Chernobylite Complete Edition News

[h3]Hello Stalkers![/h3]
As promised, we are continuing with our series of entries, in which we intend to tell you how the individual elements of the game were created. Today we will talk about the most important one, which is the main character. Meet Igor Khymynuk.

Some players were very surprised that we don’t control the modern Rambo - one that breaks through the levels and unloads the entire series from a rifle at its opponents. This would probably solve the problem of entering the power plant area faster and more efficiently. The reason why it was different is quite simple: from the beginning, we didn't want to make a game that was totally action-oriented and/or shooting-oriented. On the contrary!



Chernobyl is a beautiful and mysterious place, full of secrets and dangers. The sight of a soldier definitely does not encourage fighting, but rather fleeing. We wanted to reflect our true emotions from real visits and experiences in Chernobyl, not to create an American abstract action movie. Hence, it was natural for us to create a hero of flesh and blood, who avoids fighting, does not want to kill, but is clever enough to defeat the opponent. When creating Igor, we had in our minds such characters as Joel from The Last of Us, a journalist from Outlast, and James from Silent Hill. They are just normal people who find themselves in an abnormal situation.

In addition, keeping with the historical realities, we also wanted to create a character who was somehow influenced by the Chernobyl disaster. Preferably one for whom it was her or his immediate experience, or even better - they worked at the power plant. And since the catastrophe took place almost 40 years ago, the hero needed to be of a specific age, and have a specific approach to solving problems. And so Igor is a man who’s been through a lot and has a doctorate in physics and chemistry. A person with such a background would rather avoid combat and construct traps than throw himself into action with a rifle in his hand. Besides, you know very well that Igor doesn’t react best when he needs to kill another person...



What motivated Igor to throw himself into the middle of the Chernobyl zone was the desire to find his beloved, who went missing on the day the power plant exploded. This is the main plot.

The Chernobyl disaster hides two particularly interesting puzzles: why did it happen, and what happened right after it? A lot of books, films and documents have touched the first question. (recently even a TV series). When it comes to the second question: stories about the victims of a catastrophe are a difficult subject of research and investigation.In addition, two days after the disaster, the city of 50,000 was evacuated - people were packed in buses and transported to unknown places throughout the USSR. Families were separated, many people disappeared without a trace. The fact that someone returns to Chernobyl to find a loved one who has disappeared is actually the first thing that comes to mind after hearing these stories. This motif was a perfect fit for Igor and Tatiana's story: two lovers separated on the day of the catastrophe and now trying to find each other after many years. The paranormal elements are merely a diversifying addition.



As for implementing the main theme - without going into too much detail, to avoid spoilers for those who haven’t yet played Chernobylite - we can say that the story has gone through three iterations: before the start of Early Access, right after the game's release on EA (we took into account the feedback of players who had some comments), and the third and final one, a few months before the official premiere. Each iteration more or less affected Igor. Because the more complete the vision of the game was, the more Igor evolved with it.

Before we finish this post, we have a little announcement for you. Be with us next week, July 28. We are preparing a lot of surprises for you on the occasion of the first anniversary of Chernobylite. You cannot miss :)

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

[h3]Will you join us? Let us know in the comments or on Discord.[/h3]



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[h3]Hello Stalkers![/h3]
So far, in our reports, we've talked about the genesis of the game and what path it took to release almost a year ago. So it's time to go from the general to the specific. In today’s and the following reports, we are going to tell you in the smallest detail how the individual elements for the game were created. In today's episode: monsters.

The first prototype of the monster was inspired by the "shadows" drawn in the form of graffiti on the walls (in the game, they are visible inside the buildings in the Moscow Eye). We thought it would be great if these shadows came to life. The living shadow motif is known in virtually every culture and is due to imperfections in the interpretation of the image of our brain: when we are tired, it is quite dark, we may think that we see a character's movement that looks like a "shadow", or that something has moved on the edge of our eyesight. So the concept sounded great from the conceptual point of view and fit perfectly with the atmosphere we wanted to achieve.



Unfortunately, Captain Reality has strongly verified our plans. On paper, the concept of living shadows looked great, but when it came down to creating it, it wasn't that fun anymore. Working on it was very tedious and caused only problems. The opponent was difficult to notice, the work on him was complicated, the influence on the performance of the game was quite big. Overall, it didn't work. And this despite the fact that the game at this stage was not supposed to be a typical shooter, but a more walking horror game inspired by Outlast, in which the player has to run away and hide from the opponent, not fight him.



