We devoted a lot of space in the reports to the characters appearing in Chernobylite: from the most important ones to ordinary NPCs. However, looking into our box of surprises, we noticed that we hadn’t told you about one more, probably the most important hero of Chernobylite - chernobylite crystals itself. And in this case there is an interesting fact worth mentioning.

Did you know that in the original plans, chernobylite crystals were to be available in the game in two colors?



According to the original plans, we were planning to implement good (green) and bad (red) chernobylite crystals. According to a rather sophisticated gameplay concept we developed, the use or presence of appropriate crystals in specific places would have an impact on the environment and, of course, the course of the plot, either positively or negatively.







Today, only a few people who worked on Chernobylite remember this feature. So we are dealing with one of the first gameplay elements to be released in the game.

However, as is often the case with initial ideas, this one did not stand the test of time. Although the theme of good and bad crystals looked good on paper, the project was still evolving, with new and - in our opinion - much better ideas that would make the gameplay more attractive. Maybe we will come back to this theme in the future. It would be a pity to let it go to waste.

Take care, Stalkers!



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Creating costumes for characters is more than draping a shirt over a back, putting on tattered pants, and affixing anything you can get your hands on to a jacket and calling them "decorations." Sometimes there is a whole philosophy behind such actions!

Take Sashko for example. In one of the previous reports we described his outfit: the sporty appearance of a parkour competitor, which consists of a light, airy shirt and a light mask suitable for free breathing, Cossack-patriotic elements (hairstyle, embroidered coat of arms of Ukraine on t-shirt) and ropes used for swinging in the Zone. It took us a lot of time to select clothes and accessories, not to mention finding the right materials and scanning them into the game. All this to emphasize his nature as a freelancer.



However, the real challenge was the Black Stalker. It's not visible at first glance, but if you look closely, you can see how many elements his outfit consists of.

The basic outfit of the Black Stalker mostly consists of the simplest elements that we had in our resources, such as a camouflage jacket and trousers and trekking shoes. The mask, on the other hand, was our own creation. We didn't want to give Stalker a regular gas mask because he would lose that dark vibe. That's why we decided to create our own version of the Black Stalker mask. We used a hockey mask with attached elements of an old gas mask and... washing machine parts.



The effect exceeded our wildest expectations. The design of the costume was so good that we used it many times during the photo session in the Zone.



But that's not the end of the work. Thanks to our graphic designer's concept sketches, we were able to plan further elements of the Black Stalker's outfit and even slightly modify it. For example, the hood has been extended to cover most of the Stalker's head; the mask itself looks more realistic and coherent, unlike its actual DIY model, and its colors refer to chernobylite crystals. Numerous patches, scarves, stitches, dirt and scratches have been added to the jacket and trousers, giving a heavily worn effect, and the shoes have been replaced with a more military model. We also added some other pieces of equipment, such as a knife sheath attached to the backpack strap and an additional bag attached on the right leg. We also took care of a small detail: instead of regular gloves, the Black Stalker has gloves with cut off fingers. Stalker's fingers themselves are black, indicating frostbite.



Someone might say that it was enough to just scan the model in the Black Stalker outfit. However, only thanks to the computer refinement of this character, we managed to achieve the desired effect, which is realism - here is a man who has been living in the Zone for years, so he cannot look as if he just came out of a clothes store.

Anyway, it's not our place to judge. We'll ask you what you think about it: do you like the character of Black Stalker as we presented him in the game? Let us know in the comments!



Take care, Stalkers!



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The promotional price will include:

• Chernobylite: Enhanced Edition
  
• Autumn Dread DLC
  
• Blue Flames DLC
  
• Deadly Frost DLC
  
• Red Trees DLC
  
• White Rose DLC
  
• Zone Bard DLC
  
• Bundle Charity Pack
  
• Soundtrack
  
• The Art of Chernobylite
  
• Chernobyl VR Project

Join us and have fun!

We understand that it's not always possible for you to stay up-to-date with everything happening around Chernobylite. Social media does not always help with this due to its dynamic nature. In short: information appears quickly and just as swiftly disappears in the depths of the Internet. That's why we decided to revisit an old idea and re-launched the Chernobylite newsletter, with aim to provide you with all the news related to the game and... other things that we can't tell you yet. But most importantly, we want to be in constant contact with you!



Every month, you can expect our original newsletter delivered to your inbox. In it you will find a subjective review of reports, both from the past month and previous years (this is for people who haven’t had the opportunity to see previous materials about the creation of Chernobylite), a review of videos from our YouTube channel and any announcements and information about what we do and what we're going to do in the future.



