And that's the wrap on the Half-Life 2 saga.
Episode 2 was actually good. Magnitudes better than Episode 1 for sure. It had distinct areas; the mines, the forest. That helped a lot in creating an atmosphere imo. I really, really enjoyed the section at White Forest inside of the station the most. It reminded me of Half-Life 1's superior underground science setting. So great. I am seriously thinking of installing the Valve-vetted Black Mesa conversion.
I still didn't like the driving sections. I think yuraya posted how they were a clever method and yes, I do understand the advantages. It is a change of pace, something very different, helps crossing huge gaps (geographically eg.) shortly without the need of cutscenes. In the end only one thing mattered to me though. Driving was not fun. It wasn't in HL2 and it wasn't in the Episodes. It feels to floaty, like my cars slithers on butter. This feels only more weird when you think that Half-Life 2 has such a big focus on incorproating physics meaningful into the game. And in the general sense (shooting) it does a very good job. Hitting enemies with a radiator directly in the face and seeing their bodies fling into the horizon feels so satisfying. Compare that to the awful driving behaviour and it just doesn't feel well done. There was a section in ep2 where you would jump about 10m head-down with the car, Alyx sitting next to you. It just was so awkward to see the unrealistic actions there. There are no seatbelts and nothing happens. The car itself also doesn't react at all to the - basically - crash. I totally get that this is a minor gripe but it just felt stupid.
Anyhow, the main bulk you'll be doing is pretty solid. Or as solid as a more (now
) oldschool FPS can be considered nowadays. I don't think many who missed out on HL2 will really enjoy the game to be honest. Mainly because of all the hype Half-Life gets. In its time it was revolutionary and really, really great but some games age better than others. I sure had a lot of fun and can recommend trying it out at least. The main game took me about 12 hours, Episode-1 4 hours and Episode-2 5 hours. So there's a lot of "game" to be had
Orange Box has all games at once (and Portal 1+2 !), so that would likely be the best option but I would advise waiting for a good sale. No matter the fame, it is not for everyone and may land on the backlog forever.
I read about some pretty cool Mods for HL2, so I will take a look at Steam. Guess they have a Mod section? Would greatly appreciate recommendations for Mods from here, too
Oh and this I also want to say. The story ends on a cliffhanger. A conclusion to Half-Life 2 would be great of course but it is a 2004 game. It's over 11 years old! You can really tell that the game feels dated and I am not talking about visuals alone. Sadly, I am of the opinion the train has left for a third episode to come which is a shame since I want the Half-Life 2 universe to end so that Half-Life can get to a new phase again. The jump from HL1 to HL2 was very intense. There was suddenly focus on specific NPC characters. Many of whom I don't want to see in the future. Sorry Alyx, I've had enough of you. I wish Valve will do the same for a future Half-Life as they did with HL2. Total new setting, very few callbacks to past characters. If you think about it, it was very weird that the Xen became friendlies and a total new faction came into light, the Combine. I want a similar shift to happen with HL3. Not a formal continuation of HL2 but a total surprise from the left-field. Away with Alyx, Dog, Barney etc. I wish for it be as different of a successor as HL2 was to HL1. More-of-the-same sequels are maybe what many fans thin they want but just recently I read how "safe" sequels sell much worse. On that I think Nintendo devs are awesome. I mean no Zelda is all too similar. That is a good way to do sequels I think. And Valve did it with HL1-HL2 as well. Doesn't mean of course every sequel has to be revolutionary
Valve has some big work to do with that I am sure. Wonder what they are planning. I have patience though and it can take as long as they need for all I care.