New Exclusive Half-Life 2 Media in PC Gamer

[rec]

Thanks to forum participant ray_MAN, we can happily inform you that Valve's media blackout has ended. If you've got the enthusiasim to run down to your local news agency and have enough cash to pick up the latest edition of PC Gamer, you'll be pleasantly rewarded with new official media in the form of screenshots and concept art, which looks simply fantastic.

 

[Lil' Timmy]

w00t

 

[Shuzer]

Lil' Timmy, you should make an mspaint drawing of the screenshot from memory, be really good to see

 

[Sparta]

Can someone describe what the concept art looks like for me?

 

[Shuzer]

It showed a shot of City 17, and what looks like the Combine tower in the background. Had some scaffolding up around, kinda looks like a mill to me. Closer to the ground are some rock formations, and in the upper right there's a block of text that says "Concept art for Half-Life 2 shows the bar the new engine should leap over."

 

[Frizz]

??

Two Things

1: Don't just say go buy PC gamer now for the new pic as that's very unhelpful as there is 20 different versions of PC gamer, please tell us at lest what part of the world this copy is from...

2: Why delete my post without replaying?

 

[Shuzer]

1. Look for the latest PC Gamer with a mention of HL2 on the front (something about the source leak, I believe)

2. PM a moderator about your post being deleted.

 

[Frizz]

so you are saying go to ever place in the world that sells PC gamers to find the right one........ OK something to stop the boredom .... think not

 

[Shuzer]

I believe PC Gamer is primarily located in America. So it comes out first in America.

 

[Blair]

What did the article say?

 

[error]

ok as we all know this forum sucks and chris is a ass of a mod so IM using AIM "onboard error" for the pics

 

[Shuzer]

error, I've reported your post.

Chris is not an ass, nor does this forum suck. However, whether you realize it or not, posting magazine scans is copyright infringement, aka it's ILLEGAL.

If users post these images, halflife2.net can get in legal trouble. Best way to avoid it? Delete posts showing copyrighted material. Plain and simple.

 

[error]

oh god NO! reported me?! i dident want to get banned? not under this proxy -hl2 stone b4 your time bitch.

 

[mbrithoms]

1 new screen and a couple of scribbles, yawn as usual

 

[TeeJay]

I remember when this site was nothing more than a black page with magazine scans of hl2 on it.

 

[Shuzer]

Well, HL2 Stone, can't you take a hint when you get banned?

Anyhow, it's your time, have fun signing up for account after account.

 

[Sushi]

Originally posted by TeeJay
I remember when this site was nothing more than a black page with magazine scans of hl2 on it.

Interesting, I don't remember that point in time. And look at whos been around here longer... And besides, the mods have always been very strict with magazine scans. Just wait for a few hours and they'll be on every site on the web, except for this one...

 

[Blair]

The mod's messed up... It's always best to do something first, and ask questions later..


Like asking your boss for a day off.. Instead, just call in sick then come back and tell him you missed. If you would've asked first, sure as shit he'd said no.

Too late now thou, the most that would've happened is been asked to take them down.

 

[Lil' Timmy]

wow i leave for a couple of hours and look what happens.. JEEBUS!

 

[EvilEwok2.0]

Uhg. That screenshot looks like utter shit.

The lighting is horrible.

The environment lacks detail to the point that its depressing to look at.

This is supposed to be next generation? Take away the little dx9 tricks and there would be nothing to look at here.

 

[Shuzer]

Yeah, we need you to maintain and uphold the balance of good and evil on the forums, LT

 

[Lil' Timmy]

that's why i invoked the JEEBUS

 

[Lil' Timmy]

i mean, how stupid are people? calling the mod a ass is not good for anyone, especially not the baby Jeebus. everytime you insult a mod, one of baby Jeebus' pet kittens cries.

 

[Blair]

Originally posted by Lil' Timmy
i mean, how stupid are people? calling the mod a ass is not good for anyone, especially not the baby Jeebus. everytime you insult a mod, one of baby Jeebus' pet kittens cries.

Wow.... There's 10 seconds of my life I'll never get back.

 

[Shuzer]

Originally posted by Sn7
Wow.... There's 10 seconds of my life I'll never get back.

That took you 10 seconds to read? lol

This has gone horribly off topic, not that it wasn't OT in the first place. Mods, clooseeeee and delete!

 

[rec]

Error, this is your first and last warning.

Stop posting asking for illegal content, stop insulting the moderators that slave without pay to keep order in this popular community.

