Gameplay-wise, is the original Half-Life superior to Half-Life 2?

Without question HL1 is way better because they make/let you use a lot of different weapons and strategically use the grenades and grenade launcher.

HL2 has only 2 useful weapons; the gravity gun and the shotgun with 75% of the HL2 series forcing you to use the GG to complete the levels.

The gravity gun killed the series.

What it boils down to is Half life is more fun combat and jumping wise. I feel the more weapons, enemies and bosses kept combat less boring, but not very well tested. The game also focuses much more on jumping puzzles especially later in the game. The game is longer and much more fluid (very few transitions), but also a lot less tested.

HL2 on the other hand, is much more cinematic and it also directs you much more. There are few weapons but they all feel useful and balanced. Enemies are also less diverse but each enemy is much more fleshed out. The story is also way better, as is the AI and supporting cast. The puzzles are also very well made and thoroughly tested. Physics is also miles ahead of HL1.

I wouldn't say HL gameplay is superior to HL2, but it's definitely not far behind imo. It's still one of my all time favorites.

In time hopefully we'll have this to play in place of the original HL. :D

Anyone saying the original is better than hl2 probably just hasnt played the original for a long time and are one of those old schoolers who will never admit that a newer game is better than their classic.

Hl2 is better than Half-life. There, I said it. It has better graphics, it builds upon the original's gameplay and storytelling mechanics, it actually HAS physics to manipulate, sounds and voices are slightly better. It's just an overall better game. The only category i'd give to the original is weapon selection. It had more weapons, but some of them were totally useless whereas hl2's weapon arsenal is slimmer but each weapon has a greater purpose.

If you compared each game based on the time of their release, i'd say the original half-life is SLIGHTLY better. It was definitly a more revolutionary title in '98 than hl2 was in '04. However, if you're comparing each game today, side-by-side, you'd be a fool to say that hl2 doesnt blow it's predecessor out of the water.

If you're playing hl1 for the first time, do yourself a favor and get the version running on the source engine. It's a good game, but don't let all the "Greatest of all time" talk fool you into thinking it's something that it isnt. The game is 10 years old. And first person shooters, more than most other genres, don't age very gracefully.

hl1 and hl2 are both great

Alright, Half life 1, has all those cool weapons (and SNARKS) like satchel charges and stuff, that were taken out in HL-2 and HL2 has the GRAVITY GUN! If HL2 had the G-Gun AND Snarks, then HL2 = Best FPS in THE WHOLE UNIVERSE! (exagurration of course...lolz)

I NEED A MOD! NOW!

(exagurration of course...lolz)

ElArab

lol. sorry. couldnt help myself

Anyone saying the original is better than hl2 probably just hasnt played the original for a long time and are one of those old schoolers who will never admit that a newer game is better than their classic.

Hl2 is better than Half-life. There, I said it. It has better graphics, it builds upon the original's gameplay and storytelling mechanics, it actually HAS physics to manipulate, sounds and voices are slightly better. It's just an overall better game. The only category i'd give to the original is weapon selection. It had more weapons, but some of them were totally useless whereas hl2's weapon arsenal is slimmer but each weapon has a greater purpose.

If you compared each game based on the time of their release, i'd say the original half-life is SLIGHTLY better. It was definitly a more revolutionary title in '98 than hl2 was in '04. However, if you're comparing each game today, side-by-side, you'd be a fool to say that hl2 doesnt blow it's predecessor out of the water.

If you're playing hl1 for the first time, do yourself a favor and get the version running on the source engine. It's a good game, but don't let all the "Greatest of all time" talk fool you into thinking it's something that it isnt. The game is 10 years old. And first person shooters, more than most other genres, don't age very gracefully.

hl1 and hl2 are both great

TeamR

Half-Life (1) is the greatest aging PC game of all time. Every newer FPS plays nearly identical to Half-Life, and it has zero compatibility problems considering Steam has it on life-support.

Anyone saying the original is better than hl2 probably just hasnt played the original for a long time and are one of those old schoolers who will never admit that a newer game is better than their classic.

