Half-Life 2

[I'm Murrin]

Just you wait.

Anticitizen One is definately the toughest level yet. The underground section was a nasty one, and now I just had to quit and go back to the last save because I lost my whole squad to some hoppers. Still haven't worked out how to deal with those things safely.

[Queeaqueg]

Half-Life 2 is one of the best games that ever came out(I heard that it an average of 97% from all reviews and recnetly got in the top ten for all times greatest games) but there is one thing that is annoying, you need the internet to play. I don't have internet on my power computer and I can't it... and I really want to.

I also have a question. Headcraps have a little mouth on their belly and they jump on people's heads and take control of them. Headcraps come from Xen and have had no contact with human before they attack Earth. I have not seen a headcrap on an alien(I have seen the other aliens eat and attack them), so how do teh headcraps get their human control ability? They have had no contact with humans and don't control other life the same way... any ideas?

[I'm Murrin]

No idea. It doesn't really make sense. If they'd only appeared in HL2 you could say they were a product of combine engineering, but them being in HL1 and fully capable of making zombies of people means you can't use that explanation.

[Queeaqueg]

The only thing I have thought of so far is that they are nothing to do with the Xen aliens. I heard that Xen is not the actual world of the attacking aliens in HL(someone who is a big fan said that the Combine forced the aliens off their world to Xen but the Combine would not follow). Since nearly all 'Xen' life seem to attack and eat the headcraps... maybe the headcraps are not part of this alien race but it still doesn't give a reason how they gain their ability.

[I'm Murrin]

The idea, I think, is that the final boss of HL1 was the last of a race driven to Xen by the Combine, and he was using all the Vortigaunts from Xen as slaves (hence them fighting Gordon in HL1, but helping him in HL2).
Whether or not the headcrabs (and the boss on Xen in HL1 which is a fully mature headcrab that spawns more of them) are Xen natives isn't really clear.

[Queeaqueg]

I think that the Nihilanth, Vortigaunts, Grunts, Gargantua and Controllers are all of the same race because they seem to share similar traits in behaviour and appearance. Aliens such as Houndeyes, Bullsquids, Headcraps, Barnacles, Tentacles and Antlions seem to be different to them and it appears that they are not apart for the Nihilanth army. I think that Houndeyes, etc are the indigenous life of Xen, while the Nihilanth army are foreign who travelled to Xen to escape the Combine's rule.

When the Nihilanth army attakced and opened up the portals, these other life came through. I don't know where the aliens from Opposing Forces fit in but they seem to be part of the Nihilanth army.

But none of this answers the question of why the Headcraps can capture humans.

[Loredoctor]

The idea, I think, is that the final boss of HL1 was the last of a race driven to Xen by the Combine, and he was using all the Vortigaunts from Xen as slaves (hence them fighting Gordon in HL1, but helping him in HL2).
Whether or not the headcrabs (and the boss on Xen in HL1 which is a fully mature headcrab that spawns more of them) are Xen natives isn't really clear.

The Combine got the Vortiguants are altered them into the various troopers that were encountered in HL. The final boss served a similar role as Dr Breen. Following the teleportation experiments, the Combine became aware of Earth. The G-Man, after Nihilanth was defeated, attempted to use the Xen army (note one of cut-scenes at the end) against the Combine. That failed and then we had the Seven-Minute War.

[Queeaqueg]

What was the Seven-Minute war? Sounds like a very short war.

Yeah but Nihilanth and the Vortigaunts(plus the Grunts, Gargantua and Controllers) are of the same race which are not from Xen? The other Aliens such as Houndeyes, Bullsquids, Headcraps, Barnacles, Tentacles and Antlions are from Xen(or somewhere else)?

Anyway, how do headcraps get their host ability?

[Loredoctor]

What was the Seven-Minute war? Sounds like a very short war.

That was war between the Combine and Earth.

Yeah but Nihilanth and the Vortigaunts(plus the Grunts, Gargantua and Controllers) are of the same race which are not from Xen? The other Aliens such as Houndeyes, Bullsquids, Headcraps, Barnacles, Tentacles and Antlions are from Xen(or somewhere else)?

From what I read, they fled to Xen but the Combine got to them. The Bullsquids, Barnacles etc are not the same race. There's a theory they are used by the Combine as weapons.

Anyway, how do headcraps get their host ability?

Good question. Maybe they just evolved with it.

[I'm Murrin]

That would be the Seven Hour War.

[Loredoctor]

That would be he Seven Hour War.

