What makes this a good game?

[TheIdler]

Honestly, I know the story is both exciting and captivating. Everyone who has played knows that, but story makes a game good for one play through at most.

Let me tell you about myself before I continue, I am picky. If a game has a good story I beat a game once and usually never go back to it. I get halfway through or to the end of a lot of fun games and quit. I just beat Bioshock and loved it, but I'll never beat it again.

So what's with Half-Life 2? It seems pretty straightforward, nothing that seems to make it much better than all the other FPS games out there, and I really don't care that much for the genre.

But yeah, Half-Life 2, in my humble opinion, is the best game ever made.

Why have I beat it like 3 times? Why?

 

[kineaesth]

Loving the very confused opinions.

 

[TheIdler]

Haha, sorry.

It makes sense to me, but yes I do seem to be very confused.

I dislike FPS, but just beat Bioshock and loved it, also think HL2 is greatest game ever. Want to know why.

Really, just wanted to discuss how awesome Half-Life 2 is despite it being over complicated and flashy.

FPS has become a tool for any developer wanting to cash in on trigger-happy teens, so I dislike how we're being flooded with them.

Do I seem even more confused now? Sorry hehehe.

 

[kineaesth]

think HL2 is greatest game ever.

...despite it being over complicated and flashy.

Sorry hehehe.

Story, immersion, technical advances, continuous, interesting characters that develop, perfect pacing, variety of gaming styles catered for. Etc.

 

[MJ12]

Loving the very confused opinions.

^This, haha, agreed.

But I usually disagree, but now I'm agreeing.
I disagree with a lot of your opinions, but I agree with this, this opinion really is kind of boring, but honestly it's the greatest opinion I've ever heard. Why do I agree?

 

[TheIdler]

^This, haha, agreed.

But I usually disagree, but now I'm agreeing.
I disagree with a lot of your opinions, but I agree with this, this opinion really is kind of boring, but honestly it's the greatest opinion I've ever heard. Why do I agree?

This would be funny, but it's making fun of me. I dislike it when I'm made fun of, unless by myself. So... I guess it should be alright to make fun of me, but I really wish you'd leave it to me because I think I'm better at it, knowing myself better.

I wasn't drunk when I wrote that, if I was I would say so. I really would, I'm honest. Never lie, least of all to myself. I just misunderstand myself and say the opposite of the truth sometimes.

Yes I get why half-life 2 is so good. The enemies that feel intelligent (AI and scripted), the world that feels alive, the combat and engaging puzzles.

Honestly, just wanted the opinion of others. Thanks for that. (not offended)

 

[Qhartb]

Hmm...

Near perfect pacing, varied gameplay, excellent ambiance, intriguing setting integrated with the story, expressive characters. I can't think of any more, but that's probably just because I'm tired.

 

[Nibwoddle]

There's a lot of reasons why Half Life 2 is the best game ever.
Plot, characters, DETAIL, environments, ambience, immersion, setting, weapons, physics, the list continues...

 

[hl_grunt]

Half-life = A long, long hallway with a lot of enemies you must kill to pass it.

 

[ríomhaire]

"over complicated and flashy."
Not how I would describe HL2 at all.

HL2, while not actually very inovative, is simply an extremely polished game. If list all the unique things HL2 offers compared to other FPSs, it'd be a very short list. But HL2 is extremely well made and polished to perfections. It is similar to GTA4. A lot of features from San Andreas have actually been removed in GTA4, but by most accounts GTA4 is a much better game. It comes down to polish and developer dedication.

 

[hl_grunt]

over complicated and flashy.

Erm, a lot of time I felt that I did not need some of the stuff explained in the game... It felt like I'm a five year old and an adult is holding me by the hand... Not what I would call over complicated. You shoot things...

 

[Hazard.Squared]

I feel the same way, I love HL2 to death but i'm not exactly sure why.

 

[Mellish]

Same here, but all my friends seem to hate it though.

 

[TheIdler]

Hahaha, wow I really don't know what was with me last night.

I meant to type "Despite it NOT being over complicated OR flashy"

I'm sorry, really I am. What I was trying to say (and doing a terrible job of) is that the game remains simple, has puzzles that don't require much thought, and good graphics that refrain from being too flashy.

Perhaps this game just does everything it does almost to perfection.

Oh, and there's what others said. Pacing, characters, ambiance, etc.

 

[Pesmerga]

Probably because I'm a fan boy.

 

[Kula Meenur]

There's a lot of reasons why Half Life 2 is the best game ever.
Plot, characters, DETAIL, environments, ambience, immersion, setting, weapons, physics, the list continues...

qft




whitechar

 

[Azner]

Same here, but all my friends seem to hate it though.

We are in the same boat.
*Kills mellish for food*

 

[Darkangel]

For me it has to be the atmosphere, there is just something that never gets old about going through a post-apocalyptic city/countryside.

