zombe on 18/6/2014 at 13:28
It is fairly unlikely to find any major bugs that do not affect countless others (hence being fairly well known) or being so obscure and untestable to make fixing them impossible.
All the input i could give would not be technically classified as bugs and likely something they would not want to do ... ie. gameplay stuff.
Anyway, stuff to mention:
* Just delete all cutscenes, seriously, x_x. Ok, fine, some problems that could be fixed without deleting (ignoring the ones that are unsalvageable):
1) I can remember only one cutscene that had no problems (the sniper in garbage) the rest either do something they should not (bizarre teleportation [giving the garbage one a pass as it could be explained by a relapse of the main character]) or more frequently ...
2) ... just fails spectacularly and irrevocably if the player did not trigger the cutscene in a exact magical spot (usually somewhere a sane person would least likely to actually be) - the "camera" seems to get stuck in level geometry and control is never given back to the player.
3) Unskippable dreadful shit - i can not even describe how much i loathe most of the cutscenes. Pure torture. I would give away all my top-tier artifacts (even the +10% bulletproof one) to have a way to skip them. Holy fuck.
* Beginning of copter chase sequence:
1) Enforced car usage: this does not suit the game (for several reasons) - really needs an alternate option (also, the locked gate out feels very silly [if a game has invisible walls then the last thing it should do is draw attention to it]).
2) Timed first forced use of a car: timed copter spawn (a copter that you can not hide from) gives no time to familiarize with the controls (i was blow up before i found the key to start the engine).
* Cut down the bloody pointless traversal
1) Add reasons to explore areas: even little fetch-quests will do wonders.
2) Add places to buy ammo: to promote exploration (currently exploration is EXTREMELY penalized - something that might not be readily apparent to people who have played the game a lot).
3) PS. cars suck (ignoring all technical reasons) - do not attempt to enforce their usage. Cars will get better on future plays - but for first time play they are absolutely worthless (detrimental to normal gameplay).
4) Labyrinths and mazes are just annoying. Especially in a game (all they do is destroy immersion and remind that you are playing a game with silly and unbelievable obstructions in a world seriously lacking distinctive detail). Dumb-dumb-quadruple-dumb.
* Replay the game ignoring foreknowledge:
1) There are frequent unavoidable fails (ie, not fault of the player) in it. Reloading/retrying breaks immersion and should be avoided.
... to name the major problems. But i stop now as it is quite depressing and i doubt it will do any good - just venting a bit.
Dia on 27/6/2014 at 15:31
Though I have been enjoying LA so far, there have been more than a few frustrating moments for me (aside from glitches, bugs, and random CTDs). I think some situations, especially in the labs, are at times a little 'stacked' against you in that you go from no enemies in sight to suddenly being totally overwhelmed with seriously unrealistic number of enemies in just-as-sudden combinations of adverse conditions that are guaranteed to kill you. I can deal with that (even the timed run in the Brain Scorcher lab - and I've always hated timed runs of any sort) and can even deal with having to reload numerous times until I get it right. I can deal with the seemingly endless (and sometimes confusing) labyrinthine tunnels, and cut scenes that are sometimes too long and not really pertinent to the situation at hand (imo). Don't get me wrong, I am totally grateful to the Dezowave team and anyone else who had a hand in creating Lost Alpha. But sometimes all of the above can be a little overwhelming and I've found myself opting out of the game for a few hours (or days) until my frustration level diminishes a bit. Yes, I know the game was released far earlier than it was intended to be, and that the devs are still doing their best to fix all the glitches, bugs, and errors, and I appreciate their efforts. It will be an excellent game once all of the above are fixed, no doubt in my mind. And no, no one forced me to start playing a buggy game; I have done so because of my love of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games and because I, like so many others, have been chomping at the bit to play Lost Alpha since I first learned that it was in the works. Granted, some of the frustration has been of my own doing, such as not being able to keep a vehicle due to consistently getting it blown up or driving it off a cliff or bridge (my bad ;)). I admit that I am still, for the most part, enjoying this game tremendously and can't wait for all the bugs/glitches to get fixed so I can play it through in the manner in which it was originally intended to be played.
