HL2: Second Impressions

1. It kicks arse.

2. No doubt about it, it really was worth the wait. It’s certainly one of the best games I’ve played this year (the other being Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic). But….

3. It was probably too much to hope for, but I was expecting a world that was more dynamic than what Half Life 2 offers. The gravity gun is great fun, and being able to pick up objects adds a new dimension to the game, but why can I only pick up barrels and grates? Why not bodies? Or small bits of rubble? Why can’t I use the gravity gun to push a bunch of zombies into each other? Why can’t pick up one enemy and throw them into another? The gravity gun was supposedly used for heavy lifting, and it seems strange that it would only pick up some items, not all of them. And now that I can use crates to build structures I can climb on, why can’t I go over any wall and have a look at the map from different perspectives? The game artificially prohibits you from climbing onto certain places, and not because it’s unreachable, but it’s just blocked. Everythime it happens I’m reminded that I’m playing a game, not being Gordon Freeman. It’s bloody annoying.

4. The pace of the game is a little slow as well, and it doesn’t seem all that long. I’ve yet to finish the game, but having made it into Nova Prospekt it only feels like I’ve completed half the game, where in fact it’s more like two thirds. And this far into the game there are still no answers from the original Half Life — where has Freeman been? How long has it been since Black Mesa? Why are there aliens working for the resistance? Who is the Combine? Why can I only carry 30 rounds of shotgun shells?

5. The outstanding element in the original was the strong story that goes with the action. So far, the action seems slower and the plot’s on shaky ground, and I’m finding it difficult to judge it for what it is, rather than what it could’ve (should’ve?) been. But, maybe I’m just jumping the gun, I’ll save my final verdict for when I finish the game.

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