SpotEnemyBoats
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Warning: Huge spoilers follow.
Here's quoted from Steam forums:
Part 1
Moar of this part 2:
Part 3:
Link to thread.
EDITORIAL: Credit to a member of the Steam forums.
moar added.
Here's quoted from Steam forums:
Part 1
ok here is a review of half life 2 episode 2 from pc gamer
The story continues:
The latest chapter in the half life saga begins with a video recap of the events of episode one: after attacking the combine citadel and destroying its core gordon freeman and platonic sidekick alyx vance are tossed into the wilderness surrounding city 17 alyx is left literally hanging from a cliff which is where you enter episodes two's story . Pulling yourself out of a crashed train car , you find that alyx is safe ,and together you watch the ruins of the citadel collapse in the distance .A giant combine supervortex hovers where the citadel once towered amd the race begins to reach the remaining resistence survivors at a base called white forest ,and to warn eli vance (alyx's father) of the impending danger. Within the first 15 minutes of the game things get dicey you're ambushed by a hunter creature a new enemy thats a miniature of half life 2's giant strider (though at 8 feet tall its not exactly small) The mechanical beast is as mobile as it is deadly ,ducking sprinting around obstacles while it shoots exploding darts . During the brief but violent encounter ,alyx sustains life threatening injuries
,and with the help of a vortigaunt (the alien slave race freed by Gordan earlier in the half life mythos) you're sent to an ant lion hive to retrieve lava energy that will save her life. Nearly the first third of the game takes place in the cavernous pit of an antlion hive. You fight dozens of ant lions including a new acid spitting variation that proves more difficult to kill than its spiky counterpart. the caves are dark dirty and claustrophobic -a far cry from the metallic interior of the citadel in episode one. Its here that you'll face the game's first big (but not nearly the biggest) action set piece ,the music ramps up appropriately .building tension as you fight a huge rush of antlions with vortigaunts at your side .with overgrown insect limbs flying and alien electrical bolts firing ,the intense battle sets the stage for the freneitic firefight that come later.
The story continues:
The latest chapter in the half life saga begins with a video recap of the events of episode one: after attacking the combine citadel and destroying its core gordon freeman and platonic sidekick alyx vance are tossed into the wilderness surrounding city 17 alyx is left literally hanging from a cliff which is where you enter episodes two's story . Pulling yourself out of a crashed train car , you find that alyx is safe ,and together you watch the ruins of the citadel collapse in the distance .A giant combine supervortex hovers where the citadel once towered amd the race begins to reach the remaining resistence survivors at a base called white forest ,and to warn eli vance (alyx's father) of the impending danger. Within the first 15 minutes of the game things get dicey you're ambushed by a hunter creature a new enemy thats a miniature of half life 2's giant strider (though at 8 feet tall its not exactly small) The mechanical beast is as mobile as it is deadly ,ducking sprinting around obstacles while it shoots exploding darts . During the brief but violent encounter ,alyx sustains life threatening injuries
,and with the help of a vortigaunt (the alien slave race freed by Gordan earlier in the half life mythos) you're sent to an ant lion hive to retrieve lava energy that will save her life. Nearly the first third of the game takes place in the cavernous pit of an antlion hive. You fight dozens of ant lions including a new acid spitting variation that proves more difficult to kill than its spiky counterpart. the caves are dark dirty and claustrophobic -a far cry from the metallic interior of the citadel in episode one. Its here that you'll face the game's first big (but not nearly the biggest) action set piece ,the music ramps up appropriately .building tension as you fight a huge rush of antlions with vortigaunts at your side .with overgrown insect limbs flying and alien electrical bolts firing ,the intense battle sets the stage for the freneitic firefight that come later.
