Chernobylite Review
Chernobylite is a survival horror RPG set in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. Explore, fight, and survive in this eerie post-apocalyptic world.
Chernobylite combines various gameplay styles, centered around a first-person shooter experience, similar to The Farm 51’s previous game, Get Even. However, where Get Even struggled with its ideas, Chernobylite manages to draw you into its world more effectively.
Game’s haunting atmosphere, tough choices, and well-written (though unevenly voiced) characters draw you into Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. You play as Igor, a physicist returning to the zone to search for his long-lost wife.
Chernobylite is not just a shooter; you can sneak through much of the game without firing a shot. It also features base-building elements, where gathering resources helps you craft everything from mushroom gardens to nuclear weapons. There’s also a touch of horror, as expected with anything set in Chernobyl.
At its heart, the game is about choice, where your decisions influence the unfolding story, adding depth to its narrative.
Early in the game, I killed a suspicious stalker who wouldn’t give me information. I had previously chosen a kinder approach with someone else and ended up trapped in a room filling with poison gas, so this time I wasn’t taking any chances. I killed him, looted the body, and returned to base. Later, I met someone close to that stalker and had to decide whether to lie or admit what I did and invite them to my group. I chose to lie and invite them.
Interestingly, in Chernobylite, you can change your decisions later. The game’s namesake substance lets you open wormholes, teleport, or even revisit old choices through a dreamlike world. When you die, you wake up in this space where you can use Chernobylite shards to go back and alter key decisions you made earlier.
Chernobylite is bold in showing how its choice system works, but with so many different outcomes, the developers have good reason to highlight it. Your decisions can impact enemy activity, the number of allies you have, and even the game’s landscape. For example, you can choose to destroy the famous Duga radar based on a character’s belief that he’s fighting a battle between good and evil.
The game blends real-world detail with a touch of weirdness. The developers visited the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and used 3D scanning to accurately recreate the terrain, buildings, and textures.
Between missions, you spend time at your base where you can cook, upgrade the space, explore other characters’ memories, or jump right to the final Heist mission (though you’ll likely fail if you haven’t gathered enough resources or allies). Each mission takes place in one of six regions in the Zone, where you can follow the main story or hunt for clues. You can also send your companions on scouting missions or to gather supplies.
The maps aren’t massive, but they’re beautifully detailed. The Farm 51’s 3D scanning of the Exclusion Zone captures the haunting atmosphere of grass reclaiming old Soviet buildings, broken stained glass showing faded communist ideals, and sunlight filtering through decaying landscapes. If you’re fascinated by the remnants of the Soviet empire, these environments will draw you in.
Though the game’s environments are beautiful and haunting, they feel a bit empty. You only find resources and clues related to the story. There’s no wildlife, even though the Exclusion Zone is famous for it, and enemies stick to predictable patrol routes without much variation. Trader characters just stand in one spot, waiting for you to interact with them. The game could have learned a lot from Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl in making the Zone feel more alive.
Combat feels a bit unpolished, mixing elements of realistic shooting, stealth, and RPG mechanics. Movement options are limited, with no sliding or cover mechanics, and jumping over obstacles can be frustratingly picky. Enemies blend well with the environment, but health bars over their heads and their ability to absorb many bullets make the fights drag on.
Thankfully there is a way to blend in. My priorities were practicing silent takedowns and improving my silenced revolver. But adversaries don’t seem to care too much when they discover one of their own, and you can’t hide bodies. Combat, as a whole, attempts to strike a balance between several styles but falls short in any of them.
What really gives Chernobylite its charm are the characters you recruit to your base. There are five, each with unique backgrounds, traumas, and stories. From stoic personalities to borderline psychopaths, spending time with them between missions helps you grow attached to these misfits.
I particularly enjoyed Mikhail, who talks like a drill sergeant about everything—from his father’s drinking problems to tarot readings, and even a story about radioactive sausages in the Soviet Union. He’d be fun to drink with, though he might drag you into blowing up a barracks by the night’s end.
The writing is strong, but I recommend playing with Russian audio and subtitles to avoid Igor’s overly academic English voice.
In Chernobylite, you must keep your crew happy by ensuring they’re well-fed, rested, and managing their disputes during key decisions. Difficult decisions will need to be made, such as sacrificing a friendly stalker to destroy an enemy base or shooting down a helicopter without knowing who is on board. Your choices have an effect on characters you interact with which may have an effect on the mission’s outcome.
Jump scares seem superfluous, even though the genre is called “survival horror,” and monster encounters are infrequent. A late-game opponent that is more of a nuisance than threat is the Black Stalker.
Chernobylite has appeal thanks to its significant choices and engaging people, even with its shortcomings. Despite being rough around edges, it has distinct appeal that sticks out thanks to its charming storyline and stunning portrayal of the Zone.