 

[Blair]

Originally posted by Shuzer
That took you 10 seconds to read? lol

This has gone horribly off topic, not that it wasn't OT in the first place. Mods, clooseeeee and delete!

Wow... There's another 10 seconds of my life wasted.

 

[Alurcard2]

Could you tell me the page number

 

[Orange]

There are actually 2 (!!!!1!1!!) pictures!
One is in the biggest things coming in 2004, and the other is the Source code stolen article.

neat to see coverage, but information thats new is pretty scarce.
things to note are
-release 2004 (who knows, possibly April)
-prior to release there will be open house for mod teams by valve to demonstrate the new sdk

oh and the whole code stolen thingy.

 

[Shuzer]

Originally posted by EvilEwok2.0
Uhg. That screenshot looks like utter shit.

The lighting is horrible.

The environment lacks detail to the point that its depressing to look at.

This is supposed to be next generation? Take away the little dx9 tricks and there would be nothing to look at here.

Talk about critical, Evil.

It's a crappy scan, for one. If you cleaned it up it would look much nicer (the scan has a yellowish tint..).

I don't have a second point, but, don't judge a book by its scan.

 

[MultiVaC]

Originally posted by Shuzer
Talk about critical, Evil.

It's a crappy scan, for one. If you cleaned it up it would look much nicer (the scan has a yellowish tint..).

I don't have a second point, but, don't judge a book by its scan.

Don't mind him Shuzer, we're all accustomed to his mindless rantings.

 

[nw909]

Originally posted by error
oh god NO! reported me?! i dident want to get banned? not under this proxy -hl2 stone b4 your time bitch.

not hl2stone again :\

 

[EvilEwok2.0]

lol! The scan having a yellowish tent does not make up for the blatent lighting errors are tremendous lack of any detail what so ever. Not to mention the numerous deisgn inconsistencies.

Thats why this thread is so off-topic, because there is nothing good at all to besaid about this pic, and everyone here will avoid saying anything bad about hl2 at all costs.

 

[nw909]

Originally posted by EvilEwok2.0
lol! The scan having a yellowish tent does not make up for the blatent lighting errors are tremendous lack of any detail what so ever. Not to mention the numerous deisgn inconsistencies.

Thats why this thread is so off-topic, because there is nothing good at all to besaid about this pic, and everyone here will avoid saying anything bad about hl2 at all costs.

Its also a 582x334 low quality magazine scan.

I don't expect you've played the beta.

 

[Shuzer]

Originally posted by EvilEwok2.0
lol! The scan having a yellowish tent does not make up for the blatent lighting errors are tremendous lack of any detail what so ever. Not to mention the numerous deisgn inconsistencies.

Thats why this thread is so off-topic, because there is nothing good at all to besaid about this pic, and everyone here will avoid saying anything bad about hl2 at all costs.

I see no lighting errors... point it out to me, I'd like to see what you're seeing.

Second, it's a tunnel, it's got the detail of a tunnel, what else do you want?

Third, design inconsistencies? Please, elaborate. Don't make claims without backing them up. I'd like again to know what you're speaking of.


Is this the same old EvilEwok we all knew and loved? We thought you turned over a new leaf, but this appears to be pure bashing.

Edit: nw909, obviously he's unwilling to believe that HL2 looks good in the slightest. He'll argue that the crappy scan has nothing to do with the overall image quality.

 

[EvilEwok2.0]

No, im not saying everything about hl2 looks bad. Some of the shaders look nice, and some of the facial animations are impressive. But the majority of the game looks old. It simply doesnt stack up to other truly next-gen engines. it doesnt have the realistic lighting of Stalker, or the conistent lighting of doom3 or Deus Ex: IW. The environment doesnt have the mind blowing detail of Stalker or Farcry. It doesnt utilize techniques such as normal mapping, which gives the ultimate in detail, as well as other games do. And other games have awesome shader effects like hl2. The only thing hl2 has going for it that others dont is the facial animation system, but even the new MOH game has faces on par with hl2 if not better.

I dont hate hl2, but im not a fan either so i just call it as i see it. I didnt go into detail because i wasnt sure if the mods would appreciate me describing in detail a screenshot they saw unfit to be posted here.

Just because its a shitty scan doesnt cover up the errors in this pic. It may be a shitty scan, but its still representative of whats there. And the colors may be a bit distorted, but it still scans highlights and shadows.


If you want me to be more specific, i will. But the errors are pretty obvious. Do you not have a copy of the pic? It would be easier if i were allowed to post it and point the things out, but ill just try describe them instead.


