Pro- Terrific story and plot, exciting gameplay (and customizable), great level design, impressive A.I. (for the most part), great challange but not frustrating, good character design, and just plain fun all around. Con- for the most part on the A.I. sometimes alies can act very stupid and will shoot you if you get between them and their target, or be oblivious to the fact that there is a badguy there shooting them, voice acting is a bit retarded and graphics, while impressive at the time, shows its age, and the auto targeting system is a blessing for the greater part, it can be a curse as well but very rare. But for anyone looking for a true Halo killer game franchise, look no furture than HALF-LIFE.
Perhaps one of the best first person shooters of all time, Half-Life comes alive with cool and exciting environments, interesting characters, fun and creative gameplay, customizable settings, and tough enemies. You begin the game as a researcher and it's your first day on the job at a secret government research facility set in the American southwest desert. Of course this research goes wrong and now the entire facility is crawling with aliens. What to do now? Pickup the nearest crowbar and first-aid kit survive the best you can. Quickly you'll find a handgun and shotgun and as the game progresses an assault rifle with a grenade launcher (my favorite) rocket launchers, landmines, sticky bombs and even alien weapons later in the game. Other characters will help and fight with you at times. The researchers will give you first aid or help you solve puzzles and the security guards will fight and they hold their own. The aliens early on aren't too tough but become more difficult as the game progresses. The human enemies however are very tough. The government sends in special forces to clean up the mess and they've come to kill aliens and humans alike. The A.I. is very good as you can tell your friends what to do they'll do it and the enemies especially the special forces will talk to each other and attack you with coordination or take cover and shoot at you. This where the grenade launcher comes in the handy. The environment really stands out as the game takes place mostly inside this research facility which is quite diverse interesting to make your way through. Watch out for traps set by enemies. Later in the game you'll need to venture outside into the desert. What I like about this game is that it has good lighting, no scrambling for flashlights, most games like this is in the dark. Another good thing is the length, as exploring this vast facility seems to never end. This is great first person shooter from this generation of gaming or for any generation. A classic like this never gets old if you you've never played or have but want to relive it's definitely worth playing.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
20 Years later... Half-Life was a great game, and still is a great game. It satisfies every science-fiction, and fast-paced action urges all in one, while also still keeping your interest with the mystery of it's world. Between the portals, the Xen world, the ominous G-man, and the funny scientist you can save or watch them turn into grind-meat, Half-Life just can't get old unless it's the only game you play which is unlikely these days. The graphics are late 90's what else is there to say. I personally love the simple polys and turn off the HD models once in a while just to remember the original look and to go back in time. I loved Quake and Doom as well since I was 10, and started Half-Life later on in High school actually in 2014 when I was 16 or so. My cousin gave me the PS2 version, and I wasn't attracted to it immediately because I felt it would never live up to Quake 1 at least. Boy was I wrong! The love and praise for this series was obviously well deserved and I'm glad I realized it eventually. Half-Life is even better than Quake and Doom, I know it was made a bit after each one so it has technological advantages. BUT! I love how the game feels alive, the ai isn't F.E.A.R level, or super smart but they are fun to mess around with nonetheless. I replayed this game more times than I ever did with the Quake and Doom series. What Half-Life has that these games do not, are actually interesting characters, plots, and concepts. Gman is an easy character to immediately be curious about, Gordon Freeman is a badass through and through even though he may seem like your typical silent protaganist, he's you sort of. The scientist are not unique but are sometimes funny and sympathetic figures strangely. I always try to save as many scientist and guards as I can, usually I can save 100% of all the characters which is what makes the game feel great. There will be scripted events but you can definetly break the scripted events and it just adds to the fun. Most shoooters don't have this extra side sweet. The gunplay is MAD ADDICTING! The weapons are all unique and all have a distinct purpose. The impact of them against the Xen and soldiers feel 100% fluid. The blood and gore is like Quake 1, not too extreme though I'm sure there are good mods to make it even bloodier. If you turn off the HD Models, your M16 will change to the original SMG MP5, the Glock will turn into the Beretta, the shotgun is the same except more blocky. Now this may seem like a weird aspect to cover but for me I like when I have the option to play like the original first version. I'm an originalist to the T. I play with the HD Models sometimes, but I have to play with the low poly ugly original stuff too. I'm not so picky like other people when it comes to HD, beautiful, blah blah. I appreciate games in their rawest, imperfect form! Half-Life is a must play, and if you haven't touched this masterpiece, you are missing out big time!Read full review
