Chernobylite Review
Release Date: July 28, 2021 (PC), September 7, 2021 (Xbox One, PS4), TBA (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)
Developers: The Farm 51
Platforms: PC (Reviewed), Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5
Price: $29.99
Ever since the disaster of Chernobyl that happened in 1986, we've seen many mediums adopt the catastrophe into a setting for storytelling in many "what if" scenarios that has seen many successes and creative ideas spawned from it, but even long before that, the discovery of radiation as well as its uses - especially with the arms race that saw many nuclear weapons being developed - has spanned for well over a century now, with most famously the likes of The Hills Have Eyes and even the first ever Godzilla in 1954 touching on those subjects of both the power and destructive nature that can come from it when mishandled and abused. In gaming in particular, tons of sci-fi games have looked upon the idea of radiation and nuclear energy to influence a lot of monster designs and game worlds - no matter how subtle - to give off a sense of fear and loss of hope, with games like Half-Life, Fallout, and Wasteland having influenced tons of titles for years. More recently we've seen Metro take the helm of this post-apocalyptic direction and really bring it into their own, with quality survival horror balanced alongside its military combat, though because of its growth in popularity the genre as almost become oversaturated with those that are looking to imitate rather than innovate. Chernobylite is one such game that actually *does* innovate, and while on the surface it may seem like it's very much the same as, say, Metro and/or STALKER, Chernobylite has a few tricks up its sleeve that actually sets it apart from these and sitting comfortably in its own niche.
Chernobylite sees the players take the role of Igor, a scientist who's been studying this strange matter known as Chernobylite to help create portals to different spaces of time, though not necessarily "turning back the clock" in a traditional sense. His studies don't come without reason, however, as he's been hearing voices in his head that sound very similarly to his wife, Tatyana, who disappeared thirty years ago and has given him hope that she may actually still be alive somewhere. The opening of Chernobylite really sets the tone as well as you're given a glimpse of what to expect from the game at its fullest, from frenetic survival to intense horror as you're facing yourself against a military regime known as NAR, storms, and supernatural creatures. Resource management is key, but so are the decisions you make as your lack of expertise in the field leaves you relying heavily on your comrades, but also incentivizes you to grow and increase your skills the longer you play and are in Chernobyl.
Throughout the playthrough of Chernobyl, you'll get many comrades along the way that want to help in fighting back against the supernatural entities and NAR, as well as aid you in your mission to uncover the truth about Tatyana's disappearance. Not everyone will want to join you, however, so it's up to you to make sure you're able to compensate for their needs and meet them in the middle, as more often than not everyone will have a different goal they’re trying to reach, but are also willing to make some compromises so that others can work together and still achieve that goal, even if it may take longer or cause disagreements. Each one of these people you bring aboard have a particular set of skills that you can learn from, so the way the skill tree works for Igor is done in an atypical fashion, where instead of spending your skill points that you acquire as you level up at will through a menu, you have to go and speak to each person individually that you'd like to learn from. Some will provide you with better stealth, while others will provide you with better resource management. Each of these skills as you can imagine will take a different amount of skill points to spend, but spending it alone isn't enough as once you've confirmed what it is you'd like to learn, you're then brought into a quick training session where you'll apply the skill in a short test, which then will grant you the skill permanently once you've passed. None of these are ever particularly difficult, and while it makes learning skills feel like a bit of a drag, the short but sweet sessions at least give the player a good understanding of how to work and utilize the newly learned skill for use outside on the field. It also gives characterization to Igor as you progress as he's learning alongside with you, making the survival and character development feel a lot more natural and believable.
