Valentine Yeltyshev is back with S.T.A.L.K.E.R. creator GSC Game World, having left for a while to pursue other goals. Now the studio is back up and running and is working on its next project.
Will it be another S.T.A.L.K.E.R.? What’s definitely not another entry into the series is ‘STALKER: Apocalypse’, says the public relations director. That’s a ‘scam’ by West Games who’ve ‘no expertise’ with the IP.
West Games, which claims to comprise of ‘core’ developers from S.T.A.L.K.E.R., tried to get their project funded through Kickstarter before it was suddenly withdrawn. That’s most likely down to serious breach of copyright for the IP, but now they’re using another platform called Wfunder.
They ask for $600,000 with almost a whole month to go. The trouble is even if they don’t cross the goal line all the pledged money will be taken anyway, raising a number of red flags about the crowdfunding rival. Yeltyshev is adamant they have neither the skill nor permission to make ‘STALKER: Apocalypse’.
”We started to develop a Flash-based, a web-based STALKER before 2011,” said Yeltyshev. ”An isometric, open-world STALKER. And that was these guys. When we realized that this project would not be as good as we wanted it to be, we closed the project.”
”They are trying to steal money from people with this crowdfunding website. With Kickstarter first … and now they are using some weird, other platform. Who is so stupid as to give them money?”
”These guys do not even have an adequate team to make a game half as big as the original STALKER, let alone a full game.” For now GSC Game World advises to stay away from the project, but otherwise they’re not all that concerned it would amount to anything, and if it did? Lawyers.
GSC’s next project is said to be nearing alpha, and they will announce it soon.
