Half-Life 2 Goes Gold

Im upto Ravenholm and damn those headcrabs that take you down to one health in one hit are annoying!

This game is fantastic [:)].

well ive only played 5 minutes of it (thanks to Troy [:X]) but its awesome!!!! best FPS ive played and i agree with you Malus; story is a big part and it definately makes this game soo much more addictive!

i think the age is comming where gamers and developers are begining to realise that story is just as important as everything else.
but untill then, Im'a stick to my RPG's and HL2 :D

Just out of curiosity, for those that have beat it, how long would you say it took you. I remember the first HL, I played it so long, then bamn, I'm in another world and there was still half the game left! Talk about a wonderful story experience. I'm just wondering if this is comparable in length or if they made it short like it seems so many other FPSs are doing these days.

I got through it in about 16 hours on normal mode, moving at a reasonable pace. I might go back through on hard and take some more time to experiment with a few things. On the other hand if you count mods then I'm still getting hours out of the original on a regular basis!

Im upto 'Sandtraps' and im kind of sick of seeing the coastal regions, i want to get back into the city and take on Striders etc... [:(]

heh you got a bit of a wait tbag, im up to "follow freeman." Its so cool that they implemented all these little gameplay additions for certain areas, like the squad thing, or the bug bait.

ahh, another one that only managed to mantain interest in doom 3 for half the game...

I just finished the game [:0]

Just finished it too Souri... head is spinning really trying to put all of the pieces together. Don't want to spoil so I won't say anymore, except that the combat in the city is bloody awesome and intense!

I agree with Malus. While it is a linear game, I was so involved with everything that was happening I didn't even notice. To be honest an FPS can be as linear as it wants, as long as it sucks me into the game!

I think I'm going to play through it again soon, I really want to take my time. Anyone notice there are heaps of little bits of story hidden everywhere. Keep talking to NPC's or look for graffiti illustrations on the wall. One I noticed hinted to what the combine soldiers actually are underneath their armour.

I really hope that they release HL3 sooner than later. Leave the source engine as it is, just continue the story!

[:O] the last part of Ravenholme is pretty difficult on hard setting - I was completly dry of all ammo and beating off those crazy zombies that throw the black head sucker things with a crowbar [:(] i made it through with a poxy 3 health - dang! My oppinion of the game has gone up so much after playing with Headphones and meeting the fast zombies....

heh heh yeah hazard thats the part that really made by jaw drop (using headphones aswell)

just completed and i stand by my statement saying that that was the best game ive ever played. Totally awesome (id love to say more but theres the whole spoiler thing)

Im using headphones aswell and im having a great time. Has anyone else noticed how much those fast zombies look like Aliens when running towards you (As in from the movie 'Aliens')?

I love this game now that im over the driving length, i liked my hovercraft more though [;)].

EDIT: Last night i played 2 hours of Halo 2 and i was quite bored, something was lacking and it appealed to me as Halo 1 + dirtier/grittier textures + Several new maps = Halo 2. Half-Life 2 all the way! [;)] (And no im not a fanboy, i just thought that Halo 2 was lacking something again)

Couldnt agree with you more Tbag - Halo2 just doesnt cut it - I havent played a FPS yet that ive really enjoyed until I played HL2. Im up to follow freeman on hard and its BLOODY hardcore - damn turrets are just culling me off, I usually just send in my crew as bait and let them get carved up, charge in when the spree is over, clean up the mess and claim victory as my own [:D]

I have issues with the Half Life 2's (lack of) story, and as I've noticed reading around, many people are of a similar opinion... in any case, [url="http://img11.exs.cx/img11/3865/im-a-winner.gif"]this little comic sums up my thoughts exactly[/url] [:)] (spoilers abound)

[url="http://news.spong.com/detail/news.asp?prid=8016"]Half Life 3 details[/url] [:0]

criminey! im not ready yet!!
love the line about valve going postal on the magazine though :P

That news is true but believe very little of what you see at Spong.com, its kind of like the website that makes up a million rumours and claims them to be true, they are known for it [:p].

This was reported on Planethalflife a few days ago and it was in relation to this article here.

http://gamesradar.msn.co.uk/news/default.asp?pagetypeid=2&articleid=291…

Note it is dated 22/03/04, so this is quite out of date. If this is indeed real I highly doubt that Half-life 3 would let you play as Alyx. Notice how the article at spong adds that "there will be a complete explanation of the alien involvment" just to satisfy the fans disappointed at the lack of information in HL2.

In the final hours of HL2 interview with Gabe, he says they are thinking of releasing new episodes over steam. One of them will tell the story of Alyx and Dog. I doubt Valve would have the player be anyone other than Gordon in the main games, and simply release expansions that allow you to play as these other characters as they have done in the past.

Still, I would like to HL3 sooner than later. I would prefer them to stick to the Source engine, and simply work on the game itself. Maybe some sort of decent shadow system, and improved visuals as PC performance allows, but otherwise I think the engine will be fine for now.

Perhaps an "Opposing Force" style mod, same story from a different angle?

I want to play as Dog.

[:D]

You would bazza [:P]

So it's not just me that's getting [url="http://www.forumplanet.com/planethalflife/topic.asp?fid=2348&tid=1536882"]motion sickness from this game[/url]!

some people can get motion sickness from the original mario kart, so im afraid if you do your probably just unlucky :(

I only just finished the game [:O] and all ive got to say is WTF ??????

HazarD: You're not the only one to say that. Though i get the feeling that the G-Man is not quite human...

Haha Haz, I was waiting for you to say that.

Finally completed it after having only short 1-2 hour bursts every afternoon and i liked the ending personally, really makes me want Half-Life 3 soon.

Sure, its a bit strange but atleast it isnt your typical 'You saved the world!' ending [:p].

Edit: Souri you aint the only one, i played it early in the morning on an empty stomach for a few hours and got bad motion sickness [:p].

I'm not so shocked about the content of the ending... just the... rather abuptiveness and short length of it. I mean... come on ! I was looking for an alternate ending... thinking to myself did I not do something correct here ?!?! maybe I didnt do something and am only recieving a fraction of the ending...

Alas i too am looking forward to half life 3 - but not the ending.

ending and the half life timeline explained:
WARNING: yes ofcourse it contains spoilers, only visit if youve actually finished the game

http://members.shaw.ca/storage_4/hl2story/

Of course, it's the journey that you want to be fun, not the ending eh? Because the end does not justify the means.