All my whining aside, I do have one burning question and that is where are all the repair technicians? After the Rostok Bar is hit by the despicable military, the Barkeeper and Petrenko travel to the outskirts of Pripyat ostensibly to set up shop and I can't seem to find a repair tech anywhere between the Rostok Factory and the Pripyat Outskirts. I can't find Petrenko anywhere in the Pripyat Outskirts and have been forced to go all the way back to the Rostok Factory just to get my weapons and gear repaired before I hit yet another underground lab. I read that there's supposed to be someone named Father Diodor in Yantar Lake who can do repairs, yet after searching for him for over an hour I've decided that he, too, moved on to greener pastures because he sure as hell isn't anywhere to be found in Yantar Lake. So if anyone has a list of repair technicians and their locations (after the attack on the Rostok Bar and relocation of the Barkeep/Petrenko), it would be greatly appreciated if you'd post that list. I can't find anything definitive on the LA forums at GSC, and believe me, I've done a lot of searching in that forum.
Also, I am wondering why I can't upgrade my weapons once I've had the basic upgrades done? It's not happening with just the special weapons (like the GS 37, etc.) but with all my weapons. Same with my Stalker suit; even though I have plenty of cash to upgrade the suit (and my weapons) to the full potential, I'm not being given the option to do so after I make the first, basic upgrade. Is this a glitch, or do the repair techs need better equipment, like in CoP? I haven't received any missions to go looking for better tech equipment, so am wondering why I can't have all the upgrades done that I can afford at this point?
Sorry if I sound a tad too bitchy and complaining, like I said, I really am enjoying LA overall. Maybe my mood is a bit colored because I know when I start the game up again today I'll have to go down into Lab X-10, and I really hate underground labs. I can never seem to remember to buy enough batteries beforehand. ;)
zombe on 27/6/2014 at 21:30
Diodor is patrolling around at the right side (ie. the side that has a pipeline. Further down from where the pipe ends) of the map (the area with a few houses). There are three yellow-dudes underground - one of them is Diodor (It might be that he won't start his patrol unless you talk to him in his hidey-hole first).
It never happened to me nor do i know whether it is possible (might be non-killable npc), but he might have died on his patrol duty (there are dogs to chase and anomalies to step into - and i have seen him chasing dogs).
Upgrades: i am still using the 1.300013 version and have no such problems. Can upgrade the next branch of the upgrade tree whenever prerequisite is done (every upgrade disables all alternate branches - would be way overpowered otherwise).
Batteries: i seem to find them everywhere - regularly selling patches of 10 whenever i have more than 20 extras. Overly stringent on my resource usage perhaps :/
edit:
(
http://www.gsc-game.com/index.php?t=community&s=forums&s_game_type=xr&thm_page=1&thm_id=23012&sec_id=20&page=2&no_transl=3.8)
Seems he might be dead (had any emissions in Yantar?). Unless he died a long time ago you should at least be able to find his body around there.
edit2:
Hm, i remember that i installed some third party patch for upgrades (no idea where i got it) - that might have helped (i originally installed it for the upgrade-kits, but it made no difference there).
Axon1988 on 28/6/2014 at 18:43
First off, Been getting our first bit of snow fall here in SA. So I am freezing and the new price hike in fuel here has pushed me to try find extra jobs. Tough times, but LA is looking better by the day.
My buglist here gets updated every time I am bale to test so please check it out every now and then: (
Buglist) http://www.reddit.com/r/stalker/comments/28jeqq/stalker_lost_alpha_update_on_feedback/
Hoping to actually change this soon enough to maybe here.
Quote Posted by zombe
Diodor is patrolling around at the right side (ie. the side that has a pipeline. Further down from where the pipe ends) of the map (the area with a few houses). There are three yellow-dudes underground - one of them is Diodor (It might be that he won't start his patrol unless you talk to him in his hidey-hole first).
It never happened to me nor do i know whether it is possible (might be non-killable npc), but he might have died on his patrol duty (there are dogs to chase and anomalies to step into - and i have seen him chasing dogs).
