After finishing up the orange box...
I was always told the Half-Life series was ranking up there with the best shooters of all time. After playing through all the installments, I can state that, from my point of view, it isn't even close. I will concede that what it has been largely lauded for is true, the graphics are great, the story is compelling, and there are some moments of true white-knuckle action. However, when I buy a game, I have always bought it with the assumption that when it's done, I'll be able to go back and play again (and again and again...) and improve my skills in said game. For example, I've logged hundreds of hours perfecting my tactics in different versions of FIFA, and dozens more creating custom content for the game. Or, if you want another shooter, I played GR classic through so many times that three years from the last time I played it I can still remember right now exactly where every one of the tangos are on the Red Square mission (I did speed runs).
I'm getting a bit off topic, but my point is, I tried playing through HL2 a second time, like I do for every other game, when it hit me. "This is exactly what I just did." And, in fact, it was. The linearity of the whole damn series is mind-numbing. It doesn't even create the illusion of free will like HALO or every other f***ing shooter I've ever played does. VALVe says "here, gordon walks this way, uses his gravity gun on this object, then turns around and blows this thing up before taking cover in this building" God dammit, it's my game and I'll make the decisions on where I want to go, thank you very much.
Also, I know they tried to make Alyx likable and the other characters likable, but the next time I hear the name "Gordon" in-game, I'm gonna freak out. I get it, that's my name. During the finale of episode 2, I counted. They say his name 5 times in 2 minutes. When is the last time you were in a conversation and someone said your name 5 TIMES?! And they're always telling you what to do. Press the button yourself, you lazy bastards.
These gripes all add together to make the game extremely difficult to get immersed in. GR made me feel like an elite soldier (and trained me in some handy paintball tactics
), Tony Hawk made me feel like I could actually maybe skate (until I actually bought a board), and FIFA, at least the newer versions, genuinely feels like playing soccer (that one I can confirm). Half-Life? It's a tedious slog of hallways connecting plot-points of a hollywood blockbuster. I'll just take the movie ticket, thank you.
