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S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Glows With Chernobyl Radioactive Link
Thanks to Eurogamer for its coverage of a THQ-sponsored press trip to Russia to preview GSC's forthclming PC first-person shooter. Since the game is "based on the premise that you've gone to explore the 20km 'exclusion zone' of Chernobyl", this has led to some odd preview publicity, as the writer notes: "When they invited us on a cheery tour to go and see Chernobyl for fun, we knew something had gone awry in our lives. Stranger still, during the press conference to promote the much anticipated mutate 'em up S.T.A.L.K.E.R, they wheeled one of the men responsible for the tragedy. I didn't know whether to laugh or throw things." There's also an interview with one of the developers on Eurogamer regarding this September-bound title, but it's concluded that S.T.A.L.K.E.R, with its impressive visuals, is "...shaping up to be one of the scariest, most original takes on the increasingly tired FPS genre."
Unfortunately, this press event sounds like it is in really bad taste. The actual Chernobyl disaster was horrible. Making a game out of it is one thing, as it is sure to be fictionalized and live in a world separate from our own.
When THQ "wheeled one of the men responsible for the tragedy" out, that's just terrible. The lines of reality and fiction are being crossed and in a horrible way. For GTA4, I suggest they bring out real car-jackers to show the folks a good time.
God Bless America. Why? Did it sneeze?
The actual Chernobyl disaster was horrible. Yeah, well, so was World War II, but there's been no shortage of games based on it and no one complains.
Advice: on VPS providers
Um, yeah, Chernobyl was an accident, mmmkay? Didn't you get the memo?
Condemnant quod non intellegunt.
How does the game industry get away with crap like this? A better question is: how does the gaming press let the gaming industry get away with crap like this? I get as annoyed with the mainstream media as much as anyone (I'm an avid Daily Show fan, which I suppose is now as mainstream as anything but that's another post). But if, say, the film industry tried to pull a stunt like this, the mainstream media would've dogpiled on the company that did it.
So where's the gaming media? Ohhhh, they're too busy jacking off to screenshots . The gaming industry needs to grow some gonads, with the exception of that French guy who stood up and walked out, no doubt his massive balls dragging on the floor as he exited. I'm not asking for an over-reaction of politically-correct-ness. I want people to say controversial things. But this isn't controversial in content or idealogy. It's no less than someone pissing on the ruins of the WTC, but pissing on the ruins only because someone promised him $5 if he did it, not because he had anything to say about the WTC or had any idea of what it meant. Someone clueless about 9-11 and pissing on the WTC for $5, or having a press conference at Chernobyl to promote a game are the same thing.
Something like that might be actually worthy of attention, if the purpose was some form of punk anarchistic expression, or the thought behind it was something like, "I'm going to show how worthless this is." But this whole STALKER thing, and all the Vietnam and WWII games that have suddenly grown out of game developers' asses; it's a bunch of morons sitting in an office thinking, "Hey, what can we do to make more money?' It's some boob for a PR rep who sat in his office and brainstormed on a white board on how to better sell the game. The meaning of these places and events have become lost to these people. Vietnam games, WWII games, promoting STALKER in Chernobyl; they're not controversial expressions, they're accidental Whiteboard Nihilism.
Yeah, whatever.
There's no reason to single this game out as 'untasteful' if you're willing to allow other games. Think about it.
You (condescendingly) ask us to think about the poor Ukrainians as if we were exploiting their pain. Excuse me, the game was written BY a Ukranian development team.
You, (and the person who wrote the article), seemed surprised by the tour of Chernobyl. They have tours of Chernobyl all the time. You get on a bus that's dedicated to the area, (it will never leave) and drive around. That's all they did. It's like someone on a visit to New York riding the ferry past Ellis Island.
VietNam games were not 'taboo' for 30+ years as some sort of respect. Most that time there just wasn't the technology available to make the game. Now that it can be done, it is being done. Look at all the GulfWar games. Look at the Delta Force series, (current events portrayed in a mediocre game engine.) Games are being made all the time.
I wasn't at the press conference, of course, but I'm not even sure the guest speaker was as tasteless as is being portrayed here. He's billed in the article as 'one of the men responsible' as if it were some sort of deliberate action. What if it was presented as "One of the survivors" would you be so shocked and angered?
Anyway, if you feel a need to condemn the video game industry as insensitive to the current events they choose to portray, then by all means, go ahead. You're probably right.
However, if you think this game is somehow worse than the thousands of other games based on real-life events, then sit back down, because you're definitely wrong.
--Welcome to the Realm of the Hawke--
But this isn't controversial in content or idealogy.
Great point. Games can be fun diversions. A game about Chernobyl could be fun. But what does holding the press conference at Chernobyl mean? It's tasteless. I can understand making Medal Of Honor, but they're not promoting it at Normandy or Pearl Harbor or at a Concentration Camp.
Making the game is one thing, doing a controversial PR session just to be edging is, frankly, annoying.
God Bless America. Why? Did it sneeze?
Elena aside, STALKER looks like it might be the designated "sleeper" hit for this year.
DooM3 looks graphically superior to well, everything, but from the alpha, the gameplay hasn't changed since the early 90's. I've played the run, gun, find the switch game before.
Half-Life 2 will probably have more playability despite being optimised exclusively for ATI cards (no particular reason beyond marketing sponsorship). It'll be a success assuming they don't dumb anything down for the console kiddies (DX2 anyone? Thanks console guys, thanks a lot).
STALKER on the other hand is about the only game I've heard of this year that has a really distinctive new premise. Let's hope for the best from the fresh blood in the market.
I am government man, come from the government. The government has sent me. -- G.I.R.