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I didn't get "Steamed", here's how to save yourself.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 6
Date: June 16, 2006
Author: Amazon User

By the way, to start, it's an amazing game. I've seen a lot of reviews about Steam and it's entirely unfair. Steam is a pertty darn good distrobution system if you know how to use it. Basically, all you need is the CD key in the box. Download Steam from Steampowered.com (click "Get Steam Now") and install it. Next, create an account, then when you're in the Steam menu, go to Games->Activate a product on Steam. It'll download the game, no decryption, just, when it's about 70 percent done, you can play. Have fun.

*Note: Same applys for people with Half-Life 2 and/or other Steam games, just start from the steam menu.

Short but not sweet

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 3 / 12
Date: July 03, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Sadly this expasion makes no improvements from its predicessor. We still have the same beautiful engine and non exsistant story line. When you get to the end you'll find yourself saying, "thats it?".

This combined with the crapy steam protection system, makes the game easy to over look. Spend your money on a game worthy of your 20 dollars because this aint it.

Episode games in general

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 7
Date: June 06, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Graphics are again amazing. Physics are again topnotch. NEw touches to the gameplay are great (ie: health and ammo in the crosshair and the new touches to the facial exspressions). Alyx is done very well although she can get in the way and is almost to good at killing badies.
The puzzels and gameplay got just slightly tedious and repetative.
And i must note a general problem I have with all Episodic games (this is Steams second); it's a little hard to enjoy such a great game because every corner you turn you think "this could be the end". because the ending is so sudden with no conclusion the anticipation for the end, and ultimatly the dissapointment, is a bit frustrating.

Same thing as part 1

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 8
Date: June 08, 2006
Author: Amazon User

You'll enjoy this game if you liked HL2. I particularly enjoy games like FEAR more and found HL2 repetitive and required too much jumping around.

Some annoying things:
A fourth of the game you are limited to using the gravity gun, which is the one weapon I can't stand.

Many of the areas are tomb raider style and require you to jump to the correct places. Uh, I'm not playing New Super Mario Bros!

No vehicles in this game to ride in (maybe not a bad thing).

Enemies were limited and the Ai isn't too good. Wait in a doorway and they all coming flying thru it one by one and I played expert mode.

Story is nonexistent (not exaggerating).

Level design is poor. The runway obstacle course at the very last part of the game is laughable at best.

Oh, perhaps the most annoying thing is half the game is in complete darkness, meaning you can't see anything unless your flashlight is on. And the batties of the flashlight as we all remember only last several seconds.

I personally get a major headache after I play for more than an hour and i've played a lot of games. This is the only game that literally gives me vertigo after I play. Even Prey didn't.

SO, if you liked HL2 than you'll like this just as much since it's practically the same game.

Finished in 4 hours...

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: June 20, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Pros: Nice models and graphics (love the fire), Smooth game, Love DOG, good story, fun to play not to hard and not to easy.

Cons: TOO SHORT for the money (I felt cheated), hated the ending, first hour is just walking around with the gavity gun (boring...), 60% is cut scenes, same characters, same weapons, nothing new nothing fresh, WHAT HAPPENED TO DOG IN THE END?????

This game just felt too short for the cost of the game. I bought it saturday night to play on fathers day, and I finished it before fathers day arrived. :(

Utterly Brilliant Game Design

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: July 02, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Graphics are the same as Half-Life 2. Sound effects, same. Characters, same. Weapons, enemies, etc. same. Even some of the locales are the same in some ways.

But this isn't Half-Life 2. That game had you going through long segments of chopped action spiced with a few set-piece sequences here or there. Consider Episode 1 to be the game that takes all those awesome set-pieces for action, multiplies them by ten, and puts them one after the other.

The game is intense from the get-go. The lulls in action are incredibly short, namely to give oneself a breather and not get too battle fatigued from all the action.

