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Great, but not Excellent

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: July 02, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I'm not here to give my review of Steam, which from the looks of things most of the reviewers here are rating (in lieu of the game itself). My only comment on that subject is this: I don't claim to be the most technologically adept computer user in the world, but I will say up-front that I have not had any problems with Steam. It does it's own thing, downloads patches and updates regularly, and pretty much keeps to itself. The only issue I've had with it to date is that when I open up the menu it is alarmingly too big for my display. However this probably has more to do with my screen settings rather than the program itself. Nuff' said.

Half-Life 2: Episode One picks up pretty much where HL2 ended. When we last saw the game's hero, Gordon Freeman, he had just been placed in stasis by the G-Man. Without giving away too much plot, at the beginning of E1 Gordon is unexpectedly rescued from his holding area and placed back into our world near the remains of the Citadel. After reuniting with Alyx and Dog the game has you re-enter the Citadel to turn off, or at least delay its self-destruct program. Here players are reunited with potentially the coolest weapon from HL2, the Super Gravity Gun. In truth I do love this super weapon of uber-arse kicking, but much like the first game there are times I'd rather have had a good old-fashioned sidearm in my hand.

The plot then carries the two forward, or rather *under* City 17 into long-forgotten passages. Here players can access flares, a new addition to the game. These are short-lived items though and are almost all universally put in places that don't warrant retrieving them in the first place, ie; flares kept in a room swarming with Zombies, etc. As such you'll rely heavily on your in-built flashlight to navigate most of the first half of the game. Also of note are the addition of "Zombines", zombified Combine troops who have LOTS of hitpoints and a suicidal grenade attack. Others have mentioned that this middle part of the game felt akin to Doom 3, and that's probably as accurate an assessment as you can get. The settings are claustrophobic and cramped and paranoia abounds.

Once you break out onto the surface you largely return to the standard gameplay of HL2 with no noticeable changes, save for some minor plot developments. For instance Dr. Kleiner is now broadcasting on the citywide TV displays pushing for people to start madly procreating while they have the chance. The Citadel countdown was only delayed and before its self-destruction it will transmit a signal to the main forces of the Combine the goings-on here on Earth, promising retribution in the near-future.

I can understand a lot of people's frustration with the game. The plot moves forward perceptibly but not a whole lot. This expansion doesn't really answer any big questions from the earlier HL installments, nor does it really delve into why or how the G-Man lost control of Gordon in the first place (he only has one appearance in the game, and that at the opening sequence). There aren't any new weapons, per se, rather than the player getting to use the well-liked Super Gravity Gun at the beginning of the game. The player doesn't get access to drivable vehicles like the swamp hovercraft or the dune buggy like in HL2 (which I considered to be some of the greatest additions to that game). This feels like a aesthetically pleasing add-on to a great game, with no particular plusses for itself, other than it carries the plot forward a few inches. I suspect that this game is likely meant to be "filler" for E2, when the new gaming dynamics are introduced.

My big questions still as of yet unanswered include:

Where is the G-Man?
How are the Vortigaunts suddenly so powerful?
Did Dog survive?
Will there be player-usable vehicles in E2?
Can we expect Corporal Shepherd (from HL1: Opposing Force) to make some appearance as he's still under the control of the G-Man?
Where is TFC2? (rhetorical vapor-ware related question ;D)

Solid game with the same great gameplay, just not enough of it to warrant 5 stars. I'm still looking forward to E2 to answer these many questions and more!

An expansion but nothing new

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: July 09, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Taking a cue from George Lucas's brand of storytelling, where we began with Episode IV and ended with Episode III, Valve brings us a sequel to Half-Life 2, Episode One. Whatever.

I've never liked Steam's activation strategy, but it seems that's the trend going on with software; keep us paying and make sure we're not cheatin'. And woe on us if the company folds and the software suddenly becomes useless.

The game doesn't really expand on much; I got the feeling it was a tacked on idea to just keep the story going. It doesn't (fortunately) ask many new questions, but leaves the old ones alone. Who? What? Why? Oh, just shoot something and get over it.

Some of the action spots, like running around blocking antlion boreholes with cars, were more annoying than exciting. A few were pretty intense, in particular one trying to shoot down a gunship from inside a building while it blasts the building away around you.

Alyx is with you the entire game, but she seemed a commentator/facilitator than story element. The other characters barely appear at all. That to me was a big disappointment, as one of the appeals to Half Life 2 was seeing the rudimentary characters of the first game fleshed out as seemingly real people.

There also a long sequence running around in the dark with a flashlight shooting at things, similar to Doom III, which I loathed. The game's rendering engine uses high dynamic range blooms and flare, while while pretty aren't particularly realistic, and the textures have taken a step backwards on quality.