 

[McGooTheWise]

Hahaha, wow I really don't know what was with me last night.

I meant to type "Despite it NOT being over complicated OR flashy"

I'm sorry, really I am. What I was trying to say (and doing a terrible job of) is that the game remains simple, has puzzles that don't require much thought, and good graphics that refrain from being too flashy.

Perhaps this game just does everything it does almost to perfection.

Oh, and there's what others said. Pacing, characters, ambiance, etc.

Fear not the nerds over the internets, for they have no barring on your real life, they are but nerds sitting behind their overpowered computers pretending it makes them someone better than everyone else. Not me at all. i just Am better than everyone, kinda like Chuck Norris, just not like Chuck Norris, being that he really is better and that I'm just talking out of my ass.



The reason you love hl2 doesn't not need to be explained, you just love the game. Can't that be good enough? Really, if you love something, that's because it gave you everything you expected of it, and surprised you with a few things. That's all there is to it.

 

[Blackthorn]

Well think about it; has anything like Half-Life 2 ever been done? You may think so, and say it doesn't have anything different to the average FPS, but it really does. The single ideas themselves may have been implemented elsewhere, but as an overall package it's totally unique. I can't think of any other FPS that has quite the same detail put into a post apocalyptic world, with all the atmosphere and character that comes with it. Someone here is bound to be able to reference some obscure game that has similarities, but I'm sure we can all agree nothing else it quite like Half-Life 2 or it's episodes.

A big draw for me, amongst many, is the fluidity of movement. While things don't look "realistic", they sure look good. Everything that can move, does so in an interesting and dynamic way. The gunships are my personal favourite example of such perfect design. Their motion, sound and image are all flawlessly refined. I have a powerful PC, and no shortage of modern games with fancy technology, but it's this game I keep coming back to.

 

[TheIdler]

Fear not the nerds over the internets, for they have no barring on your real life, they are but nerds sitting behind their overpowered computers pretending it makes them someone better than everyone else. Not me at all. i just Am better than everyone, kinda like Chuck Norris, just not like Chuck Norris, being that he really is better and that I'm just talking out of my ass.



The reason you love hl2 doesn't not need to be explained, you just love the game. Can't that be good enough? Really, if you love something, that's because it gave you everything you expected of it, and surprised you with a few things. That's all there is to it.

Hey thanks for the nice reply!

But really, It's all in good fun right? I understand that. I can sound like a spazzy freak and I fully expect to be ridiculed for it. Hell, if people are funny enough I enjoy it.

Yeah, HL2 is amazing. I kind of want to be able to run around the world and explore like you can in Oblivion... With Alyx tagging along! But without the bugs. And a lot of other stuff. A lot.

Again, thanks Van_Halen, I always appreciate kindness.

 

[Fennesz]

I sort of agree with you. I generally feel most strongly about it when I'm not playing it. While I'm playing, I have occasional moments of "oh wow, this is good", but most of the time I'm just sort of content. When I'm not playing, I tend to ponder in amazement at the HL2 universe and how well crafted it is. Apart from being knocked sideways by the mind blowing chase sequence starting from when the Civil Protection kick the apartment door down, it all started for me when the Citadel went in to high alert. I think I died a small death in my pants right there, and just wanted to hug Alyx and cry soft tears of joy.

The game is just as paradoxical as your opinion. When I first started Highway 17, I thought "oh god damn, this sucks, more driving, and this time with no indication of a direction to head in and omni-angled molestation from antlions" all while at the same time thinking "holy crap, I just got thrown off a crane and my car is upside down, this is SO COOL!". I generally thought it was a pretty bad chapter, and then halfway through it, at one of the many little outpost villages, it dawned on me that it is in fact ****ing brilliant. By the time I got to the bridge, I was audibly telling myself this game is amazing. The way the game uses serene silence to emphasise moments, and the little scripted touches. Standing precariously on the underbelly of a visibly massive bridge, feeling the faint rumble of a train full of Overwatch coming to find you, all while there is no sound at all, making you feel really alone, knowing that the combine are out there calmly coming up with ways to hunt you down, and that you're the only idiot stupid enough to get an entire imperial force of aliens wanting you dead. All friendly lifeforms are smart enough to stay indoors and behave themselves.

In all seriousness, I think it's the cohesiveness of the universe created. The citadel, the barren landscape around the city, the completely amazing art design of the combine and everything else. You really do feel caught up in it all, and the enemies don't feel at all like cannon fodder. They feel like intense, ruthless troops willing to try anything to get you. I love the way they don't hesitate or make small talk. If they've got the drop on you, wether scripted or not, things go to hell *fast* and you can be sure the room will be full of hot lead with your name on it before you can say "Holy shizz!". They feel like they know exactly what they're doing, even down to the way they have no issue in going into "full alert" without being worried how that will make them look.