It here that I must applaud Valve for coming with some unique, riveting, balls-out action scenes. From fighting off nearly endless hordes of zombies -- the only way to see them being with your flashlight -- to taking on a gunship -- which centers inside a barn of sorts which, to be blunt, is totally torn apart during the battle -- to sequences that don't even have you fighting at all, yet you're still there glued to your seat, grimacing and even laughing from what is unfolding ahead.

There can only be on knock against this game, and that is the length. But for $20, four to six hours (plus replays) is satisfactory. In fact, sided up with full-length games who clock in around only eight to twelve hours (for most FPS's; some going to 15), it isn't such a bad deal.

Ultimately, this game has all the beauty and engaging enviroments of Half-Life 2, but with the action turned up twenty notches.

Episodic content proves gamer worthy!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: July 09, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I must admit I was skeptical of the episodic idea at first, but then I got a chance to really play Episode One. Valve did an amazing job of packing a lot of action into a relatively short time span. The game proved to be challenging and at the same time amazingly fun. Having Alyx at your side the majority of the adventure actually improved the gameplay; at first I thought she would just get in the way and be a major pain, but she proved to be able and not a glory hog. Overall this game is an amazing addition to the Half-Life story, and I can't wait for Episode Two.

The only people that won't like this game are jealous console geeks

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: August 05, 2006
Author: Amazon User

After reading some of the negative reviews of this game, I have made an observation. Console gamers hate Halflife. Every bad review compares HL2 to some console game and says that Steam is Big Brother. I have to assume it's due to jealousy. PC gamers have been playing "Next Gen" games for a few years now. This garbage they pass off as gaming on the consoles is boring. Halo is so, so repetitive, and its online experience leaves alot to be desired. The most enjoyable games are first person shooters, and a PC cannot be beat in that catagory, simply from a control standpoint. Graphicwise PCs will always be better. HL2 Epi One is yet another amazing leap. Not really with the engine itself, as with Valves ability to take the same basic core of characters and make something completly new. I highly recommend Episode One. It's going to be interesting where Valve takes us in Episode 2.

Games now come in pieces

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: August 11, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I'm going to start with why this game did not score higher with me. Content. This game offers very little in terms of a storyline, picking up where you left off in Halflife 2, and taking you about a half step into a new story. I assumed when I picked this up that it was an expansion styled sequel. Not reinventing the wheel, but with some interesting new plot developments, or answers to questions from it's precursor. Well, this game offered neither, and really just moves you far enough along that you're ready for episode 2, out in the future.

I hope this trend dies out fast, because I really don't like the idea of a game that is designed like a television series. Don't get me wrong, multi-game plots aren't the end of the world, but each installment should have a subplot of it's own, to give a sense of completion (see the .hack series).

Now, if all you want is a shooter set in the Halflife world, this game is great. Everything you loved about Halflife 2 is here, and as good as ever.

Absolutely outstanding. A must have. Period.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: September 11, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I can't believe the number of one star reviews and that this game has only 3 and 1/2 stars rating overall. It's ridiculous.

This game is simply a must have. If you loved HL2 you'll love this. Everything about it is outstanding: the gameplay, the drama, the humanity (and thats rare for a video game) and yes, the pathos and horror too (there are parts that will scare you witless). Everything here is wonderful. The AI, the superb animation and gameplay, the set piece battles are a wonder too and they've tightened up the gameplay making the puzzles harder - they're not impossible, it just takes a little thinking about and you're there. The setpieces such as the battle with the gunship are simply wonderful, and Alyx even wisecracks about your success.

Which takes us on the best achievement of Episode 1 - the wonderful Alyx Vance. Of course shes appeared in HL2 before but here she's fully realised as a character and while she may not be the most beautiful woman you've ever met it becomes apparent as time goes on that it's her inner beauty that really shines out - and you really come to feel for her as a fully realised character and she's simply a marvellous achievement.

People have complained that the gameplay is a little short, and maybe thats true, but it's simply some of the best gameplay you'll find, ever. At this price it's a bargain.

Pick up a copy of this soon to be classic series now. You'll never know what you're missing if you don't.

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