Purkake

What comes after very good? How long is it? Roughly? 10 hours? Pretty much If you roughly know what you're doing.

Then I suggest you play it. It's not very long and you can give us some fresh perspective on it.

Well, there are still the anti-fanboys. HL2 is really a game that everyone should try, even if you won't like it. Try the demo or something.

I liked it. ,o/ The odds aren't in our favor, the Combine will win.

Does anyone else have an urge to automatically choose human as their race? I feel weird having at a dwarf character speak for me.

NOLF is awesome indeed, but it is pretty much the only game of it's kind(along with NOLF2). Farcry was pretty much ruined by the damn Trigens. Did you play Call of Duty 4? It's pretty much as linear as HL2, but it's slightly better hidden. EDIT: Is there actually anyone here who liked HL2? I feel like I arrived in the anti-half-life forums instead of a general gaming forum.

Another game that has gone freeware and SC2 is great. @Virumor: For the longest time, I thought it was actually called ROTT. Another game in the same vein is Shadow Warrior:

I didn't feel that any section really dragged on. Let's try this another way: name me a better FPS that is not a FPS/RPG hybrid(System Shock, Deus Ex, STALKER...)

Have you played the episodes, Will? They change stuff up a little. What do you mean there's no music? There's music for each area and it's actually pretty good.

Orson Scott Card thanks you and promises to use all that money to hate the gays.

The pacing was pretty much perfect, you never did the same thing for to long(I agree about the driving sections being too long, though). As I said the storytelling style isn't for everyone, but what's wrong with the plot itself? You screw up, aliens come to earth then other aliens come and pretty much occupy earth, establish a totalitarian regime and drain earth's resources. People make a resistance movement and you'll become a part of it. He's already back in ep 2 (even the devs say it in the commentary), and why would he kick Gordon's ass? He is still G-Baby's subordinate, and didn't do anything "bad" per se. In EP2 you are still pretty much acting on your own. I mean he'll be back and at least attempt to put you back in the box.

So what would you have liked? A totally open world with missions ala Oblivion?

What's wrong with Alyx? There are hardly any "cutscenes" after the first chapter. Yes, HL2 is linear just like a bunch of other games, why is it a problem? You almost always have multiple ways to approach each confrontation. I got the feeling that the Vorts vs G-Man thing was a one time only thing. It worked because he wasn't expecting it, I'm sure he's going to come back and kick your ass in EP3.

Tyrian is now freeware. I remember playing it a long time ago and it was pretty fun.

It... did? Like what? Seriously, Infinity Engine games may be in 2D, but they look a hell of a lot better than NWN1. But it made great strides in the bouncy cleavage™ technology.

There are also your basic not-orcs[name changed for copyright reasons] and dragons.

Lately every other thread has derailed into a HL2 bashing/defending at some point, so I thought it would be nice to have a little postmortem for it looking at what it did well and where it fell short. This includes Episode 1 and 2(and Lost Coast if you really want to). First of all, if you go into HL2 expecting it to be the awesomest game ever, you will be disappointed just as with any other game. The first rule to enjoying anything is managing your expectations and moderating the hype. That said, it is not for everyone. While it does a lot more things than most conventional shooters, if you really despise walking around in first person and shooting at things, it won't convince you otherwise. HL2 is not perfect, even if some people advocate it as such. The shooting mechanics were somewhat antiquated even when it came out with the lack of iron sights view for most guns and a general lack of punch to them. Most of the enemy models could use a some more variety and dismemberment. The driving sections were too long and pretty dull. What it does, it does well. There is never a time when you just walk down corridor after corridor mowing down endless waves of enemies. The action is always broken up by a puzzle, story progression or some other set piece. You never really do the same thing over more than a couple of times and even then it usually has some kind of twist. The animations(especially the facial ones) are some of the best and the same goes for voice acting. What really makes HL2 an unique experience is Valve's extreme attention to detail. Everything in the world feels like it supposed to be there, the Combine soldiers don't just teleport in to attack you, they rappel down from the roofs, arrive in APCs or helicopers. To get you in the sewers they send down swarms of manhacks or a helicopter to carpet bomb the area. It's not just the world though, when you see Alyx cover her eyes as you shine the flashlight in her face or hear her making fake zombie noises, it makes the experience feel authentic. How many other games give you a companion that isn't invincible, but at the same time doesn't cause frustration by dying all the time or getting in your way? Plus, she actually helps you out in combat without stealing the show. As for the story, it's not for everyone and you really have to pay attention to understand what's going on. I do like the Lost-style feel it has, giving you just a little piece of the story and always hinting at the bigger picture without giving away too much. So what did you like/dislike about HL2 and/or the episodes?

Penumbra: Overture(1st part) and Black Plague(2nd part) are really good for the horror factor. Seriously, they are really really scary. Check out the let's play, if you don't care enough to play it.

You win this round. It's a nice review, I like how doesn't shy away from bashing the bad parts of the game. I really didn't like SH2, but then again I'm not really into horror games anyway.

Do you have any idea how much time and resources you have to spend on the assets to make them look that good? I'd rather they use an engine that they are comfortable with and not the next shiny thing.

It's better than nothing, I'll give you that.

But not the Aliens RPG...

I'd say it's a hybrid.

Sega is like a ball and chain on Obsidian's leg.

You could have packed in Bloodlines, such a missed opportunity Nice to see AP on Steam, though.