"Gordon Freeman, in the flesh, or rather in the Hazard Suit."
god what a fucking game man. still holds up surprisingly well once you get past the graphics hurdle. one of the best examples of gameplay and story meshing together in a fun and interesting way that is unique to video games. there are no cutscenes in this game, you are always fully in control of Gordon, and that is one hell of an achievement even to this day. the heaps of praise Half-Life recieves is 100% deserved.
now obviously, it isn't perfect, especially nowadays. there's the inherant jank present in GoldSrc, tho it can be exploited for fun tricks (see any Half-Life speedrun), there's some redundant weapons and the MP5 and shotgun are a bit too good so you end up using those weapons a lot while negleticing the other weapons. plus some weapons like the snarks and hivehand feel very gimmicky but they're still fun. subtitles are sorely missed, and the game doesn't make it obvious that you should be cautious and really think about your moves during combat because of the Quake-like movement (due to GoldSrc being a modified Quake-engine) and the ability to save scum. I don't mind the platforming usually but some chapters (Residue Processing and Xen) really get on my nerves. Xen (the section not the chapter) in general isn't very fun but it's also not as bad as people made it out to be and I sort of like Interloper. but yea this whole ending segment could really do with an overhaul.
however, all of my complaints pale, they squeal in comparaison to the qualities and innovations Half-Life brought to the table. it is endlessly replayable and always fun. if you tried Half-Life and didn't like it, try again, you owe it to yourself to experience this behemith of a game firsthand. it is the closest gaming's ever gotten to break into mainstream and make people realize the unique experiences video games can offer, and for good reason.
god what a fucking game man. still holds up surprisingly well once you get past the graphics hurdle. one of the best examples of gameplay and story meshing together in a fun and interesting way that is unique to video games. there are no cutscenes in this game, you are always fully in control of Gordon, and that is one hell of an achievement even to this day. the heaps of praise Half-Life recieves is 100% deserved.
now obviously, it isn't perfect, especially nowadays. there's the inherant jank present in GoldSrc, tho it can be exploited for fun tricks (see any Half-Life speedrun), there's some redundant weapons and the MP5 and shotgun are a bit too good so you end up using those weapons a lot while negleticing the other weapons. plus some weapons like the snarks and hivehand feel very gimmicky but they're still fun. subtitles are sorely missed, and the game doesn't make it obvious that you should be cautious and really think about your moves during combat because of the Quake-like movement (due to GoldSrc being a modified Quake-engine) and the ability to save scum. I don't mind the platforming usually but some chapters (Residue Processing and Xen) really get on my nerves. Xen (the section not the chapter) in general isn't very fun but it's also not as bad as people made it out to be and I sort of like Interloper. but yea this whole ending segment could really do with an overhaul.
however, all of my complaints pale, they squeal in comparaison to the qualities and innovations Half-Life brought to the table. it is endlessly replayable and always fun. if you tried Half-Life and didn't like it, try again, you owe it to yourself to experience this behemith of a game firsthand. it is the closest gaming's ever gotten to break into mainstream and make people realize the unique experiences video games can offer, and for good reason.