STALKER Full Series Retrospective: The Story Before Heart Of Chernobyl

[@ASupremeTabbo]

Thanks for the complete retrospective, cheeki breeki, Stalker.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I woke up and saw this. Thanks for making me morning, day, and week special! It’s going to be the talk of the table at Thanksgiving, until my wife shuts me up ahahah 😂 Hope all is well and I truly thank you for the super thanks!!

[@bung0o]

“Whichever stalker you play, the main character is the zone itself” what a damn great way of simplifying both the core of the storyline, and the immersion of the gameplay in such a simple line

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I truly appreciate you writing this, I also exclaimed to my dog and wife how I enjoyed that line.. I got mixed responses lol 😂 Wishing you the best!

[@Neros_light]

29:52 I really wish they'd kept this voice actor for Strelok. That exhausted sounding "to the North" really worked.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I didn’t even realize he was a different voice actor from SoC to CoP!

[@Neros_light]

@Dog.Dad.Studios all three games use a different voice actor funny enough. I can only tell because in Clear Sky his voice sounds slightly higher than it did in Shadow of Chernobyl. And in Call of Pripyat it's way deeper

[@osaasd8018]

It gave me major "East, always into the East" vibes

[@vizelek2156]

I didn't realise that your stalker videos combined are two and a half hours long. You really put great effort to these masterpieces. Keep up the good work!

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Thank you so much!! It’s really a cool thing to see tangibly! I’m excited to do it with series that have multiple games. Something I’m taking from another creator ( putting retrospectives together). I’m honestly so surprised this one has done well after just a day! Crossing my fingers it’s a sign for things to come

[@Zvox]

this channel is criminally underrated. all of your stalker videos have been EXTREMELY helpful since i started stalker 2 and felt a little lost since i knew basically zero lore going in. i tried to get into the series like 5 years ago but really struggled due to how incredibly dated they feel. thanks for the help dude.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I truly appreciate these kind words! It’s moments like these that make this journey truly wonderful and awe inspiring in every sense of the word. Thank you! It means a lot!

[@SunTzu176]

How do you find Stalker dated? Genuinely curious. Everything holds up amazingly to todays shooters. In fact if anything modern shooters have degraded compared to peak like Stalker.

[@Zvox]

@@SunTzu176 bruh the visuals of stalker were extremely dated at the time the game even released lmao. it has really strong art direction, but even back in the day it wasn't a very good looking game. the lack of voice acting is another VERY big one. few things turn me off a game more than little to no VO work.

[@SunTzu176]

@@Zvox Gotta disagree, while SOCs graphics we're lower than what was considered premium at the time it was servicable, CS and CoP looked great. Also what do you mean lack of VA? I mean the PDA isnt voiced, but the characters are. They might not say every line but it never bothered me. Guess im just old man, cause Stalker was great when it came out, and even today is still fantastic, honestly SoC beats Stalker 2 imo.

[@Eldenbruh]

​@@SunTzu176 you just have special nostalgia glasses on, as the old games does not LOOK better than S2, but they are better games. Their visuals are unique, but dated. Thats not subjective, thats a fact. I love the visuals of these old ones, but come on man...they LOOK old and dated.

[@liberaceboiithe3rd5]

By far my favorite Stalker channel, your in depth lore is genuinely incredible

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I truly appreciate you taking the time to watch and write this; it means so much to me! I look forward to going back to the zone in the new year after I finish up with StarCraft 2. Hope all is well and happy holidays!

[@Neros_light]

11:13 "I know a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy who knows Strelok"

[@SkyCaptainification]

this made me laugh a lot xD

[@Neros_light]

@SkyCaptainification :) It's pretty true which makes it funny to me ngl

[@l3esme568]

strelock in the first game really needs to eat some proper food and not just bread with sausage passing out all over the palce

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Seriously the dudes blood pressure!

