Valve succeeds again by delivering some of their greatest gaming experiences together on one disc.
User Rating: 10 | The Orange Box X360
The idea of bringing 5 of Valve's best games together on one hub for consoles sounds like a great one, and it is. The Orange Box mainly focuses on Half Life 2, the sequel to one of the most revolutionary sci-fi games of all time. Along with the sequel are Episodes 1 & 2, which add on to the storyline & prep the player for the long-awaited Half Life 3, which is still yet to see any further release news. Half Life 2 has been out for 9 years now, and joins some action games like Metal Gear Solid & Halo: Combat Evolved as a time-tested classic that can top any newly released games. Portal is one of Valve's newest franchises, and it focuses on physics & the use of portals (duh) to find unique and creative ways to get from point A to point B. Team Fortress 2 is a class-based multiplayer FPS that at first appears cartoony, but don't let that fool you; it's a mayhem-filled competition between the Red & Blu teams that has become a major PC multiplayer hit. The only bad things about the Orange Box are that it doesn't include Half-Life 1 for new Valve gamers to fully play through the series & appreciate the classic franchise, and that Team Fortress 2 isn't nearly as in-depth as its PC edition, which is constantly given weapons, maps, class-specific apparel, and new game modes through updates that were heavily rumored to come to consoles as well, but the rumors never amounted to anything. In conclusion, The Orange Box will go down as one of the standout releases of this generation, and is arguably Valve's best contribution to the gaming industry yet. I have high hopes that we are given an Orange Box 2 for the next generation, with the next shining lineup of Valve hits.