Overall I'm not too sure if I like this game; it was more of Half Life 2, but too much like a quickie movie sequel. It doesn't spoil anything to say the entire plot is getting out of City 17 before the Citadel explodes.....again.

I accepted this game would be short, being at most 1/3 of the final game. This is Valve's acknowledgement that development cycles have gotten so long that it's better to release chunks of it rather than wait six years for another game. However, it was more like a chapter than a part of a game. Decide for yourself.

Short, but Sweet!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: August 14, 2006
Author: Amazon User

As we have all heard, yes this game is short, but I found quality outshined quantity in this case. The level design is as impeccable as HL2 was. There is no doubt if you enjoyed HL2, Episode 1 will be a worthwhile experience for you. Don't hesitate; pick it up!

p.s. Episode 1 download via Steam (over DSL 1.5mb line) took almost 1 hour.

Good Game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: May 24, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Half-Life Episode One had its good, and its bad points. For a fairly short sequel, it had several amazing fight sequences, and a interesting audio commentary. Ever wondered how they came up with something in the game? Turn on the audio commentary and you can find out. As a college student interested in making video games, I really loved hearing what they had to say.

The game did, however, have some parts that were rather annoying. One of them was the amazing teleporting head crab zombies. I say they teleport, as how else could they miraculously appear the instant you turn off your flashlight. As in click off light, click on light, one is there. My best friend and I had great fun searching rooms to attempt to figure out how the zombies could reasonably appear the way they were, but could never find a good explanation.

Another downer is the download time. Even if you are installing from disk, you still have to wait while it downloads the other half of the game from Steam. Once it is installed however, I had no troubles running it. Plus, Steam automatically downloads all the updates as they come out, a fact I found useful as I always forget to check for updates on my own.

Other than the zombies and the download time, I absolutely loved the game. Kleiner's video appearances were always worth a chuckle and a half, and the final escort mission was pretty awesome with all the possible ways you had to annihilate the combine attackers. I would definitely recommend this game if you are a fan of Half-Life or first person shooters.

We'll see...about THAT.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: May 27, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Just where does the G-Man get off? After dropping you--Gordon Freeman, scientist-turned-soldier--into the decayed, oppressive metropolis of a Combine-controlled City 17, letting you slug your way through it and its environs for a week, coming face-to-face with Dr. Breen, the Combine's public face, and breaking the stranglehold they had on Earth's remaining population...he comes along and rips you out of time and space to be "preserved" once again, leaving Alyx Vance--your best ally, a young woman who's both easy on the eyes and tough as nails--at ground zero of a massive explosion at the tip of the Citadel.

Not a word of thanks, no congratulations, no empathy toward Alyx, nothing. You've done your job, now get back in your cage until I need you again. Where does he get off?

Well, I'll tell you: Less than a minute after EPISODE 1 begins. And you have the Vortigaunts to thank for not only that, but for your unexpected freedom from the G-Man's clutches, and for also saving Alyx's lovely hide as well.

In fact, if you like Alyx (and who wouldn't? I'd rather have the pleasure of her company than that of Lara Croft and her Amazing Flotation Devices any day), then this is the game for you. Aside from a few brief separations, she's by your side throughout this game, and believe me, you'll be glad to have her. She's a crack shot with that machine pistol of hers, and I swear, it never runs out of ammo. With her EMP device, she can hack into Combine locks and computers where you can't. She's not constantly underfoot like the Rebels were in HALF-LIFE 2. She'll even make the occasional bad joke to break up the tension.

And believe me, there's plenty of that. While this isn't a long game, 5 chapters, 4 to 6 hours at the most, Valve didn't skimp on the action or the atmosphere. From the rapidly-disintegrating Citadel to the forgotten underground to the streets of City 17, you'll find that while the Combine lost a major battle against Humanity, they're not giving up the war. Far from it; you and Alyx find something at the Citadel that MUST reach the Resistance, and the Combine want to make sure that doesn't happen. Nearly the full might of the Overwatch is gunning for the two of you, so expect some intense combat.

The Combine isn't your only worry, unfortunately. You also have to deal with the wildlife, such as Antlions. Yeah, they're your enemies again, since you don't have access to the Pheropods you used in Nova Prospekt. They also spawn endlessly from pits you'll come across, but a little ingenuity will solve that problem.

And there's a new type of Zombie in town, the result of what happens when a Headcrab latches on to an Overwatch Soldier--the Combine Zombie (or "Zombine," as Alyx puts it). How's it stack up to the other versions? He's a little faster than the Regular Zombie, but not as quick as the Fast Zombie. He's tougher than the Regular, but not as tough as the Poison Zombie. And he also has this annoying habit of whipping out a grenade, pulling the pin, and coming straight at you. Nothing ruins your day quite like a face full of exploding undead.

