Catching up on Half-Life

Psymonkee · 24 Apr 2011 at 22:21

arknor said:
blue shift i thought was pants but oposing forces was alright, you could just skip straight to HL2 though if you dont want to play a dated game as its sort of a reboot of the series anyway

A reboot!? Are you mad?

HL -> Opposing Forces -> Blue Shift -> HL2 -> HL2: Ep1 -> HL2: Ep2

Always in chronological order!

gronf · 24 Apr 2011 at 22:27

Garonazz said:
Portal 2 is garbage and its overrated. Hugely.

Judging by your first post in this thread, that probably is your true sentiment. Not being your cuppa is one thing, but...

Gimpymoo · 24 Apr 2011 at 22:38

Garonazz said:
Half Life 1 is the greatest, most revolutionary game ever made and will stay my top 1 for ever.

I cannot disagree with that.

Gimpymoo · 24 Apr 2011 at 22:40

Bwaaa said:
Right guys, I'm ashamed to say that i've never played any of the Half-life games. From what i've been told I really should play them so which games should I buy from Steam to get the core storyline of the series? Is blue shift necessary? Are half-life 2 part 1 & 2 different from just buying half-life 2?

Valve confuses me, help please?

Valve Complete pack - £50 - GO GO GO

Masterdog · 24 Apr 2011 at 22:44

Garonazz said:
On another hand, Half Life 1 is the greatest, most revolutionary game ever made and will stay my top 1 for ever.

This. Half-Life 2 does seem to get more love but the real game-changer was HL1. Completely gave all the other games in the genre a kick up the arse and really hasn't been matched by any non-Valve product since. Which seems ridiculous given that it's nearly thirteen years old.

Tummy · 24 Apr 2011 at 22:51

Half Life is one of the finest games ever created on any platform. A modern masterpiece.

Half Life II comes close, it's brilliant, fantastic and a masterpiece in its own right.

FoxEye · 24 Apr 2011 at 23:03

You could get away with skipping HL1. I'd actually recommend skipping the add-on packs for it (Opposing Force & Blue Shift).

HL2 is where most of the plot and intrigue gets explored, but it's also as others have said something of a reboot. The antagonists are completely different. Like Crysis > Crysis 2.

Ep1 is very short. Less than 1/2 the length of HL2. Ep2 is longer and better, really.

Tummy · 24 Apr 2011 at 23:06

I don't think you should skip Half Life, not if you're looking to enjoy the series.

Half Life is still a lot better then a lot of shooters released these days, says it all really for me, Amazing ground breaking and revolutionary game.

Garonazz · 24 Apr 2011 at 23:13

For the love of god, if you're planning on playing through the Half-Life series, DO NOT skip Half Life 1. a HUGE mistake that would be.

Like a couple of gents above me said, its THIRTEEN years old and it's still a huge load better than most FPS released 2000-2011

spookywillow · 24 Apr 2011 at 23:14

i played HL1 on the ps2 and loved it, best game i ever played back then

Gimpymoo · 25 Apr 2011 at 01:47

spookywillow said:
i played HL1 on the ps2

Sorry, I fell off my chair after that bit

Teaf · 25 Apr 2011 at 02:09

Definitely shouldn't skip Half Life 1. It is quite dated now in multiple areas, but the story is still amazing and needs to be experienced, not just for that game but also to get the most out of the series.

Strife212 · 25 Apr 2011 at 02:27

I prefer Half Life 1, the story isn't as cool in Half Life 2.

spookywillow · 25 Apr 2011 at 06:47

Gimpymoo said:
Sorry, I fell off my chair after that bit

yep seems pretty funny now but i never had a pc back then and never really knew anything about them

one of the few SP games i ever completed on a console lol

Van Hellseek · 25 Apr 2011 at 07:04

Half life 1 is great until just before the alien planet towards the end. And then it becomes a tedious slog, rather than an enjoyable shooter.

HL2 was good, but a little bland.

gropingmantis · 25 Apr 2011 at 07:59

Van Hellseek said:
Half life 1 is great until just before the alien planet towards the end. And then it becomes a tedious slog, rather than an enjoyable shooter.

HL2 was good, but a little bland.

Whaaaa? The levels on Xen are excellent and fighting the Gonarch is a ******. The final boss fight is epic, I wish more games had epic bosses like that.

Craig1981 · 25 Apr 2011 at 08:09

Even though it looks dated by modern standards, HL1 should not be overlooked. It provides the essential groundwork for the overall HL story.

Blue Shift and Opposing Forces are worth a go, but I'd save them for after you've played through HL - HL2 and Episodes 1 and 2.

SubFocus · 25 Apr 2011 at 13:01

My god are you in for a treat

RedStarRiot · 25 Apr 2011 at 13:20

half life 1 was amazing, although i haven't played it in around 10 years! could skip to half life 2 if you really wanted to but would miss a little of the story and background but sometimes old games can be a little off putting nowadays, thats why i wont go back to deus ex, i have amazing memories of that game and dont want to ruin it

Fanatic · 25 Apr 2011 at 13:22

Though you should install Opposing Force and Blue Shift before you play HL1. Then when you play HL1 and Opposing Force you will have the "High Definition" pack from Blue Shift

. New face and gun textures I think, maybe a bit more.

Also I'd play HL1 -> Opposing Force -> Blue Shift -> HL2 -> Ep1 -> Ep2

As after you play HL2 with the fancy graphics you might not want to go back to Opposing Force and Blue Shift. Then when you have finished the 3 HL2 games, you can install Cinematic Mod and do them again