Half-Life 2: Episode 2 is awesome
This game is so much fun.
Started it after class yesterday at 2:30pm and finished it at about 11:30pm. I did some math homework and ate in there too, so I’m not sure how many hours the actual game took me. It felt longer than Episode 1, though.
Valve has definitely improved at making a game that is consistently fun throughout. While playing Half-Life 2, I at times found myself hoping that the current scene would end and go onto something more interesting. Not to knock HL2, but it definitely had its high- and low-points with regard to fun.
Halo’s developers try to build on the “30 seconds of fun” mentality. Episode 2 is this mentality drawn out for 5 hours.
I remember clearly, when fending off the onslaught of antlions in the mines, the music kicking in and thinking to myself “This is so much fun!” Even with Bioshock or all the other Half-Lifes, I don’t think I’ve had that kind of unadulterated realization of how much fun the gameplay was.
Speaking of the music, the score was an improvement upon those of the previous Half-Lifes. In the previous games (mostly HL1), the electronic breakbeats at times felt a tad out of place and cheesy. In Episode 2, the tracks seemed to blend with the gameplay better. The tracks themselves seemed cooler too. Jungle beats rock for blowing shit up.
On the technical side, the new lighting effects make your flashlight seem very realistic, especially in dark rooms. The blending of your flashlight’s beam make dark scenes feel edgy and suspenseful. In one part, you walk into a room littered with dead soldiers, the lights shut off and when you turn on your flashlight there’s like 4 zombies coming at you. Very Doom-esque, but so awesome.
If you have $50 lying around, I highly suggest investing in the Orange Box. Team Fortress 2 and Portal rock too.