HalfLife 2

[Lehesu]

Good question. If the Steam goes under, than millions have useless cds sitting on their shelves. As for me, I refuse to purchase a PC game costing 50 dollars. I remmember when it was around 40 for a brand new release, and I just can't accept the gaming industry pushing as far as the market will hold.

[discovery1]

just saw sone videos. i hate how objects float infront of freedman when he holds them.

[ICantSpellDawg]

i love copy protections when they fail

up with file sharing
down with digital tyrrany

[Somebody Else]

Got the dvd version in the Oxford Virgin Megastore.

I think the main problem for me is that my computer is too shoddy to be able to cope. And I think my dvd drive has managed to scratch the disc already.

[Somebody Else]

It appears I may have a work-around. Despite my dvd drive being as useful as sunglasses to a bat, I might just be able to get this game reinstalled, and playing.

My main problem is getting the dvd drive to recognise the disc. However, as I completed the whole Steam authentication thing, I thought up the cunning idea of downloading it via Steam. 231 minutes to go...

[Beirut]

Now is this every copy of HL2 that has this stupid non-working online registry thing, or just some special DVD (or something else) copies?

[Bob the Insane]

Now is this every copy of HL2 that has this stupid non-working online registry thing, or just some special DVD (or something else) copies?

All copies, it works like this (I think)....

You can by and get HL2 in one of two manners:

1. Get steam and steam account, perchase game via steam and download (I preloaded it prior to release). Once it is downloaded it will be unlocked by steam and will be read to play.

2. Buy game in the shops, install... Now correct me if I am wrong but it will also install steam and prompt you to create a steam account will it not? It will then authenticate your version of HL2 and activate... Once this is done you can in theory configure steam to run offline and you can continue to play HL2 without ever going onto the internet again.

[Bob the Insane]

eek! So many with problems...

Personally I had purchased via steam and preloaded via steam (and have been play CS:S for a while now too over steam)... So, being in the UK, at a little after 0800hrs Tuesday morning I fire up my machine, start up Steam and there appears the unlocking HL2 screen which takes about 20mins to perform its task!!

After that it is straight into the game 1280x960 and High settings all round and it looks and plays brilliantly...

It is not the "second coming", it is a FPS with a great story, large and realistic environments that in places really are almost photorealistic... It is definately HL2 in that it plays in the same style as HL with similar puzzles and set pieces. It has the surprize attacks, the enemy soldiers, the monsters the physical puzzles (which are seemlessly intergrated with the physics in the game) and you are always running out of ammo...

It is also a great demo of the Soruce engine showing a huge range of believable enviroments of various scales... It is 100% linear but only rarely are you aware because of this pacing and design of the story and I have not yet come across a map with poor or invisible boundries...

If anyone says there is an issue with the gfx it is because they are comparig the views to RL and not to any other game... The texture technology is simply way ahead of anything else out there, though the next generation of the Unreal engine seems to be using similar technology...

While the game is obviously made up of maps they are excellently designed giving the impression of a very large, detailed and seemless environment. An illusion true, but an expertly performed one...

As I said it is just a game in the end so if you were expecting a life altering experience you will be disappointed but it do think it is the best story driven FPS yet released and it does seriously raise the bar on what to expect on screen for future realistic graphics style games...