The beginning portions are definitely where Half-Life is strongest, which is part of why Blue Shift is so good. Blue Shift only sometimes mimics Half-Life's incredible horror atmosphere, but from start to finish, it's got a pretty limited arsenal. Yes - the huge arsenal is really fun in Half-Life - but it's also a product of that game's obsession with army man combat in its latter half. Blue Shift is much more restrained, and with a crisp, appetizing length of only some 2.5 hours, this is a Half-Life expansion for those who'd like a clever little "summary" of the original game. Half-Life takes a lot of influence from the cinematic medium, and Blue-Shift refines the game experience down into a movie-length, one-sitting side-story.