Just how good was Half Life 2 ?

[BolognaBaloney]

Spoiler: SNIP

Any sapient being can see that HL2 was influenced greatly by Halo: CE, just mentioning.

They're both two completely different games that do different things to eachother. Half-Life 2 focuses more on storytelling and it was innovative for it's time (physics that was GOOD, amazing graphics for 2004 etc) as well as scenery and it's epic vehicle sections more than it does it's gunplay and violence, which're both still there it's just Halo was better at them, and it's actually possible for you to DIE on the normal settings which is surprising because I'd gone through Halo when I was still interested (Before they released Halo 2 and it sucked harder than a vacuum cleaner) on Normal and I'd only died once, to my own grenades... Although, most of my deaths in Half-Life 2 are attributed to Ravenholme (I FUCKING HATED THAT LEVEL) and the part in the mines shortly after that.

The only real similarities I can see in HL2 and Halo is the shields, although they don't recharge in HL2 and you instead need to find energy dispensers in walls, oh and you can actually die when you have your shields on from enemy gunfire, as well as the fact they're both FPSes with guns and things exploding.

Seriously, haven't we passed the fucking "LOLOLOL HALF LIFE VERSUS HALO" stage and moved onto "PROTOTYPE VS INFAMOUS ROFL ROFL ROFL" era in Escapist history?

Oh, and Halo didn't have better vehicles (in singleplayer), characters or story. The vehicle sections weren't anywhere near as good as Half-Life 2's were, in multiplayer they were pretty fun though but we can't compare multiplayer since Half-Life 2 is a singleplayer game if you don't include HL2M which didn't even use vehicles as far as I know. Halo's story telling was pretty good, not as good as Half-life 2's was, Halo 2/3 killed that down to average and the storyline was... well, aliens and humans are beating eachother up because... they disagree on something?

Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Halo: CE I was just very disappointed with the sequels.

edit: I didn't like HL2M either.

It's a great game, but I've always like Halo more.

Any sapient being can see that HL2 was influenced greatly by Halo: CE, just mentioning.

Is there still room in that flame-proof bunker?

Actually, I don't really see much influence at all. I see much more of Half-Life's influence in Halo. They completely ripped headcrabs from Half-Life 1.

I didn't say Half-Life 2 copied Halo, I said it was influenced by it. Halo is full of open but linear levels and so is Half-Life 2.

Concerning headcrabs and the Flood, the Flood seem more based on the Pod People from the Body Snatchers mixed with headcrabs. And headcrabs are of course just facehuggers with fewer legs and a different goal.

Meh, everyone ripped off everyone else, but in the end, I still play Halo more.

 

[ddq5]

Well, I freaking loved it. What mainly drew me in were the characters, and not just Alyx's mindblowing beauty. Well voiced, well written, and very lovable, HL2's characters still have a special place in my heart. When I found out that

Spoiler

Dr. Mossman was working for the Combine, I actually thought, "You *****!"

In contrast, when

Spoiler

Miranda Keys kicked the bucket

in Halo 3, I just shrugged and kept going. If that had been Barney, I'm not sure how I would have gone on.

 

[johnman]

IF it hadnt been for the oblivion lost mod for Stalker Half life 2 would be my number one game. Now its my second, and i feel bad for it.

 

[Crash486]

I thought it was pretty average. I thought Portal was better. It didn't reinvent or redefine what a FPS was or is; I just thought it had a better story then most FPS's.

ACtually it did, this just tells us you didn't play FPS prior to HL2.

It's a great game, but I've always like Halo more.

Any sapient being can see that HL2 was influenced greatly by Halo: CE, just mentioning.

Is there still room in that flame-proof bunker?

Uhm, I know what you really meant to say was "Halo was influenced by halflife," since it was released in 1998 and halo wasn't released until 2001. Just because halo was your first fps doesn't make it the best fps. :/

I mean.. flood... headcrab? You have to be kidding, thats a direct ripoff. You could also argue that they ripped off vehicles and combat armor from Starseige Tribes. Halo did absolutely nothing origninal, they just marketed themself to a new demographic of gamers. Hence, halo is "My first fps" for many kids who will never appreciate other shooters which came before it because all they'll say is "I like halo better."

 

[johnman]

I didn't say Half-Life 2 copied Halo, I said it was influenced by it. Halo is full of open but linear levels and so is Half-Life 2.

So is pretty much every FPS made before halo...

 

[SenseOfTumour]

Yes I think Half Life 2 both was, and is excellent, but I'm slightly disappointed how 'meh' so many escapists are, does no-one have any scraps of enthusiasm left for gaming?

Seems we have gone from 'x is better than y' to 'mah x,y and z are all average and not worth bothering to play, I've got a wall to stare at'.

Cheer up folks, games are fun and we can play them!

 

[BolognaBaloney]

Yes I think Half Life 2 both was, and is excellent, but I'm slightly disappointed how 'meh' so many escapists are, does no-one have any scraps of enthusiasm left for gaming?

Seems we have gone from 'x is better than y' to 'mah x,y and z are all average and not worth bothering to play, I've got a wall to stare at'.

Cheer up folks, games are fun and we can play them!

While I tend to agree with you, the sheer amount of "X versus Y" and "Y is overrated" threads leads a lot of people to take on a feeling of utter indifference to the whole subject.

 

[Husky.Gnoll]

It's not so much the game of Half-Life that hooked me, it was the modifiability and the community that got me to love it.

 

[RebelRising]

I'm replaying it right now, and I'm still amazed by it. While the gameplay may be only above average, I think the story and characters is what won over most players. Eli and Alyx are singlehandedly the most sympathetic characters I've ever seen in a game, or most movies, for that matter.