Meanwhile, the other prototypes were doing much better. Despite the very small team, shooting with the soldiers was quite decent. And Chernobylite as the substance and the main antagonist of the game was becoming something more than just a strange crystal causing hallucinations. It can be said that what the game is now is the fruit of the inspiration of Expanse and Stranger Things.

We slowly began to understand that we simply needed more classic and physical monsters. Chernobylite, as a thinking substance began to change matter and adapt it to its needs, allowed us to make such changes. Shadow became a Borderer, a dark sack of skin filled with crystals with supernatural powers. We have replaced the chaos of the fight with a living shadow with the possibility of creating portals, and we have replaced running and hiding with classic weapons. The shadows remained only as a common name for all Chernobylite monsters. And as we mentioned, they can also be found on some walls as a graphic element.



The next monsters were just a creative use of this formula. Chernohost is actually a kind of clicker from The Last of Us whose appearance was inspired by radiation sickness and the fungus was replaced by crystals.

Duster, on the other hand, was created at a time when we felt that the scale of the game was definitely not tailored to the size and strength of the team. So we created a stationary creature with a very simplified AI that could teleport between preset points on a small area of ​​a given level. Artistically, it was an earthworm made of crystals crossed with a spider. It could break into crystal dust at any time and regain its form anywhere else.

One more thing: we will soon be celebrating the first anniversary of Chernobylite. Get ready, we have a lot of surprises for you :)

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

[h3]Will you join us? Let us know in the comments or on Discord.[/h3]



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[h3]Hello Stalkers![/h3]
You received a lot of new stuff from us with the last major update. But the biggest (and the most intense for us) is the VR device. This small, inconspicuous toy that you can place at your base introduces a new challenge to the game. It’s not easy, but gives a lot of fun and satisfaction.



We have been thinking about exploring the fractal world in a way similar to roguelikes for a long time. If you remember, one of the first concepts of the fractal world involved walking with a weapon in a maze filled with enemies. It looked cool on paper, but didn’t work that well in practice. This concept was abandoned, but the very idea of ​​creating your own roguelike remained. We had the opportunity to rewrite our concept a bit and finally implement it into the game.



The result of these works is a VR device that allows you to move into the fractal world and face opponents in several arenas. Each subsequent one is more and more difficult, and resources are limited. Below we present a short guide on how to navigate through the new game mode and how to survive in it.

1. Know your enemy (and be well prepared for him)

At the beginning of each round, you will see a large tube filled with liquid containing the creature. Use it as an indication of who you will fight on the fifth level. Use this knowledge to be able to adapt your arsenal to the final battle.



2. Your inventory is everything

It's not like you can go straight to the arena with a Blaster in hand. Your inventory is limited to what can be found in the big container at the start of each round: weapons, some ammo and some resources needed for modifications. There isn't much of it, and it is possible that you won't do too much with these resources before the first round, but they will increase over time. If possible, don't use up everything right away.



3. Recycling is handy

There may be a situation where you have too many weapons in your inventory (yes, such a thought may appear in your head at some stage), and not enough resources needed to create specific modifications. Don't throw your weapons on the ground! Instead, use a recycling device. It will allow you to gain much needed resources, get rid of the unnecessary stuff and make room in your inventory for perhaps better weapons.



4. Rambo would be a terrible fighter

Wandering around the arena and shooting blindly at everything may look cool, but generally it's a rather bad idea. Use the element of surprise, sneak and, if you can, take your opponent off silently. Stealth is good for you. You should have fun in Rambo style only as a last resort.



5. Don't lick the walls

In the arena, your task is to defeat your opponents and survive. That’s it! Don't look for resources because you won't find them anyway, don't wander around the board because you have nowhere to go (the arenas are small). Better spend your time learning about the paths your opponents are walking and plan your attack.



These are the really basic rules that you should know. There is nothing we can do but wish you a fruitful hunt!

We continue our contest of Chernobylite keys to win. We remind you of the rules: we ask a question related to the game, and the fastest correct answer wins.

