First impressions

[deadman1]

Just started on Clear sky after I gave up on SOH. I basically screwed up in not bringing any radprotective suit to the sarcophagus so as soon as I moved anywhere I got anoung rads to become my own nuclear reactor :))

The biggest difference between CS and SOH is the graphics, they look great for a game as old as CS. And I think it´s a lot more demanding gameplaywise, I´m using the same difficulty (novice) in both games and SOH was much more forgiving in the beginning. I´ve lost count on how many times I have died so far. And thst´s just in the first area of the game  :o. I just made it into Cordon and it´s nice to see that it´looks like it did in SOH, it´ll be sooo much easier to find my way around now  ;)

[Art Blade]

Since I never played SOH, I only know CS, I can relate  ;D When I started CS, the map was a little less easy to read. They patched CS and it was different but better, after I got used to the new map layout.

Indeed, I got killed countless times, and only leaving Cordon (an enclosed area where you start) already got me killed a lot because the exit of Cordon leads you to a decently guarded bottleneck, military units and watchtowers are quite alert once you try to enter the real game (Cordon being sort of a tutorial).

However, you get used to it and start enjoying it after a while.

One tip: Don't sell any of the artefacts. They are limited and may be of use later on in the game, especially if you combine them.

[RedRaven]

 I moved onto Clear Sky as soon as it was released after playing SoC many many times. Personally I found it disappointing at first, whilst the graphics were an improvement on those in the 'vanilla' SoC for me Clear Sky lacked the dark and ominous atmosphere that managed to both enthral and scare me at the same time.
However after sticking with it I did really enjoy the game and some of the changes in how it played from SoC, the faction wars is a good addition, enabling you to w@&k for and against the many factions active in the Zone. Also the equipment upgrade side of it was interesting. You could still get silencers, scopes and grenade launchers for various weapons like in SoC, but with the added bonus of being able to use technicians to customise your weapons further (side note - whilst playing I noticed one of the common weapon upgrades was the reduction of 'flatness' I spent ages searching through many forums trying to find out exactly what it meant and what it affected. In Pripyat there is the same thing but this time it actually tells you what it does - flatness is to do with the trajectory of the bullet as it flies through the air, better flatness = less drop-off).

I hope you get into it and enjoy it, I too got killed loads at the start, as I got further into it and got slightly better weapons and armour I lasted longer (most of the time anyway :-\ ).

[Ricamundo]

I have been having so much fun with COP i decided to order CS today. :) Amazon.ca had only 1 used copy, so i grabbed it.

[PZ]

Enjoy, Ric - looking forward to your impressions of the game  :-X

[Art Blade]

You'll like it, I'm sure :)

[Ricamundo]

On a slightly related note, has anyone played Metro 2033? I havent found a mention of it here. If i continue down the Russian shooter front after CS, im wondering about SoC or Metro.

[PZ]

I feel like Art  :-()

I actually remembered to look in one of the indexes he maintains, "Other games" which includes a topic about Metro 2003  :-()

[Art Blade]

 ^+-+ :-X

[Ricamundo]

Yep, if CS is even close to being as much fun as CoP is for me right now, i may have to grab SoC and have the trifecta. ;)

[Art Blade]

go for it  :) :-X

[Ricamundo]

CS arrived in the mail yesterday. 8) I just finished installing it, and decided to patch it to the latest official version, v1.510 or something like that. I wanted it patched before the start of play, so all ive done so far is set up the keyboard as close to CoP as i can recall. I watched a couple of Youtube vids of the start, and the look, sounds and feel of CS makes me feel right at home. :-X  Impressions to follow. ;)

[Art Blade]

 :) Enjoy and have fun, matey  :-X

[Ricamundo]

Sorry for the delay. After several days of being computerless, followed by a few days of business and playing other games, i finally got stuck in with CS today.

OK, ive listened to Lebedev drone on and on, listened to a couple of others in the camp drone on and on, so finally i get to go out on a mission of sorts but only with a Guide. ::) A bit of a ruck against some Renegades, and a few wild boars, and im starting to get the feel of the place, but wait... i cant even wade into the water without dying of rad poisoning? yikes! ive died several times, and not once from a battle. Wow. By being forced to stick to the difficult to see paths and wooden bridges, it almost seems like the antithithis of an open world game, anyway...

after wandering about here and there, ive realized the PDA isnt as user friendly in CS as it is in CoP, in fact i can see now where CoP really made quite a few improvements to SP gameplay. You all know the old seafarer's explression "Water water everywhere, but not a drop to drink"? Well, in the Clear Sky camp, its bedrolls bedrolls everywhere, but not a bed to sleep in. :'( So i had to wnader about fior a few game hours until dawn.

So, no sleeping or waiting, apparently. Doh!! :D Also no handy storage box for excess loot and supplies, and not only that, most of my fellow Mercs will trade with me and seem to have lots of cash, but none are interested in my extra guns, or ammo. Just food and meds.  ::)

After a while, i discovered that you can shoot open random crates for supplies, so thats cool. I also fixed another problem, that of a 50 KG carry limit, with a little mod that raised it to 500KG. Sweet!

