Stalker Beta Discussion!

Richie-b · Feb 26, 2007, 03:20 PM

A Big Thanks to all at DriverHeaven for making this possible and giving me the chance to beta test stalker, this has made my year !!
I've not really had a lot of time yet to play extensively due to work commitments but my first impressions are really positive. Installation went smoothly and i jumped straight onto a server with no problems. I was expecting to have to set up an sli profile on the fly, but there is one in my current driver set(tweaksrus 97.92) and it seems to be handling the work load well. With v-sync forced, the only time the framerate drops is during the lightning and dust storm sequences, and then it's only a minor drop, say 10/15 fps. Is it posible to rename the .exe to get more performance ? I try a few of the popular ones over the next couple of days to see if anything works well, also if anyone has any more sli tips i'd be glad to hear them.
Game play wise, i'm not a big deathmatch fan but the artifact hunt is really cool, give's you something other to focus on other than just racking up kills. The graphic's look great and i love the atmosphere and setting of the game.
The only bug for me so far is the writing didn't line up on the score screen, it was like 2 sets of writing super-imposed over the top each other, if it happens later i'll grab a screenie of it.
Look out for fitkid on the servers.

Cheers

Vikingod · Feb 26, 2007, 03:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dyre Straits

What are your actual framerates? and resolution?

1280*1024 resolution. Settings off top of my head, are maxed out, but AA in on the next to lowest setting (I've actually found that AA doesn't even work in the beta). As far a framerates go, I don't know exactly. If I'm in a match with 5-8 people, I get solid 45+ fps, with it dipping in certain problem areas in the 30s. If you have a full room, performance can get pretty terrible. I've found that, regardless of the graphics settings however, the performance is pretty much the same (ie. netcode issues).

$tr4ngeBrew · Feb 26, 2007, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vikingod

1280*1024 resolution. Settings off top of my head, are maxed out, but AA in on the next to lowest setting (I've actually found that AA doesn't even work in the beta). As far a framerates go, I don't know exactly. If I'm in a match with 5-8 people, I get solid 45+ fps, with it dipping in certain problem areas in the 30s. If you have a full room, performance can get pretty terrible. I've found that, regardless of the graphics settings however, the performance is pretty much the same (ie. netcode issues).

Wow average fps 45 and only dropping to the 30's! It makes me happy to hear that, but also very surprised!! Actually could other peeps here with a 7800GTX report their frames too. I guess single player may perform even better right?

thematrixxx669 · Feb 26, 2007, 09:44 PM

omy i would love to get a key. been waiting for 2 years for this game to come along.
wat do i have to do to get a key?

thank u

OmegaRED · Feb 27, 2007, 01:18 AM

NOOOOO I missed another key giveaway

*$**(#())(*)(#()@)(@*$(()%)@()()@_($)_@(%)(@%)_@() ($)@($)_@(_)(%)_@%)__ !!!!

CDsDontBurn · Feb 27, 2007, 01:37 AM

alright, i'm having issues getting my CD key to be recognized as "valid". i already tried what was susggested in the original post by Z, but that didn't work.

any other ideas?

Dyre Straits · Feb 27, 2007, 01:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDsDontBurn

alright, i'm having issues getting my CD key to be recognized as "valid". i already tried what was susggested in the original post by Z, but that didn't work.

any other ideas?

CDs, I was having problems due to not realizing that I needed to hit the ENTER key once I typed in all the key code. It will cause all the numbers to turn into xxx's. THEN try starting/joining the game.

Dyre Straits · Feb 27, 2007, 01:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vikingod

1280*1024 resolution. Settings off top of my head, are maxed out, but AA in on the next to lowest setting (I've actually found that AA doesn't even work in the beta). As far a framerates go, I don't know exactly. If I'm in a match with 5-8 people, I get solid 45+ fps, with it dipping in certain problem areas in the 30s. If you have a full room, performance can get pretty terrible. I've found that, regardless of the graphics settings however, the performance is pretty much the same (ie. netcode issues).

Not to be too nosy - or obnoxious, but, how can you not know exactly and then say you're getting a solid 45+ fps? Are you using ATT, or anything similar, to show FPS? I'm really eager to know the facts and not guesses.

CDsDontBurn · Feb 27, 2007, 01:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dyre Straits

CDs, I was having problems due to not realizing that I needed to hit the ENTER key once I typed in all the key code. It will cause all the numbers to turn into xxx's. THEN try starting/joining the game.

mine is the opposite way. if i press enter after putting my key in, it will turn it into "xxx's", and give me the invalid key error.. if i just go to click "ok", then it'll just give me the error message.

