Chernobylite Complete Edition News

[h3]Hello Stalkers![/h3]
In the previous report, we focused on the story of Chernobylite, the most important aspect of the game. Today we have to talk about another quite important element. Because the world of Chernobylite is full of dangers, the levels are filled with monsters and patrolling soldiers. Therefore, it is important to arm yourself and our comrades well before going to the zone. Especially since the new game mode, Insane, takes no prisoners.

[h3]It's worth arming yourself[/h3]
Arming yourself is not a big problem for a skilled player - you just have to create weapons and armor in the base and put it on Igor. Simple. Now is the time to arm your comrades as well. You've been asking for this for a long time, so we were finally able to deliver it to you thanks to the last Mega Patch.

How it's working? First, you need to approach the characters and talk to them. Until now, you could only talk about their past, opinions or how they live in the base. Now there is an additional "Show Equipment" option. After selecting this option, the player is moved to the next screen - the inventory screen of our companions.



On the left is Igor's inventory, and in the right column, weapons and NPC statistics. When you hover the cursor over an armament in the inventory, you can see what a given weapon or armor affects the character's stats. These can vary for better or worse - it all depends on what weapon we give the NPC and what improvements it will have.



Okay, but why arm your comrades at all? After all, they don’t follow us, they will not help us in fulfilling tasks important for the plot. So what's the effort for? Well, as you well know, when choosing a mission, we can send our team to other locations in the zone in search of provisions, ammunition or medicines. However, it is not always an easy journey for them - when you want to assign companions to a specific mission, in the bottom corner of their portraits you can see what the chances are that they will be able to complete that mission. Different people have different chances. And it would be good if stocks were always replenished regularly.

Adequate armament of our companions will make it easier for them to complete the missions on which they are sent. Just take a look at this comparison below: you can see how the Kopachi mission is selected before and after arming comrades. You can see a significant difference.



[h3]A better arsenal[/h3]
Let's go back to Igor's inventory for a moment. Again: we can give Igor a weapon and put on armor. Especially thanks to the second one, opponents have difficulty dealing damage. Of course, each armor has its "health", which is indicated by the bar under Igor's health bar. After each hit, its durability decreases.



In addition, on the left side of the screen you can find the shield icon. It represents the cooldown, i.e. how quickly armor repairs and how much metal plate we need to repair it.



At this point, it's also worth mentioning that we've added new armors to the game that make it even easier to get through the zone. Among them there is, for example, camouflage armor, which makes us harder to spot. Especially if we enter tall grass.



Not only that, to our advantage we can use the prevailing weather conditions and the fact that the opponents react much better to the environment. Thanks to this, soldiers hear our footsteps worse in the rain (a big advantage when sneaking), and on a foggy day they see much worse at a longer distance. Especially in the second case, we recommend using a combo with camouflage armor - the chances that the enemy will notice you will be close to zero. But we still recommend caution - soldiers can detect our position as soon as they notice the light source from the flashlight.

It is also worth mentioning some of the novelties we have brought to the arsenal with the Mega Patch. Among them is, for example, the possibility of converting a static shotgun into a semi-automatic fire mode. This allows you to fire it almost like a rifle.



Another novelty that we are fans of ourselves in the team is the possibility of adding a thermovision to a rifle or shotgun. It's a damn good device that makes gameplay easier. Not only we can shoot from a long distance, but we are also able to see the position of our opponent, regardless of the prevailing weather conditions.



All these actions can be very helpful especially for those who decided to play the game on the Insane level. As the name suggests, the game will resemble a walk on red-hot Lego bricks scattered along the entire length of the Chinese Wall. In winter. With no clothes. And no Wi-Fi.

By setting "Survival" to the Insane level, the development of our base and crafting will be a torment - it will require much more materials, of which there will be even less on the levels. In the case of "Combat", we made sure that even more opponents appeared on the levels than before. At every turn and around every corner. They are even more aggressive and even more effective in combat.

The Insane level also has a significant impact on our companions. They will have a much harder time completing the mission (the best weapons make it a bit easier. A LITTLE), and what is happening in the base has an even greater impact on their morale and health. In other words, keeping them alive will be a priority. Sometimes it’s perhaps even more important than looking for Tatiana. And yes, we mean it.

[h3]That's it for today![/h3]
Take care, Stalkers!

We are currently focusing on bug fixes, optimization and solving issues that bother you. But we found time to do some new things. Here's a big batch of fixes:

Technology:

• We fixed dozens of different crashes that you reported to us. Game should be much more stable.
  
• We optimized the CPU performance a bit. Framerate should be more stable during combat.
  
• Fixes in game memory management. Game shouldn't have such large spikes in memory usage now.
  
• We threw away a lot of unused audio stuff, which reduced the build size.
  
• During skill training, steaming should no longer be visible on weaker computers
  

AI:

• Soldiers will now see much worse through bushes during combat.
  
• Soldiers should now have a harder time finding the player's position and start searching for him faster if they don't know where he is.
  
