Reviews - S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Anomaly mod for S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat

I kept returning to this mod quite a few times back in the day and everything was ending up the same way. So many features you probably won't use most of the time, or "made to be made". Visuals look very odd, -- too much greenery and constant feeling of being in jungles, which isn't present in the actual EZ. Not hardcore at all. Boring and repetitive storyline tasks in the manner of "Go to the opposite side of the Zone, read a couple of text lines and return". So many good LD features were cut for no real reason so it's basically just another CoC compilation mod with a few public addons installed over it. Doesn't supports most CoC oriented addons as well. 3/10

Gave it a fair shake. I just don't like it. While stability is much improved from earlier versions, the Misery-inspired content is still just no good, for all the same reasons it was never good to begin with.

Dying every five minutes from massive radiation exposure just because you strayed two steps close enough to a radiation source to trigger a full-on red dose isn't even remotely realistic, nor is it good gameplay. This might not be the case everywhere, but the Great Swamp is a disaster. You're absolutely fine standing next to the water...just don't stick a pinky toe in. One wrong step and BOOM CATASTROPHIC GAMMA RAYS ENTER YOUR SOUL. This is not how radiation works, nor should it be. It's massively annoying.

The "you're injured" effects that kick in at about 35% health are overblown and ridiculous, which is funny because I actually like effects like these, generally speaking. They're just *too much* here. Essentially, once you get to that point, you're pretty much screwed - you can barely move, you can't see, your vision literally goes almost completely black. Basically, 35%-40% of your health bar is a lie. It practically doesn't exist.

The NPC skins are actually bad. Not only do they not look that great, they're actually world-breaking. Gotta love the leather-on-tracksuit bandits. Very nice. I feel like I'm playing a Youtube version of the Zone. Ahh nuu cheeki breeki, rite? *sigh* I've heard reports that there are assets straight up ripped from other games in here, too. I mean, like, in a completely world-breaking way, stuff like Metro and Fallout. I can believe it now. It's optional, though, so it's not really a big deal.

The graphics are muddy, washed-out, and straight-up ugly. The only positive is increased - and adjustable - grass density.

The stupid minutia of the Call of Miserable Dead Air and Other Such Derivatives is present and accounted-for here. Dozens and dozens of grainy, colorless icons you can barely make out against the inventory background cluttering up your backpack, absolutely everywhere. Every little thing is a badly-hacked in chore. Weapons drop as fossilized rust-and-dirt facsimilies of guns, even though they were perfectly-working bullet hoses a second ago, when the AI was using them against you. Everything is ludicrously expensive, an excuse to pretend at gameplay substance through sheer grind. Ammunition is laughably overpriced. You can't "go local," either, because picking up discarded weapons in a firefight just won't work. The guns are gene-locked to rust into dust the instant you pick them up. Books can be written on how stupid this is, and how badly this kind of non-gameplay needs to go away. I'll let somebody else write them. Suffice it to say, it sucks, and it's not what STALKER ever was, or should be, about.

I understand the nature of a free-play mod kind of necessitates artificial carrots dangling from artificial sticks to make up for the apparent lack of progression, plot, and goals. So far, there's not much left in most mods but the acquisition of gear. This is a fundamental flaw that is better addressed with something more meaningful than making said acquisition of gear miserable, slow, and silly-stupid.

There's no easy answer to the problem, I'll admit, but this is definitely the *wrong* answer. I didn't fall in love with STALKER because I liked grinding bits and bobs, and STALKER didn't get a big international following for that reason, either. So while "softer core" mods like base CoC have apparently "easy" progression and a lack of atmospheric story-based content, Misery-style mods just have stupid progression, bad gameplay, dull repetition of basic tasks without satisfaction or meaning, AND a lack of atmospheric story-based content.

I did like the radio mod, though. There's that.

Without a doubt, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Anomaly is one of the greatest mods out there.

There are many features this mod brings to S.T.A.L.K.E.R. that, not only add more life to the game, make it an experience worth revisiting over and over again.

Let me explain: first off, Anomaly takes the base game and fixes many flaws. While those flaws don't deeter from the enjoyment level the game delivers, it's a nice touch having those flaws corrected.

While there are other S.T.A.L.K.E.R. mods that deliver a great experience, Anomaly goes the extra mile and breathes much more life into the zone, while still keeping that lonely, dreary atmosphere. It adds a lot more NPCs and monsters to the zone, without feeling out of place.

The overhauls to the survival aspect of S.TA.L.K.E.R. are so well executed here. I honestly can't think of anything to complain about. I love how natural everything in this mod feels. Like it was always, or I should say SHOULD HAVE, been there from the get-go.

Even the overall atmosphere is more tangible in this mod. The added weather effects are just lovely. One moment you're traversing the open plains, and thunder begins to roar in the distance, as rain gently begins to trickle down from the sky. The next moment you're in a subway tunnel, just about to head out into the horizon, as a strike of lightning scorches the sky view. Things like this, while subtle, really add to the atmosphere of Anomaly. And yes, I know these ambient features are already in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. But there's just something about Anomaly, and how it enhances these ambient atmospheres, that make them better.

The subtle, yet profound touches to the combat system are also great here. Combat in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. was never its strong suite. While not broken, it could've been much better. Anomaly takes that combat and fine tunes it into a fine wine, if I may say so.

Not to say that Anomoly is perfect. It has some flaws. But they are, in my honest opinion, so few and far between, I really don't see any reason to point them out.

Overall, if you are looking for a way to scratch that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. itch, and you've exhausted the games to the point of boredom, Anomaly is the one mod that, not only is essential, will make you more than happy to return to the zone, due to all the great mechanics it brings.

Verdict - 10/10 masterpiece

Beautiful game

Terrible story mode, with bad quests and Bethesda level fetch quests. Garbage

Top of the line stalker mod it seems, however it doesn't come close at all to Lost Alpha's Depth when it comes to environment, when we talk about immersion

10/10

Engine is too good i got 0 xray crashhhhhhhh

Anomaly (and Lost Alpha) brought Stalker to modern times, both graphically and feature wise.
With lots of mods and customization, custom storylines, GUNS, it's a must have for anyone who likes both hardcore fps and/or soviet horror sci-fi!

A sandbox S.T.A.L.K.E.R. experience, with a 64 bit Engine, all maps, and plenty of addons to make it more inmersive. Players can choose a punishing experience, or something more enjoyable (go to gameplay in options, and you can customize plenty of things to your taste).

One of the best mods out there