Verified purchase: No
In an age in which anyone can not only play "Half-Life" in HD on PC, but also play the fantastic improved remake "Black Mesa" on PC, you might wonder why anyone would want to play the old Playstation 2 port. Well, because it's fun, of course! In all seriousness, the game looks pretty good when played on a backwards-compatible PS3 on an HD TV. It offers widescreen support and full control customization, meaning the controls can be reworked to modern standards. If you prefer console to PC (like I do) and still want to experience Half-Life, then this is a legitimately good option.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
The reason I decided to buy Half-Life on PS2 was after purchasing the Orange Box for PS3 and playing through each of the 5 games on it, including Half-Life 2 and all of its extra episodes. That title absolutely blew me away and after playing through most of the original now, I can say it is just as fun and captivating a game as its sequel. The game play is revolutionary for its time and you keep wanting to know what the hell's going on in the story and when you find out, it's great. I recommend this game for gamer who enjoys first-person-shooters that offer a bit of a challenge and make you think a little bit instead of just blasting everything in sight. I have found that this title is a bit more difficult than part two, so don't expect an easy sail-through. Gordon Freeman has to be one of the greatest protagonists in all of gaming and after playing Half-Life, you'll be hooked for the entire series.Read full review
Graphics hold up very well, controls are great and they even have mouse + keyboard support. If you can't play on PC for whatever reason, this port will absolutely scratch the itch. I'm surprised how well the controls work (auto jump+crouch and all)! One of the best, a must have!
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
This game contains both the original Half-Life (with hi-def models installed) and a co-op spin-off called "Half-Life: Decay." HL1 is ported about as well as you could expect to the PS2, especially considering it was ported in the early stages of the PS2's life cycle. Hi-def models are on by default, with no way I could find to change them. There is also a very welcome quicksave feature, which is extremely helpful. If you haven't played Half-Life, I'd recommend playing it on PC first, but if you don't have a PC up to 1998 standards, go with this version. As for Decay, this is the reason I bought the game even though I own the PC version. A PS2 exclusive, it lets you and a friend play as the two scientists who were directly responsible for the Black Mesa incident. Your story occasionally overlaps with Gordon Freeman's, but it works well enough on its own. There's even a bonus level that lets you play as Vortigaunts. All in all, this is mostly a good buy for the hardcore fan who's played all the PC expansions but isn't too much of a purist to enjoy the new storyline.Read full review
Half Life is a great shooter story. The whole campaign gives the player many hours of fun. It's 3 times as long as most shooter campaigns, and isn't easy either. Solving puzzles and getting past large groups of enemies is challenging, especially with the few checkpoints. Using security guards and scientists to get past doors, avoiding hazards like radiation, and saving ammo are some examples. There is also an additional co-op campaign you can do with a friend, and a pvp mode where 2 players can vs each other. This has to be one of the greatest PS2 games I have ever played. Valve does not disappoint.
My 14-year-old son earned this game. I just did the ordering. He says the graphics are better than what he expected, and the game play is awesome. He had seen a video of someone playing the game, before we ordered it, and he said it looked pretty good, but when he actually got the game and played it himself, he was impressed by its quality.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
What time can never take away from this game is how good it is. Simply a very good game to play forever. And the fact that, after over 20 years, it's still better than most modern games. Especially with the standards continuing to only go down. This is also a very long game and the amount of different environments and situations it manages to bring one after another without losing any momentum is also impressive and completely unparalleled by today's games. And you never leave your character's point of view, it's mostly like a long adventure from point A to point B with nothing that would really break up the experience, which is an underused way of making a game. It makes an adventure so memorable and you'll often think back about the earlier moments and how you ended up where you are now. This experience was even better in the sequel with a larger variety of environments and even more distance traveled. I onky dislike the absolutely terrible Xen part of the game. I find it quite disastrous and easily the worst part of the game. Take me back to Black Mesa, please. Such a contrast to the excellent Black Mesa part.Read full review
Verified purchase: No
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