"Gordon Freeman's return couldn't be sweeter..."

The original Half Life is a game that needs no introduction. Almost unanimously heralded throughout the PC community as the best of its kind, Half Life introduced us to modern FPS gaming. Not only that, it sparked a modding revolution which gave birth to titles like the multiplayer hit Counter Strike. Gaming utopia was realized by all, and there was much rejoicing. (Yay!)

Fast forward to five years later, and the release of its hotly anticipated sequel. After cruelly dangling it over our heads for what seemed like an unbearable amount of time, Valve has finally deemed Half Life 2 fit for the gaming public. However, a lot of questions compliment the hype. Can this game possibly live up to the original? What happened to Gordon after Half Life's ambiguous ending? These and many more can now be answered.

Graphics: 10/10 Without a doubt, this is the most beautiful and intricately detailed game to date. Half Life 2 showcases the new "Source" graphics engine, which is already shaping up to become a mainstay in the gaming industry through licensing. Virtually everything in Half Life 2 looks perfect, especially the gorgeous water effects which are photo-realistic. Reflections are rendered in real time, and the level of complexity is absolutely astounding. The character models are also more than worthy of note, displaying realism on a level never before seen. Painstaking effort went into animating these models, as is evidenced with their life-like appearance and movement. Lastly, the environments are simply breathtaking. You feel as if you're part of a living, breathing world. This is because just about every single object in the game can be interacted with in some way. Said objects can then be busted to pieces, allowing you to play around with those. Your surroundings don't feel "static", as they did in previous titles. As you trek through Half Life 2's diverse locales, you'll never cease to be amazed by the realism. When I tell you this game is as good as it gets visually, I mean it. The only flaws I could possibly find were some rare cases of clipping between dead enemies and movable objects. However, this shortcoming is so minor and negligible it's barely worth mentioning. All things considered, it's impossible not to be impressed by Half Life 2, at least in this respect. Even a perfect score fails to do it justice.

Sound: 10/10 This is another aspect of Half Life 2 that goes above and beyond the call of duty. The voice acting is of the highest quality, and all of the in-game conversations felt real and appropriate. Of course, in Crono-like fashion Gordon fails to utter a single word for the duration of Half Life 2, but it would be a shame to mess with tradition. While the acting is impressive, even more jaw dropping are the sounds that accompany each environment in the game. When you're in a city, it sounds like you're in a city. Driving along the beach? You can almost feel the sea breeze...and that headcrab attempting to suck your brains out. Also, the battle and collision sounds are something to behold. They all sound true to life, and the booms and bangs of a large firefight are enough to get your blood pumping. Lastly, the music (when it actually shows up) is neat and creates all of the desired moods. No complaints here.

Gameplay: 9/10 This is the one part of any game that either makes or breaks it. Thankfully I can say that Half Life 2 delivers, and in a big way. To put it as simply as I possibly can, this game is a blast to play. The pace is fast, the action is intense, and the story is compelling. My favorite aspect of Half Life 2 is the remarkable physics engine, which arguably has the biggest hand in making Half Life 2's environments so realistic. Like I said before, pretty much any object in the game can be interacted with. You can pick things up, throw them around, shoot or maim them, whatever your heart desires...and the objects react to your tinkering just as they would in the real world. You can actually use the environment to gain an advantage over your enemies, knocking down things above them, for example. There are so many ways to accomplish goals in this game it's scary. The involvement of the player's surroundings is what makes Half Life 2 so special. It has truly set a new high bar. Just in the way ironclads made traditional wooden ships instantly obsolete, the level of involvement in Half Life 2's playing areas make anything less look primitive.

Now we move on to the weapons, which are central to a quality FPS experience. For Half Life 2 this is a mixed bag and one of the few areas in which I was disappointed. While the weapons that are there are fun to use, missing is incredible variety of the original game and its subsequent expansions. However, that shortcoming is somewhat made up for by the addition of the gravity gun. This handy and entertaining little device allows you to pick up and throw (very, very powerfully) most any object in the game. In fact, creative use of the gravity gun to manipulate the environment is strongly encouraged...especially if you want to stay alive. Other implements of destruction include a 9mm, assault rifle, pulse gun, shotgun, crossbow, rocket launcher, grenades, and of course Gordon's trademark crowbar. There is also one other little surprise that's more of a tool than a weapon, but I'll leave you to uncover its secret. It's kind of hard to explain and you'll have more fun with it if I don't ruin it for you.

Overall, Half Life 2 does very well in this crucial department. The game is incredibly fun to play, but the smaller arsenal kinda ticked me off. On some final notes, the control is silky smooth and uses the same format as the original game. No surprises there. Also, the A.I. is far more advanced for both the enemies and your squad mates, and they react to and use the environment as well. This was a much needed improvement; all of you who still have bad memories of those stupid (literally) and useless security guards from Gordon's first outing can relate.

Replay: 9/10 Note to Valve---Half Life 2 is a great game. That's why we want more of it! Reflecting on the original Half Life's impressive length, I can't help but feel ever so slightly disappointed in the sequel's. While the game is by no means short, it doesn't match it's predecessor by any stretch. However, the environments are far more diverse and each area is much larger, so this can be excused to a fair extent. Regardless, make no mistake: it just isn't as long as we were all hoping it would be. Perhaps adding to this problem is the reduced difficulty on the lower skill levels. The AI might be more advanced, but only with the higher difficulties does the game actually challenge you. On "easy", Half Life 2 takes perhaps 15 hours to beat (tops). Add a few more hours to that for the "hard" difficulty, which is where the real fun can be found. As long as you have some skill this isn't an issue, I'm just pointing out that there's no decent median difficulty. There's either "hard" or "too easy".

Sadly, Half Life 2 has no multiplayer mode of its own. Fortunately, the game comes with a new version of Counter Strike which takes advantage of the "Source" engine. Also, an amusing little side-scroller called "Operation: Gordon" is included as an added bonus. Imagine the original Half Life, but in 2-D. Sounds like a disaster waiting to happen, right? Actually, the game is surprisingly well done and dangerously addicting in its own right. These two AAA extras help Give Half Life 2's replay value a significant shot in the arm. The single player has more than enough to keep you engaged for a while, but it will get old, and thankfully CS & O:G will be standing ready to provide additional entertainment.

To wrap this section up I'd like to comment on Half Life 2's modding potential, which is sky high. I can guarantee that this game will produce so much in the way of free, quality online material you'd never be able to play it all. This is the one characteristic that will prevent Half Life 2 from ever truly getting old, much like the game it owes its existence to.

I guess I can keep my final comments short and sweet, as I feel I've done justice to Half Life 2's many strengths. This game lives up to it's hype to a substantial degree, though it isn't quite the revolution its predecessor represents. However, it does successfully take the FPS genre to the next level, and for that it deserves a great deal of credit. Half Life 2 is easily the best FPS this year, which is saying a lot considering the competition. It easily surpasses Halo 2, Doom 3, and even Far Cry with a grace and level of refinement seen only in true gaming masterpieces. A mere step away from perfection, Half Life 2 is a game you can't afford to miss...so strap on an HEV suit and prepare yourself for one hell of a ride.

Overall Score (an average): 9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/22/04