What make STALKER series such a Masterpiece

 It's been 8 year since the last STALKER game released, many have tried to remake the atmosphere of GSC Gameworld post-apocalyptic masterpiece, only a few have succeded, albeit not in the same way. So here I'm gonna tell you what makes these series become such irreplaceable masterpiece, at least for me.

 Story

It's about the Chernobyl restricted zone, it's ecosystem and those who life inside it, after the 2nd explosion happened to reactor 4. There these people who illegally settle inside The Zone in search of a precious thing called Artefact with unique properties unknown by humanity, these people are called Stalker. Were going to experience the struggle of these people to survive in the Zone full of mutants, anomalous phenomenon and hazardous environment.

The story of this series rather interesting, especially for someone like me who doesn't really care about game story unless they are good.  In my opininon, even though Shadow of Chernobyl is the first game in the series, It's story is the most intriguing, while Call Of Priyat is not that bad, it is the least interesting of the three. In chronological order, the story start with STALKER Clear Sky, then Shadow Of Chernobyl and ended in Call Of Pripyat, Okay that's enough no more spoiler.

Gameplay  

The STALKER series gameplay feels like the mix of Sci-fi First Person Shooter with Minimalist Survival Element, and somewhat RPG-ish progression system (and also horror with jumpscare). The shooting mechanic feel solid, especially in Call of Pripyat, even though enemy may feel like a lot of bullet sponge at first, but once you get the hang of it, it's actually feel very satisfying. The survival aspect can be very punishing if you play it recklessly, but overall it's not too boring or annoying compared too many survival games out there.

There are no level up system in this game, but the progression feels very real. In this game, it's not your character who get better after every battle, but it's yourself. You will feel a lot more profcient on shooting your gun, planning a strike, killing an enemies or avoiding unecessary bloodshed. You will also find new and improved weapon and armor along the story and also unlock a good array of upgrade or them.

The horror of this game come from the unknown, you will never know what will come to you next, except for some scripted event. Because of that it's better to prepare for any kind of encounter that you may find. Also it is guaranteed that every player got a different gaming experience with this game, because the way it's AI are programmed.

Atmosphere 

Even though the engine used in this game is game is rather ooutdated and unstable, it doesn't stop GSC Gameworld from making a very impressive atmosphere, that can build up tension, joy, fear, etc. and barely rivaled by some modern games in their own way. 

The atmosphere can turn from joyful and pleasant to horryfing and chaotic if you are not aware of your environment and just walking aimlessly. It is hard to tell it by words so i just show you some pictures :

 

Mods and Community

The last thing is the modding community which be able to breath a new life to STALKER series, wether it's graphical improvement, gameplay change, engine stabilty and performance, content addition, new game modes, major overhaul, game remake and even a standalone game. 

This is what makes this old game never feel outdated, the modding community is very active, there is always new content released by a diehard fans or bored programmer or people who just know these great games actually exist from around the globe. 

That's it friend, these thing are what make the STALKER series such a wonderful masterpiece, not only for me, but also for some other diehard fans of this series out there.