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Koch Media, which recently became S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Clear Sky's official publisher, unveiled new screenshots from the upcoming prequel to the most atmospheric game of last year, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl.

The new game starts to look better than its predecessor, which has received numerous praises for its A-life system and realistic environments. Although since Crysis came out almost everything else seems a bit outdated when it comes to graphics, it's worth underlining that GSC World Games' designers are striving to make Clear Sky look more appealing with every new screenshot.

We already know that the prequel will make heavy use of the DirectX 10 features included in Windows Vista, especially after the X-Ray game engine has been upgraded to version 1.5. Among the tweaks and modifications implemented in the latter are motion blur, soft particles, depth of field, parallax bump and eye adaptation effects.

Clear Sky will take us to new zones inside... the Zone (like Red Forest, Limansk or Pripyat Undergrounds) and it will takes us there faster (actually the long "strolls" players had to "endure" to get from one area of the map to another have been one of the main defaults accused at Shadow of Chernobyl). We'll also have a new PDA and a new HUD, we'll repair armors and weapons and we'll upgrade them according to a new upgrading system, and, finally, we'll see the the stalkers throwing grenades at us...

Let's just hope that the Ukrainians will keep their promise of releasing the prequel until the end of April.

Enjoy the new screenshots.