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    Half-Life 2

    Game » consists of 18 releases. Released Nov 16, 2004

    Several years after the Black Mesa disaster, Gordon Freeman awakens from stasis to aid a resistance movement against the Combine, a collective of trans-dimensional aliens that have conquered Earth.

    termite's Half-Life 2 (PC) review

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    Half Life 2 review by Termite

    Game Review: Half Life 2

    Half Life 1 was released in 1998 ( A year of note for the sheer number of fantastic games that came out .) Developed by Valve and published by Sierra, it was a smash hit. It pioneered scripted in-game events that helped move the story around. It also spawned a large modding community, from which games like Counter Strike and Day of Defeat were born. Half life 2 was in the making for a long time, mostly because Valve wanted to wait for some huge innovative thing that they could do with the game. That thing, ended up being physics. A link to some history about Half Life 2's development will be provided at the bottom of the page.

    Let's start with a bit on the story. You are Gordon Freeman, a theoretical physicist who saved the world from the Xen in the original Half Life. Now the world has been taken over by the Combine, an alien race with immense power. Blah blah blah and then you are helping the human rebels destroy the Combine. You're character is the very definition of 'Tabula Rasa', as in blank slate. He says nothing during the entire game, which Gordon sometimes gets comments for. But really what it is intended to do is to suck you into the game and make the player feel like YOU are Gordon Freeman, which it does splendidly.

    The story is great, the world you are in has lots of detail and little things about it that can really immerse you.

    The graphics were top of the line when it came out, and fare very well even in this day and age. Physics are simply superb, with things acting realistically, and the physics itself actually plays a roll in the gameplay at numerous occasions. Obviously the graphics aren't as good as the games made on the optimized and upgraded version of the Source engine such as Team Fortress 2, but that's made up for in it's gamplay depth and personality.

    The game is a first person shooter, like every other game I've reviewed so far. The HUD, as in Heads Up Display which shows you your armor status and ammunition, is in my opinion the best of any game out there. The reason why I think this is that it is just so simple. Why don't other games think of that? It is very very stripped down and simplistic, but at the same time has sort of a slick style to it. 10/10 for the HUD, which is a similar style to that used in Counter Strike.

    The weapons feel good. You have your staples here, such as the pistol, sub-machine gun, assault rifle,shotgun and a crowbar (Not so standard.) And you also have some other odd weapons to accompany them. The difficulty is adjustable, which affects the strength of your guns as well as the enemy power. And as an aside, I have to say this games shotgun is my all time favorite of any shooting game, just because it is so cool looking.

    The AI is also great. At least when like, walking around and stuff. Fighting enemy AI isn't something you will notice much, it's good, but this isn't like F.E.A.R with the enemy squads acting all...well...squad like and ganging up on you and such. It's not so much the AI but the detail that they put into the environments that makes the enemies so great.

    And that brings us to the enemies. The things you are fighting all fit into the story and are very interesting. Some common ones are varieties of the Combine forces, who all look awesome. There are also Antlions which you encounter later in the game, and of course, headcrabs.

    The atmosphere in the game is perhaps it's best aspect, and that is saying a lot. You start out in the train station for City 17, the place you will be spending a lot of your time in. You see people pacing about, and if you try to talk to them they indicate that they know who you are, and that others do too. The voice acting in the game is very believable, especially from the Character Alyx Vance.

    And there is one weapon I didn't mention before because I wanted to dedicate a paragraph to it, the Zero-point gravity gun. It is basically the apotheosis of all physics that had ever been incorporated into games before Half Life 2. Using this gun you can levitate objects in front of you, and then shoot it away. Or if it is too heavy you can sort of push it. This thing is just a joy to use. You can use it as a deadly weapon as well by picking up sharp objects with it and shooting them at enemies.

    The sound in the game is captivating. From the fantastic voice acting from all the characters, to the shrill scream of the zombies, to the sound of exploding grenades this game delivers on all fronts when it comes to sound.

    Overall, the graphics, the sound, the atmosphere, the gameplay, everything is fantastic. The game is standard length for a shooting game but it has replay value just because of how good it is. If you haven't already played Half Life 2, I suggest you pick up the Orange Box so you can play this and the entire Half Life 2 series, you won't be disappointed

    And I think just for the fun of it I'm going to start applying scores to the things I review.

    5/5

    Other reviews for Half-Life 2 (PC)

      The Best FPS You'll Ever Play 0

      Originally posted on my blogValve is used to revolutionizing the medium. Gordon Freeman’s first quest was game of the year when it launched and Half-Life 2 received similar acclaim. There’s just so much about the game that it just exudes perfection. From the moment the game opens and the G-Man deposits you on the train into City 17, Half-Life 2 just never stops. Every character has inherent life and realism in their actions, the voice acting is superb, and the story just flows so well. I could r...

      7 out of 7 found this review helpful.

      Great thing's come to those who wait and what a wait it has been. 0

      Great thing's come to those who wait and what a wait it has been. The big question is "was the wait worth it?" And i think you'll find the answer is a resounding yes. Half-Life 2 has a completely new gaming engine that works really well and still keeps the feel of the original. You reprise your role of Gordan Freeman, waking up on a train entering City 17 and soon discover the viscious aliens that featured in the first game have taken over earth after breaking through portals. Some of the old en...

      7 out of 7 found this review helpful.

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