The initial tests of the newsletter were successful. So if you haven't had a chance yet, we encourage you to subscribe. There is already a lot going on, but in the very near future we intend to provide you with more and more exclusive content, not available anywhere else, via the newsletter.



Let us know what you think about it. Maybe you have ideas about what else you would like to receive in the newsletter?

Take care, Stalkers!




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Olga, the guardian of the Red Forest, the caretaker of abandoned homesteads, a guide for those searching for their place on Earth, and a defender of the weakest. We have dedicated a substantial portion of our reports to this unassuming yet extraordinary individual. The last time we delved into this was when we provided you with a behind-the-scenes look at her creation – from the initial concept, through its gradual evolution, to the final result. If you want to read more about it, check out the report below:

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1016800/view/3632752726855787516

Olga's appearance also underwent a gradual metamorphosis. Although from the very beginning we modeled her on characters from movies, such as Ellen Ripley from "Alien", Furiosa from "Mad Max" or Sarah Connor from "Terminator". On the one hand, militant and brave, on the other - firmly on the ground and having a head on her shoulders.

The most challenging and debated aspect of her appearance was her hairstyle. Specifically, there were three key elements under scrutiny: length, style, and color. Should she have long or short hair? Should it be light or dark, bleached, braided (one or two braids), or left loose? Like concept sketches. Believe us, what you see below is just a small part of all the ideas we had for Olga's hair.



The outfit was a bit better. We had an image of a specific type of character in our minds: a respectable leader who is dependable and who knows how to navigate dangerous terrain. That's why she had to look a bit like a survivalist and a bit like a warrior. And most importantly: the outfit must be comfortable to be able to move around the most difficult areas.



The choice was not easy, but we managed to find a compromise in the form of a long dark coat with a hood. This outfit had two advantages. Firstly, it allowed to cement Olga's image as the "spirit of the Red Forest", which moves unnoticed in the field. Secondly, this garment eliminates the problem of hair waving in the wind. Believe it or not, this is the biggest pain for any programmer and animator around the world. There are always ways to avoid the daunting task of animating the hair so that it behaves naturally depending on the intensity of the wind. We chose the simplest solution: we hid Olga's head in a hood. Thus, we managed to combine style with usability.

Please share your thoughts in the comments: Does this choice suit you? Or do you have your own preferences? What else could the guardian of the Red Forest look like?

Take care, Stalkers!




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We present to you the second part of our summer video review from our official YouTube channel!

Let's start with the new video that appeared on the channel:



Now to the point. We have another history lesson for you. Like, for example, a series dedicated to Anatoly Dyatlov - the man who is accused of causing the disaster at the power plant. What's the truth?






We also told the story of liquidators - people who sacrificed their health and lives to remove the effects of the disaster.




We also devoted a lot of time to places that you can visit in Chernobylite, such as Kopachi, Red Forest or Pripyat.








We move from history to science. In this section, we took a look at the RBMK. We showed e.g. what did it look like, how did it work and what led to the explosion?







Finally, we answer questions about the radiation around Chernobyl itself…



…and we talk about other events that took place in Chernobyl even before the power plant exploded.



And that's it! We hope you enjoyed these videos. You can be sure that we are not stopping there - we still have a lot of material to use. As always, we encourage you to subscribe to our channel and let us know in the comments what topics you want us to cover in future videos.

Take care, Stalkers!




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Even though the holiday season is in full swing and we try to rest as much as we can, work is still in progress! We can't wait to show off the results of it. Believe us, there will be plenty to show.

Today, however, we want to give you a little respite. After all, it's summer, the sun mercilessly heats our backs and necks, so you can't get tired. And nothing relaxes like a good movie, maybe even a few. And we know where to find them.

As you well know, we've revitalized our YouTube channel (we encourage you to subscribe *wink wink*) with fresh videos appearing almost every week. After a few months, the channel swelled strongly from the videos we have prepared for you. Of course, we realize that it is impossible to keep up with them all the time. That is why today and in the next report we would like to present to you a subjective list of original materials about Chernobyl that are worth watching and which you may have missed.

For a good start, we recommend a series of videos answering the question: what is true and what is fiction? We are talking here about comparing the events that took place in reality with how they were presented in the popular HBO series.








In these videos, we look at the most popular myths that have been created about Chernobyl over the years. Can you come across mutants in the Exclusion Zone? Is humanity threatened by an epidemic of a mutated fungus that turns everyone into zombies? See for yourself!





