GSC on the origins of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.'s A-Life

via cvg

GSC Game World's senior PR manager Oleg Yavorsky speaks to CVG about the origins of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.'s much touted A-Life, or the life simulation that exists within the game world.

In an in-depth interview, part two of which we've published today, Yavorsky's explained that the idea of creating a huge and dangerous Zone with the player being a mere element of the whole system made the development team realise the need for an innovative AI system.

"We wouldn't be able to solve the task with traditional scripts and triggers as we needed the player to believe in what's happening around him in the Zone," he elaborated. "Hence, it was a matter of creating a living and breathing world, in a way MMORPG games do it, but in single-player."

And so, the concept of life simulation was born. "Life simulation (or A-life)", Yavorsky continued, "is the environment where the game characters live. It provides the NPCs with information on the Zone. Driven by A-life, the NPCs live in accordance with their life cycles: stalkers traverse the Zone, accomplish individual tasks, take rest, eat and sleep."

"Monsters are preoccupied with hunting for prey, feeding, sleeping, taking rest, migrating to areas and fighting for their lives."

He went on to talk about how A-Life develops during the game, and that by completing missions attached to the main storyline the player "frees up more and more space for specifically A-life content (i.e. a bigger part of the game becomes fully randomized)."

"Return to any of the previously accomplished levels in a couple of hours to see that the level is now filled with different content, and each player will get his own unique one. And thus get a unique experience", Yavorsky promised.