How many E3s have come and gone and gamers were still left wondering whether “S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl” would ever see the light of day? European game designer GSC Game World has been promising a timely release for their first-person shooter for five years and release dates have slipped by. We were beginning to think that “S.T.A.L.K.E.R.” was vaporware like “Duke Nukem Forever” but low and behold, THQ has announced that “S.T.A.L.K.E.R.” has finally gone gold and will be shipping to retail stores around March 20.

You start the game as a stalker, …