Dyre Straits · Feb 27, 2007, 02:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDsDontBurn

mine is the opposite way. if i press enter after putting my key in, it will turn it into "xxx's", and give me the invalid key error.. if i just go to click "ok", then it'll just give me the error message.

Hmmm....all I can come up with at this moment is to make sure you're not confusing a Z with a 2 or something similar.

CDsDontBurn · Feb 27, 2007, 02:03 AM

nope. i've checked, double checked, and triple checked that key like 10 times already. i KNOW i'm not.

maybe i got a borked key? it's the only thing i can think of ATM

INSTG8R · Feb 27, 2007, 02:27 AM

Does anyone have any fresh feedaback on the latest Beta build? I D/L it last night but havent installed it yet. I have never liked CS(ironically I have the entire CS catalogue with my Steam package) so I instantly wasnt struck by the gameplay but I do really like the enviroments and hope the SP is a VERY long story(should be, they have had a LONG time to think about it

)

JohnnyChance · Feb 27, 2007, 04:06 AM

is anyone else really annoyed with the gun/backpack pickup system? it seems you have to crouch over a backpack to pick it up, and if i want to switch guns, even if i have the gun i want "highlighted" (the guns icon shows up on my screen when i stand on it), i still have to jiggle around a bit for it to pick up the damn thing. it might be fine in a slower paced single player campaign, but i just want to run over the backpack and get my 100 bucks. way too complicated and/or buggy for this style multiplay.

Dyre Straits · Feb 27, 2007, 05:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnnyChance

is anyone else really annoyed with the gun/backpack pickup system? it seems you have to crouch over a backpack to pick it up, and if i want to switch guns, even if i have the gun i want "highlighted" (the guns icon shows up on my screen when i stand on it), i still have to jiggle around a bit for it to pick up the damn thing. it might be fine in a slower paced single player campaign, but i just want to run over the backpack and get my 100 bucks. way too complicated and/or buggy for this style multiplay.

Hmmm....I'm not sure if it's your setup or what, but, I didn't have to crouch, slowdown, or anything like that and got up to 3280 in money...and even picked up some new weapons. No crouching, hesitating, or anything like that. ???

Dyre Straits · Feb 27, 2007, 05:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by INSTG8R

Does anyone have any fresh feedaback on the latest Beta build? I D/L it last night but havent installed it yet. I have never liked CS(ironically I have the entire CS catalogue with my Steam package) so I instantly wasnt struck by the gameplay but I do really like the enviroments and hope the SP is a VERY long story(should be, they have had a LONG time to think about it

)

As far as I know, we're all using the latest beta build. At least, when I click on Options/Game and then check for Updates there aren't any.

I also just tried connecting to FilePlanet and the site must be down or getting hammered. It won't come up for me at the moment.

jasonbourne · Feb 27, 2007, 05:50 AM

i recieved a email from fileplanet last night saying that there was a new beta version out wich i thought was a bit strange , can anyone confirm that ??

Dyre Straits · Feb 27, 2007, 05:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jasonbourne

i recieved a email from fileplanet last night saying that there was a new beta version out wich i thought was a bit strange , can anyone confirm that ??

Other than the CD-KEY confirmation, I haven't gotten any other emails from FilePlanet in reference to the game.

jasonbourne · Feb 27, 2007, 06:01 AM

this is what i gotDear S.T.A.L.K.E.R. "friends and family" beta tester -Thank you for your participation in the closed, "friends and family" beta forS.T.A.L.K.E.R. Throughout the beta, we'll be posting new beta client builds assoon as they become available. This email is a reminder to come back toFilePlanet and download the new beta client if you haven't done so already.You can find the latest client here:[COLOR=#0000ff]http://www.fileplanet.com/173507/170000/fileinfo/S.T.A.L.K.E.R.:-Shadow-of-Chernobyl-Beta-Client[/COLOR]NOTICE - this file requires a cookie to download. If you access the link aboveand are redirected to www.fileplanet.com, you'll need to go to the followinglink and access the download from the program's key/download page:[COLOR=#0000ff]http://www.fileplanet.com/betas/stalker_key_auth.aspx[/COLOR]If you cannot access the key/download page from this link, please make sure youare logged into the account you used to register for the "friends and family"beta. For any other problems downloading, please make use of FilePlanet's supportcenter at [COLOR=#0000ff]http://support.fileplanet.com[/COLOR].Thanks, and enjoy the beta!- The FilePlanet Team

