C
Cryogenic
Guest
As my first post at this forum, I thought I'd start by singing the praises of Half-Life 2 and congratulating Valve on a job well done. Although I'm not currently very far due to uni work (read: socialising) and a VERY ANNOYING memory leakage bug which Valve need to fix ASAP (it corrupted my save games and has also caused the game to crash out), what I've seen and played through so far has deeply impressed me.
One of the first things to truly impress me playing Half-Life 2 were Breen's monologues. I'm talking specifically of those that occur in the opening chapter and they reminded me of why no one else could have made this game.
Dr Breen's monologues are - both in content and method of delivery - superb. First and foremost, they are written and voiced to perfection. It's rare for a PC game (and certainly an FPS) to contain dialogue so articulate or a vocal performance so incredibly nuanced. These are definitely on a level with the equally genre-defying Black Mesa train speech in Half-Life. They feel 100% realistic and establish an equally realistic tone for the game itself.
Secondly, the way they are delivered is just as impressive. The big, impossible-to-miss, elongated, 1984-ish video screens look odd yet believable - high tech in appearance yet shaped into an oblong as opposed to the conventional television ratios of 4:3 or 16:9 and slightly unusual as a result. The video images themselves look to be projected (you can see them from either side of the display device) rather than modulated as a CRT or TFT is. To cap it all off, there's even a barely perctible flicker. When Breen finishes speaking on the first monologue (his "Welcome to City 17..." speech), the image momentarily swtiches to a static logo of some kind which again adds to the feel that you're part of an Orwellian future in a city with its own communication system.
Breen's actual speech on procreation is sublime and highlights both his own self-deluded mind and the totalitarian politics Gordon and every other citizen is up against. It definitely brings the darker side of human nature - Communist Russia, Nazism etc - to mind. Hitler was known as a truly great speaker; Dr Breen comes across as equally composed and assured (though where Hitler shouted, Breen calmly expounds).
Only Valve could make the idea of a ruthless dictator speaking directly to his citizens come across so chilling and realistic. If anything, the fact that City 17 is somewhere in Europe makes it seem a little TOO real. Germany still has problems with Neo-Nazism and a Far Right candidate (Jean-Marie Le Pen) almost became France's leader two years ago. Black Mesa was atmospheric in parts, but even at its best, it wasn't a TENTH as good as this.
Half-Life 2 is an amazing accomplishment. Nothing, to me, demonstrates that more than the monologues. In addition to their own brilliance, they simply wouldn't work if the world itself wasn't modelled and textured in such detail or the Combine or even the distraught citizens so carefully realised. And that's another thing. Have you noticed how WORN the citizens' faces all look? As if they've been under Combine rule for quite some time and are rationed almost to the point of death? Very clever stuff.
Valve = genius.
One of the first things to truly impress me playing Half-Life 2 were Breen's monologues. I'm talking specifically of those that occur in the opening chapter and they reminded me of why no one else could have made this game.
Dr Breen's monologues are - both in content and method of delivery - superb. First and foremost, they are written and voiced to perfection. It's rare for a PC game (and certainly an FPS) to contain dialogue so articulate or a vocal performance so incredibly nuanced. These are definitely on a level with the equally genre-defying Black Mesa train speech in Half-Life. They feel 100% realistic and establish an equally realistic tone for the game itself.
Secondly, the way they are delivered is just as impressive. The big, impossible-to-miss, elongated, 1984-ish video screens look odd yet believable - high tech in appearance yet shaped into an oblong as opposed to the conventional television ratios of 4:3 or 16:9 and slightly unusual as a result. The video images themselves look to be projected (you can see them from either side of the display device) rather than modulated as a CRT or TFT is. To cap it all off, there's even a barely perctible flicker. When Breen finishes speaking on the first monologue (his "Welcome to City 17..." speech), the image momentarily swtiches to a static logo of some kind which again adds to the feel that you're part of an Orwellian future in a city with its own communication system.
Breen's actual speech on procreation is sublime and highlights both his own self-deluded mind and the totalitarian politics Gordon and every other citizen is up against. It definitely brings the darker side of human nature - Communist Russia, Nazism etc - to mind. Hitler was known as a truly great speaker; Dr Breen comes across as equally composed and assured (though where Hitler shouted, Breen calmly expounds).
Only Valve could make the idea of a ruthless dictator speaking directly to his citizens come across so chilling and realistic. If anything, the fact that City 17 is somewhere in Europe makes it seem a little TOO real. Germany still has problems with Neo-Nazism and a Far Right candidate (Jean-Marie Le Pen) almost became France's leader two years ago. Black Mesa was atmospheric in parts, but even at its best, it wasn't a TENTH as good as this.
Half-Life 2 is an amazing accomplishment. Nothing, to me, demonstrates that more than the monologues. In addition to their own brilliance, they simply wouldn't work if the world itself wasn't modelled and textured in such detail or the Combine or even the distraught citizens so carefully realised. And that's another thing. Have you noticed how WORN the citizens' faces all look? As if they've been under Combine rule for quite some time and are rationed almost to the point of death? Very clever stuff.
Valve = genius.
