3: S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
A long time in the making, the Ukrainian survival shooter was a rough edged, bug ridden beast when it finally arrived on the store shelves in 2007. While the core mechanics weren’t very polished, this was a game that shone with style and atmosphere rather than clever game design. It offered things to truly hardcore gamers that few games did before for some time. Lots of guns. Different ammunition types. A huge game world, meticulously hand crafted. A rough and punishing difficulty. And also some of recent gaming history’s most disturbingly scary levels. Things go bump in the night of the Zone.
The dread, the isolation STALKER communicates is something that few games pulled off right. It might be broken in some parts, but overall, it’s one of the most unique and memorable experiences to be had in gaming.