That's also the only new thing you'll find in this game, compared to the original. There are no other new enemies, no new weapons, just a few more inventive uses for what you're already familiar with. But I don't mind; this world and its story are so compelling that it's all good. Besides, the new lighting effects Valve cooked up for this one more than make up for it.

And once again, it ends on a cliffhanger. I don't mind that either. If Valve had done this kind of episodic content with HL2, then the first part of that game would've ended with you entering Ravenholm, and we all know what a fun place THAT was, don't we?

Now, after a lot (and I mean a LOT) of delays, we may be getting the continuation, EPISODE 2, this October. Between the new environments, the ratcheting action and suspense, and this new PORTAL game that's included with it, it'll be worth the wait. We may even finally be getting some answers to questions that've plagued us all since 1998. Such as:

Why did the Vortigaunts save Alyx and yourself? What is the Combine, and what's in the parcel you retrieved that's so important to them? What's this "Project" Dr. Mossman mentioned in her message? Who are the G-Man's "employers?" For that matter...what is the G-Man? Is he even a human being?

We'll see about that.

A Real Winner of an FPS!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: February 06, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Oh wow. This game is one of the best games of '06, maybe one of the best games ever made. I'll admit it, I actually didn't play Half Life 2, a fact which I wish to remedy before too long, but you really don't need to have played that game, to love this one! I did play the original Half Life, and enjoyed it quite a bit, mostly for it's intense game play, and downright frightening scenarios. This game is better. The puzzles are great, the action high, the characters wonderful, the graphics stunning, and the tension VERY thick.

PS
Steam is not too bad with a high speed connection. It took me one night of dowloading for gameplay the next morning. Also make sure your computer has a lot of disk space and a good processor.

Steam me up, Alyx!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: February 13, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This is a fine continuation of the Half-Life series. The effects are nice and the puzzles keep the monotony at bay. About the time you've figured out a certain enemy type, they'll throw in something new and different. The AI is much more advanced in this game although the enemies still get stuck in one geographic location. Although in some levels, enemies can spawn ahead of you as well as in an area you've cleared behind you. Keep your eyes and ears peeled!

The graphics are sharp and the dialog is smart enough for me. They even throw in a humorous quip here and there. There was one or two "boss battles" that were more annoying than thrilling. (Thank goodness the reload time is pretty short in those instances.)

While the game is shorter than average, it is not nearly as short as some here have claimed. If you play this in 1 to 4 hours then you're still learning to tell time, cheating, or just kidding yourself. It's just not that short. (Running time for me was probably in the 8 hour range. Playing at medium difficulty and not using a walk-through or any cheats. On the good side, I wasn't completely sick of it by the time it was over. That is not always the case.

Steam gave me no problems at all and it played fine right out of the box. I'm running a GeForce 7800 and it worked swell.

Have fun!

Great new content, but Steam platform is a nightmare

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: February 22, 2007
Author: Amazon User

The game is visually stunning and quite fun to play (although I agree with others who have said that your 'companion' in the game tends to like to get in the way of your bullets...). The big problem here is the same as for HL2: the Steam engine. Steam is a hugely problematic game platform that constantly crashes. I've never, NEVER gotten Steam to start on its own w/o crashing. I can launch the game through the HL2 shortcut but Steam still tends to crash 80% of the time, taking the game with it. The game itself is a pain in the a** to set up also. I have a 1 yr old, top of the line Dell XPS. Half Life 2 and HL2-E1 both required literally over an hour of fiddling with the settings to get it to perform w/o crashing. My recommendation: even if you think your machine can handle settings higher than the 'recommended', keep them at the recommended levels or you will crash. Even bumping the screen resolution to match my desktop or bumping the ansiotropic filtering by one level causes the game to go haywire and crashing with endless looping sound effects that require a hard reboot of the computer. Once you've got the setting set up, you're good to go and there shouldn't be any more problems (other than with Steam crashing).

As good as Half Life 2, if not better

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: April 23, 2007
Author: Amazon User

If you didn't like Half Life 2, don't bother with Episode One. If you don't like the Steam system, don't bother with Episode One.

Now that that's out of the way, this expansion is amazing. The Source engine is improved, and looks even better. I'm sure you can tell from the other reviews that, yes, it is short. I'm an experienced FPS player and it only took me about 2.5 to 3 hours to complete on hard, but it can be done much faster than that.

Basically, there's not much to say. If you liked Half Life 2, get it and play it. It's a cheap game and well worth the money.

Enemic

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 6
Date: June 07, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This is just an extension of the first HL2, not an expansion. In an expansion there is usually new features or capabilites. There is nothing new that I could see, just more of the same. The puzzles are not particularly clever. I played it on the "hard" setting just to make it challenging and it was still too easy in the end.
When I played the original HL2, I was riveted to the thing, but since this was just more of the same, I was not eager to get back to it in between play.

Save your money

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