Storytelling in Half Life 2

[Tharwen]

To me the 'interactive cutscene' thing seems more like a technical achievement than a storytelling one, in the same way that an action scene filmed with an unbroken camera shot is more impressive than one without. I still like the writing and the acting though, mostly because it's not done badly (and judging by its competitors, this is a very rare thing indeed).

a guy who doesn't know what the reapers are (on account of him not having played ME1)

That's me! I still liked the story though. I'm not sure if that's actually helpful to know though.

 

[James Joseph Emerald]

I think Half Life 2 is the gaming equivalent of something like the Godfather. Beloved by the critics for its subtlety and subtext and attention to detail, but rather overwrought and underwhelming when you actually sit down with it.

It's not necessarily bad, in fact I'd say it's indeniably good (especially for its time), but far from the best. It's just the safe favourite of the legions of people incapable of forming original opinions about things, so it gets a disproportionate fanbase.

 

[pyramid head grape]

Yeah I didn't like half life 2 also I didn't play the first one.

I had no high hopes for the game just got the orange box for portal and kinda had a blast anyway just found it uninteresting and meh.

 

[Hyper-space]

Story progression was the worst part with HL2, its literally "run away" for the first two acts or so, until the story finally kicks in and we get a sense of progress.

Also, Gordon Freeman is a physicist, where and how did he learn to handle a gun? i find it more pandering than believable that a person, who majored in Physics, is suddenly a bad-ass ninja who saves the world from aliens, who knowns how to handle everything from a hand-gun to a RPG.

 

[parasyteFMA]

It's just the safe favourite of the legions of people incapable of forming original opinions about things, so it gets a disproportionate fanbase.

So people who love the series (myself included) are mindless drones who can't make up their own mind about something they like? Makes perfect sense.

 

[Nfritzappa]

All this talk about Half-Life 2 reminds me...Where the Hell is Half-Life 2: Episode Three/Half-Life 3?
GAAAAAAAAAAAABE!!!!

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

But it's neither the first, nor the only game to do so - why does everyone praise HL2, instead of praising games that did the same thing, but better, and actually presenting a worthwhile story in the process?

Like which first person shooter that came out before 2005?

How about Jedi Knight and Shogo, both of which did the whole "story which involves in level NPCs and is more than an excuse to kill things" thing before Half Life -- over a year before, in the case of Jedi Knight. True, neither of them had a gameworld that was entirely contiguous, and they also used cutscenes to tell their stories, but the former can be a handicap when the levels have to be on different planets or continents thanks to the plot, while the latter is actually more annoying than a cutscene for many people -- for many people, myself included, Half Life style first person story telling breaks up the flow much more than any cutscene; it feels like a punishment, whereas a true cutscene feels like a shiny reward.

That said, I like the Half Life series; I just think it gets more credit than it deserves, at the expense of earlier games that did a fair bit of what it was so famous for. The Halo effect, if you will.

 

[adrian_exec]

I always stayed away from this Half-Life topics, but it seems I can't ignore them anymore when I see people bashing on the story of Half-Life 2 without even playing Half-Life 1, the original game. Good people you need to understand that you missed a lot by not doing so.

Go play it and trust me when I say that it's worth a try. If you committed time into trying Half-Life 2 then you should also try Half-Life 1. Or if you simply don't want to play Half-Life 1 then at least read the plot of the game on Wikipedia before giving your uneducated opinions. I find it very hard to believe that someone who understands the whole story of Half-Life thinks it's somehow lacking or being a "cliche fest".

Also, Gordon Freeman is a physicist, where and how did he learn to handle a gun? i find it more pandering than believable that a person, who majored in Physics, is suddenly a bad-ass ninja who saves the world from aliens, who knowns how to handle everything from a hand-gun to a RPG.

My guess would be that you're just another one of those type of people who have never played the original game yet feel the need to share their ignorant opinions. So for your information during the tutorial of Half-Life 1 you get to play as Gordon Freeman on Black Mesa's training grounds where both you and supposedly Freeman learn how to shoot and use the HEV suit.