Upgrades: i am still using the 1.300013 version and have no such problems. Can upgrade the next branch of the upgrade tree whenever prerequisite is done (every upgrade disables all alternate branches - would be way overpowered otherwise).
Batteries: i seem to find them everywhere - regularly selling patches of 10 whenever i have more than 20 extras. Overly stringent on my resource usage perhaps :/
edit:
(
http://www.gsc-game.com/index.php?t=community&s=forums&s_game_type=xr&thm_page=1&thm_id=23012&sec_id=20&page=2&no_transl=3.8)
Seems he might be dead (had any emissions in Yantar?). Unless he died a long time ago you should at least be able to find his body around there.
edit2:
Hm, i remember that i installed some third party patch for upgrades (no idea where i got it) - that might have helped (i originally installed it for the upgrade-kits, but it made no difference there).
About Father Diodor, every time I've tested he's died due to rats. Basically ignoring them while a group of about 12 rats rip him to shreds. Some times I just get irritated by how shitty those rats can be.
Upgrades have been heavily tweaked in the new patch, so it should be working fine for everyone once it is released.
Even when I was playing around on 1.3.00013 I never really had an issue with running out of batteries. This is mostly due to the way I play. In fact I had to stash most of them as they would take up a large portion of my backpack.
Also getting fuel is a snitch in the new patch.
Finally regarding technicians after
Rostok gets attacked there is a duty technician in their hideout on Prypriat outskirts. Not too easy to find, but if you help Duty out enough times then you will get some decent price reductions from him.
Guys it might take me longer to reply now. I'm actually planning a wedding, never knew they could be so stressful. So please just bare with me.
On a side note:
Every time I look at this new Areal project I get sad. I mean it is actually a legit projects by the looks of things and what Vostok / GSC have reported. And it seems like the core team for the kickstarter are focusing more on protecting that they are not a scam. Rather then say, pushing out updates related to the project. It seems like they are under a lot of strain and that the kickstarter had very little planning go into it. I do however hope they do reach their goal and push out a game we can all enjoy.
Dia on 29/6/2014 at 13:57
Quote Posted by Axon1988
About Father Diodor, every time I've tested he's died due to rats. Basically ignoring them while a group of about 12 rats rip him to shreds. Some times I just get irritated by how shitty those rats can be.
I found the good Father on my fourth or fifth trip through Yantar. If you're facing the large building with the two Stalkers in it with the large open doors, front and back, through which you travel to get to the next transfer point (back to Rostok Bar?), there is a shack to the right of that building, set back aways from the road and masked by bushes. The Father is down those steps, with two other Stalkers, and you can get stuff repaired before he goes on his walkabout. Once again I was unable to upgrade any of my weapons or Stalker suit past the first upgrades, unfortunately.
Quote Posted by Axon1988
Even when I was playing around on 1.3.00013 I never really had an issue with running out of batteries. This is mostly due to the way I play. In fact I had to stash most of them as they would take up a large portion of my backpack.
I was joking about running out of batteries. ;) Must be a mental block on my part because that's the one thing I always forget to stock up on.
Quote Posted by Axon1988
Finally regarding technicians after
Rostok gets attacked there is a duty technician in their hideout on Prypriat outskirts. Not too easy to find, but if you help Duty out enough times then you will get some decent price reductions from him.
I've only seen three Duty guys in their hideout and none are repair technicians. If you could give more detailed directions of where to actually find him, that would be great! (I'm tired of running either all the way back to Yantar or Rostok Factory for repairs.)
Quote Posted by Axon1988
On a side note:
Every time I look at this new Areal project I get sad. I mean it is actually a legit projects by the looks of things and what Vostok / GSC have reported. And it seems like the core team for the kickstarter are focusing more on protecting that they are not a scam. Rather then say, pushing out updates related to the project. It seems like they are under a lot of strain and that the kickstarter had very little planning go into it. I do however hope they do reach their goal and push out a game we can all enjoy.
