Granted, Russia would probably be a whole lot less interesting to gamers if it were portrayed as an idyllic fantasy land with happy pink bunnies and stuff. So it's a good thing that Metro 2033 sticks to the post-apocalyptic wasteland guns and kicks them up a notch.

Let's back up a bit and convince you that this isn't some fancy rip-off of Fallout 3. Metro 2033 is based on a book, first of all, written by Russian blogger-turned-novelist Dmitry Glukhovsky. In Glukhovsky's bleak vision of the future, the known world has been visited by a nuclear holocaust that killed and irradiated everything on the surface of the planet. The only known survivors are those that happened to be in underground places when the whole thing went down (hence the name "Metro"). In Glukhovsky's novel (which was originally published for free on the Internet), the story follows a boy named Artyom whose only vision of the world the way it used to be come from postcards he collects throughout the dystopian network of Metro societies.

The biggest difference that I can stress between Fallout 3 and Metro 2033 is the fact that Metro 2033 picks up only 20 years after the nuclear Holocaust. People haven't quite adjusted to the changes in the environment and weird, upsetting things are still happening on a daily basis in the Metro colonies. Strange "anomalies" occur deep underground that cause hallucinations and some ominous force known as the Dark Ones keep making off with or mentally corrupting what's left of humanity.

The story of the video game picks up at the point in the novel where Artyom leaves the safety of his Metro station, Exhibition, to go on a mission to Polis in order to stop the Dark Ones. Our first look at the game spans both a flashback to the early days of safety in Exhibition and a midpoint level where Artyom's almost reached his goal while traveling across the ruined surface of Russia.

The first thing you notice about Metro 2033 is the minimal interface. To keep track of health, weapon ammo and whether or not the air in your immediate area is safe to breathe, you've got to pay total attention to Artyom's first person view. You can see individual rounds of ammo in your cobbled-together gun and know that he's in danger of dying if his vision begins to go red or he starts coughing and choking.

Slapping on the gas mask in contaminated areas affords you a little more in the way of a HUD (though you also have to put up with condensation on this inside of your mask). For one thing, you know your mask isn't doing its job if cracks begin to appear in the faceplate or the glass shatters altogether. For another, you get a nifty watch that keeps track of how much air is left in the mask. But other than that, there's very little in the way of "game-y" stuff we're used to from other shooters – even your map is a physical thing that Artyom pulls out to look at in a first person view.

The minimalist HUD drives home how tough life in post-apocalyptic Russia is. Everything around you is broken or rotting, so scavenging for replacement supplies like spare gas masks is particularly stressful but completely necessary since there's not much that humanity can make down in the Metro to survive on. For example, weapons made down in the Metro system are crappy and break easily, while the old school weapons from the surface world are so rare and awesome that their ammo serves as currency. So this puts the player in a constant tradeoff between having the best ammo in the game that will actually kill stuff in a few hits, or having enough "money" to upgrade the crappy guns you can buy underground.

The second major thing you notice about Metro 2033 (and the second major thing I can stress as completely different from Fallout 3) is how expressive all the non-playable characters' faces are. In the early Exhibition level, Artyom encounters a whole host of dirty, disheartened Russians living underground in their little city from mothers with young children to feed to injured, bitter men who like to gamble. Faces are completely animated with no paralyzed chins or cheekbones or dead, vacant eyes that move right when you talk to them and bodies move in the ways you expect them to as NPCs open doors, talk to one another or climb aboard underground handcarts.

The only thing that you might not notice right away about Metro 2033 is the combat. This is either because you're too used to first person shooters or because you're not playing the PC version with its spiffy (and optional) NVIDIA 3D glasses. Indeed, when we first saw a shootout on the Xbox 360 version with some weird looking werewolf/rat things, we were sort of indifferent. But later, in an enclosed tunnel with 3D glasses on, those werewolf/rat things suddenly looked a whole lot more upsetting as they swarmed our handcart and made off with the limp bodies of other passengers.

