Ravenholm or Lowlife

[Para]

Lowlife = Boring + repetitive
Ravenholm = Nearly crapped myself 10 times
Ravenholm wins.

I agree with your reasoning. For some reason games like Doom 3 (and some other scary games I'm not going to mention here) didn't scare me at all but Ravenholm...well, it took me about three hours to finish it for the first time. I just sat in corners, hugged my blade in gravgun and hoped that the zombies would stop coming for me...

It was the only time I was scared while playing a computer game and I mean truly scared. Funnily after finishing the game a couple of times I was playing Ravenholm to show my friend what HL2 is (the demo is set on Ravenholm) I noticed that I almost finished it in 20 minutes. I was amazed.

*shivers* those fast zombies...you should see how I still react to them in Highway 17.

 

[smokeythebear]

Pretty much a tie for me...
Ravenholm:
Zombie traps
Grigori
SAW BLADES
Lowlife:
Zombines + Pitch black + Slow piece of sh*t slow elevator + very little ammo= very challenging, and there are not enough challenges in halflife2 (I had to cheat and place explosive crap to use as ammo around the elevator before the zombie rush)
The whole "seeing the light" sequence was so well done in both, only better in lowlife because of the "crap we cant actually get out this way" deal. (but both were equaly relieving

 

[coritani]

Are people forgetting that Ravenholm had a slow as hell elvator too? I remember when I tried to be smart and close the door. I almost had a heart attack!

I'm going to have to say Ravenholm. After playing through Ravenholm, Lowlife seemed to be the same thing, just darker and in a different setting, though the Zombines were pretty awesome. It also got a bit repetitive and didn't have Grigori. So I'm gonna go with Ravenholm.

 

[Shift]

Plus I will add that playing through Half-Life 2 for the first time, and seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, it actually felt so releiving, I felt like a broken man almost after all the fighting I had done, and then the creepy and feaky experiance in Ravenholm, just the big sigh of relief seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. There are very, very few games that can actually achieve that with the gamer.

 

[ríomhaire]

Scare Factor / Atmosphere
Ravenholm
Ravenholm had a definite creepy atmosphere with plenty of foreshadowing to make you worried about the place before you even get there "Trust me, there's a good reason that tunnel is sealed" "Do not go through Ravenh-". The zombies are really horrible and when they scream you almost feel sorry for them. Gregori is ridiculously over-the-top but really cool when you first play it. Once you’re used to zombies the poisons and then the fasties had a new twist. Defending yourself against the fasties on the rooftops is extremely unnerving, especially when they do things you don't expect (burst through the sky-light) but by the time you finish the chapter you're used to everything.

Lowlife
By now you're used to zombies, they don't creep you out anymore so 2 new elements are added; the darkness and the zombines. The darkness adds a twists in the obvious way, you can't see a mother-f*cking thing. The flashlight must be conserved as your scarce ammo must (though there is no shortage of bricks and flares). The zombines keep you on your toes, not only are they very strong but the grenades change everything in a matter of moments. Like Ravenholm by the last battle you should be used to everything so it is no longer scary but still hard (at least, before the update )

Winner: Ravenholm (I always prefer physiological horror)

Gameplay / Replayability
I won’t even go into this, Lowlife wins by a wide margin.

Lowlife because it’s far more fun to replay, if only Valve hadn’t released that update…

 

[Asknoone]

I think you'd be over the top if you'd be stuck within a Zombie infested town for months.

 

[Shift]

lol I was gonna say that too, yeah grigori is jutice clearly, mentally unstable, and thats why he is over the top, hell you really would have to be crazy to stay in Ravenholm for the amount of time he did.

 

[Hazar]

lowlife for me

I'm surprised at how close it is though

 

[Asus]

Both were awesome. Ravenholm was probably the best for showing off the fast zombie. But I liked Lowlife better since it had tight spaces and more zombies. Plus Alyx and zombines! But it was a challenge. Have not played it since the update, I'm afraid I'll be disappointed.

 

[Tagaziel]

I vote for Ravenholm.

Lowlife has a fantastic, appealing, nearly scavengerish atmosphere (and miss Alyx Vance herself)... however, it gets a bit tedious after a while. It is more replayable though.

Ravenholm... sheer awesomeness. 19th century factory buildings, walled off streets, headcrabs running when you least expect them, and the most scary enemy, black headcrab zombie. Jesus-itch...

So, the bad side of town. Dispatched one zombie in the alley, another in the street and about ten classics. Cocking the shotgun, catching breath in the middle of the street, thinking it's safe...

Suddenly, garbled, heavy breathing. I turn around, only to see two blacks and five classics advancing, meters from me.

...I was scared out of my HEV.

Second encounter was at Highway 17, when you enter a two-story house. I see, a crossbow lies on the floor, well, no problem. I pick it up, and hear the garbled breathing again... there was a room to my right, so I lobbed a few M83s into there, blowing it up, thinking the zombie's there... it was behind me. I literally jumped on my seat. Two grenades and one and a half energy plug later, I was down from 100/75 to 35 life points... grenades at point blank, with my back against the wall...

Ravenholm. Purely because it's scary as hell.

