My internet was pretty much unusable all of yesterday and the day before, so I had to make do with some off line projects I have been wanting to get done, mainly writing for a story contest and other creative things.
Since I usually blow off steam at night I was face with the problem of “What games can I play offline?” I settled for Stalker: Clear Sky. You might be familiar with Clear Sky from some of my other posts, especially how I don’t really like it compared to Shadow of Chernobyl. But that actually changed a little bit last night.
The major appeal of the Stalker series is that it is challenging. Even on its lowest setting you can die regularly if you are not careful. Once you get the experience and the equipment you need the game gets more enjoyable. For Clear Sky I didn’t really like it because I was poorly equipped, overly burdened, and didn’t understand the cache locations and the quick travel interface.
After I had finished the story campaign, which was not all that long, I limped back to my nearest stash in Duty Base. I finally unloaded all my extra gear and could actually move quickly without having to stop because I was tired. I then turned to the only task available to me, collecting a reward.
I made way back to where the reward was and I was finally able to get a suit that had night vision equipped. This allows me to work at night in the game without having the draw back of absolute darkness limiting my vision to a few feet.
While this was an extremely important change I recently found out that because of some of my choices I will not be able to fully upgrade my suit, which is rather limiting. However this suit gave me enough of an advantage that I used it despite it being a little less versatile as the armor I was using before.
After collecting other rewards I decided to try to access some stashes in the Swamps. One of the most annoying areas in the game for me other than the Red Forest. Waist deep water, pockets of radiation, and grumpy wildlife all make the swamps a serious hazard without the proper suit and gear.
But this time I had the proper suit, so I was visiting some of the stash locations I had not been equipped to get to and in doing so I had my first truly effective night mission in the game. I had bumbled around before but the night vision I had truly changed the game. According to my in game PDA there was a hostile renegade group guarding the exit of the area that I was heading toward.
My extended vision at night allowed me to be able to identify their head lamps at distance. So I switched off my own lamp and moved up the hill overlooking their position. I equipped one of the best guns in the game (a suppressed sniper rifle called a VSS) and once I got into position I had a small pause. I was about to assault a larger group by myself. Five to one odds against me.
After I saved, I began my assault, taking each one out with a single shot. They figured out where I was but none came close to hitting me with any of their weapons. I searched the bodies and the stash in the location laving them where they lay, another group lost to the harsh reality of the Zone.
But the Zone has a way of equalizing all things. That session I experience three separate emission warnings. One particular emission found me in the old train depot in the Garbage. As the Emission eerily lit up the night, I sat there with about five Loners (a faction in the Zone) waiting for it to pass. And I realized that this situation happens to us a lot in real life.
Sometimes our situation is so dangerous or beyond our ability to fix that we have to just wait it out. To the smallest degree, my internet not working was similar to this Emission. I had to wait until it passed or was rectified but I had no means to do so myself. These situations happen, and as much as it may annoy some of us, we have to wait through them.
Sometimes waiting is not an idle action. It is sometimes necessary and you can do other things while you’re waiting. Sometimes waiting is real and physical like waiting for boarding at the airport. Other times it’s more of s state of mind as you wait for someone to respond or a process to complete.
Both of these examples have to happen at some point for you. You can achieve things while you’re waiting (which is why it’s important to have side projects), but waiting will still be there. a level of self discipline goes into waiting. It’s the process of not having immediate gratification that many seek. It allows for bigger pay offs and better things than the reward right now.
Having the best equipment for the job or at least the minimum equipment necessary makes life a lot easier and a little more enjoyable. But sometimes the opportunity you want isn’t there. And you have to wait for the opportunity to present itself for you to capitalize on it.
Think about it.
Sincerely,
The Irreverent Gentleman
gentlemansuniversityofmanliness 