Combat seemed even more visceral in 3D after entering a stealth section where we had to creep along with night vision goggles past enemy NPCs. An NPC would suddenly round a corner where we happened to be crouching and his 3D rifle butt suddenly seemed way too close to our actual face – never mind poor Artyom's. This compounded the stress level we were already feeling from having a cracked gas mask and knowing we had to go down into a contaminated tunnel to get past the rest of the NPCs.

However, it might relieve some of you to know that you don't have to stealth your way through Metro 2033. Apparently, there's enough ammo and combat leeway in the game to support Artyom going through an area with guns blazing. That's not the route our demo master went with, hence our sudden spike in stress when that NPC turned up too close for comfort. But it's nice to know there's a choice, there, since the linear game gives you very few others.

Metro 2033 is being developed by 4A Games which has among its number some developers from the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games (which are also set in post-apocalyptic Russia) and will be out for the PC and Xbox 360 in 2010. A PlayStation 3 version isn't planned largely because the developer doesn't have much experience programming for it – so that could change with time if Metro 2033 the game is as much a cult hit as the novel turned out to be. Expect about 10 hours of solid gameplay and maybe look into getting yourself a PC rig that can support PhysX and NVIDIA DirectX 10 (maybe even DirectX 11, if NVIDIA feels like letting the developer go for it).

P.S. Yes, they're working on an English translation of Metro 2033 the novel – it might even beat the game to US stores next year.

Shadow of Chernobyl has been out for a while, but now might be the time to check it out what with 4A Games' Metro 2033 on the horizon. Metro isn't related directly to the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series, but some of the 4A people are from the old S.T.A.L.K.E.R. team.

So, is anybody here a nuclear physicist or a history nut? Want to take a crack at explaining why the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. setting is or isn't plausible as a realistic setting?

Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl at $5 on Steam until Monday [Joystiq]

These shots are from a little trip to the wilderness near Vyborg, Russia, which took place last month. You can't see it, but we're on our feet applauding the dedication.

Tons and tons of pics at the link below.

Вне зоны комфорта

Course it would. Which is why developers GSC have included a "complete set of new locations" for the upcoming expansion. GSC's Oleg Yavorsky explains:

We will present a complete set of new locations in Call of Pripyat. This includes the Pripyat river basin and its rusty fleet standing still for over 20 years now, the Kopachi village completely buried after the accident, Jupiter factory located on the outskirts of Pripyat, the railway station Yanov, and, to crown it all – an entire district of Pripyat, modeled in its real scope. Many players have repeatedly asked us to implement Pripyat in the game, so we decided to satisfy their wish.

Hopefully the mission design and AI have been expanded as extensively as the environment has.

Interview: GSC On Call Of Pripyat [Rock, Paper, Shotgun]

This is the "STALKER Complete 2009" mod (released last month), which does an admirable job of making the game look like it was, well, made in 2009. New textures, new lighting and new weather effects help get the game looking ship-shape, and while this won't improve any of the game's more fundamental flaws, you can at least enjoy the sunset while wondering how your waypoints disappeared.

Ultro-Mod: Stalker Complete 2009 [Rock, Paper, Shotgun]

Due for release on PC this fall/autumn, CoP is set directly after the events of the main game, and tells the story of an attempted military takeover of the region.

New features include a new storyline, new characters, new monsters, more sidequests, a new player interface and, best of all, a new feature allowing you to keep playing the game even once the main storyline is complete, RPG-style.

The website - whose name my keyboard just can't reproduce - had an interview with GSC's Sergey Grigorovitch, where he reveals plans for a second standalone expansion to the game. Given the awesome name Call of Pripyat, it's due in the Fall.

Grigorovitch also mentions a full-blown S.T.A.L.K.E.R. sequel, but doesn't provide any further details other than the fact the team are working on it.

Задай вопрос создателю компьютерных игр "Сталкер" и "Казаки" [KP, via Shacknews]

Around 70 fans met up in the village of Sengileyevskoe, in the south of Russia last week for some serious S.T.A.L.K.E.R. re-enactment. Like, very serious. We're talking simulated firefights, simulated wasteland bartering, even simulated knife fights in a dimly-lit warehouse.