Olga may (or may not) have some affection for one of the crew. To whom?

We will announce the winner and the correct answer in the report and in the comments on Monday.

EDIT:

Answer: Sashko

Congratulations to your evil twin :)

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

[h3]Will you join us? Let us know in the comments or on Discord.[/h3]



[h3]Follow our official channels to stay up to date:[/h3]
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Reminder!
Steam Summer Sale is on. Until June 7, you can buy Chernobylite and the previously released DLCs at a discount of -30%! Dive yourself in the dark zone today!



[h3]Hello Stalkers![/h3]
In the last report as part of our weekly contest we asked you about the nationality of Daniel (he was a Scot), with whom Mikhail was supposed to have had a conversation about the Moscow sewers. This anecdote may seem random, made up for the game by our writer... but this character is actually inspired by a real life writer.

The person that Mikhail spoke about is actually Daniel Kalder - a Scottish-born writer who spent ten years in the former Soviet Union, where he undertook all sorts of jobs. He described the experiences gained while visiting disused Moscow Metro tunnels and sewerage channels in one of his books called "Strange Telescopes". By the way: we recommend it wholeheartedly.



Chernobylite is filled to the brim with all sorts of references and easter eggs that harken to the real world as well as pop culture. The example with Kalder and the already widely known quote from HBO Chernobyl "3,6... Not great, not terrible" are among them. However, believe us, there is more. Today we are going to present to you only some of them.



A mysterious stalker, whom we can meet nodding in a chair with a revolver in his hand, is a source of a whole bunch of references. At first glance, we are dealing with a possessed person through whom evil forces are speaking. However, the words he utters, although they sound like gibberish, have hidden meanings.



For example, "Do you have to open graves to find girls to fall in love with" is nothing more than a quote from the 1932 movie "The Mummy" (great movie by the way).


[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

"Crudox cruo" and "En marana" are the lines spoken in a mysterious language of the cultists you can meet and hear in Blood 3D, an FPS released in 1997.


[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

H. P. Lovecraft also had his guest appearance. "That is not dead... that which can eternal lie, And with strange aeons even love may die" is a slightly modified quote from the story "The Nameless City", which originally reads "That is not dead which can eternal lie, And with strange aeons even death may die”. One word, but how much it changes the meaning of the whole.



Speaking of pop culture, it's hard not to mention the good-natured Evgeniy. When Igor asks him about lootboxes, he at some point replies, “My lootboxes are like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get." This is, of course, a nod to the movie "Forest Gump".



Dialogues with companions are another powerful source of reference, but this time to historical events that happened in reality. An example is Mikhail, who tells about his deceased friends: Zina, Yuri, Ludmila, Igor. These are the names of the four out of nine students who mysteriously died during a so-called Dyatlov Pass incident that is still shrouded in mystery. You can read more about it here.



By talking to Tarakan, we can also learn something interesting…and disturbing. In one of the dialogues, Tarakan will say: “The gulag at Nazino Island… thousands of little city mice… sent on a voyage to hell. My father was there”. If anyone wanted to explore this thread, they would find out that such a place really existed. A story about Nazino Island, also known as the "cannibal island" is terrifying, too strong even for a Steam entry. If you want to know more, we refer you to books and documentaries.

To relax the atmosphere a bit, let's move on to one of the conversations with Sashko. On one occasion he questions our protagonist’s’ taste in music and says:

“We need to remedy this situation, pronto! I want you to listen to "Sex, Kvas and Hardbass." It will change your understanding of music forever!”.

It is an authentic piece which is also a milestone in the hardbass trend. Enjoy!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

What we just presented to you is only part of what you can find in the game. When playing Chernobylite, it pays to keep your eyes open. Who knows what you may stumble upon! Let us know if you were successful!

We continue our contest of Chernobylite keys to win. We remind you of the rules: we ask a question related to the game, and the fastest correct answer wins.

“Don't worry about me, just wipe the servers! Go to "[blank]", download "smelly_panties_of_doom", and execute!". What is the full site address?

We will announce the winner and the correct answer in the report and in the comments on Monday.

EDIT:

Answer: www.heartisalonelyhunter.ru

Congratulations to King Tiger :)

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

[h3]Will you join us? Let us know in the comments or on Discord.[/h3]



[h3]Follow our official channels to stay up to date:[/h3]
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Before we get into the report, we have two very important pieces of information for you!

