Video Game Corner

The sequel to the critically acclaimed Half-Life was one of the most anticipated PC games of 2004. Good things, they say, come to those who wait, and Half-Life 2 is one excellent video game.

The game’s protagonist, Gordon Freeman, a physicist who saved the world in the prequel, wakes up to see the face of the suited “G-Man.” He tells the physicist he has some work to do. Gordon then finds himself on a train to City 17, a metropolis dominated by an oppressive alien military force called the Combine. The new alien overlords have virtually enslaved the populous of Earth with the help of Gordon’s former administrator from Black Mesa, the top-secret research facility where he once worked.

Gordon quickly finds himself running from the Combine forces, barely escaping with the help of his newest comrade, Alyx Vance, the daughter of another former Black Mesa scientist.

Clad in his upgraded Hazard Suit, the intrepid physicist embarks on a non-stop battle to bring down humanity’s oppressors and save the world… again.

Half-Life 2 is one of the most graphically beautiful games I’ve ever played. The environments are realistic and nearly flawless. The characters you meet in the game are the most visually detailed characters to ever grace a computer screen.

The sound effects in the game are quite good as well. From the weapons fire to the ambient noise of wildlife, everything in the game sounds realistic.

However, I was disappointed at the half-hearted attempt to add music to the game. Once in awhile, the player triggers a vaguely appropriate piece of techno music that feels as though it was chosen at random by the game designers.

Perhaps the greatest single feature of Half-Life 2 is the physics engine. Nearly everything in the game has its own mass, weight, buoyancy, and physical durability. Partway though the game, Gordon obtains a weapon called the Gravity Gun that allows the player to pick up and fling them at your enemy. It was so much fun to see what Gordon could pick up and how he could use it to attack. Sending a saw blade at a group of zombies can be an especially rewarding experience.

Along with the Gravity Gun, Gordon finds his usual compliment of weapons with a few additions. Rounding out the list is a toy called Bug Bait, which allows the player to command a small army of giant man-eating insects called Ant Lions. After spending a good portion of the game trying not to get killed by those nasty bugs, it’s quite nice to sic them on your mutual enemies.

There are several vehicle sequences in the game, as well, to break up the monotony of running and gunning. Unlike other games of the genre where you spend such scenes wishing you could just get out and walk to the next area, Half-Life 2’s vehicle sequences are genuinely fun.

Apart from the music, I only have two major complaints about the game. First, the load times are extremely long, especially on a computer that barely meets the minimum requirements for the game. And secondly, your allies can act dumb as dirt. About two-thirds of the way though the game, Gordon is given control of a squad of resistance members to help him through several sequences of the game. It’s fortunate that they’re so abundant through the sequences because they have a nasty habit of getting themselves killed. And sometimes the one-button command system does not make it any easier to get your squad to do as you say.

In spite of a few flaws, Half-Life 2 is one of the best video games I’ve ever played. It is full of a variety of challenges that flow together nicely and rarely get stale. The story is engaging and makes you want to find out what will happen next.

In my opinion, Half-Life 2 lives up to the hype, deserving every bet of praise and acclaim it has received from the press.