[I'm Murrin]

I just completed Anticitizen One and got a good way into "Follow Freeman!"
Tough levels. Found out a little while ago that you can use the gravity gun on Manhacks, and suddenly they're not so annoying. The sniper section was bad. I lost my squad almost immediately after starting the level; when I finally got to the rooftop, I was taken down to 5 health before I got the last sniper. Luckily the next section gives you a bit of a break. Squads are getting tougher to hang on to, but the game keeps giving you a couple more when the last lot get vaporised.
Turrets were still annoying as hell. And then they went and made them tougher. I got stuck trying to work out how to get through a room with a lot of tripwires and loads of ceiling turrets, and decided to call it a day.

[I'm Murrin]

Follow Freeman! is done! Damn I was stupid in a couple of places. On the rooftop, I was hit by an ambush while stood holding a hopper mine--a Combine jumped out right in front of my face, and my immediate reaction was to press fire. Boom. Then I spent the next few seconds backing away and clicking while my brain tried to work out that I was holding an empty gravity gun. The first strider bit was great. The big house with the strider outside I managed to struggle through. The next bit, in the streets and around with striders popping up everywhere where I had to run under them, argh. And the building in the centre with Combine popping out in the rooms above me every damn second was irritating--and I was stupid enough to keep running out into the open in front of all of them.
Really, really stupid gameplay from me all round, in the streetfighting sections, I would say. Blundered my way through by pure luck.

To the Citadel!

[I'm Murrin]

The End.


"Our Benefactors" was a little too easy, I think; Dark Matter was a little tougher, but still, the gun is all-powerful, so there's less challenge.


All in all, HL2 is one of the best games I've ever played. I wouldn't normally play FPS games, but this one is just perfect--the look and feel of it, the gameplay, the way the levels are put together. It's a very easy game to just pick up and play. Conundrum: do I replay, and hone my skills, before moving on, or do I dive right into Episode One?

[Worm of Despite]

Episode 1 is similar to HL2 in difficulty, so I'd just tackle it whenever you want to. You'll replay them all, eventually.

And the best place to hone skills is a multi-player game, such as Counter-Strike.

[I'm Murrin]

Hmm. Similar to HL2 in difficulty--but is that "Our Benefactors" difficult (easy), or "Follow Freeman!" difficult (hard as hell)?


Anyway, I've started over and almost finished Route Kanal. I seem, contrary to what I believed, gotten worse at the game as my first play through went on. Still doing the running-about -in-the-open-in-enemies'-line-of-fire thing.

[aTOMiC]

The End.


"Our Benefactors" was a little too easy, I think; Dark Matter was a little tougher, but still, the gun is all-powerful, so there's less challenge.


All in all, HL2 is one of the best games I've ever played. I wouldn't normally play FPS games, but this one is just perfect--the look and feel of it, the gameplay, the way the levels are put together. It's a very easy game to just pick up and play. Conundrum: do I replay, and hone my skills, before moving on, or do I dive right into Episode One?

Just finished and I tend to agree with all of your comments, Murrin.
I'll move on to Episode 1 soon.

[I'm Murrin]

After a couple of long breaks without playing, I finally finished my replay of HL2. I don't think I've gotten any better at the game--in fact, my habit of running right into the middle of things when I should be more careful is getting worse. Anyhow, still a good game, though the final level was even easier this time around. (When I reached the reactor, it was jsut a case of hopping off the lift and immediately firing ten or twenty energy orbs into the centre--I blew it up before the gunships even had time to arrive.)


Time to finally start Episode 1.

[Nav]

I went back to this at the weekend, as I'm determined to play all the way through Episode 2 so I get the most out of the Orange Box. I was stuck near the end of Water Hazard so I decided to leave the airboat and check underneath the jetty on foot, which it turns out was exactly what I was supposed to do.

I'm in Ravenholm now, the leapers came and I keep hurting myself with exploding barrels and the gravity gun. It's quite a tricky thing to use, but I don't think there's enough ammo for you to stick to the conventional guns. Throwing saw blades with it is sweet though!

[I'm Murrin]

Yeah, Ravenholm's set up to make you use the most of the grav gun, since you just got it and need to learn.
In case you hadn't worked it out, there are also small gas cylinders lying around that will set zombies on fire when you throw them with the grav gun.


I'm working my way through Episode 1, which is pretty tough. Currently in the hospital (chapter: Urban Flight. Incidentally, I'm disappointed that the chapter titles aren't as clever as in HL2). A lot of zombies around, and the zombines are damned tough. The worst part of the game so far was Lowlife, which I had to go through with zero ammo almsot the whole way--the elevator standoff was hell.