Hl2 is better than Half-life. There, I said it. It has better graphics, it builds upon the original's gameplay and storytelling mechanics, it actually HAS physics to manipulate, sounds and voices are slightly better. It's just an overall better game. The only category i'd give to the original is weapon selection. It had more weapons, but some of them were totally useless whereas hl2's weapon arsenal is slimmer but each weapon has a greater purpose.

If you compared each game based on the time of their release, i'd say the original half-life is SLIGHTLY better. It was definitly a more revolutionary title in '98 than hl2 was in '04. However, if you're comparing each game today, side-by-side, you'd be a fool to say that hl2 doesnt blow it's predecessor out of the water.

If you're playing hl1 for the first time, do yourself a favor and get the version running on the source engine. It's a good game, but don't let all the "Greatest of all time" talk fool you into thinking it's something that it isnt. The game is 10 years old. And first person shooters, more than most other genres, don't age very gracefully.

hl1 and hl2 are both great

TeamR

while what you are saying is true, but you are imo seriously undermining HL 1. HL 1 though may not be as good as HL 2 , but no way HL 2 blows HL 1 out of water(except may be in graphics, which i am sure most people wouldn't care). Also, HL 1 is a much more remarkable game than HL 2

I have a copy of Half-Life, but I've never downloaded it yet. Gameplay-wise, it is superior to Half-Life 2?Skullcraft

i think hl2 is better than hl1 gameplay largely due to the gravity gun's awesomeness

The question of which is better is a little moot, given that you haven't played it.

Play it. It's one of the best games ever made. Not as good? No matter. We don't play games based on a grading curve. It's awesome, so go play it.

You playing it yet?

GO PLAY IT!!!

What it boils down to is Half life is more fun combat and jumping wise. I feel the more weapons, enemies and bosses kept combat less boring, but not very well tested. The game also focuses much more on jumping puzzles especially later in the game. The game is longer and much more fluid (very few transitions), but also a lot less tested.

HL2 on the other hand, is much more cinematic and it also directs you much more. There are few weapons but they all feel useful and balanced. Enemies are also less diverse but each enemy is much more fleshed out. The story is also way better, as is the AI and supporting cast. The puzzles are also very well made and thoroughly tested. Physics is also miles ahead of HL1.

Rotinaj32

If you're playing hl1 for the first time, do yourself a favor and get the version running on the source engine.

TeamR

The question of which is better is a little moot, given that you haven't played it.

Play it. It's one of the best games ever made. Not as good? No matter. We don't play games based on a grading curve. It's awesome, so go play it.

You playing it yet?

GO PLAY IT!!!

mfsa

No way it is. Hl2 is leaps and bound beyond Hl.

Hl was the shooter of its time and so was hl2. They are both old now.

They are both old now.

Pessu

And through mods, two of the deepest and most widely played games around

What it boils down to is Half life is more fun combat and jumping wise. I feel the more weapons, enemies and bosses kept combat less boring, but not very well tested. The game also focuses much more on jumping puzzles especially later in the game. The game is longer and much more fluid (very few transitions), but also a lot less tested.

HL2 on the other hand, is much more cinematic and it also directs you much more. There are few weapons but they all feel useful and balanced. Enemies are also less diverse but each enemy is much more fleshed out. The story is also way better, as is the AI and supporting cast. The puzzles are also very well made and thoroughly tested. Physics is also miles ahead of HL1.

