As good as they say or just half-good?

It's testimony to Half-Life's classic nature that it was released in 1998 and has been consistently voted to be the very best game ever released (PC GAMER UK). When I first thought about reviewing this game, I didn't think it would be as good a purchase today as it was back in '98 considering the presence of some very good new games. So I played it again. I was wrong.

Half-life is an action game in the first-person shooter (FPS) perspective, and when it was released, it revolutionized the genre. Unlike other games which go through some full-motion video (FMV) eye-candy as an intro to the game, Half-Life puts you in the shoes of your character, Gordon Freeman, from the very start. The intro is made to make the game as atmospheric as possible as you site-see through the windows of the train that is transporting you around the research complex and then as you make your way to the test labs on foot... all taking place in the game's very own graphic's engine. Eventually you understand the point of it all when you see everything in its rubble form after your experiment goes somewhat wrong. As you leave the test labs you see equipment exploding, ceilings falling, and fellow scientists resuscitatitng on fallen comrades. You meet and talk to other people whom you need to progress and who in turn can help you in their own ways. But more on NPCs later.

As for the story, it's all pretty average stuff. Aliens invade and the military decides to cover up, leaving you as the lone hero to stop it all. But it's the way the game puts you through the story that is so great. You never leave the first-person perspective you start with, leaving you with a very personal impression of the game. Even through important turning points in the story, you are still Gordon and Gordon is still you. Furthermore, non-player characters (NPCs) are used far more interactively than in any game before it. If you save a scientist from a horde of marines he may reward you with an injection to boost your health. If you get a security guard to follow you he can help you further your cause against the inhuman ones.

With that we come to the action, of which there is lots. The game is intense and immensely atmospheric. Sound, echoes and reverb are used to perfection lending an aura of "you're never safe" to the game. The game itself is a tad more difficult then your average FPS, which is good since no one wants to finish a game they spent good money on, over a weekend. Furthermore, the level design is superb and believable while at the same time hiding traps and surprises. Make no mistake, you'll have to be on your toes if you want to survive this game.

But the game content itself never disappoints. One of my most loathed aspects of some games is there lack of ingenuity in transmitting information to the player to understand his surroundings. It's quite annoying when you're running along a corridor and you suddenly get zapped by an inconspicuous piece of wire sticking out of the ceiling. Or when you make a pixel-perfect jump over an endless pit only to have your leap blocked by lamp dangling from the ceiling. No, there's none of that in Half-Life. For example, there's one point where an electrical cable is protruding through the floor. To let you know that you'll be fried if you get too close, the game has a few Headcrabs (one of the enemies) crawl towards it and subsequently get zapped. Furthermore, if you get any closer part of the floor also explodes in electric excellence, making sure the point gets home. Even more satisfying is that there is more than one way you can play the game and there are often two solutions to a problem. Will you destroy a turret by shooting at it or make your way stealthily to the power switch on the floor beneath it? Although this aspect is not as developed as in more modern games, it still a good touch to an otherwise completely linear game.

The weapons and the enemies are all imaginative and well balanced. The submachine gun has a high rate of fire but is less accurate in long range. However, the Colt Magnum has pin-point accuracy and deathly power but very slow rates of fire and reload, and too small a clip for more general use. Enemies range from the Alien slaves, headcrabs, marines, and bloodthirstily accurate assassins. This is a game that never gets boring. In fact it is with regards to the enemy's AI (Artificial Intelligence) that the game truly excels. The AI is unspeakably brilliant with marines utilizing the environment to their advantage. They'd take cover, run if you damage them too much, lob grenades from afar and fight in groups. There are also occasions in the game where you get to witness aliens vs. marines battles, which is cool. Oh, and I won't even mention the assassins...

One of the concerns people had with the game was that when it was released, Half-Life was one of the most violent games of its time. However, it did lack any of the kind of realism seen in games like Soldier of Fortune. All the characters bleed and dead bodies can be popped in to pieces of meat with your weapons, but it goes to the game's credit that there is an option for Content Control in the game's menu to lower the level of blood and gore. Sexual content is non-existent.

Another great thing about Half-Life is that fans of the game have made a complete virtual community. This means you can find all sorts of modifications (whether multi-player or single-player) to increase the longevity of your investment. Once you're done with the single-player experience, you can download many multi-player add-ons including Counterstrike (which happens to be the most popular multi-player game on the internet), Day of Defeat, and Team Fortress. If you get bored of those and prefer a more private experience, then there even more single-player maps available (Hangar 16). In addition, two complete expansion packs have been released for Half-Life which go by the names Opposing Force and Blue Shift. The former lets you play from the perspective of a marine, and the latter a security guard (both of them being of a high level of quality though I'm yet to play either). By the way, the original Half-Life, Opposing Force, Blue Shift, and Counterstrike are all bundled together in a budget release called Half-Life: Generations. So you see... you should be busy for quite some time.

Overall, this game was heralded as a gaming revolution when it was released with its exceptional story-telling technique, novel use of NPCs, exquisite level design, adrenaline-pumping action, and heart-pounding atmosphere. It was and still is a classic.

Graphics: 7/10 (The look's dated now)
Sound: 9/10 (Still an inspiration for games to come)
Gameplay: 10/10 (Ditto)
Reviewer's Tilt: 10/10 (...Ditto)

Played the game? What do you think?