Stalker, old and new

A few months ago CSG worlds released a free version of Stalker from 2004, and seeing how I have played though the original (Or should I say the production version) many times, I jumped on the opportunity to see how one of my favorite games of recent times looked many years ago. I have looked at all the old screenshots, but seeing it in motion was even better. Some of the things that interested me were what changed, what didn't, and what the community thought.

First off what I saw right away in the 2004 release (I'll refer to it as ST04) was the size of the levels and how much bigger they were. I know for one like big levels, or bigger level, but I think this is one case where less is definitely more. In the retail version of Stalker (STSoC) the levels seem like the perfect size for the first couple of playthroughs; there is enough there to keep you entertained given the amount of different types of AI, anomalies, walking speed, etc. ST04’s levels were too big some of them, like Dark Valley, Yantar, and the reactor. They were trying to go for an open world type game, I think, and I liken Stalker more to a game like Crysis in this case. It had that open world feeling, but smaller doses worked better in the end. STSoC ended up being much more cohesive with smaller levels that were better distilled for action and exploration, or the fact that they were much less confusing and better on memory as well.
A couple of examples:

1. Garbage, it had a lot of extra tunnels and routes under the factory. Sure they could have put rats in there, but aside from that, and a few items, there really wasn’t anything to do except move forward or backwards. Stalker isn’t known for disabling traps and security systems to gain access to an area. Not to mention ST04’s garbage was a LOT longer too, and with all the back and forth story elements, I’m glad it was cut down in size.
2. Agroprom and the Bar / Wildlands, both split into two levels. I find this interesting more from an “Oooh! This is how these two levels connect!!” perspective  Of course it’s more memory friendly, and easier to script / debug.
3. Underground labs were simplified and made more linear. Now this might sound like an issue, but I find it quite refreshing. The world provides enough variety for open-worldness, and the labs give me just the opposite: a nice linear adventure.
4. Yantar ended up being MUCH different, and while I can’t comment on how ST04’s version would have ended up, I LOVE the final version. ST04’s version looks like it may have been one of the first levels in the game, remnants of 2001 when the project began. It LOOKED like it was heading more towards the style of The Warehouses in STSoc, but I’m glad it didn’t 
5. Power station. While very cool that I can walk around the entire Chernobyl power station on foot, verbatim… aside from fighting off wild animals and getting irradiated, there didn’t seem to be much to do in ST04.

Of course the art changed too, for the better. Strangely enough some of the levels that never made it into the final release looked to be furthest in development, and the most interesting story wise.

Next, some of the things that stayed the same interest me on a more personal level. I guess it gives me some insight into the minds of the developers in some way. Aside from the obvious like monsters and weapons, a lot of the levels stayed the same… except they were more condensed. I find this interesting because it seems like Stalker was going to be much more straight forward action. 4 years later it turns into this choose your own adventure type game using a lot of the same assets.

Finally what really caught my attention was the community’s reaction to this. A lot of people seemed to think that ST04’s atmosphere was much better than STSoC. Huh?! First off ST04 doesn’t have much of a developed atmosphere or mood because there is no music, no sounds, none of the cool ambience and weather effects that they put into STSoC. One of the best things about Stalker, in my mind, is the incredible atmosphere. It feels so real at times that it makes me want to jump into the game world and experience it in person. That’s saying something considering everyone lives in a deadly, radiation ridden dystopian wasteland. ST04, on the other hand, felt empty, dead, and boring… a testament to how incomplete it really was at the time.

Stalker isn't the only game I've had the privilege of playing both the final retail version and an earlier version. Doom comes to mind, as do all the games I've worked on. But it's one of the more modern games, and one that I really enjoy. If someone released an early version of Deus Ex, or System Shock 2, I would be playing those in a heart beat... and posting about it too ;)