Forum Overview :: Gamerasutra

HL2 still holds up today. by blackwater 11/27/2015, 3:19am PST Half-Life 2 was amazing in 2004. The engine was much more powerful than anything I had seen on the market at that time. The way characters moved, plus their faces, looked much more natural than anything that had come before. The 3D physics stuff added to the sense of being part of a real world. It had a great atmosphere. I still remember all the run-down apartments and creepy totalitarian propaganda on the walls. You don't need 15-page info-dumps like in Doom3 when you can just let people look around and see for themselves. Show, don't tell. It's a lesson many games today could stand to learn. I liked the way HL2 combined physics puzzles and action. When I got tired of one, I felt ready for the other. The physics puzzles felt fresh... that powerful engine made a lot of things work well that just had not worked well in games before as far as physics goes. Yes, it was very linear. But nearly all highly plot-driven 3D games are, then and now. I think the requirements of the puzzle-based sections probably added to the feeling of being on rails. There were a lot of sections where if you could just walk back and get some extra barrels or something, the solution would be trivial and not fun. Also, if you constantly had to worry about possibly needing something from another section, that would be annoying. Linear isn't a synonym for bad. It just means the game designer made a choice. If you want a sandbox game or a mission-based game, go play that.

2004 sucked for games, apparently. by Mysterious Stranger 11/24/2015, 11:36am PST     Half of those were good to great NT by fabio 11/24/2015, 12:35pm PST         Shouldn't it hit more than 50%? NT by Mysterious Stranger 11/24/2015, 12:57pm PST             No, it's idiots clapping for stupid shit by Ice Cream Jonsey 11/24/2015, 1:00pm PST         My amazing opinions: by laudablepuss 11/24/2015, 4:19pm PST             UT 2k4 was not as good as UT by Entropy Stew 11/24/2015, 4:48pm PST     You can make any year look crap, if you only pick games that sold a million. by Dream Cast 11/24/2015, 1:44pm PST     Redditors don't like HL2 because it's old and they're not by Vested Id 11/24/2015, 5:24pm PST         Re: Redditors don't like HL2 because it's old and they're not by laudablepuss 11/25/2015, 7:03pm PST             The only thing Doom 3 did right was the seamless computer interface by Entropy Stew 11/25/2015, 9:34pm PST                 You suck. NT by Oom Shnibble 11/25/2015, 11:46pm PST                     Doom 3 was horrid by fabio 11/26/2015, 12:30am PST                     Monster closets: the pinnacle of game design by Entropy Stew 11/26/2015, 2:17am PST                         Re: Monster closets: the pinnacle of game design NT by Oom Shnibble 11/27/2015, 1:10am PST         I can tell you exactly the moment Half-Life 2 lost me. by Commander Tansin A. Darcos 11/26/2015, 12:31am PST             *Beep Beep Beep Beep Beep* by ATOR Detector 11/30/2015, 8:45am PST         HL2 still holds up today. by blackwater 11/27/2015, 3:19am PST     Great year. Something for everyone. by Oom Shnibble 11/24/2015, 9:50pm PST         Re: Great year. Something for everyone. by Ice Cream Jonsey 11/25/2015, 9:39am PST             Re: Great year. Something for everyone. by Oom Shnibble 11/25/2015, 11:27am PST                 While I am at it... by Oom Shnibble 11/25/2015, 11:29am PST                     Darklands! by Ice Cream Jonsey 11/25/2015, 1:48pm PST                         Who else jerked it to the Darklands cover chick back in the day? NT by be honest 11/26/2015, 7:07pm PST                 Re: Great year. Something for everyone. by Ice Cream Jonsey 11/25/2015, 1:43pm PST                     Marble Madness needs to be in there by Entropy Stew 11/25/2015, 6:03pm PST             KotOR 2 was legendary for being rushed and unfinished NT by fabio 11/25/2015, 4:11pm PST     Re: 2004 sucked for games, apparently. by CattleHumper 11/25/2015, 7:52am PST