[h2]New, free content for Chernobylite already available with Season 2![/h2]
Season 2 Red Trees is now available to everyone! A new pack introduces a new VR set in Igor's base that will allow players to play a game inside the game, introducing a new, roguelike inspired, mode - VR Games.

Another addition is 6 new story missions. The Ghosts of the past expansion sees Tatyana manifesting in Igor's dreams. This sets the protagonist on a journey to iconic locations in the Zone.

There is also a video game station! This element is part of a cosmetic Play it add-on, and with atmospheric post-soviet looks will compliment the player’s headquarters.

For more info about Season 2 check out our news bellow:

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1016800/view/4777770825733809637
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[h2]Chernobylite and DLC in a mega promotion![/h2]
If you haven't had a chance to play Chernobylite yet, now's a good opportunity to do so. The game and all DLCs released so far are available at a lower price of -30%. Dive yourself in the dark zone today!



[h3]Hello Stalkers![/h3]
We've proven in previous reports that in order to survive in the Zone, you need more than to fire an entire moon clip from a revolver. First of all, you need to use your head. Igor seems to be perfect for the job - he’s a scientist, not a soldier. On the other hand, you also need weapons to protect yourself from NAR mercenaries and monsters. Again: Igor is a scientist, not a soldier.

But it's not like he's going to magically produce a rifle out of his pocket. He can, however, create said rifle from the things he finds in the Zone and then learn how to use it. Moreover, he can even modify his weapon to suit his needs. Because crafting is not only a complex element of our game, but also a way to show Igor as a credible character who can adapt to the conditions. Something like MacGyver in Chernobyl (BTW who remembers the TV series eh? Let us know! ;))



When designing the crafting system, we tried to convey the essence of hand-made things. Therefore, the first thing that catches your eye are the visuals associated with it. The crafting tables themselves were designed from the very beginning in such a way that the player could, upon first glance at a given table, recognize what he could use it for. That is why we embellished it with elements characteristic for a given type of weapon, and added a whole lot of other stuff that can be found in virtually every garage workshop.



The weapon modification system itself also works primarily visually - each weapon has specific elements attached or modified that almost completely change the appearance of a given weapon. But what was most important to us was that these add-ons should not only change the numbers in the parameters, but also give something extra in terms of looks and feel.

Several things are happening from the artistic and gameplay side. First, the animations change when using weapons. Take, for example, how a character behaves when replacing a magazine. The magazines are modified in various forms (they are of different sizes and widths), so the artist had to prepare dedicated animations for each one of them. At this point it is worth emphasizing that these animations are not standardized - literally each of these animations is made completely from scratch. There is no point of reference between them, no recycling of the previous animation, no copy-paste. Multiply the number of various magazines by the number of weapons in the game, and you will get the number of animations.

Secondly, depending on the modification, the reloading time also changes, e.g. a large magazine makes reloading longer, a small magazine - shorter. Also, if we focus on the magazine capacity, we pay for it with time, which can be of great importance when confronting a stronger opponent. A small magazine, in turn, means a shorter reload time, but also the risk that the enemy will not die after unloading the entire series on him.





This is obvious. But what is less obvious is, for example, the recoil of the weapon when fired. Gun firing is also done as an animation, not something procedural. Thus, any modification of the weapon that affects the recoil of the weapon (gameplay side) also changes the shooting animation (artistic side). That is why it is important to experiment when modifying a weapon, check various options, test, so that the end result is fully satisfactory for you.



Fun fact: in one of the magazines you can find a pattern that Igor associates with Tatiana. You just have to remember that Igor is a scientist, not an artist…



We continue our contest of Chernobylite keys to win. We remind you of the rules: we ask a question related to the game, and the fastest correct answer wins.

When Mikhail was living in England, he met a guy named Daniel with whom he talked about the Moscow sewers. What was Daniel's nationality?

We will announce the winner and the correct answer in the report and in the comments on Monday.

EDIT:

Answer: Scottish

Congratulations to iRkQ :)

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

[h3]Will you join us? Let us know in the comments or on Discord.[/h3]



[h3]Follow our official channels to stay up to date:[/h3]
Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1016800/Chernobylite/