As for the lack of detail, this needs no explination. you can clearly see from the pic that it has no detail at all in the environment. They didnt even take the time to model a curve in the road where it bends, instead its just a hard angle. its yuck.

As for the lighting errors, look at the top corner to the right, above the guy on the car. See how dark the wall is at the top? See how light the roof is where it meets the dark wall? This is a ugly inconsistency,and unfortunately it happens very often in hl2. You can see this in many screenshots.

Also, the human figures are evenly lit by a bright lightsource that doesnt exist. If the light source does indeed exist in that environment then it should affect other nearby surfaces the same way. So either the human figure on the car is improperly lit, or the rest of the nearby area is improperly lit. These examples should give you a better idea, but i dont see how you could not notice this from the start. In hl1 things like this are forgivable, in hl2 things should be more consistent.

the screenshot is just ugly. Most screenshots of hl2 are, other than a nice looking dx9 trick or a nice looking facial expression. Now, i have explained myself. If you disagree then perhaps you would tell me just what is so good looking about it? Im looking forward to it.

 

[Lil' Timmy]

i can feel the old evilewok coming back, he's gaining in power! the infidels will drown in lakes of blood!!!! rise from the darkness my boy, ruin the world of children! loose the woe-kitten!!

http://www.rathergood.com/blode2

 

[Shuzer]

The one thing I agree with is the ceiling, it should be dark like the rest, but it's not. That I'll give.

The lighting on the player models is muzzle flash, that much is obvious. The guy in the middle is in the sunlight.

Curved road doesn't have to be curved, go look at real roads. Sometime it can be angled like that, however it does have a slight curve and that's where the painter would have painted it (although, it's a texture, and seeing as how this is a game, there was no real painting done )

By no means do I think that screenshot is ugly. Could it be touched up a little? Yes. The lighting issue is one, other than that, it looks fine in my opinion.

Looking at STALKER and Far Cry videos/screens, I don't see that simple stuff, such as pavement and roads are as detailed as you make them out to be. They're just that, pavement, nothing is supposed to be snazzy about them.

They all look a little dull in most cases (pavement/roads/grounds) in all 3 titles. Just because there's not a perfect curve on the paint doesn't mean it's a badly done texture.

 

[EvilEwok2.0]

The lighting on the player models is muzzle flash, that much is obvious. The guy in the middle is in the sunlight.

no, its not muzzle flash. Look at the side, or under the guys leg. The entire model is evenly lit, not just the parts of the model that the muzzle flash would light up. This is incorrect lighting. Only the surfaces facing the muzzle flash should be lit by it.

Curved road doesn't have to be curved, go look at real roads. Sometime it can be angled like that, however it does have a slight curve and that's where the painter would have painted it (although, it's a texture, and seeing as how this is a game, there was no real painting done )

Well, thats just one example. The general lack of detail is apperent. Look at the buildings. they are just a block with a texture repeated over and over to create the windows. Thats rediculous. the least they could do is model the window sills. Textured on windows are a no no. One way the could have made it more detailed is added another car or two. Or some street signs or bilboards. But no, there isnt any detail at all. Just like most of hl2s environments, its sparse to the point of being boring and bland.

By no means do I think that screenshot is ugly. Could it be touched up a little? Yes. The lighting issue is one, other than that, it looks fine in my opinion.

Well, i disagree. Could you tell me whats good about it? I dont see anything appealing in the least, infact it looks quite bad due to the fact of the incorrect lgihting on some of the surfaces(including the humans) and the lack of any detail at all. To me it looks years behind other games, Stalker for one.

You go on about how roads in other games arent super detailed either, but thats not the point. The point is there is no detail in this screenshot.

 

[Shuzer]

Actually, my bad, it's not muzzleflash.. they're in the sunlight on a second look. And I do agree the lighting is messed up overall, but it's not COMPLETELY screwed up.

I never once said the screenshot was out-standing, all I said was I didn't think it was ugly. I do agree that windows shouldn't be painted on in this day and age.

And as for the roads, I somehow got the impression that you thought roads should be super detailed, but, for a scene like that shot is in, the amount of detail is fine. Maybe a little bit plain, and messed up lighting, but it's not like the entire game is going to be bland (and it's like I said, some areas in the stolen build are beautiful, not bland at all, and generally out-standing). Or atleast, it shouldn't. And if it is, then that sucks.

And for the record, the painted on windows have always bothered me

Edit: Just thought I'd also add, I'm looking forward to Far Cry as much as HL2 at this point, and STALKER is looking more and more appealing, so it's not like I'm trying to be a fanboy. All I'm saying is that screenshot doesn't suck, but it's nothing amazing either.