Games

Best of 2008 | 07 | 06 | 05
Advanced Search

Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed games.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky

EMAIL PRINT pc

7.4 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 47 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 134 votes
Read user comments
Rate this game >

Game Info

Publisher: Deep Silver

Developer: GSC Game World

Genre(s): First-Person Shooter

Players: 32

ESRB Rating: M (Mature)

Release Date: September 15, 2008

Summary

The story of 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. An immense blow-out of anomalous energy changes the Zone. There are no more reliable and relatively safe roads. The entire levels vanish in the outbursts of anomalies. Stalkers and even expeditions die or end up sealed on the lost territories. New areas, which remained unknown since the time of the Zone emergence, appear on the Zone map. The Zone continues to shake with blowouts. The Zone is unstable. The anomalous activity is at its maximum. Changes of the Zone map known to stalkers shake the fragile balance of forces in the Zone. Among the groupings, there flare up hostilities for the new territories, artefact fields and spheres of influence. There are no more old enemies or friends - now everyone is for himself. The Factions War has started between the groupings. [Deep Silver]

Also On Metacritic

GAMES: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl

Cheat Codes & Hints: Cheat Code Central

Also On The Web: Official Website

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

games(TM)

Clear Sky chiefly succeeds because it transforms grim fantasy into a startlingly real-world experience. [Oct 2008, p.108]

PC PowerPlay

The way the game is a whole response to the shortcomings of the original just goes to demonstrate how GSC believes in this title and IP. [Nov 2008, p.51]

Total PC Gaming

This is a real PC game, for real PC gamers. We haven't enjoyed a FPS RPG this much since "Deus Ex." [Issue#12, p.54]

PC Zone UK

Clear Sky is a unique experience, so far unparalleled save for its predecessor. [Oct 2008, p.52]

Games Master UK

Clear Sky delivers a more AI-driven, frightening and altogether more dangerous world than its predecessor ever could. [Oct 2008, p.77]

Gamers.at

Clear Sky may not be as action-orientated, polished and visually stunning as Crysis or other “Hollywood-Shooters”, but it definitely has got its very own charm, that it’s easy to fall for. In short: Who liked the original Chernobyl Lost, will love Clear Sky!

Read Full Review >

GamingXP

Intense atmosphere, interesting story, but some deficits in the graphics and interaction with the environment! In general, Deep Silver presents an exciting title not only for shooter fans.

Read Full Review >

HellBored

As a title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Clear Sky presents an interesting challenge for the reviewer. The game tries to be many things, succeeding at some while falling well short of the mark in other areas. Are glaring flaws to be overlooked in recognition of genuine ambition, even occasional moments of brilliance?

Read Full Review >

Worth Playing

The faction wars are an interesting concept, but the game is mostly about the player making his way through the zone and uncovering some of its secrets. It's a bit more about gunfights and a lot less scary than its predecessor, but overall, Clear Sky improves upon the original in many ways while using the same strengths that made it so compelling in the first place.

Read Full Review >

Pelit (Finland)

More or less the same game as its predecessor. Atmosphere is still amazing and zone is a fascinating place to adventure in, but there is far too much travelling back and forth and there still isn't any real story to talk of. Great game for people who want to immerse themselves in the surrounding world, less so for competitive pc shooter fans. [Sept 2008]

Gameplanet

This is a truly dark game that has a compelling and mysterious story. You will be on the edge of your seat as the mystery gradually unfolds. The game breaking bugs of the initial release, and the need to mod the game, severely affect the rating of what would otherwise be a very good game.

Read Full Review >

PTGamers

Amidst its several flaws, both design and bugs, Clear Sky holds a series of virtues able to grab those who expect the action part, but value atmosphere, immersion and survival instinct.

Read Full Review >

Play (Poland)

Everything that annoyed the hell out of me in the first edition has been fixed. The new story predating the original is much better presented and more coherent. Spectacular lightning effects are just the icing on a cake, which is a boon, because turning them off boosts the framerate considerably. [Oct 2008]

Gaming Target

If you're interested in exploring odd corners and beautiful landscapes on your own initiative, it's a safe bet that you're going to enjoy the S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Clear Sky experience.

Read Full Review >

Game Over Online

As sequels/prequels go, S:CS is a good one. It introduces a new engaging storyline, adding some features but by and large leaving the good things about the first game alone.

