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September 5, 2003 - Half-Life 2 is preparing to take over.....
The year 2004 can be interpreted many different ways. Some may look at it
as just next year. Optimistic types believe that it's a chance to begin anew, a wondrous cycle of rebirth.
Pessimists rant that it's just one year closer to an innevitable Armageddon. Gamers, however, have 2004 penned
down as the year of soiled pants.
Why the bounty of crapped pants? Unless you care absolutely nothing about video games in general,
2004 will feature the almost-certain releases of DOOM III, Halo 2, and Half-Life 2. The chances of those 3 games grossing
over $1 billion dollars worldwide seem almost laughably reachable. While most of the general populace has seen a few
screens of the tight-lipped DOOM III game and either the 2 or 8 minute Halo 2 demo, I can bet that unless you have an ultra-fast
DSL or satellite connection, you probably have no info at all on Half-Life 2.
Fortunately for you, I have witnessed the videos of this game, and all the footage I have seen is almost
enough for me to declare Half-Life 2 as the game of the year. This game is so amazing, so graphically superior, so visually
exhilirating, that you don't even need to know anything about the first game or any of the story in general. It's THAT
good.
First off, Half-Life 2's in-game physics mean that the game's environment is useable.
In moments of panic and no weapons, you can pull letters of buildings (or letters off of signs) and throw them in despair.
If you move too close to a loaded table, chances are you'll hear and see something get knocked to the ground and break.
Shoot a stone pillar and see dust; shoot marble and see it crumble and shatter; shoot wood and see splinters and shavings
fall. Push a metal keg into water and watch it instantly sink. Toss a mattress into water, and watch it slowly
start to absorb, float awhile, then sink to the bottom. Look down into the water, and see your own reflection, obscured
by the rippling, ebbing, flowing water.
That's just the environment around you. Even more amazing is that Half-Life 2 has the most innovative
character design around. The improvements on the characters are so advanced from the first game, you can barely recognize
them. The faces can move and express almost any emotion flawlessly, and the lip-synching is perfect. At one point in the video, I almost lost touch with reality....the characters are so damn REAL looking. Thier
eyes follow you around the room, and they react to your every move. Do something rash, and they'll look at you uneasily
and ask what's wrong with you. Also, the AI is so real, I doubt many future games will be able to improve on it in years
to come.
I could go on and on about this game if I had enough energy, but it would be even better if you go check
out IGN.com's info on Half-Life 2 for a more complete look. As for the video's, you might have some luck finding them
on Kazaa, but I won't promise anything. If you can somehow play movies that end in .avi , create an account at www.fileshack.com. You can download patches and movies for almost any game. Expect Half-Life 2 in early 2004 for the Xbox console,
as well as it's original venue, the PC. Until then, start saving up!
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| Let it sink it...EVERYTHING in that room can be moved, fixed, broken, dropped, and/or used. |
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| Thought the enemies in the first Half-Life were scary? Think again. |
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| Half-Life 2 meets War of the Worlds. Could this game get any cooler?!? |
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| The physics are so good, the water in the game is more fluid and realistic than REAL water. |
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| Don't worry guys...it's only a video game.... |
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