Half Life 2 is flat-out phenomenal, and is just as great and entertaining an experience as its amazing predecessor.
User Rating: 9.7 | Half-Life 2 PC
It's been two long, sleepless days since I first unlocked my copy of Half Life 2, and in that time I've been taken on an amazing journey through a one-of-a-kind gamespace. Half Life 2 immediately gripped me with its beauty, immersiveness and realism, but kept me playing all day and night with solid and extremely entertaining action. Every step of the long journey had some new thrill or amazing action sequence that kept me on edge the entire time. No game is without its critics, but as you can tell I'm not one of them. Half Life 2 is flat-out phenomenal, and is just as great and entertaining an experience as its amazing predecessor. To contest Jason Ocampo's review, I thought the story was very well executed and believable. Sure the ending was anticlimactic and (as usual), enigmatic, but the Bungie-esque device of placing the main character into events that are already set in motion is a very effective and immersive way to make a game. The atmospheric quality of Valve's design is once again on display, as City 17 and the outlying areas really seem to come to life. The graphics themselves are top shelf. As another reviewer said, things look more realistic than in Doom 3 simply because they haven't been glossed and bump-mapped excessively. Characters look scarily lifelike, as do aliens and zombies. The weapon animations are excellent, and the scale of some of the enemies is amazingly intimidating. All these elements add up to a very visually appealing and immersive gameworld, hands down the best to date. The gameplay is flat out thrilling. Every encounter with enemy foes yields something new, from battling soldiers and CP's to facing the mighty and fearsome Striders. Some of the most memorable sequences for me were ones where I was on the run from these large foes, frantically looking for heavy artillery to return fire. The weapons are fairly well balanced, although I will agree that the last level plays fairly easily. However, the weapon they give you for the final showdown is still intensely fun to use, which made up for things in my mind. The sound is a very important element in Half Life 2. The squeal of enemy troop radios can alert you to their presence, as can the clatter of their shoes on the floor. Each sound effect is excellent and in some cases very important to hear. The weapons all have very powerful and proper sounds, and the enemy aliens and soldiers sound intimidating but foreign. The music is well done as well, chiming in to punctuate a particularily moody moment or to enhance a tense battle. As for the multiplayer, who can argue with Counter-Strike:Source? CS finally got the graphical overhaul it needed after six years of extensive play. Although there is no deathmatch mode based on the game world itself, I'm sure the mod community will more than make up for it. I can tell you all, in conclusion, that I was completely taken captive by this game, and it was a wonderful ride. If Half Life 3 takes Valve another six years, I know I have a game that I will gladly play anytime until then.