Our hats are off to you, crazy S.T.A.L.K.E.R. cosplayers. But from a distance. Because you're crazy.

Fighting ''mutants'' in a live-action game [Reuters]

An early, playable build of the game - dated October 18, 2004 - has been released by the team, giving you all a glimpse at some of the game's unused areas. You can grab it at the link below.

We can't remember the last time a developer did this (if indeed it's ever been done), but would love to see more of it. It's like a gaming equivalent of the director's cut.

2004 STALKER [GDC, via Shacknews]

Dead Mountaineer's is an atmospheric-looking mystery title based on the novel by Russian sci-fi writers Boris and Arkady Strugatsky. The Strugatskys also wrote Roadside Picnic - a tale of post apocalyptic scavengers that was a major influence on the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games.

The game is described as a "character-driven, non-linear game with multiple endings" and looks - to us at least - like it might be a 3D point-and-click style adventure.

New Release Date Announced for Dead Mountaineer's Hotel [Lighthouse Interactive]

Сталкер в реале [via Rock, Paper, Shotgun]

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. CLEAR SKY to be RELEASED DIGITALLY AS STEAM EXCLUSIVE

Prequel to Hit Survival FPS will Launch Simultaneously on Steam and in Retail Outlets Worldwide

January 24, 2007 - GCS Game World and Valve announce that S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky will be available for digital download worldwide exclusively on Steam® (www.steamgames.com), a leading online platform for the distribution and management of PC games. The official prequel to the Survival FPS game S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl is currently slated for simultaneous release on Steam and at retail outlets later this year.

"Steam has introduced S.T.A.L.K.E.R. to many thousands of new fans all over the world," said GSC Game World's CEO Sergiy Grygorovych. "We chose to deliver the digital version of the game exclusively on Steam because of its proven success not only as the leading global digital distribution platform for games, but because it allows us to directly reach its integrated and active community of gamers."

"It's great to see a forward-thinking game maker like GCS Game World launching simultaneously in digital and traditional retail channels," said Gabe Newell, co-founder and president of Valve. "By launching S.T.A.L.K.E.R.:Clear Sky on Steam on the same day that it's available in stores worldwide, GCS Game World ensures that gamers can get their hands on this highly-anticipated game in the way that's most convenient for them."

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky brings the players one year prior to the events of the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game in 2011. A group of stalkers has, for the first time, reached the very heart of the Zone-Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant-and brings about a cataclysm on the brink of a catastrophe. Through a rich narrative and gripping combat action, players uncover new challenges and insights in the Exclusion Zone. A new version of the game engine, X-Ray 1.5, powers superior graphical details and realistic and non-scripted combat AI.

More information and a collection of new images may be found here: http://www.steampowered.com/v/index.php?area=game&AppId=9390&l=EN&cc=US

About GSC Game World
Founded in 1995 in Kiev, GSC Game World is the leading computer game development company in Ukraine. The very first commercial game project of GSC Game World was the critically acclaimed and hugely popular historical real-time strategy game Cossacks: European Wars, released in 2000.
The launched projects developed by GSC Game World, among others, include Cossacks: The Art of War, Cossacks; Back to War, American Conquest, American Conquest: Fight Back, Alexander (Oliver Stone's movie tie-in), Cossacks II: Napoleonic Wars. The two recently released titles by GSC Game World are Heroes of Annihilated Empires (self-published worldwide) and the top-selling S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. Currently in development is the official prequel S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky for PC.
Official web-site: www.gsc-game.com

About Steam
Steam is a leading platform for the delivery and management of games and digital content, and has pioneered its broadband services to over 13 million customers with core and casual games from today's leading publishers and developers.

Oleg Yavorsky, PR Director for GSC Game World was on hand to give me a guided tour of the newly revamped world surrounding the alternate-universe ravaged by the second Chernobyl power plant meltdown. Immediately upon starting the demo the changes to the graphics engine were readily apparent. The whole game has a look much more crisp and saturated than its predecessor, giving the world a more realistic feel and making it easier to lose yourself in the story. All of the game's lighting is dynamic...there is no light source that cannot be snuffed short of the sun itself, and even that's a little hazy.

