"Far from perfect, but not that far"

When Half Life 2 was released for the PC awhile back, it was big news. Not only was it the long awaited sequel to one of the most ground-breaking modern PC games; it was also a technical marvel, absolutely cutting edge in terms of physics, AI, and graphics. So much so in fact, that many people could not even play the game properly without upgrading their computers; hearing this call Valve developed the Xbox port. While it is clearly watered down from the PC version, it does a respectable job of delivering the Half Life 2 experience to players who might have otherwise had to go without.

Half Life 2 is a game that is driven in no small part by it's technical accomplishments, so it is only fitting that those issues be addressed first for this review.

In terms of graphics, the Xbox version is certainly not as good looking as it's PC counterpart. While most of the best graphical features have been retained (the lighting, water effects, the incredible facial animation, etc), anything that was not of critical importance to the game as a whole was all but completely stripped out to save system resources.

For example, in the PC version of Half Life 2 you could actually read what was on the monitors of computers that you found laying around. In the Xbox version however, the texture quality for these images has been dropped so low that you can just barely make out separate windows on the screen. The same is true for the textures on the various vehicles you will drive during the game. Valve decided that since you would see the outside of them so infrequently, it was not worth the system resources it would have taken to render them at the same quality of the rest of the game.

These are of course minor concerns, and in the grand scheme of things the decision is sound. Rather than bringing the framerate down, the developers sacrificed aspects of the environment that you might never have even looked at normally.

However, that is not to say the game does not have significant graphical flair. The effects and textures considered important enough to focus most of the Xbox's power to rendering look very nice. Character models are generally well done, and most of environmental and weapon graphics are crisp. This game looks especially impressive in 480p, it's really the best way to experience this game if your television is capable of it. Overall it is easily one of the best looking FPS on the Xbox, even with it's omissions.

Another important aspect of Half Life 2 is it's audio, which thankfully is fully preserved in the Xbox port. The music and sound effects are really quite amazing, everything from the radio communication of the enemy units to the sound of distant running water is simply wonderful. The detail in which the range and direction of sound is portrayed is something you need to experience to appreciate. You can actually locate items or people by listening to the direction and amplitude of sounds coming from your speakers. Much like how this game should be played in 480p to appreciate the graphics; you should also try to play this on the best possible sound system, ideally with surround sound.

There are a few disappointing technical aspects of the Xbox version of Half Life 2 however. Most noticeably is the complete lack of any multiplayer capability. I imagine the decision to leave out multiplayer was due to concerns over performance (the game is clearly laboring at times in the single player game), but it is still a big letdown. Even if it had meant dropping the texture quality and visual effects even lower in the multiplayer mode to maintain the framerate, I believe it still would have been worth it.

Another issue, though insignificant in comparison, is the occasional slowdown. During normal gameplay it isn't too much of a problem, but for whatever reason the game drops down to 2 or 3 FPS after it has finished loading a level segment. However, the developers were wise enough to never put any enemies directly after areas in which the game loads, so you will never actually have to do anything during these phases of slowdown; you just need to wait a few seconds for it to stabilize.

Speaking of loading, you will be doing it, a lot. The first time you play the game it will install a considerable amount of data to your Xbox's hard drive (if the length of the operation is any indication, at least) which is to minimize reading data directly from the DVD. Even so, there are multiple load screens during any given campaign mission which generally last up to 30 seconds. There is no clear indication as to where these loading screens will pop up, and it is very common to simply be walking down a hallway and suddenly be presented with a “Loading...” progress bar.

Finally, but perhaps most infuriatingly, is the AI used in your own allies. While the enemy AI is sound, the various individuals that “help” you are complete idiots. More often then not they will just stand in front of you, blocking your progress down a tight corridor while repeating annoying phrases like “You should reload Dr. Freeman!”. I was actually killed many times thanks to these fools, when I was unable to retreat back into the alley or door I just entered through due to the fact that 5 brain-dead NPCs were standing in a line behind me doing absolutely nothing. I found it was much better for my overall survival rate to purposely leave my allies behind, or lead them into an area where I know they would all be killed. Sadly you cannot kill them yourself.

As for the rest of the game, I have no serious complaints. Controls are fine, the gameplay and environment variety is outstanding, and overall it is very immersive and engrossing.

That said however, I have absolutely no idea what the game was actually about. The story made no sense to me at all, and I was perpetually clueless as to where I was, where I was going, and why I was going there in the first place. In all honestly, even as I write this review, I don't know who the enemy I was fighting was or why I was fighting them to begin with.

Overall, Half Life 2 does a decent job of bringing the PC masterpiece to Xbox owners. While some technical corners needed to be cut, it could have been much much worse; the final product is at the very least on par with the best looking and sounding Xbox-original titles. The lack of multiplayer however is a real low-blow, and does remove almost all of the game's replay value. Regardless, if you are looking for an incredibly immersive single player shooter, you could do no wrong in picking this one up.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 12/13/06