Mr cairo · Feb 27, 2007, 07:12 AM

i have had the email about the new client as well but cannot get the file if its there

Chaos · Feb 27, 2007, 07:34 AM

I got the message regarding a new build yesterday and downloaded the new one but have yet to try it

Brutality · Feb 27, 2007, 07:55 AM

Sweet. After few days apart from STALKER and then playing it again, I realised, what's the real purpose of the game. It's more like tactical cover-to-cover-hold-your-head-down-shoot-and-and-cover type of game. I really liked this after I got into a decent server which was running decent game mode. Deathmatch just sucked but Team Deathmatch and Artifact Hunt were brilliant. I managed to get my game running good aswell. 60 FPS and not a drop to a lower lvl with medium/high settings. I just had to get Catalyst 7.2. Anyways, i'm taking back all my badmouthing I did before and I really like STALKER now

Btw, C&C3 Demo is out!!! IT FUCKING OWNS!!!!

jasonbourne · Feb 27, 2007, 09:52 AM

so is there really a new one ?? or is the same that regenarator posted in this thread somewhere??

Grislum · Feb 27, 2007, 10:33 AM

I have SO many problems with this Beta. I can't play more than 10 min, then the game crashes with a "Fatal Error" window and if I'm lucky and the game don't crashes, then it cuts off my internet connection. My router restarts and my game is lost.
This really annoying. I'm glad this is a beta.

But I have managed to play a little longer without problems and I see that this really is a good game. Wonderful graphic, maps and so on. I like it all. It's just very, very annoying that it is so unstable. But as I said - I'm glad this is a beta and I hope all this is fixed in the real version.

Sorry about my poor english :P

\Grislum

Vikingod · Feb 27, 2007, 10:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dyre Straits

Not to be too nosy - or obnoxious, but, how can you not know exactly and then say you're getting a solid 45+ fps? Are you using ATT, or anything similar, to show FPS? I'm really eager to know the facts and not guesses.

I use fraps to display FPS. what I ment by not knowing exactly was that its not exactly consistent. The FPS is very effected by the number of players in a match. FPS is really all over the board, depending even on which part of a room or area you are in. (For instance, in the trainyard, if you are in the 'snipers' building, FPS take a huge hit if someone else is near you, but you don't see the performance hit if you are alone). Like I said, it has to do with the net code, as when I'm in a match alone, or on a LAN match, FPS is pretty standard around 45 fps.

you obnoxious jerk

**temeteus82** · Feb 27, 2007, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jasonbourne

so is there really a new one ?? or is the same that regenarator posted in this thread somewhere??

Yes there is. I have downloaded it and ins talled it. Didn't got the time to test it out....

Grislum · Feb 27, 2007, 10:49 AM

Then post a link to the new client(s)? thx

**temeteus82** · Feb 27, 2007, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grislum

Then post a link to the new client(s)? thx

Sorry I'm not home right now...
Could some one who has the e-mail put the link here?

Dragunov · Feb 27, 2007, 11:59 AM

I received one of the keys, so I got the download

I installed it, I need to enter the other key, so: xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx, but when I enter my key it says it's invalid

possible reason?

thx

Vikingod · Feb 27, 2007, 12:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dragunov

I received one of the keys, so I got the download

I installed it, I need to enter the other key, so: xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx, but when I enter my key it says it's invalid

possible reason?

thx

Press return after you enter it

OpusP.Gladiator · Feb 27, 2007, 12:02 PM

check that your firewall has allowed it and make sure you press the enter key after entering it... this saves it then hit join..?

Feb 26, 2007, 03:20 PM	#181
Richie-b In the corner Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: In the corner Posts: 105 Rep Power: 0 System Specs	A Big Thanks to all at DriverHeaven for making this possible and giving me the chance to beta test stalker, this has made my year !! I've not really had a lot of time yet to play extensively due to work commitments but my first impressions are really positive. Installation went smoothly and i jumped straight onto a server with no problems. I was expecting to have to set up an sli profile on the fly, but there is one in my current driver set(tweaksrus 97.92) and it seems to be handling the work load well. With v-sync forced, the only time the framerate drops is during the lightning and dust storm sequences, and then it's only a minor drop, say 10/15 fps. Is it posible to rename the .exe to get more performance ? I try a few of the popular ones over the next couple of days to see if anything works well, also if anyone has any more sli tips i'd be glad to hear them. Game play wise, i'm not a big deathmatch fan but the artifact hunt is really cool, give's you something other to focus on other than just racking up kills. The graphic's look great and i love the atmosphere and setting of the game. The only bug for me so far is the writing didn't line up on the score screen, it was like 2 sets of writing super-imposed over the top each other, if it happens later i'll grab a screenie of it. Look out for fitkid on the servers. Cheers Last edited by Richie-b; Feb 26, 2007 at 03:28 PM.

