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Half-Life 2
- Sequel to the hit first-person shooter
- Scientist-with-a-crowbar Gordon Freeman joins a ragtag human resistance fighting extradimensional invaders for the survival of a conquered Earth
- Unnervingly realistic graphics the likes of which have not been witnessed outside of a motion picture or pre-rendered cut scene
- Realistic physics: objects have varied and appropriate mass, density, physical properties
- For 1 player
Avg. Customer Review: 
 Be prepared
The world of first-person shooting games was revolutionized in 1998 when Half-Life hit the mainstream. Featuring a slew of smooth graphics, a huge three-dimensional environment, and an interesting arsenal of weaponry, Half-Life was bound for greatness. Since its conception, several modifications have been created, including total game revamps like Counterstrike and Team Fortress Classic. Now, Sierra has decided enough time has passed since their original creation, and are onto bigger and better things.I base this information from the 25-minute video shown from the debut at E3 of 2003 that showcased Half-Life 2 to the fullest. Graphically, no other first-person shooter has ever looked so good. The characters have "rag doll" physics, meaning when a body hits the ground, its arms and legs flail lifelessly. Barrels float in the water, and splinters fly from a section of wood that is shot by bullets. The realism is astonishing. The opening sequence features the G-man from the last title that greets you in the end to offer you a position to work for him, or to face a fate "you have no chance of surviving." The programmers inform us that the G-man has over twenty separate "muscles" in his face that change when he talks, or has emotional responses. The A.I. is revolutionary. During a street combat, you find yourself being bombarded by enemy fire, while several resistance fighters alongside you are trying to fight back. The computer-controlled characters wait for prime opportunities to move and counterattack when their opposition isn't attacking them. A.I. of this calibre has never been seen before. In addition to the classic weapons we've seen (with updated graphics and sound effects, of course), new revolutionary ways of dispatching enemies await the classic hero Gordon Freeman. So, whenever Sierra decides to release this game (if the actual date isn't pushed back again), we'll get to see the mystic wonders of the world of Half-Life once again. Only this time, it's personal.
Nothin in the world is FREE-MAN. Get it?
I feel very strongly about this. The first half-life is so embedded into my psyche that the mere thought of a sequel is stroke inducing. I have had the priveledge of working with the BETA and i must say, other than the early-on problems with frame-rate production, that this game runs practically flawlessly. Yes, Valve is a very unpredictable company. But, we believe they will come through with this one. I have seen the projected system req. They are very low considering the beautiful graphics. You can get away with a geforce 3 and 256 meg of ram. However, like most games these days, expect a WHOLE lotta hard drive space to be reserved for this one. If you don't already have one, get a SOUNDBLASTER AUDIGY 2 for this. I have tried it with both the AUDIGY 1 & AUDIGY 2 and the extra features on AUDIGY 2 (some really unbelievable effects!) make it worth the purchase. This BETA is as clean and polished as any i've played. That must be a good sign for the game. Let's just hope VALVE doesn't have any more 'code' problems before its' next projected release. ADDED INFO : 4/25/04 ---- The game is coming very soon. And, the updated ALPHA will be available shortly. Once I've gotten that up and running, I'll complete this review. They are being very tight lipped about this ALPHA version due to even MORE code problems. This time they were released out onto the internet. Or so it is rumored. ADDED INFO : 7/17/04 ---- The ALPHA was incredible! I set it up on an ATHLON XP 2800 WITH 512 MEG DDR RAM A GEFORCE FX 128 MB VIDEO CARD AND AN AUDIGY 2 SOUNDCARD and it worked flawlessly. The ALPHA was almost a gig in size! So, we can expect this game to be HUGE. I am drooling on my keyboard. This thing will be ready in a month or two!!!!
READ THIS, VERY IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!
The new half life requires an internet activation. Now dont panic, it's not that big of a deal. the makers of the game just dont want anybody using illegal copies. When you activate the game, a steam file will be sent to the makers saying that the half life is not fake. Then you can play your game without needing to use the internet again. Obviously you have internet, but warn the people who dont have internet that they are wasting their money since they cant make that single internet connection. The internet dosent have to be high speed or anything special eather. I totaly recomend this game and dont ever let the single internet activation change your mind.
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