The secondary reason for me is the sound design. The crunchy, supersonic crack of the explosions and weapons, the voice acting, and above all the amazing incidental sound like the female alert announcer and distant sirens. The radio bleeps and crackles of the enemies is great too, really puts you on edge when you hear it round a corner.

Finally, the tertiary reason is the believable size and structure of the environments. In a lesser FPS, the rooms lead to rooms lead to more rooms, and in their conspicuous chain they all lead in consecutive order exactly where you need to go. That goes for HL1, too. When you pull up at the side of the canal in the sunset to visit an old abandoned boathouse, it feels like an old abandoned boathouse, not just a roomwith hopefully some pickups in it. I absolutely love how when you go to these desolate little corners you genuinely feel like you're hiding from the overwhelming force of your pursuers. Everything is quiet, and you're safe, for now.

Only one other game (well, series) has made me feel remotely as slushily in love, in that playing doesn't just provide fun, it provides a warm and fuzzy feeling. That game is Homeworld 2, and this is better than that by a longshot.

 

[kineaesth]

This is a very good first post.

Please stay here.

 

[Laivasse]

Welcome to the boards. If you love HL2 that much and you haven't already done so you should pick up Raising The Bar, the HL2 art book. Tis great and you'd enjoy it.

 

[TheIdler]

I sort of agree with you. I generally feel most strongly about it when I'm not playing it. While I'm playing, I have occasional moments of "oh wow, this is good", but most of the time I'm just sort of content. When I'm not playing, I tend to ponder in amazement at the HL2 universe and how well crafted it is. Apart from being knocked sideways by the mind blowing chase sequence starting from when the Civil Protection kick the apartment door down, it all started for me when the Citadel went in to high alert. I think I died a small death in my pants right there, and just wanted to hug Alyx and cry soft tears of joy.

[snip]

Woohoo, I was hoping more people would reply like this.

Really, I must say that I agree not only sort of but almost completely. At first the driving levels do seem tedious but halfway through you really come to the realization you're having a blast. Everything you say about the world and how it feels alive, along with the characters strikes home. I couldn't have put it to better words, and if I had tried I would not have expressed it well enough.

One thing I also like is how the guns shift or sway a bit in your arms/hands as you aim rather than just sitting there. It may seem like a small thing, but it feels so much more real than just having them sit in the same position like you're an action figure in a static pose. There are so many little things like that... Boy, do I love Valve!

 

[Humita]

Not only the HL series is amazing while you play it, and when you stop doing it; but it becomes even bigger when you compare it with other games. I'm not trying to be a fanboy here, but when you play other fps, none of them have the immersion, detail, story, etc. that the HL series has.

The greatness of HL becomes even clearer when you play other games. The ammount of work that Valve has put in this games is equivalent to its quality

 

[Laivasse]

Woohoo, I was hoping more people would reply like this.

Really, I must say that I agree not only sort of but almost completely. At first the driving levels do seem tedious but halfway through you really come to the realization you're having a blast. Everything you say about the world and how it feels alive, along with the characters strikes home. I couldn't have put it to better words, and if I had tried I would not have expressed it well enough.

One thing I also like is how the guns shift or sway a bit in your arms/hands as you aim rather than just sitting there. It may seem like a small thing, but it feels so much more real than just having them sit in the same position like you're an action figure in a static pose. There are so many little things like that...

Speaking of small touches, I love the reflections on the guns and how the Xbow scope reflects the world behind you. For the time, I thought that graphical finesse was amazing.

 

[McGooTheWise]

Hey thanks for the nice reply!

But really, It's all in good fun right? I understand that. I can sound like a spazzy freak and I fully expect to be ridiculed for it. Hell, if people are funny enough I enjoy it.

Yeah, HL2 is amazing. I kind of want to be able to run around the world and explore like you can in Oblivion... With Alyx tagging along! But without the bugs. And a lot of other stuff. A lot.

Again, thanks Van_Halen, I always appreciate kindness.

Your welcome, it pays to be nice, cause mean people suck.

I also notice that I don't really enjoy playing half-life while I'm in it, but while I'm away i can't wait to go play it again. Really weird and conflicting. My best friend showed me this the most, he would barely play the orange box, which I helped him buy for his b.day, but he would always ask me questions about it, and tell me he couldn't stop thinking about half-life.

He loves portal btw, he said it's his favorite game ever, and he's a halo fanboy.

 

[PoiZonCraZy]

i enjoy the soothing beep after killing civilian protection units. that's what makes the game so intriguing to me.

 

[barrab]

I like it because it has great everything for when it came out. It doesn't seem as good now to people that play it now because games like Bio-Shock and Crysis are the games of the time.