Half-Life 2
The most eagerly anticipated sequel ever? And then some, replies Sam in this preview.
So this is the biggie. The most anticipated PC sequel ever and the news is finally here. The rumours, guesses and plain old fantasies can now be laid to rest for we have some real solid information about how this game will redefine not just a genre but our concept of gaming in general. Forgive the hyperbole, but after reading the massive preview in the June issue of PC Zone I can honestly say that this appears to be one game that cannot be hyped enough.
Unfortunately I don’t have a team of lawyer’s working for me in the background, so I can’t let you see the nutty looking realism of the completely new graphics engine. There are sites out there with scans, which I recommend you track down rapido, but some of the pics in the Zone are new; the images of the emotional ranges on the faces of characters is stunning, looking damn close to those featured in Nvidia's Dawn demo. The lighting and textures look great, the models sturdy and lifelike and the environments detailed and atmospheric. Granted all this is from about 15 screenshots but they are mighty fine and according to the article itself the graphics are even more stellar when seen in motion.
Not much of the plot is given away in the preview, understandable as Valve has done such a great job keeping the world in the dark over this game’s development. We are told that the second instalment occurs some years after the first game, and will take place out of the Black Mesa compound, mostly being set in the north European setting of City 17. The events in Half-Life were just a taste of what the aliens had in store for Earth. The hordes of monsters that you slaughtered your way through over those many days of fevered excitement were just the scouting party. This time round it is a proper invasion, Reynolds-style.
Once again the player will reprise the role of that little ginger Gordon Freeman, and some of the NPCs from the last game will rejoin you in the adventure. I shudder to think how useless Barney will be unless he has spent the intervening years tied to a rowing machine, although Valve says that the NPCs will no longer be flummoxed by some crates forcing you to leave them behind. This time round all the character elements in the game will be totally mobile, meaning that baddies can follow you over gaps and up piles of crates, dogging you with their nasty AI till enough lead is pumped into their ugly alien hides. Variety will be well catered for with around 50 enemies to deal with, from old favourites like the head-crabs and zombies, to new baddies; the marines have been replaced by fully suited-up human agents of the alien invasion and the wow factor of the original’s big blue monsters has been replaced by a creature that looks like one of the massive striders from the War of the Worlds, which will be 90 feet tall in the game world. And is called a Strider, natch.
Comments
Why don't you get off you lazy asses and hurry up with it!
Hurry up
btw to see true half life in multiplayer check out pot5 (presiverance of triality 5)
http://www.tournamentgamer.com/
u can see me in the clan sd along with sum of the best clans out there, like lom. all matches can be viewed thru half life tv.
if half life 2 lives up ull see sum greats going to hl2 multi!
(ps i expected there to be an editor for posts but there isnt so my previous one isnt particurly well typed sorry)
I think u guys are missing the BIGGEST point. NO SCRIPTED SEQUENCES!
for all the morons going onabout counterstrike shut the heck up counterstrike was a mod developed by a person then bought by valve. without half life itself we wouldnt have half the first person shooter with any value to them and ud still be stuck on doom copies.
i speak for all those who play half life death match and we are sick of this counterstrike crap. we expect half life2 to be like the first and not screwed over and made towards counterstrike especially when cs isnt even valves direct creation.
a second cs based ont he new engine is a good idea but it was half lifes originality of game play not cs that made it HUGE.
umm no
'[b] even though Valve showed the game at ATI's booth at E3 it's not going to be exclusive to ATI - or Nvidia.,/b]'
think you got some facts mixed up
umm no
' even though Valve showed the game at ATI's booth at E3 it's not going to be exclusive to ATI - or Nvidia.'
think you got some facts mixed up
umm no
' even though Valve showed the game at ATI's booth at E3 it's not going to be exclusive to ATI - or Nvidia.'
think you got some facts mixed up
sorry about the tripple post, something weird was happening
LOOKS GOOD=)
The preview is more than a little popular - apologies for the slow load times as we try and keep the server up.
No worrys jason!! preview is awsome!! got any idea when we can expect new screens?
scans for screenshots? cheap cheap cheap.
You seen any that arn't scans? Errrrr... nope - thats because there arn't any.
Oh yeah, apart from the two that we have in there.
The graphics look nice, but I'll be looking for the gameplay of the original HL. Without it, HL2 will be the year's biggest disappointment.
Cant wait try this one out, half life remains on of the best games ive ever played. hope to hear soon about a counter strike 2 also with the new game engine.
This preview is nothing more then me ripping off the great article in the newest UK PC Zone. It is here for those of you like me who can't wait more then one unnecessary minute for their fix of game. It's also here for those who can't, or won't, buy print magazines. It's here for those of us who really loved Half-Life and have been looking forward to the sequel ever since we completed those jarringly crap xen levels. Five months to go folks.
This is not the most anticipated sequel ever.
So what is then?
This comment is for the negative replies...
The original HL was a total pleasure to play due to the time taken to apply clever programming with a great story.
It is so obvious the designers & coders were not hacks just out of school throwing code together where ever the fancy took them.
Sorry kids, it true, experience counts. But on a positve note, learn from HL2 as much as you can.
The fact the first HL was planned properly, HL2 will not be any less. Also, think about the time it has taken for the HL sequel to arrive in comparison to other sequels.
Great ideas, do not have time limits... I can't wait !
Excellent comment, well made.
This is not the most anticipated sequel everSo what is then?
Duke Nukem Forever ;-)
half life was boring, the only reason it was big was because of counter strike. without that it would be another old boring game. i aint arsed about half life 2 its counter strike 2 i care about.
LOL - without Half-Life there would be no Counterstrike!
Half-Life got game of the year, rave reviews and record scores in tens of publications before Counterstrike was even conceived!
What is? I've lost count. It'll not be too long before another publication or gaming web - site will comment about the next amazing game coming out stating, "The most eagerly anticipated sequel ever..." It's called hype my friends. That's not to say that Half life 2 isn't going to be great, we all know that it will be.
wait, so is this game going to be making an appearance on the x-box too? the article didn't make that clear.
OLD SCANS MY "FRIENDS".......................
http://www.ntfs.org/index.php?action=news&catid=3#news5171
Yeah, they must be a good 4-5 days old. Practicaly ancient for something that only came out of the NDA on the day this article was published.