[@Neros_light]

37:51 something I absolutely ADORE about areas with high levels of Psi energy is the ambience. That creepy ambience of whispering voices you can make out but only just enough so as to not understand what they're actually saying. I really hope S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 brought that back

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I’m there with you! Maybe someone turned back on the miracle machine or brain scorcher! Hell maybe we didn’t even find the biggest emitters!

[@BlackDeltaOne]

good news, it's back and they fucking nailed it!

[@PivotCyroy]

Clear Sky is a prequel to SoC, the event you see is Strelok visiting the center for the second time. Strelok went to the center three times, he failed the first time, the second time is before the events of SoC and you chasing him in Clear Sky. The third time is you playing in SoC.

[@DS-wl5pk]

Second time. 3rd time is SoC where he gets to the center and destorys the C-Con tubs. Clear Sky is how he was made a Stalker in the first place. The first time is how the C- Con became aware of someone trying to go after it, albeit unknowingly. The Second time he gets as far as he does and C-Con unknowingly makes him a Stalker, probably finding out his name fron taking over other characters like Lebodev and reading their memories and so C-Con programs the new Stalkers to go after Strelok, not knowing it already had him and so sends hin away. Basically they didnt know who they needed to get specifically, and so they had wiped Streloks memory and now not even he knows who he is, so if he needs to be aware of who he is for his "presence" to be in the Noo-Sphere, then perhaps thats why they werent able to sense him despite their self proclaimed omnipotense. Then nistakenly sending him to go off after himself. Then we get the first game. The conversation you have with Doc after you go into the stash is direct proof of this. Strelok had told someone of what he had saw and it provides notive as to why he needs to go back. He told people about what he saw so he must have been there before and since he also didnt tell then about a massive fight there, its clear that it isnt the events of Clear Sky that he told Doc about. So, he goes once, finds the door, realizes what is most likely going on with this "monolith". Goes a second time, events of Clear Sky. Fails, mind wiped, Marked Finally, events of SoC

[@PivotCyroy]

@DS-wl5pk That's what I said?

[@DS-wl5pk]

​@@PivotCyroyyeah the typo at the begining of your comment threw me off. You basically correct yourself at the end

[@PivotCyroy]

@DS-wl5pk Oooh I thought I corrected that, thanks for pointing it out!

[@Jeddykin]

as an australian, can we just forget about that breakdancer 🤣

[@TG650Gaming]

I don't think they ever gonna let us die that mess down fellow Aussie

[@MrLilredmachine]

I'm deep into Stalker 2. I'm really enjoying it to be honest, bugs and all. I do feel it lost a bit of uniqueness due to UE5, however it still does have a very distinctive style and could only be Stalker. Looking back now, the lighting on these original games (which I have played of course, just a while ago) was stunning for the time they released. I have been enjoying Anomoly in the meantime and am very happy to have been mincing about in the Zone in the intervening 15 or so years between releases. 😂 It really steps that lighting up several notches with the reworked engine. It's great to be refreshed on the characters and lore before heading in to the new game though, there's a lot lets face it! Thanks for the compilation of vids, makes for a great feature length watch.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I appreciate you taking the time not only to watch my content, but to write and share such a well written response. Thank you. Hope this finds you well! Completely agree about UE5 being too consistent with games nowadays

[@ToxicToucan]

Finding the Oasis might have been one of my favorite parts in the entire franchise.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

What about it made it one of your favorite parts? Thanks for taking the time to comment this!

[@ToxicToucan]

@@Dog.Dad.Studios I think its the fact that you hear a couple people talk about it and then you can just sort of stumble into it yourself but not before realizing your stuck in some kind of huge anomaly loop. I just remember loving how I actually felt like I found and solved it myself, not because it was an objective. Only to come back and have that one dude who takes credit for everything you do take credit for it. Very immersive.

