I actually finished a game last night, S

July 06, 2007 by Adam in Adam's Games

I actually finished a game last night, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. (yes, it has all those periods in the title). It was from a Russian developer, which probably reflects its greatest strengths and weaknesses. It had lots of style and a lot of bad endings. The best was merely surviving and making the world a slightly better place. It was also difficult in many ways, with a strict weight limit, weapons and armor that broke down over time, requirements for food, dangerous radiation, and endless enemies that were often tougher than you.

I did pretty well, right up until the final levels. I found myself at the Chernobyl power plant without medical equipment, my armor in tatters, and extremely tough enemies all around. I got reasonably far using a run and hide approach, but this became impossible at the very end. Eventually I gave in after my 20th reload, downloading a trainer and making myself invulnerable for the rest of the game.

I still have Jade Empire to finish, though I'm not sure when I'll find the time to work on that next. Mostly I'm keeping my play time open until Bioshock arrives next month. That should be entertaining.