This is the first I've heard of the Areal project and it does sound exciting! I hope they succeed! :thumb:
Axon1988 on 30/6/2014 at 06:21
Quote:
I found the good Father on my fourth or fifth trip through Yantar. If you're facing the large building with the two Stalkers in it with the large open doors, front and back, through which you travel to get to the next transfer point (back to Rostok Bar?), there is a shack to the right of that building, set back aways from the road and masked by bushes. The Father is down those steps, with two other Stalkers, and you can get stuff repaired before he goes on his walkabout. Once again I was unable to upgrade any of my weapons or Stalker suit past the first upgrades, unfortunately.
Glad you SORT of came right with this. Hope in the next patch that this will be a bit more solid.
Quote:
I've only seen three Duty guys in their hideout and none are repair technicians. If you could give more detailed directions of where to actually find him, that would be great! (I'm tired of running either all the way back to Yantar or Rostok Factory for repairs.)
Okay, I might need some clarification on this. But if you are in the duty hideout underground, where the 2 duty guys are sitting by the fire, if you go past them to the end there will be a door. The technician is behind that door. But as far as I understand he will only help repair your things if you are in good standing with Duty and if you help them out on a mission from the duty guy in the new bar.
Quote:
This is the first I've heard of the Areal project and it does sound exciting! I hope they succeed!
Links to everything Areal: (
Areal Kickstarter Project) https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1577656602/areal
Trance on 1/7/2014 at 10:57
We were discussing Areal in the "What are you kicking?" thread in GenGaming; you guys should be made aware of some things regarding Areal if you've put money into it or were thinking about it. Information has come to light in the last week to raise suspicion that this project is a scam.
Forbes has a (
http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2014/06/26/areal-kickstarter-raises-huge-red-flags-backers-beware/) frequently-updated article on the project's many issues and failures to communicate. Newest developments at the top.
Dia on 1/7/2014 at 12:38
Quote Posted by Axon1988
Okay, I might need some clarification on this. But if you are in the duty hideout underground, where the 2 duty guys are sitting by the fire, if you go past them to the end there will be a door. The technician is behind that door. But as far as I understand he will only help repair your things if you are in good standing with Duty and if you help them out on a mission from the duty guy in the new bar.
I've already completed Duty's mission successfully, but when I go to the Duty Hdqtrs. in the Pripyat Outskirts, the Duty guy in the room (beyond the two Dutiers sitting by the fire) doesn't offer repairs at all. It's just kind of frustrating to have to go all the way back to Yantar to see Father Diodor, or back to the Rostok Factory to see the repair tech (in the once-gas-filled building), especially when you have a mission coming up that's going to require lots of firepower and you've already used your weapons in a previous mission to the point where they'll just keep jamming up because they need to be repaired.
I made the mistake of leaving Pripyat City (because my weapons and suit were in dire need of repairs) before I
accepted the mission to protect the scientist who needed to take readings, I went all the way back to Yantar Lake, found Father Diodor (again), got my stuff repaired, then after the long trek back to the Pripyat Outskirts I discovered that I couldn't get back to Pripyat City through the transfer point in the Outskirts due to a glitch that won't allow you to use that transfer point. That meant that I'd have to make the seriously long and convoluted trek back through the Pripyat Sewers, which was NOT something I felt up to at that point (it was about 11 p.m. and I just wasn't up to fighting the nasties that I hadn't killed yet down there). I think I read over at the GSC Forums that this particular glitch will be fixed in the upcoming patch; I certainly hope so. It would make things so much easier to have a repair tech either in the Pripyat Outskirts or in Pripyat City!
Still enjoying the game in spite of all the little glitches and CTDs, though.
Axon1988 on 1/7/2014 at 14:01
Quote Posted by Dia
Still enjoying the game in spite of all the little glitches and CTDs, though.
All I can really remember about this section is a mission that you have to do. I think it's a side quest that also fills in with the main story. And if you do it and go back to the duty leader in the
new bar on prypriat outskirts then he'll reward you with the ability to get things repaired at that duty guy underground.
It could also be a trigger in the main story. In all honesty I cannot remember exactly how it worked.