Posted by blombo on Feb 2, 2008 twenty past seven am
Well, sorry, but your reply is filled with assumptions that don't match my opinions, nor do they match reality.
I like games that have a good plot; but I also like games that have no plot, if it is not necessary. Half Life is a good game, but has no story whatsoever. What I don't feel comfortable with is touting a game for its plot, when it has none.
You assumed I had a "crazy run", but it is not so; I took my time, months in fact, to finish the games. I think no detail has escaped me. I played HL1, HL2, Ep.1 and Ep.2. Maybe the other ones you cited do contain "clues", but I don't think a game should span seven episodes to just to give you some "clues" about what's going on.
And, if one has got to "check the manuals", then there's is something very wrong about the way the story is told.
I wasn't expecting a formal introduction of Combines, although I have to say that this "suspension chamber" thing only adds to the lameness of the plot. Problems is, you never get to know anything about Combines. Compare them to, say, LeChuck. Have wondered why the dialogues in Monkey Island? The cut-scenes? You get to know your enemy. In Half Life, you're constantly told what to do, without ever understanding why. Gordon, do this. Gordon, do that. We have to do this. You never have a choice, or feel compelled to do something. You do what you do because you're told to.
That is why saying that Half Life has a complicated plot is laughable. It is as linear as it can be; you never, ever have multiple paths. You just follow the instructions.
As for the meaning of "Half Life"... you weren't paying attention, were you? I said 'I did discover "Half Life" to be a scientific reference to something completely unrelated'. Actually, I already knew the meaning, except in my language it's got a different name ("emivita"), and who could have imagined it was a reference to that. Still, it remains unrelated to the game; it's like calling Monkey Island "Callous feet" because Guybrush has corns.
I imagined some things from the title. I assumed Gordon had a life, which more often than not involves a family. I imagined a half life to be something in between a full life and no life. Is this so far-fetched?
Now tell me, what is, exactly, that makes you think of "Egyptian emperors" (maybe you meant Pharahos) and tsunami when you hear the name "Guybrush Threepwood"?
All in all, your conclusions are very wrong. I do enjoy complicated plots; but there is nothing to "investigate" in Half Life, as there is nothing to discover.
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Posted by blombo on Feb 2, 2008 twenty past seven am
I like games that have a good plot; but I also like games that have no plot, if it is not necessary. Half Life is a good game, but has no story whatsoever. What I don't feel comfortable with is touting a game for its plot, when it has none.
You assumed I had a "crazy run", but it is not so; I took my time, months in fact, to finish the games. I think no detail has escaped me. I played HL1, HL2, Ep.1 and Ep.2. Maybe the other ones you cited do contain "clues", but I don't think a game should span seven episodes to just to give you some "clues" about what's going on.
And, if one has got to "check the manuals", then there's is something very wrong about the way the story is told.
I wasn't expecting a formal introduction of Combines, although I have to say that this "suspension chamber" thing only adds to the lameness of the plot. Problems is, you never get to know anything about Combines. Compare them to, say, LeChuck. Have wondered why the dialogues in Monkey Island? The cut-scenes? You get to know your enemy. In Half Life, you're constantly told what to do, without ever understanding why. Gordon, do this. Gordon, do that. We have to do this. You never have a choice, or feel compelled to do something. You do what you do because you're told to.
That is why saying that Half Life has a complicated plot is laughable. It is as linear as it can be; you never, ever have multiple paths. You just follow the instructions.
As for the meaning of "Half Life"... you weren't paying attention, were you? I said 'I did discover "Half Life" to be a scientific reference to something completely unrelated'. Actually, I already knew the meaning, except in my language it's got a different name ("emivita"), and who could have imagined it was a reference to that. Still, it remains unrelated to the game; it's like calling Monkey Island "Callous feet" because Guybrush has corns.
I imagined some things from the title. I assumed Gordon had a life, which more often than not involves a family. I imagined a half life to be something in between a full life and no life. Is this so far-fetched?
Now tell me, what is, exactly, that makes you think of "Egyptian emperors" (maybe you meant Pharahos) and tsunami when you hear the name "Guybrush Threepwood"?
All in all, your conclusions are very wrong. I do enjoy complicated plots; but there is nothing to "investigate" in Half Life, as there is nothing to discover.