• When soldiers are looking for a player, they no longer run blindly in one place. They split up to cover a larger area.
  
• Knife takedown will now be heard at a slightly smaller distance.
  

Additional:

• We've added some locked doors for lockpicks and a crystal wall to prison level so the player can discover some new things when they return to it.
  
• We've added 2 new tutorials that should make some situations easier to understand.
  
• We have added the ability to remap the quick save and load functions
  

General:

• We fixed many bugs related to language versions and VO
  
• Now the player should be able to get out of the prison cell when caught.
  
• Now it's possible to properly save your companions from prison. Markers and animations have also been improved.
  
• Trying to craft something in a tight space should no longer end up getting stuck in a collision.
  
• Tutorial on how to reduce the difficulty of the game that appears in the prison after a few deaths should now correctly disappear.
  
• Fixed a bug where Igor was sometimes guarded in prison by a soldier who could not be overcome with takedown.
  
• We greatly improved the operation of the flashlight. It works better up close and behaves more interestingly while moving.
  
• After loading the save performed after the end of any crate dump quest, we should no longer appear among the soldiers.
  
• We fixed a few crates that did not save after taking a save. Load spamming allowed them to be looted endlessly.
  
• Memento for the past: After loading save, you can no longer talk to Sashko
  
• Some Excuses: After loading save, Semonov will no longer resurrect and the note will not disappear
  
• Fixed a bug that allowed you to get extra adrenaline puffs before entering the base.
  
• Olga's Revolver will no longer behave weird when she targets us.
  
• Notes that can be found on levels should now be correctly marked with a marker
  
• We made a lot of improvements to the music and sound.
  
• We improved the makers of events that were disappearing even though the event isn't over yet.
  
• Fixed a rare bug that made weapons invisible after interacting with the base board.
  
• Fixed a rare bug where we could sometimes see Igor's hands flying through the air after death.
  

[h3]Hello Stalkers![/h3]
The last few weeks have been extremely intense for us, in connection with the premiere of the Mega Patch and work on bug fixing. However, thanks to this, we brought you the game 95 percent ready. And there is very little time until the full version is released. That is why we decided to focus on these and subsequent reports on specific elements of the game that have undergone huge changes in recent months, if not years. Some of them can be seen with the naked eye, while some need to be told in a broader context.

In today's report, we'll focus on what makes up the core of Chernobylite - the story.

[h3]A double-bottomed story[/h3]
We all know very well that the game consists of many elements: graphics, music, sound design, level design, gameplay, etc. However, we have never concealed that in Chernobylite we attach great importance to the storyline. After the reactions of all players, we can see that the story has drawn a lot of attention. It means we hit the point. However, as the premiere of the last Mega Patch showed, there is nothing that could not be improved.

We’ve mentioned many times that the entire story has been thoroughly redrafted and corrected by us. We didn't just do it for aesthetic reasons - we did this because we wanted to highlight the different layers and aspects of the Chernobylite story we wrote as much as possible. This one is focused on the figure of Igor - a man who tries to solve a mystery from the past and understand his role in the events that took place many years ago.

The attempt to find his beloved Tatyana is not only literal, but also metaphorical - it is a desire to face the past full of riddles and understatements. Just like Tatyana herself. Do we really know who she is? Are the memories of the main character about her real, or are they just his imaginations, fantasies? How do Igor's memories of Tatiana relate to her actual image? A seemingly simple story about a man who is looking for his beloved, with time becomes more and more complex and multi-threaded. Nothing is black and white.



What about side characters? They also play important roles in this game. Because Chernobylite is also a story about dealing with trauma, about trying to give it some tangible dimension and meaning. Each of the characters met in the game experiences something like this. They have to deal with the past and they do it for better or worse. We also have the question of identity. What defines a man? His actions? His past? His origin? His agenda?

To fully exploit the potential of the Chernobylite scenario, we had to make a lot of corrections and changes to the game. We wanted each of the characters to have a personality, and not just an extra in the background. Each of the encountered characters has been rewritten - each of them has new backstories, a new, distinctive way of expressing themselves. They have their own individual attitude towards the player. In addition, we have not only rewritten the plot, but also the dialogues that have been rewritten line by line. In this way, we wanted to better emphasize the mood that we wanted in the game from the very beginning, and also to better reflect the character's individuality. The effects can be seen especially in the dialogues between NPCs and Igor in missions and in the base.



[h3]Ariadna[/h3]
The world of Chernobylite is also made up of other factors that are part of the narrative layer. For example, Ariadna - a mysterious device resembling VR goggles, which is located in Igor's room. With its help Igor can visualize the effects of his investigations that are to lead him to the truth with the disappearance of his beloved.



Ariadna is the heart of the Chernobylite gameplay. All the missions that Igor performs are only an excuse to be able to search the area around the power plant for clues and evidence related to the events of years ago. After collecting all the things needed for the investigation, Ariadna analyzes them and then uses them to virtually simulate the events. Thanks to this, Igor can see the effects of his investigation with his own eyes - memories of events from several decades ago, in which the collected evidence played a key role. This is definitely a more convenient and practical solution than using threads and pins on a cork board.



