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Preys-World - Half-Life 2: Episode Two (spoiler free) review

Monday 15th of October, 2007 - 15:52:45 GMT

Code theft may have caused a six year gap between the first two HL games, but when the finished product arrived it took the linear FPS to new standards. The first episode arrived nearly two years later and provided the essential full stop to the final chapter in the full game, rather than a full-sized add-on providing 10-20hours more action. In short, the trilogy should be viewed as a Matrix structure with Episode Two and Three as a conclusion rather than a series in three steps.

Since this is a spoiler-free review, it's easier to talk about what hasn't changed in the last three years. The Tomb Raider-styled run and jump gameplay is all present and correct. Although the Zombies are never far away, like the original game, after two major blocks of them you get back to fighting the Combine alone, rather than Black Mesa originals. If the Zombie and crab appearances are rationed, the Manhacks literally make cameos. The new chief enemy is the one you spotted if you watched Episode Two's trailer upon completing the first part, whilst the other is a primarily underground creature with behaviour reminiscent of the Bullsquids of HL1. The creature from the teaser trailer is every bit as mean as it looks (particularly if you let it get too close) and whilst you can use any weapon on it, best leave the shotgun for anything human and use something bigger in Ep2. There's one variant of an existing weapon, otherwise your ordnance remains the same.

If you want to blaze through Episode Two, then like the first part, you'll only get five hours out of it. Rushing through it will still give the impatient/skilled player one cinematic, sublime FPS experience per hour. Even when playing non-stop, both episodes, when stretched out for maximum value and entertainment, took me nine hours to complete, with another four hours to replay favourite scenes. Thankfully, you're not restricted to travelling on foot. Your driving skills are tested again and Episode Two’s car drives faster and has better handling than the dune buggy from the full game. This lets you live out your 1970s movie car chase fantasies (or Quentin Tarantino’s recreation of them in Death Proof) to your heart's content, and also get in some practice for Grand Theft Auto IV’s inevitable use of a car as a battering ram.

What I can tell you about are the moments in between the running, gunning, crawling and crowbar-swinging. In the last three years, PC gamers have not seen another FPS with characters showing the range of emotions in the animation, married with the voice acting. There are hugs, kisses, concern, body language and wisecracks, all of which make these characters believable. Perhaps Halo 2 also managed to get near to HL2’s dramatic peak with its ruminations on religion and honour. However, Bungie’s middle chapter of its flagship trilogy only arrived on PC this year and even then, its emotional core surrounds the narrative for a blank-faced cyborg lead character.

It could be argued that you're playing a real person in Valve’s game, but since the player fills Gordon's shoes and says nothing it could be argued that the effect is the same. The newest advantage in all of Valve’s efforts is the expression of hope conveyed through the voice acting. There's a scene which brings you right back to the original Half-Life but the hope expressed by the characters makes it much more modern than just the graphical makeover which accompanies it.

Perhaps with the Xbox 360 in mind, this latest episode also features a list of achievements, some of which are mission-led, others pure fun, but finishing with less than 100%, can give you another reason to return to the episode and attempt to complete the missing objectives. As introduced in Episode One, you can also choose to replay this instalment with the developers’ commentary in the background, in the style of movie DVD extras.

The Normal skill level makes no difference to the straightforward puzzles, but the combat at the Hard setting, when it happens, will go from intense to insane. The spacing out of resources, deliberately leaving you short of health or ammunition outside of scheduled stops, adds to the feeling of being under siege and on the run. This is “The Empire Strikes Back” episode of the Half-Life universe – in this episode Alyx is a better shot and takes the time to reload more often, instead of having infinite Hollywood ammunition, but the Combine are always on your tail, including in the areas where you are given a few seconds’ false impression of safety. The general NPC characters are also smarter than in the full game or previous episode. The fight that you glimpsed in the teaser trailer for Episode Two lives up to its promise, owing no small debt to Starship Troopers and Aliens before it – but in the final version you have extra help.

After three years of the Source engine’s commercial life, the default settings are as highly polished as before. Despite of the ATi branding, my Nvidia 6800GT on default settings, 2Gb RAM and a true 2GHz single-core processor never slowed down despite the beefier, shinier gun models and the taller and more expansive outdoor levels. Dual-core system owners can raise the default resolution, certainly to 1,280 x 1,024 at least.

Instead of going to the cinema last Friday, I “watched” this add-on as I played and had a similar level of enjoyment as any slick Hollywood film, which can be made to last even longer than viewing all three Lord of the Rings films in one sitting. Half-Life 2 Episode Two gives fans another fun-sized taste of the full game but after the platforming and headcrab-busting buildup, puts you on a rollercoaster for its final stages. It sets up a darker tone (when you have time to think about it) with the true cost of war outlined in stark terms. You are verbally fed the basic outline for Episode Three – but this add-on deliberately lacks a post-credits trailer to whet our appetites and give more impact to the ending.

If you already own Half-Life 2, it’s likely that you have Episode Two anyway. If you didn't, then Valve's giveaway idea is a natural method of hooking these unconvinced people who can still play the game on four-year old PCs with some degree of success. Personally, I'd recommend you take it much slower and enjoy it if the next episode won’t arrive before Christmas 2008 at the earliest.

Whether you purchase the Orange Box or pay for it individually, don't miss out on Half-Life 2 Episode Two if you want an unashamedly linear shooter which raises the storytelling bar in the PC gaming market -again.

Score: 5 Daves!

- Kenneth Henry