Another question related to the topic of the meaning of words. What is "stalker" really and where did this name come from in pop culture? More importantly, where did the name “Chernobyl” come from?




At the end of this section, we present Chernobyl in numbers. If you want to know in brief the effects of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster, we are here to help.



That's it for today! Next week, we’ll share another portion of our recommendations. And again, we encourage you to subscribe to our channel.

Take care, Stalkers!




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Almost a year ago, we dedicated a section of one of our reports to Kopachi. In that report we delved into the history of this location, with a specific emphasis on uncovering the answer to what might be considered the most important question: the origin of the immense mounds of earth nestled within the heart of the forest.

https://steamcommunity.com/games/1016800/announcements/detail/3305103714198476540

Today, much like our approach to other locations, we’re excited to present to you various weather-inspired conceptual artworks depicting Kopachi. It won’t be a surprise to say that Kopachi looks nothing short of phenomenal in these renditions! In fact: we believe that it looks better than Pripyat Port or Moscow Eye, both of which we showcased earlier. Anyway, see for yourself.













Observing these graphics, sometimes it's hard to reconcile the scale of tragedy that happened in this location. However, on the other hand, these artworks exude a gloomy ambiance, which, intensified by the abandoned kindergarten in the background. A view like from a horror movie.

Kopachi has its own unique allure. Especially when the sunlight pierces through the canopy of trees. However, if you look at what our artist skillfully conjured up in Photoshop, it becomes evident that this place fits perfectly in all weather conditions. It is a shame that this place has been destroyed by numerous fires. But it survives virtually thanks to Chernobylite.

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You have already seen what Igor and Tatyana looked like in our imaginations. If you haven't had a chance to see them yet, below are links to the previous reports.

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1016800/view/3720581795021808291
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1016800/view/3664288067562838729

Today we're going to take a look at some supporting characters. Contrary to appearances, creating them was as big a challenge as in the case of the main characters. Take our buddy Olivier as an example.



Olivier was planned almost from the beginning as a character with a military background who mastered the art of survival in his little finger. He acquired all his knowledge while serving in the Canadian army. That's why Olivier's outfit was "tailored" with his professional background in mind.

The first sketches showed Olivier wearing a Canadian army beret (without the emblem, which he said he was not worthy of) and a flannel shirt (as befits a Canadian!). Additionally, he had a mandatory gas mask on the belt and a dog tag around the neck. And of course, Olivier's characteristic element could not be missing - a sling made of some old sheet.



Over time, of course, Olivier's outfit design evolved to what we know in the game. But in the meantime, we also tested other variants of his outfit, e.g. Olivier as a military dodger, Olivier as a tanker and... Olivier as a real Canadian citizen. Seriously, in addition to the trapper hat, we were planning to give him a bear fur coat. :D



In the end, we managed to find a consensus for Olivier’s appearance: the experienced ex-commando was dressed in the outfit of a warlord for hire. Interestingly, this is the only character that is hidden under a cape. Does that mean he has something to hide? Who knows…



Take care, Stalkers!




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The fractal world was one of the most exciting projects we've worked on. Just imagine: you're creating a bridge between the real world and a location where time and place don't exist. We have devoted two reports to this topic. In the first one, we presented what the original ideas for what function would the fractal world play in the game. The very concept of walking inside a large sphere still makes us dizzy to this day.

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1016800/view/3019080202255987439

In the second report, we presented where the idea for the fractal world came from and how it evolved over the years (e.g. we used some of the solutions earlier in Get Even).

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1016800/view/3642879484778982379

Today we return to this topic again. This time we want to show you the first attempts at turning our ideas into reality. We put down the results of the brainstorming on paper. The result are conceptual sketches of something that was supposed to appear in our game soon.

Crystals were the priority. Not only were they basis of the fractal world, but basically of the entire game - chernobylite crystals can be found almost everywhere, not to mention that almost the entire story of Chernobylite revolves around crystals. Only at a later stage of project were we able to combine them in such a way that they formed part of a larger architecture.






As you can see in the above image, we wanted to create something like corridors in huge caves, straight out of a fantasy novel. Over time, the design of the crystal corridors has undergone modifications: sometimes we gave the player more space, other times we locked them in tight corridors.






For a long time we couldn't decide on the final look of the short corridor. But in the end, we made a compromise that you could see in the game in Early Access: a short corridor where we walked on a chernobylite footbridge, and above our heads there was an open space with a view of hundreds, thousands of chernobylite blocks. Of course, that too has changed a lot. But that's another story ;)




Take care, Stalkers!




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