Only one question remains: how did Igor get such an advanced device? It wasn't like it just appeared in his room. We wanted to expand this thread a bit with Igor's dream, in which it was also important to show who is behind Ariadne's creation.



But wait a minute. Something is wrong. This level is very similar to a level from another game. Specifically, the one from Get Even where Cole Black tries to reconstruct his memories!



Not only that: Ariadna looks like a goggle that someone put on Cole when he was unconscious. Thanks to them, he can visit fragments of his own memories, undergoing "treatment" under the watchful eye of a mysterious observer from a dingy psychiatric hospital.



Goggles are also an inseparable element of the encountered "patients" of this charming place.



So is it possible that the Chernobylite and Get Even worlds are somehow related to each other? Are Igor and Cole characters from the same universe? Maybe yes, maybe no… We encourage you to see for yourself. It is especially worth looking for clues scattered around the game or listening to the dialogues in Igor's dream. You might be surprised.

[h3]That's it for today![/h3]
Take care, Stalkers!

[h3]Hello Stalkers![/h3]
No introductory text. Just a picture.



We did it. We finally did it.

Ok. Let’s move on.

[h3]Art contest - last call![/h3]
Before we get to the main menu, a quick reminder. A few weeks ago we launched a community art contest. We have been inundated with a lot of different kinds of work. You can see that your creativity has no limits. You can now vote for the best of them. However, we also noticed that among you there are a large number of people who, for various reasons, have not had time to send anything and would like to take part in the competition.

We listen to your voices. That is why we decided to extend the possibility of submitting works in our competition. Regardless of whether they are newly created works, or maybe they were created months or years ago, and you put them in a drawer - we accept everything (of course, everything must be in accordance with the competition rules). Works should be sent by May 3 at midnight CET.

What about the voting? As we mentioned, votes have already started, and it is impossible for us to stop them. Therefore, due to the extension of the time for submitting works, we also extended the time for casting votes. Voting ends on May 9 at Midnight CET.

Don't hesitate! There will be no second chance!

The rules of the competition can be found at THIS LINK. You can submit your works in the following categories: ART, COSPLAY and VIRTUAL PHOTOGRAPHY.



[h3]The Mega Patch has brought a lot of good[/h3]
The highlight of the past week, both for us and for you, was the release of the last Mega Patch, which we called "Final Stage". It was created by thousands of hours spent in front of computers, a lot of new, improved elements has been added. It's also a huge support from our community - thanks to the closed testing you took part in, we knew what needed to be improved before we released the Mega Patch. Thank you again for this help!

In total, we’ve introduced several thousand fixes and improvements to the game. They covered every aspect of Chernobylite, from the story, to gameplay, graphics, to technical issues. You can read about all the most important changes in the post below.

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1016800/view/3059609427951998126

[h3]When is the premiere?[/h3]
Last week was also an opportunity to share with you the release date of Chernobylite. The full game will be released on PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in July this year. The current generation console version will be released a little later this year.

By the way, we would like to remind you that today is the LAST DAY when you can buy Chernobylite in the PC version with a 20% discount. In our opinion, it is worth doing this for two reasons. First, you'll get the game cheaper, duh. Second, only those who purchased the game in Early Access will be guaranteed access to the free DLC available after the game's premiere. So don't hesitate - we are preparing a lot of cool things for you!



[h3]Now to the point[/h3]
Although the Mega Patch has been released quite recently, it does not mean that our work is finished. We still have a lot of work to do. It consists of all the elements that we are going to give you back on the day of the premiere of the full version of Chernobylite. For example, the remaining ⅔ Heist - ⅓ of the entire level you can play today, as a foretaste of what awaits you in July.

But these are also some bug fixes that you report to us on Steam and Discord. Probably the most common bug you have reported to us was in the area of missing voice overs. It didn't happen often, and only at random moments, but still.

You can read about the latest fixes in the game at this link.

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1016800/view/3059610062004794121

By the way, we make small touches to what is already there. Have you seen what the new portal looks like? It already looks cool, but we want to make it even better. We are working on a solution that will allow a smooth transition between the portal and the loading screen.



Additionally, we are working on new things ... but we won't say anything about them. At least for now. We can offer you a small sneak-peek in the form of a detailed head model. Whose? We will tell about it another time.



[h3]That's it for today![/h3]
Take care, Stalkers!

Yesterday's update broke something in the save for some of you. I am so sorry for causing the problems. Return to base should fix this bug. If you have any problems with the save (black screen, spawn in a strange place), load the previous save and get killed in any way - radiation, monsters. Going through the timeline should fix everything.

General:

• After returning to the base, the game misread the information about the progress of quests, which could lead to many strange errors. We fixed it.
  
• The "Old friend" quest should now end correctly
  
• More fixes in the crash reporter
  
• A few smaller fixes reported on steam and caught by us (blends, music, collisions)