Read Full Review >

3DJuegos

The second episode of Shadow of Chernobyl is a mere update of contents, a version 1.5 of the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R. The overcrowding of the maps, the control system of territories and the more focused rate towards the action might irritate some and please others; but somehow they are incorporations that take away from the horror atmosphere of the series and turn it into a more conventional and repetitive action game. Nevertheless Clear Sky continues being a really interesting FPS and we enjoy its difficult and unpredictable proposal and, especially, if we play it on a high end PC.

Read Full Review >

PC Gamer

The game stability improvements and faction system certainly make this a technological step up from the original, but they don't add up to a compelling reason to replay the same game. [Dec 2008, p.62]

Game Informer

It’s not that Clear Sky is a bad game. It just doesn’t strike the same resonant chord that made the original’s many flaws forgivable.

Read Full Review >

GamingExcellence

Overall, however, it comes together as a good post-apocalyptic first-person shooter.

Read Full Review >

GameStar

This game tries to tell what happened before Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl, but may require a few more patches to be able to do so. At least version 1.5.03 is full of bugs, crashes, long loading times, broken save games and design errors, which is a shame because that's what stops the game from being great. Theoretically this could all be fixed by patches and just like with Stalker, this may take a while.

Read Full Review >

Play.tm

Much like the original, it has a charm about it that makes you want to like it yet it is hugely flawed, with its many reported bugs and performance problems. It doesn't quite deserve the term 'flawed gem' but nor does it deserve to be discarded either.

Read Full Review >

1UP

What Clear Sky doesn't deliver is the abject, adjust-your-gamma terror of its predecessor.

Read Full Review >

Gameplayer

Fans of the original Stalker will love Clear Sky – without a doubt, it’s everything the original was, but with a fresh take on the world of the Zone and an engine that impresses rather than just scrapes by.

Read Full Review >

GameZone

Though its release is marred by a number of bugs, Clear Skies is ultimately a worthy addition to your library. Casual gamers will find it harder to enjoy than those who are more hardcore, but there is still fun to be had in the hollowed-out, desolate locales of the Zone for those with the patience and a penchant for challenging gameplay.

Read Full Review >

PC Games (Germany)

One can only wonder just what GSC Gameworld was thinking: Clear Sky brings nothing revolutionarily new to the original play, but adds a fair portion of game disrupting bugs and lifts the difficulty to a new level of hardness, brutally so. To sum it all up, the developers maim the few novel features with dubious design decisions, such as the annoying search for artefacts.

Read Full Review >

IGN

So if you liked the first game because it was big and dense and scary, then you'll like Clear Sky for the same reasons. And if you like the original but wish that it offered more GRAW-style action, then Clear Sky is even better.

Read Full Review >

Jolt Online Gaming UK

For some S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Clear Sky will reek of a badly designed game, while for others it will resemble a well designed reality, but for us it’s somewhere in between the two and none the better for it.

Read Full Review >

ActionTrip

I think the developers would've had a winner on their hands if they invested more time into fine-tuning the AI and ironing out serious bugs, as opposed to merely beefing up the visuals and adding more random side-quests -most of which take you through the same areas we've witnessed the first time around. As a result, Clear Sky is, in fact, an underdeveloped shooter with wasted potential.

Read Full Review >

AceGamez

It's when the day/night cycle kicks in while you're amid a minefield of anomalies in the Red Forest and you realise that that the next hour of playtime will be by an impotent beam of torchlight; the monsters are still waiting for you and now they can see you coming.

Read Full Review >

Level7.nu

This prequel to the original Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl adds great graphics, great sense of exploration and lots of content. It's definitely a better game than it's predecessor, trouble is though that it lacks polish. There are tons of bugs to be found here and mission objectives are often unclear and repetitive. It's a great game though and could be improved with future patches.

Read Full Review >

VideoGamer

While Clear Sky's myriad of minor bugs and flaws may irk, they do not render the game unplayable, so while things could have ultimately been a lot more polished and well considered in execution, there's still a lot to like.

Read Full Review >

Gamer.nl

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Clear Sky has got a lot of potential but stumbles in its efforts to bring you a great game. It offers you a fantastic and dynamic world in which you can freely roam. It even looks good. Unfortunatly the game also offers a lot of bugs and is the difficulty level is sometimes unfeasibly high. Nevertheless, if you fight your way past the flaws you will find something beautiful.