[@ASphere-z5n]

Your content has been really helpful for me before I go into stalker 2 (never played a stalker game before) thanks man

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Thank you! Hope you have an awesome time and I really appreciate you taking the time to write this! Happy holidays and Merry Christmas!

[@Reaver_Approach]

Been binging all your videos man! Working on a personal project and all your lore and info has been perfect. You've got a great channel!

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Howdy! I appreciate this so much! Thank you for taking the time to watch! Wishing you the best on the project!

[@Reaver_Approach]

@Dog.Dad.Studios cheers mate! I hope you have a good holiday!

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

About to pack the cornbread and Brussel sprouts my wife made into some bags and head on the train to her folks house : ) truly appreciate it! Hope all is well with you and your loved ones!

[@sirmag1735]

Another incredible video, lots of hard work put into this! Thanks man!

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I appreciate you : )

[@sirmag1735]

​@@Dog.Dad.Studios Did you use any graphical mods for these playthroughs?

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

@ nope! All base game and full graphics : ), I wouldn’t be able to critique graphics if I used shaders ( mandalore did with his thief series, but that was needed) and if I do I’ll make sure to say it : ) Wishing you the best! Truly appreciate your time!

[@sirmag1735]

​​@@Dog.Dad.Studiosrandom question, but have you played metro? If not absolutely play those games you'll love them I promise. I'd love to see a retrospective on them, or a video on them in general :) if you like them enough obviously.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

@@sirmag1735 I played the first metro when it came out and enjoyed it, as well as the train one, but didn't finish. I would love to go back to them. They didn't resonate with me like Fallout or STALKER, and I kind of want to go into that further, and see if that's still true to myself. The only obstacle is time, and I love the idea of making the retrospectives of series, and METRO fits perfectly into that theme. Wishing you the best, and thank you so much for watching my content and writing comments. It truly makes the experience amazing.

[@anthonyweston5588]

Just found your channel. Really glad i did. Im going to replay all of the older games while watching your stuff. Happy thanksgiving!

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Amazing!! Thank you so much for taking the time to watch my content and comment! I truly appreciate you! Wishing you all the best and happy belated Thanksgiving!!

[@jimmyjohnsa2892]

Your making great stuff man keep it up

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Thank you so much for writing these kind words! It motivates me to continue working with determination and purpose : ) if this is what the first year is like, I’m so excited for what’s to come. Hope all is well!

[@Neros_light]

28:19 you know, now that you've mentioned lighting, this game's horror side does remind me of Dead Space a little.

[@TheFishingCrane]

Wow such an amazing video thank you for your hard work

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I appreciate this so much! Thank you! Wishing you the best

[@sv2670]

Amazing content! Looking forward to future videos and your channel to grow!

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

This comment made me smile and instantly want to work on the next script, even if it’s a Sunday ahaha. I will stop myself and enjoy some time at a holiday market; I appreciate you taking the time to watch and comment, it means so much! And all in good time : ) slow and steady, plus with people like you in the community, the good vibes spread. Hope all is well!

[@Neros_light]

25:00 I kinda hope they explore that side of S.T.A.L.K.E.R a bit more in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. I'm a HUGE lover of Science fiction and S.T.A.L.K.E.R is such a unique blend of that as well as two of my other loves, being first person shooters and nuclear disaster stories. Judging from that one ARG they did and a bit of what they've shown us of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2's story, I get a feeling that's exactly what we're gonna get. I'm honestly so excited

[@Neros_light]

1:35:52 something else just occurred to me. It's HIGHLY convenient that the Emission didn't start until AFTER Strelok's Psi protection was disabled by Scar. Like bruh.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

What do you think this means??

[@SomeCrow]

There is a lore reason. The C-Con still existed at the time and was aware. Once they saw that Clear Sky was celebrating the victory of disabling Strelok's Psi-Protection, they sent out an emission as they were angry by the fact a whole faction showed up on their doorsteps.

