MobyRank MobyScore
Windows
94
4.1
Xbox
87
2.4

Description

Half-Life 2 is an FPS game where you once again play as Gordon Freeman, the MIT graduate from the first game. You awaken a number of years after the original game on a train to City 17, an Eastern European city which is reminiscent of the World War II ghettos. And the people kept in City 17 are the remains of humanity, left at the will of the Combine, a mysterious alien group who retains totalitarian control of Earth.

You are soon brought into a resistance group, and make an attempt to bring down the Combine and liberate Earth. Why you? You saved it the last time. Or did you?

The player guides Gordon through the City 17 and the wilderness that surrounds it. On his way, he'll encounter a lot of friendly characters, but also fight dangerous foes and solve puzzles to progress. As Half-Life 2 features a realistic physics system, Gordon can pick up objects and toss them freely, and many of the puzzles are physics-based - for example, at one point the player has to weigh down a seesaw with bricks at one end to turn it into a ramp.

Gordon's enemies, apart from alien wildlife which found its way to Earth, are mainly Combine forces, which utilize a variety of firearms, gadgets and vehicles. Policemen and foot soldiers work along with helicopters, gunships and gigantic walking machines to hunt you down. To defend himself, Gordon has a range of weapons available: from the iconic crowbar for close-quarter fighting, through pistols and rifles, up to grenades and a rocket launcher. Most notable weapon is the "gravity gun", with which one can pick up objects, hold them in the gun's antigravity field, then hurl them at the enemy with great force.

Also with Half-Life 2 is Counter-Strike: Source, a version of Counter-Strike made with the new Source engine which powers Half-Life 2, and Half-Life 2: Deathmatch, an online multiplayer game featuring the same physics and weapons as the single player game.

Alternate Titles

  • "戰慄時空2" -- Chinese title (traditional)
  • "半条命2" -- Chinese title (simplified)
  • "HL2" -- Abbreviated title
  • "Bantiao Ming 2" -- Chinese title
  • "하프라이프 2" -- Korean title

Part of the Following Groups


Merchant Title Platform    
Amazon
Electronic Arts 101276 Half Life 2 Xbox    
ebay.com
Half-Life 2    
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User Reviews

Incredible Movie-like Gameplay well worth overlooking the flaws. Windows Dwango (292)
Super-Gordon vs Dr Breen Windows Lumpi (143)
Fun, and innovative on a small scale, but not the "greatest game of all time" as some would have you believe. Windows Tibes80 (1498)
Who needs a serious relationship if you can have a great one-night-stand? Windows Unicorn B. Lynx Bronze Star Contributing Member (60141)
Not just a game, an experience Windows Matt Neuteboom (941)
A thoroughly immersive, plot-centric game (no spoilers). Windows null-geodesic Bronze Star Contributing Member (228)
Outrageously overrated Windows Sebastian Cardoso (40)
Light and fun FPS game Windows Melody (119)
Great Graphics, Great levels, but Dated Play Windows Santa Bronze Star Contributing Member (847)
"The Right Person In The Wrong Place Can Make All The Difference" Windows MasterMegid (858)

The Press Says

TotalVideoGames (TVG) Windows Nov 23, 2004 10 out of 10 100
Game Chronicles Windows Jan 14, 2005 9.9 out of 10 99
GameBump/Gaming Horizon Windows Mar 30, 2005 9.8 out of 10 98
Voodoo Extreme (VE3D) Windows Nov 21, 2004 9.5 out of 10 95
Wham! gaming Windows Nov 21, 2004 9.4 out of 10 94
Fragland.net Windows Dec 03, 2004 94 out of 100 94
4Players.de Windows Nov 19, 2004 93 out of 100 93
Gamereactor (Sweden) Xbox Nov 30, 2005 9 out of 10 90
Game Critics Windows Dec 29, 2004 9 out of 10 90
JustPressPlay Windows Jul 07, 2005 8 out of 10 80

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Trivia

Almost all the characters in Half-Life 2 are modelled after a real person's appearance.

Valve Software's Chief Operating Officer, lent his face to the game for use in-game as Barney Calhoun.

Alyx Vance is modelled after American actress and television host Jamil Giovanni Mullen.

Eli Vance's is based on Larry "The Count" Heard, a local man holding a sign indicating that he was looking for work. Valve found him on the corner of Highway 520 and 148th Avenue in Redmond and hired him as a model.

The G-Man's Half-Life 2 model is based on Frank Sheldon, an Alexander Technique practitioner. He was originally slated to be the model for Dr. Breen.




This entry was contributed by DarkDante Bronze Star Contributing Member (3731) and Zack Green (1024)
 

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