"Half-Life 2" really elevates videogames to a new art form. For someone such as myself, who had taken a long hiatus from gaming, this was a refreshing revolution of the medium. There will always be the classic arcade games and the great Mario games for NES - but "Half-Life 2" takes gaming into a new dimension. This is the game that will blow away those of us who always thought games were simplistic. Its plot is better than 90% of action films today and it seamlessly blends realism with science-fiction.
Curiously enough "Doom 3" received more attention for blending cinema with gaming but I think "Half-Life 2" did so much better - there aren't cheesy cut-away scenes such as there are in "Doom 3" (which was still a fine game) and you actually feel like you ARE in an alternate reality. Valve - as they first did with the original "Half-Life" - provides similar scenes of plotting and character dialogue, but you never leave the POV of Dr. Gordon Freeman. And with the advancements in technology since the first game, "Half-Life 2" takes advantage of this to its fullest.
When I first got the game I couldn't play it. I was on a 2001 PC with outdated specs and had dial-up - Steam (which is a major pain and the only downside to this game) takes forever to download mandatory updates and "decryption" files in an effort to cut back on Internet piracy. The irony is that the game has made its way online anyway while people such as myself who purchased it often experience troubles with Steam because if you forget your password, or someone else uses it before you, you have to buy another copy of the game and they won't just replace the password itself.
Apart from Steam (the worst idea ever conceived by any gaming company) "HL2" delivers non-stop. I was surprised how the game combines so many different styles - first you start out in a bleak future-world reminiscent of "1984" and you join the resistance to fight the fascist ruling. The first few levels are eerie and brilliant; what's really scary is that they seem so realistic and not-so-far-away from where we are now.
Then it becomes a sci-fi game with zombie creatures and similar monsters. Then one level evokes atmospheric tension by placing you underground (think "Doom" minus the chainsaw) and then the game ends with a stunning apocalyptic-style war which also blends sci-fi and action together - yet all the while I felt like I could be playing a WWII battle game; the genre-bending is superb.
The storyline is solid and the game's engine is remarkable. The expansive surroundings and beautiful rendering is breathtaking at times. And the physics are the most realistic I've ever seen in any game, ever. It blows everything else out of the water.
The gravity gun at the end of the game is almost too good to be true - I've never seen anything like it in a game before.
At first I wasn't too sure about "Half-Life 2" because it has a fairly slow beginning; but by the end I couldn't stop playing. I re-played most of the game again and the second time around I really enjoyed the opening; it builds up a lot of tension and develops the storyline.
Overall this exceeds in the same areas that many games fail - it effortlessly combines every gamer's fantasy with mixed genres, great action, realistic settings and stunning graphics. I don't think any other game I've ever played has left such an impact on me. This is definitely one of the best games ever and possibly the best of its genre.