Moar of this part 2:
THE NEW HOTNESS:
Half life 2 has always been known for its innovative puzzles ,and my gray matter was put to the test with episode two's new in game obstacles some puzzles felt very familiar -wielding the gravity gun to connect cables to power generators and add weights to slow an elevator lift uses your surroundings in ways we've seen before. valve shows off its complex physics engine at every opportunity ,and objects based physics puzzles play a considerably larger role in episode two: one particularly cool puzzle requires you knock cars off a tipping bridge in order th shift its balance like a giant see-saw. besides alyx and the vortigaunts ,other familiar figures return in episode two. the G-Man is as creepy and cryptic as ever ,hinting about his role in alyx's survival - you get a clue that she's an important investment for him ,one he plans to capitalize on in the future (another chilling revelation: gordon isnt the only one aware of G-Man's presence) Alyx's aibo on steroids ,Dog, also makes an appearance ,and trust me his involvement is crucial to your continued well being
NPC's again demonstrate the half life 2 games greatest asset: the convincing relationships between you and the characters .alyx has always been a caring companion and sidekick serving as much more than a hint and health dispenser. superb voice acting and facial animations flesh out her character even more here further developing her as a real and distinct personality. The biggest emotional connection shown in the game ,though is the one between alyx and her father ,whose scenes together really convey their love for one another peripheral characters also share a great dynamic especially in the case of pompous dr magnussun and the eccentric dr kleiner
Half life 2 has always been known for its innovative puzzles ,and my gray matter was put to the test with episode two's new in game obstacles some puzzles felt very familiar -wielding the gravity gun to connect cables to power generators and add weights to slow an elevator lift uses your surroundings in ways we've seen before. valve shows off its complex physics engine at every opportunity ,and objects based physics puzzles play a considerably larger role in episode two: one particularly cool puzzle requires you knock cars off a tipping bridge in order th shift its balance like a giant see-saw. besides alyx and the vortigaunts ,other familiar figures return in episode two. the G-Man is as creepy and cryptic as ever ,hinting about his role in alyx's survival - you get a clue that she's an important investment for him ,one he plans to capitalize on in the future (another chilling revelation: gordon isnt the only one aware of G-Man's presence) Alyx's aibo on steroids ,Dog, also makes an appearance ,and trust me his involvement is crucial to your continued well being
NPC's again demonstrate the half life 2 games greatest asset: the convincing relationships between you and the characters .alyx has always been a caring companion and sidekick serving as much more than a hint and health dispenser. superb voice acting and facial animations flesh out her character even more here further developing her as a real and distinct personality. The biggest emotional connection shown in the game ,though is the one between alyx and her father ,whose scenes together really convey their love for one another peripheral characters also share a great dynamic especially in the case of pompous dr magnussun and the eccentric dr kleiner
Part 3:
Realistic creature animations also make combat very compelling . in fact the weakest enemies are the combine soldiers ,who are more like drones than intimidating stormtroopers . The feral ant lions behave like ferocious creatures and the hunters trample and climb with truly frightening agility. One big set piece had me trapped in a house fighting three hunters ,and as they tore up the place i felt a real sense of danger and urgency to stay alive. Its a good thing the game's maps are filled with plenty of health packs.
The climatic woodland battle against dozens of hunters and Striders is among the best shooter battles in recent memory. While many of the game's prior shootouts are set in closed spaces , this final fight makes great use of the forest expanse . i felt a huge rush when firing at striders as they wrecked cabins and sawmills while hunters guarded them. At the end of the battle i even unlocked a steam achievement (similar but unrealted to Games for windows live achievements) by warding them off
Im pleased that two's six hours of gameplay are tightly packed with action and never boring. My only complaints are that it starts off a little slowly (to accommodate new players) and ultimately left me with more questions than answers. The final revelation sets the stage for episode three ,which looks itl be fought in all new setting completely different from those we've seen before in the half life universe. Nonetheless episode two's ending delivers a dramatic gut punch , as all of the games fantastic emotional buildup comes to a devastating climax. It definitely moved me and im getting choked up just thinking about it now. Episode two is an extremely well crafted adventure that retains half life 2's excellent gameplay formula. Valve raises the stakes with an incredibly affecting story. and the payoff is glorious
The climatic woodland battle against dozens of hunters and Striders is among the best shooter battles in recent memory. While many of the game's prior shootouts are set in closed spaces , this final fight makes great use of the forest expanse . i felt a huge rush when firing at striders as they wrecked cabins and sawmills while hunters guarded them. At the end of the battle i even unlocked a steam achievement (similar but unrealted to Games for windows live achievements) by warding them off
Im pleased that two's six hours of gameplay are tightly packed with action and never boring. My only complaints are that it starts off a little slowly (to accommodate new players) and ultimately left me with more questions than answers. The final revelation sets the stage for episode three ,which looks itl be fought in all new setting completely different from those we've seen before in the half life universe. Nonetheless episode two's ending delivers a dramatic gut punch , as all of the games fantastic emotional buildup comes to a devastating climax. It definitely moved me and im getting choked up just thinking about it now. Episode two is an extremely well crafted adventure that retains half life 2's excellent gameplay formula. Valve raises the stakes with an incredibly affecting story. and the payoff is glorious
EDITORIAL: Credit to a member of the Steam forums.
moar added.