Yavorsky explained that story is a big focus this time around. They wanted to give the game a more cinematic feel, and to that end they've not only spent a great deal of time giving NPCs and plotlines a specific voice, but also tweaked the character models and added custom animations that give each character unique interactions in the game. Having explained all of this, the demo kicked into high gear.

The Stalker and his team are holed up in an abandon Russian government hospital, trying to break through enemy lines, but a nasty sniper has entrenched himself in the worn rafters of the building and it is up to our protagonist to take him out and clear a path for his teammates to advance. As the team provides covering fire, the main character ducks down a side passage that leads to the courtyard of the building, and another burst of gunfire from his comrades gets him across the courtyard to sneak up behind his unsuspecting foes.

The same realistic gunplay from Shadow returns this time around, and aiming is still very important. This isn't a game where you can run in guns blazing, and Oleg is very careful how and when he takes his shots. Ducking behind some wood nailed across a gap in the building's stone walls, he explains that the AI in the game is very intelligent, trained to take full advantage of cover and avoid open spaces. As he speaks the importance of cover becomes quite readily apparent as the wood he is ducking from is shot away, calling for a quick dash behind some more substantial cover before systematically taking the bad guys down.

Once the top level is cleared and the sniper is no longer a threat, his buddies move in, taking out a wall that previously blocked their way with some good old-fashioned explosives. Later in the demo I watch as the hero takes down waves of enemies as his team gets into position and drops a grenade into a machine gunner's nest, once again clearing the path. Sort of like a game of leapfrog really, only with more bullets and a giant helicopter boss at the end that goes down amidst streams of duck and cover gunfire.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky promises to be everything Shadow of Chernobyl was and much much more. A heightened focus on story as well as tweaked graphics and UI should bring back old fans as well as usher in some new ones to the slowly growing series.

It appears slimy, as little to nothing appears changed with each asset save some filename changes. A very damning "lights_impflash.dds" appears in GSC's list of assets, referencing one of Doom 3's more memorable creatures.

Shacknews has mirrored the shots of the files in question and even has comment from id's Todd Hollenshead who calls the issue "concerning." We'll update as this story develops. Michael McWhertor

Half-Life 2, Doom 3 Assets in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.? [Shacknews]

Please note that M.A.C.H. for the PSP shipped on February 20 and that Vivendi's F.E.A.R. is due to hit the PLAYSTATION 3 later this month. Michael McWhertor

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. G.O.L.D. [Gamespot]

Graphics are teh amazing, too bad I can't get the damn beta to run on my PC. It keeps crashing on me and slowing down. Very strange, especially on a PC running an AMD X2 4600+ dual core, two gigs of memory and a NVIDIA GeForce 7950 GX2 graphics card.

I blame Vista... or maybe it's just that it's a beta. Brian Crecente

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, the game from GSC Game World that has been in development for, I don't know, five years already, with a half-dozen missed released dates apparently is going to be released. However, considering that the above trailer contains almost zero gameplay, I'll still continue to have my doubts. When I see this game in stores, pick it up, purchase it, open the box, and find out the box is not stuffed with newspaper clippings or rocks, that's when I'll believe it exists. Michael McWhertor

Be Scared Penny Arcade, Be Very Scared.

A friend of mine sent me this XKCD comic from last week or so. It's not so much a parody of Penny Arcade as it is a bit of homoerotic fan fiction. Restraining order FTW. Brian Crecente

Penny Arcade Parody [XKCD]

Ya know, I may very well be able to pull off a full day of games-related clothes postings. I think I'm gonna try, because that's the sorta sad, empty person I am.

Send me those clothes links so I can get it out of my system.

Oh, this one, btw, was meant to be about Moregan Webb, who also has a clothes stalking site.

What Moregan Webb Wore [WMWW]