S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky

The way the game is a whole response to the shortcomings of the original just goes to demonstrate how GSC believes in this title and IP. [Nov 2008, p.51]

This is a real PC game, for real PC gamers. We haven't enjoyed a FPS RPG this much since "Deus Ex." [Issue#12, p.54]

Clear Sky is a unique experience, so far unparalleled save for its predecessor. [Oct 2008, p.52]

Clear Sky delivers a more AI-driven, frightening and altogether more dangerous world than its predecessor ever could. [Oct 2008, p.77]

Clear Sky may not be as action-orientated, polished and visually stunning as Crysis or other “Hollywood-Shooters”, but it definitely has got its very own charm, that it’s easy to fall for. In short: Who liked the original Chernobyl Lost, will love Clear Sky!

Intense atmosphere, interesting story, but some deficits in the graphics and interaction with the environment! In general, Deep Silver presents an exciting title not only for shooter fans.

As a title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Clear Sky presents an interesting challenge for the reviewer. The game tries to be many things, succeeding at some while falling well short of the mark in other areas. Are glaring flaws to be overlooked in recognition of genuine ambition, even occasional moments of brilliance?

The faction wars are an interesting concept, but the game is mostly about the player making his way through the zone and uncovering some of its secrets. It's a bit more about gunfights and a lot less scary than its predecessor, but overall, Clear Sky improves upon the original in many ways while using the same strengths that made it so compelling in the first place.

More or less the same game as its predecessor. Atmosphere is still amazing and zone is a fascinating place to adventure in, but there is far too much travelling back and forth and there still isn't any real story to talk of. Great game for people who want to immerse themselves in the surrounding world, less so for competitive pc shooter fans. [Sept 2008]

This is a truly dark game that has a compelling and mysterious story. You will be on the edge of your seat as the mystery gradually unfolds. The game breaking bugs of the initial release, and the need to mod the game, severely affect the rating of what would otherwise be a very good game.

Amidst its several flaws, both design and bugs, Clear Sky holds a series of virtues able to grab those who expect the action part, but value atmosphere, immersion and survival instinct.

Everything that annoyed the hell out of me in the first edition has been fixed. The new story predating the original is much better presented and more coherent. Spectacular lightning effects are just the icing on a cake, which is a boon, because turning them off boosts the framerate considerably. [Oct 2008]

As sequels/prequels go, S:CS is a good one. It introduces a new engaging storyline, adding some features but by and large leaving the good things about the first game alone.

If you're interested in exploring odd corners and beautiful landscapes on your own initiative, it's a safe bet that you're going to enjoy the S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Clear Sky experience.

The second episode of Shadow of Chernobyl is a mere update of contents, a version 1.5 of the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R. The overcrowding of the maps, the control system of territories and the more focused rate towards the action might irritate some and please others; but somehow they are incorporations that take away from the horror atmosphere of the series and turn it into a more conventional and repetitive action game. Nevertheless Clear Sky continues being a really interesting FPS and we enjoy its difficult and unpredictable proposal and, especially, if we play it on a high end PC.

It’s not that Clear Sky is a bad game. It just doesn’t strike the same resonant chord that made the original’s many flaws forgivable.

The game stability improvements and faction system certainly make this a technological step up from the original, but they don't add up to a compelling reason to replay the same game. [Dec 2008, p.62]

Overall, however, it comes together as a good post-apocalyptic first-person shooter.

Much like the original, it has a charm about it that makes you want to like it yet it is hugely flawed, with its many reported bugs and performance problems. It doesn't quite deserve the term 'flawed gem' but nor does it deserve to be discarded either.

This game tries to tell what happened before Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl, but may require a few more patches to be able to do so. At least version 1.5.03 is full of bugs, crashes, long loading times, broken save games and design errors, which is a shame because that's what stops the game from being great. Theoretically this could all be fixed by patches and just like with Stalker, this may take a while.

What Clear Sky doesn't deliver is the abject, adjust-your-gamma terror of its predecessor.

Fans of the original Stalker will love Clear Sky – without a doubt, it’s everything the original was, but with a fresh take on the world of the Zone and an engine that impresses rather than just scrapes by.