Re: How Valve made Half-Life 2 and set a new standard for future games

On Thu, 14 Nov 2024 07:36:06 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:

https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2024/11/how-valve-made-half-life-2-and-set-a-new-standard-for-future-games/
>
20!??!?! What? :O

Yeah, the years go by really quickly if you don't keep an eye on 'em
;-)



I think most people here know my opinion on the matter. I don't really
think "Half Life 2" was that influential a game... at least not for
its gamey-aspect (the necessity of installing Steam to play the game,
on the other hand...).

A lot of what Valve did with "Half Life 2" was either already being
done by other developers, or was already in development. There were
other games using physics engines, both to make their games feel
cinematic and as gameplay elements. Visuals were advancing day by day
as GPUs became more powerful. Environmental storytelling was embraced
by the industry after the original "Half Life". Many other games
already mixed on-foot combat and vehicles.

"Half Life 2" was arguably a well-made game, but it wasn't really a
leader. It didn't set a new standard. It just was -in some areas-
slightly ahead of the pack, and it was quickly superceded by its
competitors. It's fame came as much from its legacy --and the fact
that it was seen as _the_ exemplar of PC gaming, much as Halo was to
the XBox-- as anything it actually _did_.

The original "Half Life"... that game was revolutionary. "Half Life
2"? It was just another game, albeit one with really great marketing.

IMHO, YMMV, etc.