So to answer your question, how did he learn to use a gun? He was trained in doing so and after surviving the Black Mesa incident and killing so many aliens and soldiers in the first game I guess he has quite a lot of experience, doesn't he?

 

[mikev7.0]

Answer my questions then. Why do those games you listed do it better? Why is HL's story so 'godawful'? Basic? Yeah. Awful? I don't see why. And what what do you mean with padding?

HL 2's story is awful, because it has no reason to exist. The driving force of the narrative, Gordon Freemute, (oh what a subtle hint the name "freeman" is, isn't it?) is a camera with a gun attached, with zero character, zero personality, and no reason to do what he does, other then because he's told to. That (to me) ruins, what wasn't exactly top notch writing to begin with. Both Sareth and the Marshal (whose name I admittedly forgot, but it's been seven years, give me a break) have motivations that drive the through the plot, interact with their surroundings, form relationships of sort, and thus evoke emotional response from me - Gordon doesn't deem anyone of the nagging support characters worth talking to, giving me a somewhat hard time caring about them as well - I mean why should I, when the protagonist obviously doesn't.

And by padding I mean things like motorboat sections five times as long as they needed to be, with arbitrary physics puzzles blocking the way, ten striders, where fighting three would have served the purpose, stuff like that.

I agree with you, yeah a lot of the puzzles (can we really call them that?) did seem arbitrary, and I hadn't thought about just how cardboard cut-out the story was but you're right there as well. I've played a lot of FPSs ever since DOOM and I have to admit that Half-Life is not on the top, or even in the middle. You want a better story pre-2005 from an FPS? Hexen. Also told through the narrative. Except I think Hexen gives it's protaganist more dialogue..... I also agree that it really doesn't matter that Half-Life 2 didn't have any official cutscenes, it had plenty of times where I had to stop and hear the story so what's the difference. Also like I said I've played a lot of FPSs so to constantly hear this one touted as the Gold standard DOES get old. I mean, I love a good FPS but I didn't even bother finishing it. Yet mine is just one gamers opinion.

 

[Hyper-space]

I always stayed away from this Half-Life topics, but it seems I can't ignore them anymore when I see people bashing on the story of Half-Life 2 without even playing Half-Life 1, the original game. Good people you need to understand that you missed a lot by not doing so.

Go play it and trust me when I say that it's worth a try. If you committed time into trying Half-Life 2 then you should also try Half-Life 1. Or if you simply don't want to play Half-Life 1 then at least read the plot of the game on Wikipedia before giving your uneducated opinions. I find it very hard to believe that someone who understands the whole story of Half-Life thinks it's somehow lacking or being a "cliche fest".

Also, Gordon Freeman is a physicist, where and how did he learn to handle a gun? i find it more pandering than believable that a person, who majored in Physics, is suddenly a bad-ass ninja who saves the world from aliens, who knowns how to handle everything from a hand-gun to a RPG.

My guess would be that you're just another one of those type of people who have never played the original game yet feel the need to share their ignorant opinions. So for your information during the tutorial of Half-Life 1 you get to play as Gordon Freeman on Black Mesa's training grounds where both you and supposedly Freeman learn how to shoot and use the HEV suit.

So to answer your question, how did he learn to use a gun? He was trained in doing so and after surviving the Black Mesa incident and killing so many aliens and soldiers in the first game I guess he has quite a lot of experience, doesn't he?

So he learned how to handle a gun, as well as how to stay focused in a firefight with aliens, all in the span of a brief tutorial? i get that the HEV-suit protects him from some physical trauma, but most of the stuff you do requires years of training and mental preparation. So no, i do not require to play the first game to know that someone acquiring the skills of a trained professional, just by going through a brief course through a training ground.

 

[odeed]

I always stayed away from this Half-Life topics, but it seems I can't ignore them anymore when I see people bashing on the story of Half-Life 2 without even playing Half-Life 1, the original game. Good people you need to understand that you missed a lot by not doing so.

Go play it and trust me when I say that it's worth a try. If you committed time into trying Half-Life 2 then you should also try Half-Life 1. Or if you simply don't want to play Half-Life 1 then at least read the plot of the game on Wikipedia before giving your uneducated opinions. I find it very hard to believe that someone who understands the whole story of Half-Life thinks it's somehow lacking or being a "cliche fest".

