Although S.T.A.L.Okay.E.R.: Legends of the Zone Trilogy – Enhanced Edition launched on Could 20 providing free “totally remastered and optimized” upgrades for all house owners of the authentic trilogy, developer GSC Sport World has been below siege by a evaluation bomb marketing campaign after gamers found the Russian voice performing and “Soviet-period” landmarks had been quietly eliminated.
S.T.A.L.Okay.E.R.: Legends of the Zone Trilogy – Enhanced Edition consists of remastered variations of Shadow of Chornobyl (2007), Clear Sky (2008), and Name of Prypiat (2009) with upgraded visuals, subsequent-gen console optimizations, and expanded mod help. Nevertheless, shortly after launch, all video games plummeted to a “largely unfavorable” score on Steam as gamers flooded the evaluation part to complain about blurry visuals and register their dismay that the video games had been now “blurry, censored, and revised, [with] added ads.”
“So I personal the originals and performed them to demise. If I get an enhanced version I wish to be excited after I boot it up, to see one thing completely different that makes we wish to re-have interaction with the recreation. This is not it,” explained one player. “The graphics aren’t upgraded sufficient to get enthusiastic about, I’ve combined emotions about stripping out the Russian references – truthfully I see the authentic video games as merchandise of their historical past and though I perceive the sensitivities of the builders I am undecided whats to be gained by retconning them.
“So it is free so I’ve nothing to complain about, but it surely’s not an enormous step up from the authentic and to be trustworthy, if you’d like an enhanced version you possibly can simply mod the factor to your hearts content material or play anomaly. GSC wanted to do way more right here and a few beauty tweaking would not actually lower it.”
GSC Sport World is a Ukrainian online game studio based mostly in Kyiv, though some workers are presently figuring out of Prague after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, briefly halting the growth of S.T.A.L.Okay.E.R. 2 in consequence. At least one former GSC developer, Volodymyr Yezhov, has been killed in action.
Whereas not formally acknowledging the unfavorable critiques, GSC has as we speak posted an replace and a patch that it says will repair crashes on unsupported PC {hardware} and a few consoles, handle save points, and restore “lacking geometry on a number of ranges.”
“Stalkers, we care about your suggestions and are engaged on fixing the most crucial points,” the workforce stated. “We actually wish to make your comeback to the Zone particular.” It then stated it could “proceed to work on bettering the trilogy.”
The “lacking geometry,” gamers consider, refers to the lacking Soviet relics discovered throughout all three video games. It isn’t clear if GSC selected or was compelled to revise Soviet iconography, however PC Gamer was capable of affirm that the monument/signal exterior Chornobyl itself, which reads “ChAES in the identify of VI Lenin,” had not less than been deleted. All that was left was “the two concrete blocks it used to face on.”
The replace made no express point out of the lacking audio or the blurry textures.
“THEY LISTENED! THEY LISTENED! THEY LISTENED!” cried one delighted participant on Reddit. “EE nonetheless has some points however goddamn it, so glad they really work on fixing the recreation and don’t ignore the suggestions.”
One participant said: “That is 1,000,000 time[s] higher answer than simply eradicating it with out a hint. That is each applauding the present decommunization efforts whereas not censoring something that existed earlier than it.”
“It is a good first step. Hopefully we see another fixes to notable issues like the widespread blur difficulty and gadgets not showing in marked stashes,” added one other.
Learn extra on how S.T.A.L.Okay.E.R. 2 has modified every part for the studio amid the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, in addition to a critic, columnist, and guide with 15+ years expertise working with some of the world’s greatest gaming websites and publications. She’s additionally a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually Excessive Chaos. Discover her at BlueSky.