More tomorrow, my dinner awaits. :-D

[Ricamundo]

A little update. I found a cool little mod for CS that adds a sleeping bag to your backpack. Just double click on it and a window pops up with a timescale in 1 hour increments, up to 12 hours of sleep. comes with a built in snore. ^+-+

One question. There's invisible fences, well you see the fence posts, that wont allow you to go beyond certain points, but i have a target in an unaccessible area that i cannot reach. Are areas like that part of the next map perhaps?

[Art Blade]

sounds about right. Some areas will be unlocked with time.

[Ricamundo]

I moved into the Cordon yesterday.  SPOILERS>>>> A small but fun area with a challenging entrance coming out of that tunnel. ??? After a few attempts, i found that running towards the fence on the other side of the turret was quite easy. Later on i went back and took out the Military guards and scored several weapons. Of course they all re spawned in no time. One thing about CS that i find quite annoying is that most of the NPC's bodies disappear almost instantly after you kill them, even when close by. This prevents me looting them for medkits and ammo. All thats left are the weapons they were using. ::) The other is the crap return i get when selling stuff. If i were to sell a 300 Ru medkit for example, all i get is 100 Ru. If i wanted to buy back the same medkit, it would cost me 650 Ru! Ironically, as ive struggled to earn Rubles, i would have to pay more to Guides to travel back to previous maps in CS than i did in CoP where making a lot of loot was quite easy. Sigh. :-\

I just went into the "Garbage" area, and had a good battle in the first junk yard. I picked up 2 atifacts too. Yay!

[Art Blade]

Nice ;D

Rica, I notice you frequently type something you consider a spoiler. May I show you how to successfully hide that information from people you don't want to read that stuff? Just look for an icon above the smiley bar that looks like a nuclear warning symbol, I see it's just below the pull-down menu "change color" and it produces two tags like "[spoiler ][/spoiler ]" -- just type your stuff between those like this:

Spoiler

you can use a dead body to carry a lot of loot around. Kill someone, loot him and stash his stuff inside a body then drag that body around with you and keep filling it. Like that, I was able to carry like 300kg of weapons to an arms dealer, the weapons of all men I killed at the army outpost  >:D

[Ricamundo]

Spoiler

ok ill give it a go

[Ricamundo]

Thx Art. :-X I dont know if i need to warn anyone here of potential spoilers, as i seem to be the only one playing the STALKER series atm, but someone may try them later on. I have to say tho, that personally, i really dont mind reading spoilers as the hints may save me a lot of trouble if and when i get into those games.

Spoiler

I've contued theu the Garbage area, and the game seems tio be getting harder. The respawning is ridiculous at times. I cleared out a nest of bandits, and before ive finished picking up their weapons, and searching any bodies that havent vanished before my eyes, a fresh gang of the buggers is approaching and i have to either try and do it again, or take off and seek a save place to catch my breath. ::) The stealth radiation zones are an issue. I'll just wandering thru different areas offroad, and before i can react and back off, ive recieved a lethal dose of rads, or worse, be caught in a red zone of rads which wont let me go until i either die, or load a save. Argh! Ita also really hard to make much money here, as ive had to spend quite a bit to repair my armor and upgrade a couple of my preferred weapons, all the while have to pay lots for medkits, as they are hard to find in this area. :-[

[Art Blade]

that game is tough at times. It will be easier once you get into the faction wars and sign up with one of the parties. It will affect the gameplay, like if you join the bandits, everyone will hate you even if they used to be your friends. Joining a party will grant you access to stuff that isn't accessible to outsiders. That is good for replay value, playing in different gangs and see how you manage :) Just do it so you can check out the gear they offer, then revert to the savegame and join a different party and so on.. nice :)

[PZ]

I too love to read spoilers, even if I plan to play a game.  I like to know in advance what I'm in for.  :-()

[Art Blade]

same :) And for me spoiler information and gaming are two different things: reading about it and eventually playing it yourself to get there.

[Ricamundo]

I'll give you an example. I had started playing CS, and had been on the very first mish, helping the CS clan defend a watchtower of some kind. Later on i was watching a YT vid of a wlkthrough of some kind, and realised there was an easy to get Artifact that absorbs radiation near that tower. I had to find a way back there without walking into any water, or into an anomoly. The map was not much help, as that remote area wasnt clearly marked, but i have it now, and im sure its saved me more than once. :-X

The respawning is exasperating tho, as i barely turn around after killing several bandits(Garbage Zone) and there's 6 more appearing suddenly 50 yards away. Sheesh! :o TBH, im not sure what annoys me more, the respawning, or the almost instantly disappearing  bandits' bodies, gone before i can loot them. :D

[Art Blade]

Most of the time I only got to pick up weapons and ammo, the previous owners had already dissipated. However, when I wasn't in a rush, I found a way to get my stuff: Don't play walking weapon of mass destruction. Kill one enemy at the time, dash over and loot him :)