[@DarkShamanWolf]

You just got a new sub , great video 💪

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Thank you so much : ) lots on the channel at your convenience! Hope all is well and I appreciate you taking the time to watch as well as comment!

[@MrCirconflexe]

great story telling. thanks!

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I appreciate you : )!!!

[@Ruckus907]

I'm hoping this video helps your channel pop off, great stuff!

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Thank you so much! Commenting, liking and sharing are the best ways of growing the channel from the viewer’s side, I appreciate you taking the time to watch and comment : )! Wishing you the best!

[@Neros_light]

19:56 oh god. Pseudogiants in SoC were broken. I hated fighting them.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Monstrous creatures!!

[@Neros_light]

18:56 this game made me respect (and really despise) snorks. Especially later on in the game. Talk about an ammo dump 😭 I went to a lot of places very poorly prepared on my first playthrough this year back in June and paid the price for it. Made for some really memorable moments though.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

It gets the game to be on a different level, when ammo, therefore safety is scarce. After years of playing the original trilogy, I think I'm a decent survivalist; looking forward to getting absolutely decimated by the Zone this time around. Which game was your favorite?

[@Neros_light]

​@Dog.Dad.Studios tie between Shadow of Chernobyl and Clear Sky. Both games had some really good set pieces. My girlfriend watched me play through the ending section of Clear Sky. I did end up playing it modded though cause I really didn't like the weapon balance lol. Shadow of Chernobyl though was just so memorable. I distinctly remember going through X16 with only pistol ammo because I didn't learn from my X18 adventure lmao. Something I love about every end game section is just how much of an effort you have to put in because of Monolith and how it actually feels like not only a desperate fight for survival, but also a desperate attempt to break through their forces to get to the final objective.

[@vangelisman]

Stalker is my best franchise all a time, is change my vision of video game for ever

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

That’s awesome! Thank you for sharing this! Is there a specific part that you can think of that changed your perspective or was it the overall experience?

[@vangelisman]

@Dog.Dad.Studios its on the first stalker, the yantar-X16 blow m'y mind on my first run ( the scientist die and my anti-psy gear no optimal ) this part is incredible, ambient, danger everyware , psy voices... Y love all stalker game but this part is just fantastic

[@TG650Gaming]

A little late to the party i am but might i say you really do a good job on the retrospective of a game i hold so close to my heart Ah Nu Cheeki Breeki Iv Damke Stalker

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I appreciate you! Thank you for taking the time to watch and comment! Wishing you the best!

[@AtomicDonut4444]

Great stuff, Big Dog. Keep up the good work.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I appreciate you! Hope all is well : )

[@Neros_light]

Was just looking for something interesting to watch. I love long form stuff

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Thank you so much : )! I’ve got a good bit on the channel, so at your convenience! Hope all is well!

[@Neros_light]

@Dog.Dad.Studios I'm doing well. Thank you ❤️‍🩹

[@FELTFELT]

i am a new player ive never played these games im playing stalker 2. snorks scared the shit out of me i thing their design is amazing they look like chernobyl firefighters that medics gave up on after trying to pull their gas mask off

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I’m so glad you’re having those experiences! It’s what stalker is all about! Highly recommend playing the original trilogy! You’ll “love” the snorks in CoP, they want hugs all the time hehe. Good hunting STALKER

[@Neros_light]

35:51 I was still going through my backlog at the time and so rushed it and I really wish I hadn't. I could've gotten the true ending. I had all the necessary pieces minus the door code

[@l3esme568]

You don't have to face off against the MG in clear sky you can go back to the swamp and go to cordon using a different route

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Seeing it on the map now makes me feel dumb Lolol

[@l3esme568]

@@Dog.Dad.Studios It does only open up after entering cordon for the first time iirc it is really easy to miss

[@xOriginalGamerOG76x]

I've just bought the first series of games on PS. I bought it on pc when the original game released. Never got to play it as my computer didn't meet the specs. Hopefully Stalker 2 will eventually release on PS at some point. But these games will be enough to keep me busy until then. If ever.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I wish you the best in your exploration : )! Its about the journey, not the destination. I look forward to hearing what resonates with you when playing them. All the best!