The level design, while linear, wins merit by being functional and immersive; the music really draws you in, and the overall plot, I think, was remarkably interesting. Not so much the science, but what was going on around Gordon as he explored this dystopian reality.

So yes, I love it. Sue me.

 

[BolognaBaloney]

I'm replaying it right now, and I'm still amazed by it. While the gameplay may be only above average, I think the story and characters is what won over most players. Eli and Alyx are singlehandedly the most sympathetic characters I've ever seen in a game, or most movies, for that matter.

The level design, while linear, wins merit by being functional and immersive; the music really draws you in, and the overall plot, I think, was remarkably interesting. Not so much the science, but what was going on around Gordon as he explored this dystopian reality.

So yes, I love it. Sue me.

As long as you don't sue me for liking Halo.

 

[RebelRising]

I'm replaying it right now, and I'm still amazed by it. While the gameplay may be only above average, I think the story and characters is what won over most players. Eli and Alyx are singlehandedly the most sympathetic characters I've ever seen in a game, or most movies, for that matter.

The level design, while linear, wins merit by being functional and immersive; the music really draws you in, and the overall plot, I think, was remarkably interesting. Not so much the science, but what was going on around Gordon as he explored this dystopian reality.

So yes, I love it. Sue me.

As long as you don't sue me for liking Halo.

Not at all, as long as you enjoy it. That's what gaming is all about.

 

[Artheval_Pe]

while I loved the story of the Halo series, stories come down to personal preferences.

How enjoyable the story is comes down to personal preferences indeed.
But the philosophical and political implications of the story do not. How much it can make you think about important issues depends on your perception of the story, but, some stories have objectively more potential to do it than others.

How did this become ANOTHER "Half Life is better than Halo because...." thread? How?

Sorry, someone wrote that the story in Halo was better. I merely replied to that.

The next part of this message is long, if you don't have time to read, just skip it.

I thought it copied off of Halo too much though

Since you've mentionned it, I'm going to tackle this issue. Every video game is inspired by the other games before it, so let's take a look at how much of Halo is in Half Life 2.

Even if the development team had started working on it before Halo came out, I think that the idea of vehicule sections has been supported by Halo. This game has probably be the one who showed to the developers that vehicules sections in a single player FPS could work.
However, the in-game sections themselves have pretty much nothing to do with what is in Halo. The airboat chase was unique, even if the latter part with the machine gun was reminescent of the tank section in Halo CE in the sense that you were dominating your ennemies.
The car section however is nowhere like the warthdog sections in Halo.

As for other parts of the game, I don't see the inspirations. The wild aliens come straight from Half Life, except for the antlions, but there's nothing like antlions in Halo.
The combine war machine is very different from the Covenant, as it is a mix between pure alien forces similar to the ones in Half Life and Opposing Force, and endoctrined human cyborgs. Even the alien creatures are cyborgs as they are animals with technology on their body. Something not found in Halo.
The settings and the art style are completly different, as is the story which is not a direct follow-up to Half Life, but still feels logical.

Frankly, except for the idea of vehicule sections, I don't see how Half Life 2 has copied Halo. I suggest you take a look at what was in Half Life. You'll see that most of the elements that you thought were a copied off Halo were already in the first game.

And having played Halo on the PC, even if I see that it is a good game, I don't think it can really compare to Half Life 2. It's a fun game, but nowhere near the complexity and diversity of Half Life 2.

I must say I'm rather surprised. The only game I can think of that could be favoribly compared to Half Life 2 would be Deus Ex (even if it hasn't aged too well)

 

[ProfessorLayton]

It was an excellent game but then again take a good look at my avatar. Obviously I think it was a good game. The way it was put together just works so much better than these other games.

 

[skcseth]

I think I'm the only person to ever play video games who hasn't played any game in the Half Life series.

It looks pretty though.

 

[Rajin Cajun]

HL2 was alright and fun at times but I still found myself getting more immersed in Crysis.

 

[ShotgunSmoke]

I was amazing and still is, after all these years.

 

[DM.]

This thread has made me download it from steam again.

 

[HellbirdIV]

Half-Life 2, like the original, set a new standard for FPSes. Unfortunately most FPS-makers these days have this idea that making a complex game like Half-Life 2 just isn't worthwhile compared to making another Halo clone (2 weapons at a time, regenerating health, instant melee attacks) which sells just as well. I think this sort of overshadows just how innovative Half-Life 2 was with the physics integrated into the gameplay and the complex story (Although I'll be the first to point out that the original Halo had a great story).

Personally I enjoy the rather samey shooters as well, especially with the added level of realism in some, but Half-Life was never about that. It's pure, unadultered, unrealistic shooter fun framed by a fantastically written Sci-fi story with distinct plotpoints, foreshadowing (the second teleportation into Breen's office, anyone?) that's quite thoroughly as enjoyable as the game itself rather than just an excuse to point the guns at the people.

 

[theklng]

The novelty of HL2 wore off quickly for me, when I realized the story was rather sub-par and the gameplay was tedious. I know most people on this site worship Half Life and Valve, but I fail to see what was so ground breaking about it.

*Hides behind anti flame shield*

let me guess, you think halo was a superb game in the aspects you mentioned?

I agree with him and I also didn't think Halo was much different. FEAR on the other hand. That is a good FPS. Guess you don't have to be a Halo Fanboy to dislike HL2. Sorry to debunk your theory and all.

it's strange, this. i don't recall talking to you, yet you respond as if i was?