Half Life 2

Spoonatov

Completed it. Fucking amazing game. One of the best I've ever played.

Still got Ep 1 and Ep 2 to play. Yee-haa. And Portal too.

The Orange Box is brilliant.

kinkster

was a great game, tho never as good as the first imo

Stemmy

Agreed its excellent.

It had a lot to live up to after the first one thats for sure

Elessar

Go and play Portal.
Really good game untill you play the last "level" then it becomes.....stunning.


and yes Half Life 2 is great, I hated the striders though, so annoying.

Red_Aaron

half life is brilliant, i actually think the 2nd one is the best - it cranks it up a notch

portal is wonderful, it creates such a great atmosphere as you progress through it, shame its so short when you play it you want it to never end its that good. best end music ever also

RedKaos

As I said, its shaped Shooters for ever.

But I stand by my point - Portal is the best that TOB has to offer.

Spoonatov

Can't wait to play Portal. But it's Ep 1 and 2 first.

gaffs

I love portal. Its a genius game.

Spoonatov

How come it was possible to pick up and fling Combine soldiers around in the Citadel? Something to do with the core?

Redlambs

When they took away your weapons, they couldn't process the gravity gun and it superchanged.

Pay attention man!

RedKaos

Spoon out of interest did you play the original Half life?

Count Duckula

I thought it was great but the ending seemed a bit rushed. Up to that point it progressed solidly:

Sneak out of town... quick, enemies! Sewers... sneak... shoot... sneak... boat chase! Zombies... sneak... sneak... surprise! Sneak... shoot... car level! Drive... shoot... shoot... drive... antlions... prison... attack the library! Force fields... shoot... striders... shoot... shoot... captured! DESTROY THE GIANT TELEPORTATION DEVICE AFTER RUNNING THROUGH A MAZE OF SIMILAR CORRIDORS THAT ARE POORLY EXPLAINED AND SEEM ONLY A WAY OF ENDING THIS GAME WHILST MAKING SURE WE CAN SELL YOU SEQUELS!

Episode One is great, too, though. I played them right after one another, so in my mind parts of Episode One blur into the original game, but it's fantastic. Obviously not as long, but just as well designed and adrenaline-pumping. And Alex is in it a LOT more (ie, all the time almost) so you've got a constantly chirping companion by your side. Which, for me at least, made it more fun. 'Bout time Freeman stopped being such a fucking loner.

I've not played Episode Two, though. The graphics updates for it from Episode One are too much for my computer to handle (it only just about handled the graphics updates from the original to Episode One). Maybe I'll get it for my new computer when it's all assembled.

Spoonatov

I thought HL2 got progressively better. The later levels were fantastic, but yeah the ending was a bit abrupt. Started Ep One, and it's very good.

Spoonatov

Alyx has decided to freeze in the middle of the air, just after I plugged all the Antlion pits up. I've carried on without her. . .and I've got a shedload of nasties after me. I don't think it's meant to be like this. She's just weird or it could be a glitch.

Spoonatov

Episode Two was brilliant. Really enjoyed it. I can't wait for Episode 3.

Spoonatov

Portal's brilliant. And I agree is the best of the lot. Love the 2001-look of the rooms, turrets, robots etc etc. Anyway, I've nearly completed it. . . just have to take the bitch down. Has to be one of the best games I've played. . .and it's certainly different. If only other games companies were as creative as Valve.

Spoonatov

Missed this.

No. What was the storyline?

Spoonatov

Completed it. Fantastico. The game reminded me of Cube(and 2001) at times.

I hope they're making Portal 2.

malcolm31337

Best game ever. HL 1, Opposing Force, even that blue cop thing.

Then my love was reignited with HL2, ep 1 was alright, but ep 2 was bloody brilliant. and portal is just class.

The whole HL system is out of this world.

Ill put my cock in now.

RedKaos

Ahh shame, you would of enjoyed the HL2 storyline alot more had you experienced the predecessor; game back then it had much more of a 'wow' factor than Half life 2 does today.

In terms of the storyline - well I suppose it wouldnt hurt to give the game a shot yourself, its simply about the Black Mesa incident and how G.Freedman activated the "Resonance Cascade" opening a portal between both the real world and the alien world Xen (not sure if your familiar with it?)

I could say more about the events that follow on but thats massive spoiler potential.

ZIDANE

I remember playing Half-life years ago on the PC. The gameplay was something else, it just took it to the next level. The add-on Counter Strike (multi-player game) was just as big a hit online.

I haven't played any of it after that so this thread has got me thinking about investing in The Orange Box (PS3).

Spoonatov

I'm not bothered, so you can type away.

RedKaos

The PS3 version is horrible, EA (hardly a surprise) have a done an awful job in porting it onto the console.

If you havent got a 360 then invest in the PC version ( which is best imo)

RedKaos

To be honest its too complex of a storyline to type, I really would advice you to play the game.

Oh and since you liked Half life 2...you absolutely must play a game called Deus Ex if you havent already. I can confidently say its the best game on the PC ive played ever.....period. If you like conspiracy theories and the whole 'fight the higher system' agenda then its something that really will appeal to you.

The game is 8yrs old now but still very approachable - you can download it for a measly $5 (3 squid?) from most sites like direct2drive. As I said the graphics wont be terrific, but the gameplay and storyline still puts most modern games to shame.

10/10

Spoonatov

Ok.

So, how does Bioshock compare to the HL universe? Should I get it next?

RedKaos

Yep. BioShock is a must.

The universe itself isnt as broad as the HL universe; the entire game is set in some under-water metropolis called 'Rapture'. Without spoiling it too much - it set in the 50s, you're some bloke who's just survived a plane crash into the ocean, you come across some monument in the middle of the ocean that has an elevator that leads to this city...events unfold from then on and you soon learn about Rapture's fate.

The storyline itself is brilliant and explores many themes such as power, athiesm and does very well in (disturbingly) questioning the players morals. The gameplay itself is like half life, a first person shooter but with added bio mods which give you superhuman biological powers with devastating effects (i.e. casting lightning in a pool full of people). Its also partly a survival-horror so expect a dark and uncomfortable atmosphere.

So yes its a brilliant game and my only criticism is that its abit on the short side. Nonetheless 9/10.

BUT I'd go for Mass Effect, its perhaps the best game ive played in the last 2 years and really is a sci-fi gaming masterpiece.

Redlambs

Bioshock is a good game, awesome setting. But I'd advise you to go for System Shock 2 first, and download some graphic updates for it.

SS2 is on a par with Deus-Ex and the best fps's on the PC.

Pronewbie

It could be due to counter-strike overkill back in the day but I didn't find HL2 THAT great. But then again, I think that most FPS nowadays are boring.

Bioshock is pretty good though. Like the first half-life, it's an atmospheric game - if that makes sense.

RedKaos

Ah yes forgot about that little gem, good call.

Spoonatov

Mass Effect is on my to play list. I loved Kotor 1 & 2, so I hope this is is as good. As for BioShock, I love the idea of a 50's futuristic/sci-fi setting, so I can't wait to play it.

I've got a naff PC. I only play games on my 360(well, I have been recently). Can you get it for the 360?

RedKaos

lol system shock 2 was released in 1999, im sure your naff PC will soldier it, Deus Ex too.

Mass Effect will require a decent rig, if you want to be on the safe side then just fish it out on the 360 but from what ive been the told, the PC version is superior.