STALKER Call of Pripyat is a sequel to STALKER Shadow of Chernobyl and expands on the adventure into the Zone. Not only are the graphics more detailed, but there are larger maps, more mutants, more quests and more accessories. If you were thrilled with the first STALKER, you will like Call of Pripyat even more!



Prepare to go further into the Zone and find some interesting artifacts while surviving against the elements and mutants.

Follow my step-by-step guide on installing, configuring and optimizing STALKER Call of Pripyat in Linux with PlayOnLinux.

Note: This guide applies to the retail version of STALKER Call of Pripyat. Other versions may require additional steps.

Tips & Specs

To learn more about PlayOnLinux and Wine configuration, see the online manual: PlayOnLinux Explained

Mint 14 32-bit
PlayOnLinux: 4.2.1
Wine: 1.7.1

Installing Wine

Click Tools
Select "Manage Wine Versions"

Look for the Wine Version: 1.7.1
Note: Try using stable Wine 1.8 and 1.8-staging

Select it
Click the arrow pointing to the right


Click Next



PlayOnLinux will automatically download it and save it in this directory:
/home/username/.PlayOnLinux/wine/linux-x86


Note: username is where you put your login name

Its a good idea to backup this directory to another computer because you won't have to keep downloading wine versions when you need them.

Extracting


Note: PlayOnLinux may also install the compatible version of Gecko also.

Installed


Wine 1.7.1 is installed and you can close this window

Setup PlayOnLinux

Launch PlayOnLinux
Click Install


Click "Install a non-listed program"


Click Next

Select "Install a program in a new virtual drive"
Click Next


Name your virtual drive: stalkercop
No spaces
Click Next


Select all three options:

• Use another version of wine
• Configure Wine
• Install some libraries

Click Next


Select Wine 1.7.1
Click Next


Note: If you are running a 64-bit system, PlayOnLinux will prompt if you want to use a 64-bit or 32-bit virtual drive.
Always select 32-bit virtual drive.

Wine Configuration

Applications Tab
Windows version: Windows 7
Click Apply


Graphics Tab
Check "Automatically capture the mouse in full-screen windows"
Check "Emulate a virtual desktop"
Desktop size: 1024x768
Click OK


Install Windows Packagaes (libraries)

Select these libraries:

• POL_Install_corefonts
• POL_Install_d3d compiler
• POL_Install_d3dx9
• POL_Install_d3dx10
• POL_Install_d3dx11
• POL_Install_registered fonts
• POL_Install_tahoma
• POL_Install_vcrun2008
• POL_Install_xact 2009
• POL_Install_xaudio
• POL_Install_xinput

Note: Each libraries will automatically download and install

Click Next


Installing STALKER Call of Pripyat

DVD version - select "CD-ROM"
Download or Steam version - select "Select another file"

Click Next


Click Next

Click Next

Uncheck:

• Install GameSpy Comrade
• Install Adobe Acrobat Read

Click Next

Click Ok

Click Next

Check "I accept the agreement"
Click Next

Uncheck "Allow to send this information..."
Click Next

Click Install

Click Next

Enter Key from insert
Click Next

Uncheck "Launch STALKER"
Click Finish

PlayOnLInux Shortcut

Select "Stalker-COP.exe"
Click Next


Name your shortcut: STALKER COP
Click Next


Select "I don't want to make another shortcut"
Click Next


PlayOnLinux Configure

Back to PlayOnLinux
Click Configure


Display Tab
Direct Draw Renderer: opengl
Video memory size: amount of memory on your video card
Offscreen rendering mode: fbo


Wine Tab
Click Configure Wine


Libraries Tab
Select *d3dx11_42
Click Edit
Click Disable
Click OK


Select *d3dx11_43
Click Edit
Click Disable
Click Ok


Click OK

Wine Tab
Click Windows reboot


Launch STALKER COP

Select STALKER COP
Click Run

Note: STALKER will run in a virtual desktop at 1024x768
We will change the resolution in-game

Click Options


Change resolution to increase the size of the screen.
My GeForce 550 Ti could handle 1680x1050

Higher resolution = more detailed graphics lower frame rates
Lower resolution = less detailed graphics higher frame rates

Experiment until you get smooth gameplay that your video card can handle.
Render Type can make a huge impact on frame rates and also display amazing in-game lighting and shadows.
Click Apply


Click Advanced
The Advanced options can also increase in-game detail but also hurt your frame rates.
Experiement with lower settings and then increase slowly.

Click Apply


Conclusion:
After increasing the lighting settings and playing with the advanced settings I ended up with a beautiful world of textures, skies and special effects. My GeForce 550 Ti handled everything perfectly. I'm actually curious what I'm missing not using DirectX 11?
The game played perfectly and I was able to do a few test quests and checkout several locations on the first map. All the controls and settings worked just fine too.

Screenshots: