The Farm 51’s story-driven, first-person survival game set in the forbidden zone of Chernobyl, called Chernobylite, is now available for purchase in Early Access over on the Steam store for $29.99. The game is essentially the spiritual successor to GSC Game World’s S.T.A.L.K.E.R., series, but it takes The Farm 51’s penchant for story-heavy scenarios and combines them with the sandbox elements of the aforementioned series.

After the blast of 1986 in Chernobyl, an engineer makes his way back to the site to collect a rare material known as chernobylite to power a device that would allow him to find his missing fiance, who disappeared during the original blast.

The hero is accompanied by mercenaries who attempt to help him infiltrate the base and make their way to through exclusion zone. Things go horribly awry when the trio arrive, and they’re thrust through a reality-altering experience where they must use their wits and resolve to overcome the odds.

The Early Access launch trailer was rolled out to give you a look at the gameplay and a brief overview of the story.

The game features a narrative-driven story with multiple zones to explore, multiple allies to encounter and recruit along the way, as well as plenty of enemies, monsters, anomalies, and random zone events for you to complete.

As you venture throughout the zone and gather supplies you’ll be able to build up your very own custom base along with crafting and equipping a number of different weapons to help you defend yourself against a variety of enemies.

Hopefully the gameplay is as solid as the trailer depicts, because if that’s the case then this would be a nice return to form for fans of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.

You can grab a digital copy of the Early Access version of Chernobylite right now from Steam or you can get it from the GOG.com page for $29.99.

(Thanks for the news tip Guardian EvaUnit02)