 

[function9]

Second encounter was at Highway 17, when you enter a two-story house. I see, a crossbow lies on the floor, well, no problem. I pick it up, and hear the garbled breathing again... there was a room to my right, so I lobbed a few M83s into there, blowing it up, thinking the zombie's there... it was behind me. I literally jumped on my seat. Two grenades and one and a half energy plug later, I was down from 100/75 to 35 life points... grenades at point blank, with my back against the wall...

Haha. Same experience myself the first time I went into the house. But after that I just picked up the crossbow on the hill and bypassed the house.

 

[Ridge]

I remember when leaving Ravenholm, I had read to follow the cart with the spinning saw....I started it up, and it just took off...I thought "Youve gotta be kidding me" and started running after it...imagine my suprise when it came back and chopped me in half...

 

[d00d]

I remember when leaving Ravenholm, I had read to follow the cart with the spinning saw....I started it up, and it just took off...I thought "Youve gotta be kidding me" and started running after it...imagine my suprise when it came back and chopped me in half...

Join the club.

 

[Asknoone]

...I was scared out of my HEV.

Hehehe

 

[heer0]

Hah, the first time i played i didn't fell for it. I knew this is a trick or something - too quiet and suspicious? :E I just love the smell of fresh dead zombies in the morning.

 

[Jintor]

Ravenholm was definantly more scarey the first time round, but Lowlife was much more - fun. (It had Alyx Vance and Zombines)

And that's what makes a game for me.

 

[bigburpco]

The second reason as to why Lowlife wins - at least for me - is the overwhelming sense of gloom. You're also more marooned than you were in Ravenholm (Grigori should know Ravenholm well).

The feel is just fantastic.

 

[blck_prod]

Defenatly Ravenholm. Much nicer setting. I'll never forget the first glimps after you descended the ladder. The sign under your feet. Chills go trough my spine. And then the Gravity-gun-madness....Yeah baby!!!!!!!!!! :bounce:

Lowlife was good also, but to much of that corridor-flashlight DOOM feeling.

 

[586FAC75]

Lowlife for the psychological aspect. Not knowing where the next attack is going to come from in the pitch black, you start to get a paranoid feeling. Oh, and I get the feeling of mild panic due to the elevator taking far too long to start working

 

[Atomic_Piggy]

Lowlife.

 

[repiV]

I couldn't stand Lowlife. Ravenholm was cool though.

 

[Animontius]

Definitely, without a doubt, Ravenholm. I still remember the first time through, late on a friday night, I'm pretty sure the rest of my family was in bed, and the lights were out. It's the first time I have actually been scared by a game. something would move off to the side, and I would get chills, and turn as fast as I could just to find it was nothing. then of course, zombies were walking up behind me. I became gordon freeman, literally worrying about my survival, never experienced that from a game before then. And then the fast zombie intro, I still get chills. hearing their howlings, looking up to see the ones jumping over the buildings, then hearing one charging at me, and just as I look down it leaps for me. Loved ravenholm. Lowlife was good too, but not as good.

Also, whats this I have been hearing about a patch to the lowlife chapter? I guess I haven't played since the did it, what does the patch do taht makes it so much less fun? I've seen about 3 references in this thread.

 

[Keane]

Also, whats this I have been hearing about a patch to the lowlife chapter? I guess I haven't played since the did it, what does the patch do taht makes it so much less fun? I've seen about 3 references in this thread.

At the end of the level, where you fight hordes of zombies while waiting for the elevator to come, Valve decided to cut way down on the number of zombies to make it easier. Unfortunately, now it's way less exciting.

 

[Animontius]

At the end of the level, where you fight hordes of zombies while waiting for the elevator to come, Valve decided to cut way down on the number of zombies to make it easier. Unfortunately, now it's way less exciting.

Just played that bit again tonight to compare. it definitely does feel less overwhelming. The funny thing is, the first time I played the ending of Lowlife, I didn't die, but ever since then I haven't been able to beat it without dying at least once. I don't know how to explain that.

 

[Acepilotf14]

Well I was freaked out as I walked into the first parking lot, and I was like WTF, D*** THESE PLOT EXTENDERS! But it kinda reassured me I had backup, the elevator was the greatest part, she kept saying "Shine your light on that zombie!" and im like "WHAT ZOMBIE?" Then theres this Zombine with a nade in his hand and im all "OH SHIZ!!" I died about 5 times in the room with all the barrels and the tripwires, until I finally just jumped on the table, itched my way towards it, and just freaken dashed for the elevator with the body in it, I almost drowned cause I was all.. "wtf just happened?"
I didnt even know the elevator filled with water.

 

[63]

I actually yelled (ok, screamed) "OH SHIZ!!" several times throughout Episode 1.

 

[bigburpco]

I kept going 'AHH' in the antlion guard and elevator sequence. The hospital was was still the best though, but ended far too quickly. :<

 

[Jintor]

Well I was freaked out as I walked into the first parking lot, and I was like WTF, D*** THESE PLOT EXTENDERS! But it kinda reassured me I had backup, the elevator was the greatest part, she kept saying "Shine your light on that zombie!" and im like "WHAT ZOMBIE?" Then theres this Zombine with a nade in his hand and im all "OH SHIZ!!" I died about 5 times in the room with all the barrels and the tripwires, until I finally just jumped on the table, itched my way towards it, and just freaken dashed for the elevator with the body in it, I almost drowned cause I was all.. "wtf just happened?"
I didnt even know the elevator filled with water.

Lol, just toss a grenade into the room while you're still in the vents.