Rotinaj32

I was agreeing with you all the way up until you said HL2 has better AI. Dont believe a word of that, the soldiers in the original HL are much more 'effective' if thats your measure of AI (its mine). If you take cover or hide they will lob grenades at you to flush you out, and seem generally much more lethal than combine troops from HL2 who just strike me as cannon fodder for the majority of the game. The original half life offers a huge array of enemies, seriously its quite alot!, boss battles that are interesting (not like fighting the ant-lion queen from HL2 - that was just lame), more than just 2 useful weapons like in HL2 (shotgun and gravity gun) such as all the usual stuff plus alien weapons, experimental weapons and remote explsoives and trip mines, all meaning you can go back and repeat intense sections of the game in different ways, instead of HL2 where this means either: A) throwing bits of wood and radiators at enemies, or B) using the shotgun. Plus the original HL is HUGE and the levels are varied, from scrambling out of a ruined research complex at the beginning, to fighting marines and helicopters on the surface, and finally, kicking arse in what amounts to a hell-like world, with a fairly interesting mini-boss battle against a giant spider with a single huge dangling breast/udder, finishing with a fight against a giant baby.:=) HL 1 has replay value. HL 2 cannot really claim that without mods/garry's mod. As a standalone single player campaign, HL 1 wins.

Gameplay wise? HL1 wins for sure. The combat is so much more fun. Fighting the combine was never any fun for me in HL2 or EP1, though I felt it was more enjoyable in EP2. It's not just the fact that they're cannon fodder and don't have as good AI (maybe they do technically but it doesn't show), but it's that the environments in HL2 aren't as interesting to fight in. I can't say exactly what it is, but a lot of the fights in HL2 takes place in really tight corridors where there's not much at all to it. A lot of small areas in HL1 were quite 'open' actually. The soldiers were harder to kill so you had to run around, it wasn't just kill 3 guys, continue down corridor, kill 3 more etc. Fighting under the big bridge in HL2? Cool, maybe. Fun? Not for me at least. The only weapon in HL2 that's satisfying is the Shotgun, the cool experimental weapons are gone, the alien weapons are gone, the rocket launcher feels weak, the MP5 feels really weak, the pistol IS weak, the overwatch rife is just meh.

I also did not like the driving sections at all. EP2 though, that game has that that little extra which really elevates it. The pacing is so great, the game is so varied and the fights are much more interesting than HL2 / EP1. It probably sounds like I'm bashing the game but not really, it's great in so many ways, but the combat isn't nearly as fun as HL1. And I've played through HL1 + exps like 2-3 times this year so I'm not basing it off of fond memories. Actually, I've all but forgotten the original feeling I had when I first played HL because I've played the game so many times no, but I came to think of the Uplink HL1 demo which I haven't played since 1999 and I got this emotional flashback and I remembered just how awesome HL was back in the day. Scientists healing you and stuff :)

edit: btw, I totally ADORE EP2, I think it's the best FPS I've ever played. Almost everything in there is so perfect. Every little room in the game is really designed with a purpose and with the greater whole in mind. I haven't seen that in any other game ever

I like Half-Life more because you can dodge shots!!! On Half-Life 2 sprinting didn't even help they are going to shoot you no matter what you do but maybe it's because I'm so use to other types of shooters.

Yes. By all means.
They aren't even in the same league really. HL1 is more of a horror survival game really, HL2 obviously isn't.
I recall having way more fun with HL1 then with HL2, end of story.
ShotGunBunny

I like that description of HL1, it really is like a horror-survival game. Your up to your neck in the smelly brown stuff, so is everyoneelse involved in the story, and your just trying to get to the surface without being eaten or torn to shreds.

I've recently replayed Halflife and still think its better than HL2 (not counting episode 1 & 2). It just has more memorable moments, it's challenging and the world valve created feels more real.

Half life 2 on the other hand feels more stitched together (if that makes any sense), and its world doesn't really come together until episode 2 (which is just a brilliant episode i might add). Obviously the constant delays and the numerous obstacles Valve faced in the development of Half life 2 had a major impact on the final product. However, it is still a remarkable game, just not as remarkable as Half life 1

The first Half-Life was definitely longer, and I think had a slightly more interesting story. Structurally, both games are fairly similar in their balance of action bits and puzzles. The main difference between the two is that with the gravity gun you get more physics fun in Half-Life 2.

The first game is definitely worth checking out. I need to reinstall it and play through it again myself.

Half-Life 1 is great; you should still pick it up.