[@Neros_light]

41:13 oh my god. I died so many times here.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Ahahahah it’s one of those spots!!

[@cheezburgrproduction]

Your opinion matches mine, CoP does so much better and well that if you can only play one I recommend that one every time but it would be nothing without the first and CS shows so much of the back story and interlinking threads that make Pripyat shine even more. Thoroughly enjoyed these videos, thank you.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

I truly appreciate you taking the time to watch and comment, it means so much to me and helps out the channel so much! I’m glad our minds align : )! Have you started to play the new one?

[@DarkoP9.13]

You were missing another character:Strider ,ex Monolith to go to the underground part in Call of Prylpyat. I think when you have all 5 members they are much tougher (hit point wise) yr get an achievent which gives more health to everyone(at the begining of the endevour, it think) And you fighting Monolith with hunting shotgun proves what you said, Under prepared :) .You rushed et

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Thanks for watching! And thank you for the info!

[@legitrob9527]

Did you use original fallout music? It sounds exactly like it in the background.

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

You have good ears : )

[@legitrob9527]

@@Dog.Dad.Studios It's my favorite game music that's why probably haha

[@pRyudo]

Who is Straylock? Bc the character's name is StreLok, emphasis on lok

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

And if I had a magic wand to turn back time I would be a fairy god mother

[@rando3939]

Few Slavic name phonetics for you: See-door-oh-vich, Deg-tie-rev, Leh-mah-n-sk

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Appreciate this, thank you!

[@oklahomaroserock6904]

Спасибо мой друг

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Thank you! Wishing you all the best!

[@Nobody.exe50]

i believe i am still around 30% in the story of the first game (yes i bought the bundle)

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Fantastic!!! Take your time with it, plus if you do, HoC will have some patches out by then : )

[@Nobody.exe50]

@@Dog.Dad.Studios loving them so far , have a certain charm , but moving through the map gets kinda annoying but nothing crazy

[@Askethanoras]

how about anomaly?

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

What specifically about it?

[@Askethanoras]

@@Dog.Dad.Studios opinion etc, you've done a play thru' to get into stalker 2 mood? im aware its just a collab of the three games modded to oblivion but still :D

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

@ I might do a playthrough at some point, they have a cool story line that’s akin to the trilogy, maybe get a bit narrative with it. I reviewed gamma as my first video ahaha, so there’s that. We’ll see what stalker 2 brings as well! Much more to come : )

[@wiwysova]

This is stalker, not generic survival games

[@Askethanoras]

@@wiwysova Genre is a stupid concept for something as complicated as a game

[@EddiMoFetti]

Chornobyl* not Chernobyl

[@kvnen]

Correct, but kind of. The original game "Shadow of Chernobyl" was spelled that way because of differences in Ukrainian and Russian romanisation. Russian romanisation spells it "Chernobyl" whilst Ukrainian people say "Chornobyl". It's suspected that the name of the first game was changed following the current war between the two nations, and is why the latest game uses the Ukranian romanisation. It makes sense anyway since GSC is a Ukranian studio.

[@spudmeister9566]

Says Chernobyl on the box

[@EddiMoFetti]

@@spudmeister9566 says Chornobyl on Xbox store but if you don’t even know the reason they changed it to the correct spelling of Chornobyl, you might not be a fan of the games…

[@EddiMoFetti]

@@kvnen you really didn’t need a paragraph to tell me some shit I already know 😂

[@carsonstites]

Great video bro! I'll see y'all in the zone 🫡☢️

[@Dog.Dad.Studios]

Thank you so much! I’m so excited to explore the zone again and have it feel familiar and also new at the same time! Wishing you all the best! Don’t forget to bring vodka and a baguette : )