Feb 27, 2007, 01:18 AM	#185
OmegaRED In Fedor We Trust Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Ottawa , Canada Posts: 4,789 Rep Power: 85 System Specs	NOOOOO I missed another key giveaway $(#())()(#()@)(@*$(()%)@()()@_($)_@(%)(@%)_@() ($)@($)_@(_)(%)_@%)__ !!!! __________________

Feb 27, 2007, 01:37 AM	#186
CDsDontBurn 127.0.0.1 Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 21,849 Rep Power: 133 System Specs	alright, i'm having issues getting my CD key to be recognized as "valid". i already tried what was susggested in the original post by Z, but that didn't work. any other ideas? __________________ CD's Corner // Her first day // A year later // RX-8 Club 3Dmark06 - 4176 // 3Dmark05 - 7459 // 3Dmark03 - 14289 // PCmark05 - 4453 // PCmark04 - 6297

Feb 27, 2007, 02:03 AM	#191
CDsDontBurn 127.0.0.1 Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 21,849 Rep Power: 133 System Specs	nope. i've checked, double checked, and triple checked that key like 10 times already. i KNOW i'm not. maybe i got a borked key? it's the only thing i can think of ATM __________________ CD's Corner // Her first day // A year later // RX-8 Club 3Dmark06 - 4176 // 3Dmark05 - 7459 // 3Dmark03 - 14289 // PCmark05 - 4453 // PCmark04 - 6297

Feb 27, 2007, 02:27 AM	#192
INSTG8R DriverHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Canadian lost in Norway Posts: 555 Rep Power: 0	Does anyone have any fresh feedaback on the latest Beta build? I D/L it last night but havent installed it yet. I have never liked CS(ironically I have the entire CS catalogue with my Steam package) so I instantly wasnt struck by the gameplay but I do really like the enviroments and hope the SP is a VERY long story(should be, they have had a LONG time to think about it ) __________________ Sys. Specs. Intel E6600@3.2\|Abit IP35 Pro\|2x1024 Crucial Ballistix PC8500 \|Sapphire HD4870 512\|Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 500G SATAII 16MB w/PRT\|SB X-Fi Fatality\|TT Tough Power 1200W\|TT Kandalf L.C.S.\|Samsung 204B 20" 5ms LCD\|Logitech G25\|Logitech G5\|Logitech G15\|Saitek X-52+Pro Rudder Pedals\|TrackIR w/Trackclip Pro 3DMark06

Feb 26, 2007, 09:44 PM	#184
thematrixxx669 DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 4 Rep Power: 0	omy i would love to get a key. been waiting for 2 years for this game to come along. wat do i have to do to get a key? thank u

Feb 27, 2007, 04:06 AM	#193
JohnnyChance DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Castle Greyskull Posts: 26 Rep Power: 0 System Specs	is anyone else really annoyed with the gun/backpack pickup system? it seems you have to crouch over a backpack to pick it up, and if i want to switch guns, even if i have the gun i want "highlighted" (the guns icon shows up on my screen when i stand on it), i still have to jiggle around a bit for it to pick up the damn thing. it might be fine in a slower paced single player campaign, but i just want to run over the backpack and get my 100 bucks. way too complicated and/or buggy for this style multiplay.

Feb 27, 2007, 05:50 AM	#196
jasonbourne DriverHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: great yarmouth uk Posts: 1,090 Rep Power: 0	i recieved a email from fileplanet last night saying that there was a new beta version out wich i thought was a bit strange , can anyone confirm that ?? __________________ http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y28...asonBourne.jpg