Read Full Review >

GameSpot

Glitches drag it down, but Clear Sky provides plenty of haunting ambience and challenging gameplay.

Read Full Review >

Boomtown

Clear Sky has a lot of potential - as does the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. franchise - and is a worthwhile game to add to your collection because of its fair price but until the insane amount of gremlins is addressed in a patch it will always be a failure in the eyes of the fans.

Read Full Review >

LEVEL (Czech Republic)

Stalker is back with a tempting story, handful of improvements and new places to explore. Players of Shadow of Chernobyl will feel right at home (many areas “recycled” from first game), newcomers can learn the story who lead to Zone cataclysm. Unfortunately, some faults remained from the previous installment like handling inventory and AI scripting. [Sept 2008]

Eurogamer

Between the improved weapon modification and the more living Zone, a certain strand of Stalker fan will find much here to applaud, and those who've never actually played the earlier game at all will still be enchanted by the unique atmosphere of the place... but would be recommended going there first, perhaps with the Oblivion Lost mod attached.

Read Full Review >

Edge Magazine

As easy to misunderstand as it is to break, it again turns the best and worse of PC gaming into something extraordinary. [Oct 2008, p.94]

IGN UK

Stalker was made so much more of by patches and mods because it was such an impressive skeleton of a game. Clear Sky, though, has so much decaying flesh attached to it that cutting through to the admittedly very healthy bone below may prove too tall an order.

Read Full Review >

PC Format

Not strictly a failure, but it is potentially 2008's most disappointing PC game, and will certainly need a hefty post-release patch. [Oct 2008, p.100]

GameFocus

If you enjoyed the first and are willing to work around some bugs and issues, the game is very fun and a worthwhile experience. A must buy for first person fans who like a touch of role playing in their games but this is no "Fallout 3."

Read Full Review >

Cheat Code Central

A game with its fair share of problems. Bugs and technical issues are all too common and shouldn't be present in this capacity. The multiplayer, while fun at times, is difficult to get into and seems a little tacked on for a game in the FPS genre, where multiplayer is generally a primary focus. On the other hand, it is nearly unrivaled in creating a truly immersive and creepy setting.

Read Full Review >

GameTrailers

It’s a shame the issues that plagued Shadow of Chernobyl are still largely present in Clear Sky because the premise is great and the design is far more interesting and ambitious than your average shooter. But ultimately, the bugs, technical issues, and brutal difficulty are tough to stomach. If you’re looking for a challenge, then this is your game, but the average player will tire of its shortcomings long before things even get started.

Read Full Review >

PC Gamer UK

Stalker: Clear Sky remains a remarkable misstep by the Ukrainian developers, and one that does not reflect well on their original game, or their independence from original publishers, THQ. We can only hope that their next effort will be more controlled.

Read Full Review >

G4 TV

Balancing loyalties and uncovering a large-scale mystery (even though it’s poorly handled) go a long way towards creating a great sense of scope and immersion. Unfortunately, numerous technical issues, narrative missteps and unbalanced gameplay elements keep the game from being something truly special.

Read Full Review >

PALGN

Unfortunately Clear Sky's myriad technical issues obscure a reasonably good game. Hopefully a series of patches will allow it to become fully realised, but as it currently stands, the game is far too filled with bugs to recommend.

Read Full Review >

DarkZero

Combat feels like a badly AI’ed multiplayer game, the type of game that is meant for human players, and an AI system has been pasted on later for people with no friends (see Battlefield 1941).

Read Full Review >

GameCritics

But Clear Sky takes everything that I loved about Chernobyl—the mature storyline, the nerve-wracking underground laboratories and the rewarding combat—and muddies them with a litany of bugs and bad design to the point that it overwhelms its more redeeming qualities.

Read Full Review >

What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 7.4 (out of 10) based on 134 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

josh gave it a7:
Where as STALKER SoC is around a 9/10, especially overhauled (modded graphics, fixes, tweaks). This is simply because everything STALKER was praised for was dropped for a different style. Where as SoC was a lonewolf survival/horror game, Clear Sky makes a poor attempt as some kind of squad based all out shooter. There's far too many human beings to consider the zone desolate in this one, far too little mutants and and jumpy encounters to consider it survival/horror and both of these combined just rips the atmosphere away from STALKER. While this different game isn't too bad and worth a play through or too it is definitely a step backwards from the original.