Also, Gordon Freeman is a physicist, where and how did he learn to handle a gun? i find it more pandering than believable that a person, who majored in Physics, is suddenly a bad-ass ninja who saves the world from aliens, who knowns how to handle everything from a hand-gun to a RPG.

My guess would be that you're just another one of those type of people who have never played the original game yet feel the need to share their ignorant opinions. So for your information during the tutorial of Half-Life 1 you get to play as Gordon Freeman on Black Mesa's training grounds where both you and supposedly Freeman learn how to shoot and use the HEV suit.

So to answer your question, how did he learn to use a gun? He was trained in doing so and after surviving the Black Mesa incident and killing so many aliens and soldiers in the first game I guess he has quite a lot of experience, doesn't he?

So he learned how to handle a gun, as well as how to stay focused in a firefight with aliens, all in the span of a brief tutorial? i get that the HEV-suit protects him from some physical trauma, but most of the stuff you do requires years of training and mental preparation. So no, i do not require to play the first game to know that someone acquiring the skills of a trained professional, just by going through a brief course through a training ground.

Jeez, could you be any more petty? Were you expecting an entire game dedicated to the training of Gordon Freeman? A 16 hour long training course, so that you're absolutely satisfied that he could possess the firearm skills he displays in Half Life? Heck, the characters in Half Life make numerous references to his miraculous abilities. It's called suspension of disbelief, all forms of art require it, and if you can't grasp the concept, I'm afraid there isn't much you'll be able to enjoy.

 

[James Joseph Emerald]

It's just the safe favourite of the legions of people incapable of forming original opinions about things, so it gets a disproportionate fanbase.

So people who love the series (myself included) are mindless drones who can't make up their own mind about something they like? Makes perfect sense.

No, of course not. What I meant is that every good game/movie/book has a substantial fanbase of people who genuinely like it for various reasons, including Half-Life 2. But stuff like HL2 and Godfather, which are so highly lauded by a few respected critics, attract the hordes of mindless drones who pick it as a favourite basically because they've been told to (including both consumers and critics). This is why stuff like Half-Life 2 gets so hyped up and overrated. It doesn't mean the people who genuinely like it are wrong or mindless.

 

[odeed]

It's just the safe favourite of the legions of people incapable of forming original opinions about things, so it gets a disproportionate fanbase.

So people who love the series (myself included) are mindless drones who can't make up their own mind about something they like? Makes perfect sense.

No, of course not. What I meant is that every good game/movie/book has a substantial fanbase of people who genuinely like it for various reasons, including Half-Life 2. But stuff like HL2 and Godfather, which are so highly lauded by a few respected critics, attract the hordes of mindless drones who pick it as a favourite basically because they've been told to (including both consumers and critics). This is why stuff like Half-Life 2 gets so hyped up and overrated. It doesn't mean the people who genuinely like it are wrong or mindless.

You're wrong, I'm sorry, people like it because they genuinely like it. No matter how much you hate it. There is a reason companies get such dedicated fans... because the product is extremely good. I am NOT saying you personally can't dislike it, or that you're wrong, just that your opinion literally means nothing when it comes to other people's opinions.

 

[CapnDork1337]

If the story of lotr would make no sense at all, unless you read the little hobbit, read the silmarillion, and looked up tolkiens memoirs on wikipedia, that wouldn't be a point in the books favor, it'd mean that the author failed to deliver a story that can stand up on it's own. That's ok, if it's clearly marked to be that, it's what we have addons for, however it's marketed as a stand alone game. (And for the record, ME2 was atmospheric, yes, but it's story was horrible)

I wasn't going to say anything. I was just going to let your hate slide and move on. You obviously went into this with a bias. You obviously had already made up your mind about the game. And you are obviously just trying anything hoping to get as many "yeah thats right" as possible. But this example of continuity was such a bold faced misdirection that I'm kinda pissed off. The half life series is equivilant to the lord of the rings. not the hobbit and the silmarillion and the tolkien memoirs. Considering the silmarillion takes places ages before and after LotR it's not even close to the same story. Same with the hobbit. Thats like trying to say you have to play counterstrike and team fortress to understand all of half life. If you're going to argue something, do it right. The lord of the rings is an amazing epic full of rich history, but if you start at the two towers you'll have no idea who the fuck anyone is or what the hell is going on, and then you wont care. So either give the game an actual chance, or move the fuck on.