Feb 27, 2007, 06:01 AM	#198
jasonbourne DriverHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: great yarmouth uk Posts: 1,090 Rep Power: 0	this is what i gotDear S.T.A.L.K.E.R. "friends and family" beta tester -Thank you for your participation in the closed, "friends and family" beta forS.T.A.L.K.E.R. Throughout the beta, we'll be posting new beta client builds assoon as they become available. This email is a reminder to come back toFilePlanet and download the new beta client if you haven't done so already.You can find the latest client here:[COLOR=#0000ff]http://www.fileplanet.com/173507/170000/fileinfo/S.T.A.L.K.E.R.:-Shadow-of-Chernobyl-Beta-Client[/COLOR]NOTICE - this file requires a cookie to download. If you access the link aboveand are redirected to www.fileplanet.com, you'll need to go to the followinglink and access the download from the program's key/download page:[COLOR=#0000ff]http://www.fileplanet.com/betas/stalker_key_auth.aspx[/COLOR]If you cannot access the key/download page from this link, please make sure youare logged into the account you used to register for the "friends and family"beta. For any other problems downloading, please make use of FilePlanet's supportcenter at [COLOR=#0000ff]http://support.fileplanet.com[/COLOR].Thanks, and enjoy the beta!- The FilePlanet Team __________________ http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y28...asonBourne.jpg

Feb 27, 2007, 07:12 AM	#199
Mr cairo White Swan Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Slightly to the left Posts: 1,352 Rep Power: 53 System Specs	i have had the email about the new client as well but cannot get the file if its there __________________ homepage

Feb 27, 2007, 07:34 AM	#200
Chaos Number Nine Join Date: May 2002 Location: Nova Scotia Posts: 5,178 Rep Power: 94 System Specs	I got the message regarding a new build yesterday and downloaded the new one but have yet to try it __________________

Feb 27, 2007, 07:55 AM	#201
Brutality DriverHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Estonia Posts: 887 Rep Power: 25	Sweet. After few days apart from STALKER and then playing it again, I realised, what's the real purpose of the game. It's more like tactical cover-to-cover-hold-your-head-down-shoot-and-and-cover type of game. I really liked this after I got into a decent server which was running decent game mode. Deathmatch just sucked but Team Deathmatch and Artifact Hunt were brilliant. I managed to get my game running good aswell. 60 FPS and not a drop to a lower lvl with medium/high settings. I just had to get Catalyst 7.2. Anyways, i'm taking back all my badmouthing I did before and I really like STALKER now Btw, C&C3 Demo is out!!! IT FUCKING OWNS!!!!

Feb 27, 2007, 09:52 AM	#202
jasonbourne DriverHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: great yarmouth uk Posts: 1,090 Rep Power: 0	so is there really a new one ?? or is the same that regenarator posted in this thread somewhere?? __________________ http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y28...asonBourne.jpg

Feb 27, 2007, 10:33 AM	#203
Grislum DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 6 Rep Power: 0	I have SO many problems with this Beta. I can't play more than 10 min, then the game crashes with a "Fatal Error" window and if I'm lucky and the game don't crashes, then it cuts off my internet connection. My router restarts and my game is lost. This really annoying. I'm glad this is a beta. But I have managed to play a little longer without problems and I see that this really is a good game. Wonderful graphic, maps and so on. I like it all. It's just very, very annoying that it is so unstable. But as I said - I'm glad this is a beta and I hope all this is fixed in the real version. Sorry about my poor english :P \Grislum

Feb 27, 2007, 10:49 AM	#206
Grislum DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 6 Rep Power: 0	Then post a link to the new client(s)? thx

Feb 27, 2007, 11:59 AM	#208
Dragunov DriverHeaven Addict Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 323 Rep Power: 0	I received one of the keys, so I got the download I installed it, I need to enter the other key, so: xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx, but when I enter my key it says it's invalid possible reason? thx __________________ - Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 + Zalman 9700 LED - MSI P6N (Nvidia 680i chipset) - 2GB DDR2 ram Corsair Dominator 1066Mhz - MSI Geforce 8800GTS 640MB - Creative X-Fi Elite Pro - Seagate 320GB 7200/10 - Logitech MX-500 - Windows XP+SP2+DirectX9.0c - Windows Vista Ultimate

Feb 27, 2007, 12:02 PM	#210
OpusP.Gladiator '42' Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Oregon!!! Posts: 301 Rep Power: 0	check that your firewall has allowed it and make sure you press the enter key after entering it... this saves it then hit join..? __________________ http://img52.exs.cx/img52/7799/opus.jpg AMD X2-3800 (Manchester), Oc'd to 2.25 on stock cooler! DFI Lanparty-UT-SLI-D mobo, OCZ Platinum pc3200xtc @ 2.3.2.5.1T, MSI 7800gt @440/1100, Soundblaster X-Fi Fatal1ty, 2 wd 36g raptors, 1 maxtor 250g eide, Coolermaster case with Handle Logitech g15, 20.1" Sceptre LCD, Antec neo2 500w PS"