All of this is conducted at the grounds of your base, however, and this includes how you assign and go out on missions as well as the base building mechanic that honestly sets Chernobylite apart from other games with similar settings. Chernobylite prides itself on its survival, however, so base building isn't exactly easy, and resource management is key in how you handle life at your base as there's a multitude of things needed to ensure that your comrades are happy there. Air quality, radiation suppression, comfort, and overall quality of life additions to keep people sane (stuff like TVs, gardens, radios, etc.) are big part in making sure your time at the bunker is not only one that's strategic on the outside, but a place of accommodation on the inside. From being able to craft weapons and armor, to storage spaces, generators for electricity, bunk beds, laboratories, and even tanks that will kill you should you choose to redo a memory and decision since every choice is impactful in the game, there's no shortage of things to make and set in your base to ensure your time with Chernobylite goes as smoothly as possible, but also making sure that you take the time to acquire those materials to craft all of these things either by exploration or sending other squad mates to various areas on different tasks to acquire different resources is incredibly important, or else Chernobylite can easily feel like a chore, and truthfully the base building mechanic, while admittedly somewhat addicting, can feel like a nuisance more often than not as the stress continues to build with each new recruit you get. This stress builds even further the moment you complete a mission as you'll need to give rations of food to everyone staying at your base, and it's up to you whether you want to give yourself and others either no food, some food, a normal amount, or double the amount. Regardless of what you choose and how you distribute these rations, each character will be affected in some way, and some are less forgiving than others.
Chernobylite in a lot of cases feels like a slow burner, and because of this and the big emphasis on stealth because you're a scientist and not a soldier, it can make each mission feel repetitive as you effectively walk around from point A to point B despite its rather open environments (though it's not open world by any means) trying to avoid conflict. You have the means to protect yourself and combat feels fairly good when you're in it, but the damage done between the soldiers out on the field compared to yourself is very clearly felt. In ways it can feel unbalanced, but at the same time there's a level of leniency there due to the fact that, again, you are not a soldier. However, even with the big emphasis on this, it never feels like enough happens from beginning to end, so though the story is coherent and feels full, you can't help but feel that Chernobylite was bereft of a lot of its horror that was promised once the 20 hours of a playthrough has passed. It's possible that due to the myriad choices one can make and memory alterations that you're capable of through dying either by choice or accident can affect the horror experience tenfold, but my playthrough instead felt like the horror came more so from the thought of supernatural events rather than anything that felt particularly life-threatening or causing some sort of suffocation. It could easily be my fault that I expected and wanted more out of the horror side of Chernobylite, so this hindered my experience a bit as I was let down, but credit where credit is due: The moments of Chernobylite that did go out of its way to do those big horrific moments they nailed in an exceptional fashion. So in a way you're not spoiled and you appreciate every single moment that happens that makes you jump out of your chair both narratively and by chance through gameplay, but even in moderation the horror still felt more like seeing a shooting star, which is a beautiful thing to behold but is short-lived and rare. Even without this however, if you can manage to level your expectations, Chernobylite does a pretty great job at combining so many elements of gameplay and does it in a fashion that feels seamless, competent, and full.
While Chernobylite will no doubt continue to get compared to the likes of METRO and STALKER, there's no denying that Chernobylite most certainly has its own flavor with a unique time/space storyline that almost borrows from the cyberpunk genre at times as a sort of garnish to its post-apocalyptic Russian canvas. Unfortunately while marketing of the game itself put a big emphasis on the more survival horror aspects of its narrative and gameplay, I couldn't help but feel like I was playing a more stealthy Metro versus anything else. Its emphasis on base-building and crew management is certainly a plus and well done enough that it never feels like it's a nuisance or thrown in for the sake of added depth, but personally I feel like the pacing of the game tends to be all over the place with this particular potion of it being a big slowdown to ensure you can continue survival, though dying itself isn't much of an issue and can be taken advantage of. Chernobylite is without a doubt a strong solid package, however, and even with its pacing issues it's a great look into Chernobyl with a sci-fi narrative that's interesting and engaging, even if it does make you think quite a bit. Ultimately I just wish we got that big survival horror experience instead of yet another military-focused game, as the horror portions that are within the game are incredibly well done, just so few and far between.
PROS:
3D megascans give the environment a level of realism and immense detail
Its sci-fi story is equal parts profound and captivating when not being boggled down by the filler in-between
A well-balanced experience that implements many genres and gameplay elements together competently
CONS:
Pacing issues kill the momentum and mood for the game
Despite its interest in time, space, and memory tweaking, it still feels too much like a military shooter even if it's not anywhere near as frenetic or action-heavy
Thank you to The Farm 51 for providing us a copy of Chernobylite for the purposes of this review!