Okay, I confess; I never liked “Half-Life.” I found it irritating, especially the little crab thingies, which I couldn’t shoot and anyway I was always out of ammo. I gave up in frustration pretty early on.
But I saw “Half Life 2” on cheap at Steam and downloaded it and HOLY SHIT THIS IS INTENSE, BRO. I mean, it’s intense. It’s absolutely riveting. I’m simultaneously trying “Crysis” and even with vastly superior graphics and interactivity and stuff I don’t think Crysis holds a candle to it. Half Life 2 has me absolutely floored.
There’s still too many of the stupid crab things and they’re such a fucking nuisance, but it’s a minor complaint in this game. Holy crap, what a game!
I loved Half Life. The second one starts great but starts to drag (especially the ‘stay off the sand’ and airboat sections). I personally found episodes 1 & 2 to be better. They’re short and sweet and seem better paced.
The only problem is if you play episode 1 right after beating HL2 you’ll be pissed that you end up back in the place you just escaped from. I honestly think that’s why episode 1 got middling reviews. It’s great if you’ve had a break from HL2 but I think most people replayed HL2 just before diving into episode 1.
Both Half Lifes are the only FPS games I ever played single player all the way to the end. Most of the time I get bored with the routine about 2/3 of the way through and stick to multiplayer.
One of the most memorable computer game moments for me is in Half Life 1, the first time you go up against the special forces clean-up team. They enter the other side of a room full of crates and start shooting at you and throwing grenades.
Most bots in all games up to this point were essentially zombies. They would see you and try to come kill you, maybe zig zagging a little. These soldiers ran from cover to cover, and while I was trying to pick them off, a couple actually flanked me down a side hallway.
I hated the grind of cleaning out head crabs and those things on the ceilings while trying to save ammo, but the soldiers were a lot of fun.
I fought through Ravenholm (we don’t go to Ravenholm anymore…) and the mines, and I’m doing the dune buggy thing. The last thing I did was kill all the Combine soldiers at the warehouse, in part with the crane. I saved at that point; I’ll drive beyond that tonight.
The snipers in the aquaduct drove me crazy for awhile.
When I first played, especially the first “go, escape!” bit where you aren’t really sure what’s going on and just have to run blindly… Man, my heart was pounding. It put me in a real panic.
I didn’t get around to HL2 until a couple of years ago and I was floored too. Make sure you ask here when you’re ready to try the expansions, because lots of us have extra Steam copies via The Orange Box and so on.
I’ll put in my standard plug for Concerned, a completely hilarious web comic based on Half Life 2. It follows your progress in the game, so don’t read past where you are unless you want spoilers.
I finally played this through just last month. I agree. Awesome game, totally fun.
Started Ep. 1, then got distracted. I’m sure I’ll get back to those sometime soon. I wish I had a gravity gun in real life.
Loved HL2, for the record. I was floored the from the time I stepped off the train. But I agree that it gets a little slow at the end. I just tried to play through again, and got bored about 3/4 through.
Yes! One of the only games that actually made my physically react in a substantial way(ETA the other was the first Tomb Raider)…sweating, increased heart rate, eyes wide open…and the music does a lot to add to that.
Ok, maybe I’ll load up my last saved game tonight…the lawn can mow itself.
