I didn't initially play Half-Life 2 when it originally came out, since I wasn't old enough to play the game at the time. I finally did play the game in 2008, with the release of the Orange Box on the Xbox 360. And after I played the game for several days and beat it, all I could say was "wow". I had heard all the hype, but still I was blown away by the great story telling, game play, and vastness of the world, that made you feel immersed.
Strengths: The story, writing, and characters are some of the best ever seen in a game, by the end I found my self really caring about Alex, her dad, and the main character Gordon Freeman, among many others. I hadn't played the first game, but the plot basically is that after the black mesa incident that release aliens called the combine onto earth in the first game, they have taken over, and Gordon Freeman must join with the resistance and topple the combine. Overall great dialogue, great atmosphere, particularly in the ravenholm level, and a world filled with such detail it immerses you totally in the experience. The game play may seem a lot different since we've had the COD type shooters since this game came out, but the shooting is fantastic, and the gravity gun is easily on of the best weapons in all of video games. The graphics also feature great facial animation, and detail in the world, and the environment is huge with tons of variation in the combat, which includes great vehicle sections, and weapons that feel like they pack a punch.
Negatives: There's only two real negatives I can think of, one is the fact that Gordon Freeman never speaks, which I got over pretty quickly, but for a game made in 2004 you would think they would give Gordon some dialogue, but its not to big of a deal. The second is the ending which felt somewhat abrupt when I first played it, but after playing the two follow up episodes of Half Life 2 it doesn't bother me as much, as the first time.
In conclusion, Half-Life 2 is one of the best game ever, it helped advance storytelling, graphics, and game play in video gaming, and I think this game shows critics of video games that games like this, Shadow of the Colossus, Bioshock Infinite, and The Last of Us, help show the true potential video games have as a storytelling medium. Overall 10 out of 10, even with some very minor complaints.
Strengths: The story, writing, and characters are some of the best ever seen in a game, by the end I found my self really caring about Alex, her dad, and the main character Gordon Freeman, among many others. I hadn't played the first game, but the plot basically is that after the black mesa incident that release aliens called the combine onto earth in the first game, they have taken over, and Gordon Freeman must join with the resistance and topple the combine. Overall great dialogue, great atmosphere, particularly in the ravenholm level, and a world filled with such detail it immerses you totally in the experience. The game play may seem a lot different since we've had the COD type shooters since this game came out, but the shooting is fantastic, and the gravity gun is easily on of the best weapons in all of video games. The graphics also feature great facial animation, and detail in the world, and the environment is huge with tons of variation in the combat, which includes great vehicle sections, and weapons that feel like they pack a punch.
Negatives: There's only two real negatives I can think of, one is the fact that Gordon Freeman never speaks, which I got over pretty quickly, but for a game made in 2004 you would think they would give Gordon some dialogue, but its not to big of a deal. The second is the ending which felt somewhat abrupt when I first played it, but after playing the two follow up episodes of Half Life 2 it doesn't bother me as much, as the first time.
In conclusion, Half-Life 2 is one of the best game ever, it helped advance storytelling, graphics, and game play in video gaming, and I think this game shows critics of video games that games like this, Shadow of the Colossus, Bioshock Infinite, and The Last of Us, help show the true potential video games have as a storytelling medium. Overall 10 out of 10, even with some very minor complaints.