video: (spoiler walkthroughs)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYxnohR76xg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRtGrzKKOvc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cmbqEO6f0s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHYrq91CdgQ
System Requirements
Minimum:
o OS: Windows XP, SP2
o Processor: 2.2 GHz Intel Pentium 4/ 2.2. GHz AMD Athlon XP 2200+
o Memory: 768 MB RAM
o Graphics: nVidia GeForce 5900 128MB / AMD Radeon 9600 XT 128 MB
o DirectX®: DirectX 9 compatible
o Hard Drive: 6 GB of free space
o Sound: DirectX 9 compatible
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You can get the second Stalker:Clear Sky for £7.99, but that isn't on sale at this time. Despite it being the second game in the series it actually pre dates the events depicted in the first game. Still, a worthwhile title to own of you like the original game.
Check it out HERE
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