It's been a long time coming and, having read a few of the reviews, it's not exactly what some people were expecting.
A lot was made of the A-life simulation and the life would carry on regardless of your actions... and I think it does.
The first time you spot a mutant dog dragging off the corpse of a bandit you shot earlier to a more convenient place to eat is quite incredible. Or maybe it's when you return to a Stalker camp you left a few hours ago to find them in a pitched battle with some other local band... corpses of people you'd be chatting to earlier littering the surrounding area. In some places it is so subtle you might miss it... but I think that's part of the attraction; you shouldn't notice. Anything that sticks out or grabs your attention is likely to break the immersion of the game and, in my opinion, they seem to have got it almost right.
There's other little touches as well, like the fact that enemy soldiers will attempt to flank you or use cover; mutant dogs hunt in packs but will run off when they realise that they are the only one left; the list could go on.
The game isn't perfect and the first patch (I suspect there will be many more to come) wasn't exactly popular if you'd made any significant progress, as it incompatible with existing saved games. Personally, I'd already made it through about half of the main story but was happy to start again as I'd been enjoying it so much.
Strangely, there is a lot to dislike about the game... it has realistic(ish) weight limits on your inventory, your weapons and armour degrade with use making them less effective, ammunition can be difficult to come by for some of the better weapons and the radiation can be a REAL pain in the behind sometimes. It can be a real challenge. But the truth of the matter is that these should be selling points and they make the game what it is! We've been spoilt of late with the ability to carry unlimited quantities of guns, ammunition etc... that never go wrong or wear out. I love the fact that in the middle of a gun fight, if I've got a little too ambitious, I might find myself stood in the open with a jammed assault rifle. It's an easy thing to remedy... just reload the weapon... but for those precious few seconds I'm defenseless and THEY know it!
I've already clocked up over 20 hours and have barely had time to even look at Command and Conquer 3 (yet). I love it... and the more I play it, the more it seems to drive those radioactive, psychic, mutant hooks into me!
Tough love... is there any other kind?
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