Half-Life 2 has (obviously) better graphics, but also better level design, and a lot more story exposition. I didn't really notice any difference between the weapon sets, but Half-Life 1 had much cooler enemies. Half-Life 1 had a better atmosphere too, by far.

They're very different games. The first one is about puzzling solving and spending like an hour in one area lol, the second is much more action based with running and shooting rather than navigating the environment. I guess the first has better level design but I really do prefer the second one. It is so much more accessible and enjoyable. I want to blast through levels not spends hours on the same section.

The use of physics in #2 is beyond anything we've ever seen in a game as well. Also, the visuals/effects are soo much better. They are not just for eye candy though but to really tell the story, like crafting a believable city or characters like Alyx Vance that would never have been as lifelike years ago. Few games have used technology to truly enhance the experience like this so HL2 wins.

A gimmic!? It completes revolutionises the use of physics in gaming! It makes the game more realistic and interactive. There are heaps and heaps of puzzles that are just based around the physics. You can use it as a weapon like with the saws and also at the end. I have never seen any other game use physics other than to make bodies slump "realistically"...biggest_loser

I agree. To this date i havn't seen a game (Crysis comes close) that uses physics to the degree that HL2 does.

Yes most games these days have physics, but they do jack **** with them. All they are is mostly for special effects, and sometimes as debris but nothing more. What i liked about HL2 was that with the GG, pretty much anything was a weapon. It encouraged you to hunt around and save ammo, by trying out different items/combos.

Yes, HL 1 was a great game and if you havent played it, you should.

HL1 was written a long time ago and it had only had so much memory and CPU to present the game to you -- yet it did a lot.

When playing, use the source version of HL1 -- it is probably is more compatible with today's systems.

You should probably max out graphics and sound options. Turn on V-sync or use fps_max to prevent very high framerates that might cause simulation problems.

Forcing anti-aliasing and anisotropic filtering ... and turning off filter opimizations via drivers if needed will help improve visuals. If the game doesnt support (LCD) widescreen then then you might want to turn off scaling or non aspect ratio preserving scaling. NVidia allows this in drivers or you monitor might have a setting.

If you play at high resolutions, then the texture filtering will be less pronounced even though the textures are still low in resolution. This makes the textures look sharper but makes their low resolution more apparent.

If you use the console, you can disable compression of textures to get a little more out of them.

I have noticed that playing old games on new systems at high difficulty is harder than it was on older systems. Playing on harddifficulty will make a few parts of the game unnecessarily difficult. Some enemies can decide to rush you and at higher difficulty they wont go down quick enough.

A generic shooter? I assume we can talk about the episodes...The sort of emotion from the characters in episodes 1+2 is light years away from the NPC's in the first game and I think it makes for a much for engaging and personal experience. Thus it is far beyond being a "generic" shooter . You actually care what is going to happen...(Raises Flame Shield)biggest_loser

I agree, it's not, but it was a comparison. The original is leaps and bounds better than the second, but that doesn't mean the second wasn't amazing, that was my point.

[QUOTE="biggest_loser"]A generic shooter? I assume we can talk about the episodes...The sort of emotion from the characters in episodes 1+2 is light years away from the NPC's in the first game and I think it makes for a much for engaging and personal experience. Thus it is far beyond being a "generic" shooter . You actually care what is going to happen...(Raises Flame Shield)robokill

I agree, it's not, but it was a comparison. The original is leaps and bounds better than the second, but that doesn't mean the second wasn't amazing, that was my point.

i wouldn't say leaps and bounds better as HL 2 was a bit different but it improved on several aspects of HL1 imo. you are most probably considering HL1 to be leaps and bound ahead by taking into account their impact when the ywhere first release. that case no shooter ever even comes a little bit close

the thing was half life 1 was the first of it's kind. Without it the entire FPS genre wouldn't be the same, HL2 while amazing was a step forward instead of something that broke entirely new ground. Of course putting them side by side the sequel beats the original because of the technological improvements, but I'm talking for the times. People still say Ocarina of Time was the best game of all time even though newer zelda games are way more technologically advanced.

edit: or what naval said