It's all in the eyes of the beholder...
Graphics: 10
Sounds: 9
Value: 9
Tilt: 9
'The right man in the wrong place can make all the difference in the world'
Powerful words from the G Man as he 'talks' to Gordon Freeman throughout the opening scene in Half Life 2. Gordon, responsible for the Black Mesa destruction in Half Life now embarks in another train trip on his way to City 17. Exactly for what reason is anyone's guess however he is after all the right man in the wrong place.
So this peculiar beginning is a remanence of the first Half Life. Known for its no cut scenes and the main protagonist doesn't say a word, Valve's first (and only) game at the time was an instant hit. Valve took the no cut scene / speechless gamble and the net result was 'FPS of the year' back in 1998. Yet it wasn't just that, the superior AI and player immersion took the FPS genre to another level.
Two expansions and numerous delays later Half Life 2 hits the shelf. Again Valve took the gamble and introduced many new features to place its mark. The introduction of a new weapon that does no damage, physics and many more was a serious risk as many companies tried and failed to do the exact same thing. Yet with six years of planning Valve certainly hit the sweet spot and the dividends paid handsomely.
This is not to say that Half Life 2 is a perfect game. The flaws (or for a better word) are immediate right from the get-go. Gordon travelling in the ye ole familiar train trip is a remanence of the first Half Life. Yet in HL2 the trip was cut short. Valve should have utilised this making the player witness the depressing location known as City 17 in its glorious (?) form. Yet looking at the bright side (?) you get to see City 17 and its inhabitants later on.
City 17 looks and feels like a dump; similar in the vein of the Warsaw ghettos during the 40s with peeling walls, broken windows and so forth. Yet it also reminded me the fictitious novel 1984 with the big brother being 'Dr Breen', gas bagging about human instincts and how this must be stopped (and that includes no mating…I told you it's depressing).
Now add the 'Overwatch' (combine"grunts) looking and sounding like Stormtroopers in the Star Wars universe, ships anchored where there's lacking water (film 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'), headcrabs (Aliens flick) and the Striders (War of the Worlds) doesn't really gel for me as it lacks originality. Thankfully though, Valve spun its magic wand and added features that literally blown my mind in many ways. Sadly though, it arrived approximately a third into the game (and near a point where I almost gave up in apathy).
So one of the main selling points was in my sweet hands - the gravity gun. This equipment does no real damage however using a bit of brain power can be a force to be reckoned with. A controversial weapon to say the least as the vast majority of FPS at the time when introducing a new weapon always explodes louder / meaner etc; yet the gravity gun is actually a silent weapon (other than a low humming sound).
Why it's controversial it relies heavily on physics. Valve had this idea back in Half Life (1998) however didn't want to introduce physics due to the disastrous attempts made from other games (e.g. 'Trespassers'). Clumsy in everyway, Valve hold off this idea until now (2004). Also being a 'non damage' weapon might not gel well with others yet like all high risks, if done correctly pays high rewards. And so the gravity gun is certainly one of the highlights from the game.
The gravity gun is simple weapon to use as it requires (by default) the left mouse button to fire and right click to pick up items. In addition to this, the gravity gun will play an important part of the game to solve the many puzzles (e.g. removing planks of wood to clear space). Also there are more innovative weapons throughout the game however I won't spoil this for you.
To compliment these cool weapons you need clever enemy AI. Sadly in this department they are not so bright. The first Half Life AI's are superior in all ways as they even try and flush you out however in HL2 they are quite docile and easy to kill. To add salt to the wounds, you will receive additional help from the populace late in the game meaning making you an unstoppable force.
Yet because the game sports three difficulty levels, I pumped it up to hard and this turned around my opinion. So I highly suggest early on that if the game gets too easy, to increase the difficulty level otherwise you won't enjoy the final third of the game (unless you want to become this unstoppable force).
That said, there will be times that Gordon will have followers of all sorts. Yet controlling these followers are poorly designed (simply pressing the default 'c' to position them or 'cc' to call) so fire fights in cramped areas will be a nightmare as they will get in your way. Yet Valve being Valve have done something special to the human followers. Valve gave them souls and that's including one of the main characters Alyx Vance.
And as the saying goes 'the eyes are the mirror of the soul'. Yes it's all about the eyes and Valve has done an excellent job at that. So when you (Gordon) acknowledging his fellow humans you cannot help but noticing you are staring straight into their eyes. And when this happens you'll start caring for them. Some examples I had was when one of the resistance fighters got sniped just as she rushed towards me yelling 'hey Gordon let me…' or another resistance fighter was about to get blasted and his last words was '…oooh nooo' I really cannot help but reloading the game as I felt guilty I didn't prevent their deaths.
Also the enemies also display 'unusual' characteristics that will be long remembered. Some examples are the striders that remarkably looks like the tripod Martian attacking machine in the 'War of the Worlds' with insect like flexibility as it bobs up and down firing at poor hapless souls. Or the Combine Gunship that bends and flexes like a flying worm as it dodges / shoots down missiles.
The musical scores, whilst they are average at best, everything else is top-notch. Ranging from those electronic chatter coming from the combine soldiers to the striders on their last legs (excuse the pun) with that idiosyncratic blare brings total immersion. Also I remember from time to time the female sounding overlord blurting throughout the many speakers dotted the landscape referring Gordon as 'individual…'. A nice touch as it places more emphasis on the lack of individualism. Also the voice acting from all the characters, even though they are not academy award winning performance, gets the message across.
To complete the game can take easily fifteen plus hours. So as far as a FPS goes it's quite long yet keeping you entertained until the very end. And to those achievement lovers there's plenty to grab and even a handful of hidden ones. I actually completed this game twice therefore clocked almost fifty hours. Yet there's no multiplayer to speak of however purchasing this product normally tags on another game with multiplayer (e.g. counter strike – source).
Half Life 1 was known to raise the bar for FPS. With its uncanny AI, no cut scenes and amazing plot, it will be an extremely hard for a sequel to top this. Well six years later Valve done the impossible and raised the bar again. Whilst the AI was lacking thereof and parts of the game really didn't explain what the heck is going on, Half Life 2 have made some amazing achievements like believable characters (it's all in the eyes), astonishing plot and of course the gravity gun. I guess once the game draws you in with characters that you actually care, the game will become memorable.