What happened to half life?

[Legion IV]

Am curious cause i love Half Life 1 it was amazing i played it over and over and over. Such a great game. I then got busy with life and had to work 2 jobs so i was late to the party on 2. I was disappointed but i had faith.

I thought i'd give episode 1 a try. It was worse. I finally thought i'd give them one last chance and tried episode 2. i just couldn't enjoy it at all.

Like what happened? I cant understand how they got this bad. Its almost like they got to obsessed with doing silly stuff with the physics engine, or trying to be really clever with its plot and characters. They seemed to really shove Alex in my face just hoping i'd like her when she was completely unlikable and her voice acting didn't help. It seemed like she was there for eye candy.

I don't get how a masterpiece of a game could have went downhill so fast....

 

[mirror's edgy]

I will just calmly swallow my freakout and ask if you have... I don't know, a fetish for cramped environments? Do you loath videogame storytelling in any deep form?

 

[Netrigan]

I will just calmly swallow my freakout and ask if you have... I don't know, a fetish for cramped environments? Do you loath videogame storytelling in any deep form?

Seriously, it's not particularly deep storytelling.

By this point, I'm not sure if they're actually telling a story anymore, as the stories often center around Gordan trying to get somewhere, something happening that makes it 10 times more difficult, then someone betraying them setting up some sort of rescue attempt or whatever. Who are the Combine and what do they wish to accomplish... bugger if anyone knows after three installments. The game has atmosphere, the game using a lot of good narrative tricks, but the best story they've told so far was the first one which took most of the plot beats from Doom... right down to having to shoot the Big Bad in the brain with a rocket launcher as numerous enemies spawn into the room around you.

 

[shootdown]

i kinda like alyx, i really enjoyed half life2 and its episodes, i think i played them in six hour streaks day after day till i finished them.

In my opinion they got the 'protagonist is everyones *****' story thing just right, i mean you go around helping people do stuff and doing what they say but i didn't want to just plain kill them all because of it.

 

[GiantRaven]

Personally I think Valve have just gotten bored of the Half-Life series.

 

[Daaaah Whoosh]

Alyx wasn't too bad to me, reminded me a bit of Cortana...
Anyway, if Half Life 2 was bad, then I really need to play the first one...

 

[Wicky_42]

I loved playing through HL2 straight - so damn cinematic (especially hoverboating, when you get every turn correct with the flow of the music... aww yeah ^_^) - though I never did bother doing a full marathon with all three parts - maybe when episode three comes out.

Huh - episode 3... that's what I thought this thread was going to be about!

 

[GodofCider]

Huh - episode 3... that's what I thought this thread was going to be about!

Likewise.

I like the half-life series, though I have never played the games; preferring instead to simply watch others play through them. Entirely unusual, but I liked it for this series.

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

The Episodes are more of Half-Life 2, except adding a few nice things, such as Alyx or the Advisors. I was disappointed they didn't add any new weapons and hardly any new enemies.

But try the Half-Life expansions, no matter how old Opposing Force kicks ass.

 

[Broken Orange]

Kinda refreshing not having someone complain about Half Life 3.

 

[Squidden]

I agree that I'm pretty sure Valve is just making the story up as they go...

But I thought HL2 was pretty good. It was certainly different than HL1, but who knows, maybe HL3 will change that.

 

[Lem0nade Inlay]

First, look at my avatar, so you get the impression of what I'm going to say

HL2 was my favourite FPS, and probably game, of all time. I loved the setting and the fact that you felt like the hero, you weren't playing some generic tough guy. Why were you disappointed with HL2 anyway?

Episode one: While I still felt that it was a good game, I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as I did HL2. It was too short, I know it is meant to be an episode, but there was nothing too new, and there was only one cool scene in it, for me. I can understand why you didn't like it all that much.

Episode Two: Personally, I loved episode two, almost as much as I loved the original. A change of setting was great, and while Alyx isn't my favourite video game character, she was still fairly likeable. And I thought that the voice acting was really good, for all characters, did you even talk to Magnusson? The environment was pretty and nice to explore, and the ending battle was really fun.



As for the physics puzzles, Half-Life always had puzzles. In fact, the first one probably had more than Episode Two. The only "puzzles" from Episode Two I can remember are turning on the power in the abandoned radio area, and getting to the car in the "Freeman Pontifex" level.

or trying to be really clever with its plot and characters.

I don't understand this, I didn't feel that they were trying to be clever. The plot is fairly straightforward, and the characters aren't all that complex.


I thought that HL2 and it's episodes were similar. Maybe you just felt bored with it, I know that a lot of people don't think the game is as good as it's regarded as, it's just personal opinion.


EDIT: And kudos to you, I thought this would be another thread complaining about the lack of Episode Three -_-

 

[mirror's edgy]

I will just calmly swallow my freakout and ask if you have... I don't know, a fetish for cramped environments? Do you loath videogame storytelling in any deep form?

Seriously, it's not particularly deep storytelling.

By this point, I'm not sure if they're actually telling a story anymore, as the stories often center around Gordan trying to get somewhere, something happening that makes it 10 times more difficult, then someone betraying them setting up some sort of rescue attempt or whatever. Who are the Combine and what do they wish to accomplish... bugger if anyone knows after three installments. The game has atmosphere, the game using a lot of good narrative tricks, but the best story they've told so far was the first one which took most of the plot beats from Doom... right down to having to shoot the Big Bad in the brain with a rocket launcher as numerous enemies spawn into the room around you.

Alright, "deep" may not have been the right word but it is definitely believable. If you look at storytelling in games in general, you have to admit that the characters here, if anything, seem like real humans rather than one- note things to perform a task for the hero (HL1).

 

[archvile93]

I kind of know what you mean. It wasn't a bad game in sense of the word, but it was easily one of the most generic. It seemed to have less of what the original had to offer, replacing it only with some boring vehicle sections that really outstayed their welcome, and everything else except the graphics and physics engine was ripped wholesale from 1993. The plot and characters were fairly entertaining though, and at least the gameplay was functional, which is more than many game could say.

 

[Aidinthel]

Yeah, plot and characters are so overrated. I'd take generic meatshield security guard # 9 over Alyx and Barney any day.

 

[s0m3th1ng]

Half Life 1 was a much more memorable gaming experience for me, even played with software rendering. Not saying HL2 was bad, it was stellar...but HL1 had an atmosphere that I haven't confronted yet and HL2 failed to live up to it.
Really wish they'd finish remaking HL1 in source...

 

[Aphex Demon]

Half Life 2 was an amazing game. Groundbreaking beyond all means at the time. Episode 1 was still damn good, not as good as the original HL2, same with Episode 2.

Release Episode 3 please Valve!

 

[AceAngel]

No examples or explanation given in this thread, so I long since stopped caring.

If you don't want to criticize a game with at least a worded explanation as to 'why', then why even bother posting?

 

[Bludge]

Its funny, but i REALLY didnt like half-life 2 on my first playthough. I found it boring and very nearly didnt finish it.

Then for whatever reason i went back to it again sometime later and played it through again, and absolutely loved it!

 

[Darth_pipsqueak]

I know what you mean. I was also kinda dissapointed.....
It has been nearly ten years since i've heard so fantastically bad voice acting