Mike P gave it a10:
That game is amazing and I will give it a 10 but that is only for a idea. gameplay deserves 2 or even less!!! I love too play it. Upgrading your gear, looking for artifacts, joining factions... all that is awesome! but damage system IS TERRIBLE. even accuracy fix didnt help (even made it wors because now enemies never miss). WHAT THE HELL?! I have to hit a guy TEN TIMES using a most powerfull shotgun in the game to kill him?!!/1/1!??!?!/?!ONE!!?/?! Not that I am using shotguns all the times and I cant use any other gun, that was just an example When you hit for example a bandit so he starts to bend or crouch or grab his arm, he is invincible for the time of animation. moreover you have to empty whole clip into his body to kill him. In SoC you had to hit Monolith in Exo-skeleton JUST two times with colt to kill him. here I have to waste 5 clips to make him bleed... I didnt experience any bugs with or without any patches... the game is short... too short, even with all side quests and all that stuff. Story is kinda boring though. For me both those games were made in completly wrong way... it should be a game that has something more to its title that jus a Zone, artifacts nd stlakers. It should be less FPS and more RPG. like sit by the fire and talk to friends... tell them what happened to you today. clean your weapon (all assult rifles and sniper rifles should be removed leaving only shotguns (for hunting) and pistols (for killing yourself or someone else) it should be focused more on artifact finding and LIVING IN/WITH THE ZONE (that is very important) that is what book was about.... that is what game should be about...

Jaco P gave it a0:
All the user review which gave this game more than 5 have to be by the developers of this game I'm sure. There is no way a sane person would rate this game higher than 3. I give it a 0, because I abandoned this game after spending less than 2 hours with it - angry and wanting your money back. Don't waste your money on this excuse for a game! It is a horrible unplayable mess which breaks some the cardinal rules of games: 1) Long, borgin, unskipable cut scenes. 2) Patches break your save games . 3) Friendly NPCs have infinite mass and push you inside walls when you are trying to take cover, and the only way to get them to stop doing that is to kill them. This game is a terrible masochistic experience which will leave you angry and disappointed.

Mat B gave it an8:
Easily one of the best games I have ever played--up to a point. This game suffers from the classic problem of becoming less and less stable with each additional hour of gameplay. Eventually I found myself avoiding areas entirely due to recurring crashes that persist even with the most recent patch. Still, I was able to enjoy this game significantly before things went horribly, horribly wrong, and GSC is still patching it, so I give it an 8 until they iron out some of these bugs. (And if you haven't experienced the CTDs, play for a few more hours, they will show themselves sooner or later).

Tommy F gave it a2:
Clear sky is a huge disappointment compared to SoC. It's has even more bugs, including BSoDs, it optimization for dx10 is terrible, and the atmosphere just wasn't as good as the first game. GSC gameworld should have kept THQ as their publisher. After playing CS, it feels like THQ was the only thing keeping up GSC's almost non-existent quality control and testing standards. Now that they're doing it on their own with deepsilver its obvious that the game was rushed and badly programed.

Chris N gave it a9:
This game, along with it's predecessor, is easily one of the best, most immersive games I have ever played. Granted, upon release both had some glaring bugs and glitches, but for me, it was more than worth the wait. Though not perfect (hence the 9 rating), Clear Sky (and the STALKER series in general) easily ranks in my top 3 game series of all time. If you are a fan of epic story-telling and can look past the relatively minor bugs and mistranslations, then I guarantee that you will fall in love with this game.

Maggot gave it a3:
Very poorly designed game. The idea is very good, but executed in a terrible manner. The game combat seems to feel the same throughout the game. Nothing really original about this game; Originality is what is making the great modern games amazing. After playing games like FEAR 2 and Fallout 3, a few hours of this game seemed like a joke. Its kinda sad, especially since I was really looking forward to this game.

Games

Sony

Microsoft

Nintendo

Other Platforms

Upcoming &Recent Releases

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky

Game Info

Summary

Also On Metacritic

What The Critics Said

What Our Users Said

Upcoming &
Recent Releases