 

[parasyteFMA]

No, of course not. What I meant is that every good game/movie/book has a substantial fanbase of people who genuinely like it for various reasons, including Half-Life 2. But stuff like HL2 and Godfather, which are so highly lauded by a few respected critics, attract the hordes of mindless drones who pick it as a favourite basically because they've been told to (including both consumers and critics). This is why stuff like Half-Life 2 gets so hyped up and overrated. It doesn't mean the people who genuinely like it are wrong or mindless.

Now that's something I can agree with.

 

[Nieroshai]

Have you not heard that there is no such thing as a story that has never been told before? Every story you will ever hear is a variant of an older story told in a different style than the last guy.

 

[Zantos]

I actually don't know what I'm getting more annoyed at; people that worship Half-Life like it's several comings of Jesus all rolled into one or people who keep starting these threads.

Can we not just settle this with something civilised like a "It's a pretty decent game, can be quite overrated"? Or a fight to the death?

 

[Nieroshai]

I always stayed away from this Half-Life topics, but it seems I can't ignore them anymore when I see people bashing on the story of Half-Life 2 without even playing Half-Life 1, the original game. Good people you need to understand that you missed a lot by not doing so.

Go play it and trust me when I say that it's worth a try. If you committed time into trying Half-Life 2 then you should also try Half-Life 1. Or if you simply don't want to play Half-Life 1 then at least read the plot of the game on Wikipedia before giving your uneducated opinions. I find it very hard to believe that someone who understands the whole story of Half-Life thinks it's somehow lacking or being a "cliche fest".

Also, Gordon Freeman is a physicist, where and how did he learn to handle a gun? i find it more pandering than believable that a person, who majored in Physics, is suddenly a bad-ass ninja who saves the world from aliens, who knowns how to handle everything from a hand-gun to a RPG.

My guess would be that you're just another one of those type of people who have never played the original game yet feel the need to share their ignorant opinions. So for your information during the tutorial of Half-Life 1 you get to play as Gordon Freeman on Black Mesa's training grounds where both you and supposedly Freeman learn how to shoot and use the HEV suit.

So to answer your question, how did he learn to use a gun? He was trained in doing so and after surviving the Black Mesa incident and killing so many aliens and soldiers in the first game I guess he has quite a lot of experience, doesn't he?

So he learned how to handle a gun, as well as how to stay focused in a firefight with aliens, all in the span of a brief tutorial? i get that the HEV-suit protects him from some physical trauma, but most of the stuff you do requires years of training and mental preparation. So no, i do not require to play the first game to know that someone acquiring the skills of a trained professional, just by going through a brief course through a training ground.

Jeez, could you be any more petty? Were you expecting an entire game dedicated to the training of Gordon Freeman? A 16 hour long training course, so that you're absolutely satisfied that he could possess the firearm skills he displays in Half Life? Heck, the characters in Half Life make numerous references to his miraculous abilities. It's called suspension of disbelief, all forms of art require it, and if you can't grasp the concept, I'm afraid there isn't much you'll be able to enjoy.

Here's my conclusion, and it's only my conclusion due to the open-endedness of the games. I believe that, Gordon Freeman may have been a student at MIT, but who's to say he's NEVER handled a gun in his life? You don't have to be a cop or soldier to know how to shoot, maybe he went to the shooting range and even took courses while he was in college? There's nothing anywhere to say he doesn't know how to handle a weapon, we just assume so because he's a scientist.

 

[cyrad]

It's how the story is presented, not the story itself.

In nearly every game, the story and gameplay are completely separated entities. In Half-Life series, they're seamless. It makes the game more immersive. The game also adds little details here and there for the player to explore the game more interactively.


And no, I'm not nostalgia-blinded. I only recently played the Half-Life games about a year ago.